African American

Cultures of Resistance

Directed by: Iara Lee
Produced by: George Gund

Does each gesture really make a difference? Can music and dance be weapons of peace? In 2003, on the eve of the Iraq war, director Iara Lee embarked on a journey to better understand a world increasingly embroiled in conflict and, as she saw it, heading for self-destruction. After several years, travelling over five continents, Iara encountered growing numbers of people who committed their lives to promoting change. This is their story. From IRAN, where graffiti and rap became tools in fighting government repression, to BURMA, where monks acting in the tradition of Gandhi take on a dictatorship, moving on to BRAZIL, where musicians reach out to slum kids and transform guns into guitars, and ending in PALESTINIAN refugee camps in LEBANON, where photography, music, and film have given a voice to those rarely heard, CULTURES OF RESISTANCE explores how art and creativity can be ammunition in the battle for peace and justice.

LICENSE	PRICE
University and College (with PPR*)	$295
K-12, Public Libraries, Non-profits & Government (with PPR*)	$150
Public Libraries (without PPR*)	$39.99
Home Viewing (without PPR*)	$20

* Public Performance Rights. See Licenses/Policy and Prices for more info.

Every Child Is Born A Poet

"The deeply felt resonance of "EVERY CHILD IS BORN A POET" derives from Piri Thomas' unique ability to connect with his own interior life of feelings, and then to verbalize them through his art to the rest of the world."
– Jon Gartenberg

A fiery mix of documentary, drama, & spoken-word poetry, EVERY CHILD IS BORN A POET explores the life and work of Piri Thomas, the Afro-Cuban-Puerto Rican author of the classic autobiographical novel Down These Mean Streets. The film traces Thomas’ path from childhood to manhood in New York City’s Spanish Harlem, El Barrio, from the 1930's through the 1960’s – from home life during the Great Depression, to membership in barrio youth gangs, from a life of crime through six years spent in prison to his emergence as a writer.

Special Educational 16 Page Study Guide Included

Growin' Up Not A Child enters the violent living conditions of urban America and exposes communal violence on a scale that we never thought was possible in the U.S. Filmed in Chicago, it follows the lives of children living in dangerous communities who are making decisions that will affect the rest of their lives.

Academy Award-nominated LEGACY is the unflinching chronicle of one family’s triumphant journey out of poverty and despair. Touchingly narrated by Nickcole Collins, a teenage girl wise beyond her years, the film follows the Collins family over five years as they slowly pull themselves out of the haze of poverty, drug addiction, and violence that plagues their public housing project in Chicago.

OMAR & PETE is a compelling and highly personal film that examines the social, economic, and personal barriers two ex-offenders face as they try to reintegrate into their communities and families. Following the two long-time friends for several years after what they hope will be their final prison release, the film reveals two divergent paths as one wrestles with addiction and fear while the other finds success and freedom through helping others.