In this monumental documentary, veteran Indian filmmaker Anand Patwardhan explores how India’s political climate has moved dramatically away from the nonviolent teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. Organized in chapters that move from the past to the present, Reason unflinchingly chronicles the rise of right-wing extremism and recent instances of violence, yet concludes with a message of cautious optimism.
In this monumental documentary, veteran Indian filmmaker Anand Patwardhan explores how India’s political climate has moved dramatically away from the nonviolent teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. Organized in chapters that move from the past to the present, Reason unflinchingly chronicles the rise of right-wing extremism and recent instances of violence, yet concludes with a message of cautious optimism. The screening includes a 15-minute intermission.
This remarkable documