Louisville mourns the passing of a legend

Learning from pandemics of the past

This engaging film tells the story of Walt Whitman’s remarkable life (1819-1892), the turbulent era in which he lived, and the timeless poetry he created. Interweaving narration and dramatic readings with captivating period music, insights from scholars, and photography filmed in key locations, this documentary brings to life Whitman’s unique character and poems.

With the Galveston landing of U.S. Army Gen. Gordon Granger in 1865, slavery in Texas ended. African bondsmen became freedmen, and women and children likewise became African Americans. Many left the plantations to join freedom colonies; others sought out opportunities in cities and towns. Today, the consequences of gentrification and rising property values challenge new generations.

Life and history in East Texas Timber region

Directed by renowned independent filmmaker Kevin Willmott and narrated by acclaimed broadcast journalist Bill Kurtis, the film: William Allen White: What’s the Matter with Kansas, offers a modern perspective about one of America’s most illustrious figures. William Allen White, a journalistic giant who advised presidents and world leaders, befriended the greatest thinkers of his time, and was never shy about tackling the most controversial and complex issues.

When a daughter of the South, director Frances Causey, set out to find causes for the continuing racial divisions in the United States, she discovers that the politics of slavery didn’t end after the Civil War. In an astonishingly candid look at the history of anti-black racism in the United States, “The Long Shadow” traces the imposition of white privilege and its ultimate manifestation: slavery.

“Our American Family: The Kurowskis” presents the story of a woman born and raised on the Oneida Reservation in Wisconsin married to the son of Polish immigrants. At the time, Native Americans had been pressured to forsake their heritage and assimilate into the culture of their white neighbors. Following a tragedy at a paper mill, the Kurowski family moves to the center of the reservation where their selflessness strengthens the community and prepares the next generation to support their Oneida heritage.

Sacramento resident Sharon Styles explores the history of her family, and a once-forgotten cemetery near a small Texas town. Experience Sharon’s emotional journey to find her roots and seeks answers about her family’s place in American history.

Inventing America brings our Founding Fathers back to life in a TV talk show before a live audience. In Episode 3, "Liberty for All," James Madison (John Douglas Hall), Thomas Jefferson (Bill Barker), Alexander Hamilton (Hal Bidlack) and Patrick Henry (Richard Schumann) reveal the conflicts and infighting behind the new U.S. Constitution and how that led to the Bill of Rights. The program features a Q&A with college students in which the Founders apply the Bill of Rights to our own time. It concludes with Henry's famous "Give me liberty, or give me death" speech that inspired the idea of America in the first place.

The first half of the 1900’s represents the last era of American life that, for most families, began largely unchanged from the generations that came before. To sustain their farm and dairy delivery in Gilford, NH, Charles and Aurora Bolduc taught their 13 growing children the values of hard work and helping others. Also owners of the world's longest continuously operating maple syrup operation, they carry on a centuries-old tradition of perseverance required to distill 30 gallons of sap into a single gallon of syrup.

Winner to date of five international festival awards and a Telly Award in documentary film, Voices for Freedom – The Hyers Sisters’ Legacy chronicles the lives of Sacramento's Hyers Sisters -- African-American opera prodigies who toured the nation to acclaim from the 1871 to 1894 and championed human rights in works that changed American Music Theater forever. The Hyers were celebrated in touring opera nationwide from 1871-73, but in 1876 -- perilous times, when touring blackface minstrels denigrated African Americans -- they stood up and became "voices" for the dignity of their people. Through beloved music-dramatic works (now called the first American musicals) they depicted black life with dignity to their mainstream audiences for the first time, changing many minds and hearts.. The film gives insights into times of lynching, Chinese and black persecution, and Jim Crow while it presents colorful excerpts from opera, music theater, period song, and spirituals sung by internationally acclaimed artists. It is hosted by opera superstar Denyce Graves and is enriched with montages, enactments, a hip-hop poet, historical narration, and informed commentary that shed light on our lives today.

Meet Mary Pleasant is the daring saga of a 19th-century African-American woman, born a slave and raised in Nantucket, who became an international abolitionist, a prosperous entrepreneur, and a civil-rights activist whose work helped alter modern-day civil-rights law. Now called “The Mother of Civil Rights in California,” Pleasant--as activist and individual--was a Martin Luther King, a Malcolm X, and a Rosa Parks combined; she could love across boundaries of race and class while fighting for racial equality, human rights, and dignity for her people. Her life thus can be important today in healing our divisions as a people.

A follow-up to Inventing America: Making a Nation, Inventing America: Making a Government brings our Founding Fathers back to life in a TV talk show filmed before a live audience. Episode 2 tells the story behind the Constitutional Convention of 1787 – four momentous months that changed the world. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin, Gouverneur Morris and George Washington discuss the conflicts and compromises that led to creating the world’s most enduring republic. While imagined and presented as a retrospective, the conversation is based on fact, using the Founders’ actual words. Created by Milton Nieuwsma and filmed by Zach Liniewski and Philip A. Lane, two-time Emmy Award-winners from previous collaborations, the show was recorded at Hope College in Holland, Michigan. The host and moderator is Fred Johnson, associate professor of history at Hope College. The director is John K.V. Tammi, professor emeritus of theatre and founder of Hope College’s acclaimed Summer Repertory Theatre.

Championing but not practicing equality

The story of a devastating series of storms in the Great Plains. In 1949, Nebraska, Colorado, South Dakota and Wyoming were hammered by blizzards lasting from January to April. Wyoming was one of the hardest hit states. But for all the tragedy and loss, suffering and death, there was also hope and heroism, unselfish sacrifice and generosity. The blizzard brought out the best in people. Wyoming citizens from all walks of life worked together and demonstrated exceptional ingenuity in the face of dire circumstances.

Set in the challenging environment of a rust belt metropolis, Let’s Have Some Church Detroit Style introduces 25 men and women singing in an all-star community choir. In this film filled with glorious music, the Hallelujah Singers and their charismatic director, Dr. E. LaQuint Weaver, show us that in a city recovering from bankruptcy, wealth is not always counted in dollars and cents. The film’s narrative portraits of seven choir members, young and old, reveal that their community, convictions, and music sustain and enrich them.

The first half of the 1900s represents the last era of American life that, for most families, began largely unchanged from the generations that came before. Courage brought 17-year-old Jacob May to the US from Germany in 1879 in search of a better life. That same courage enabled his family to rescue 200 Jews from Nazi Germany. Moving from poverty to prosperity, the May Hosiery Mill grew through three generations to contribute commerce and compassion within the Nashville community and beyond. Deeply committed to one another, bolstered by good humor, theirs is a story of fearless hope and courage.

The man historians have dubbed our nation's most powerful vice-president

Inventing America: Making a Nation brings our Founding Fathers back to life in a TV talk show filmed before a live audience. Episode 1 features three delegates to the Second Continental Congress—Thomas Jefferson (Bill Barker), Benjamin Franklin (John Hamant) and John Adams (Sam Goodyear)—discussing the lead-up to the Declaration of Independence. A fourth delegate, John Dickinson (Rodney TeSlaa), who refused to sign the document, reveals the conflict behind this historic event..

The first half of the 1900’s represents the last era of American life that, for most families, began largely unchanged from the generations that came before. For generations, the Clark family of Frankford, DE has shown tremendous support of one another as members faced hard times with tender loyalty. "Our American Family: The Clarks" traces the lives of this African-American family with seven children as they employed humor, resourcefulness and respect for all through the Depression, WWII, and racial tension.

The first half of the 1900’s represents the last era of American life that, for most families, began largely unchanged from the generations that came before. OUR AMERICAN FAMILY: THE FURUTAS Through hard work, the Furutas, a Japanese American family of Wintersburg, CA established a successful goldfish farm, only to have their business devastated and family separated in the wake of WWII. Following years in an Arizona relocation camp, their indomitable spirit prevails as they return home and band together to pursue the American dream a second time.

The first half of the 1900’s represents the last era of American life that, for most families, began largely unchanged from the generations that came before. OUR AMERICAN FAMILY: THE BARRERAS From the darkness of a coal mine in New Mexico to vibrant beauty under the California sun, Our American Family: The Barreras Family provides a compelling narrative of unwavering commitment to family. Life in the remote company-owned town of Madrid in the 1920s and '30s was a mixture of hard, dangerous work offset by the joy of baseball and celebrations. With the closing of the mine in the early '40s, the extended family re-established itself in southern California by living frugally and powerfully supporting one another through challenges.

The first half of the 1900’s represents the last era of American life that, for most families, began largely unchanged from the generations that came before. OUR AMERICAN FAMILY: THE SMITHS profiles Willie and Rena Smith of Goldthwaite, Texas and their seven children. The film tells the story of a family whose patriarch dies at an early age leaving the mother to raise seven children ages 18 months to 14 years old. After trying for years to make a living on a small farm in Goldthwaite, Rena Smith sets her sights on Abilene. There she believes a better life awaits her children through greater educational and vocational opportunities as well as a richer social and spiritual life OUR AMERICAN FAMILY: THE SMITHS is a story of perseverance, determination and the deep bonds that are forged in the face of relentless hardship.

The first half of the 1900’s represents the last era of American life that, for most families, began largely unchanged from the generations that came before. OUR AMERICAN FAMILY – THE YOUNGS captures the voices of the generation that experienced this simpler time and the change that followed. The film profiles Darwyn Young, his wife Pauline and their eight children who labored as tenant farmers while nurturing a dream of one day owning their own land. The documentary chronicles their family journey, where reliance upon one another and their faith were the glue that held the family together through the extreme hardships of the Depression era and the Great War. Day to day life of work and play is interspersed with stories that allow viewers to relate to this American family and understand the deep bonds of love and sacrifice that have been passed down through the generations...and discover a bit of their own family along the way. OUR AMERICAN FAMILY – THE YOUNGS serves as a mirror and seeks to inspire families to capture their own stories - -before those voices are gone.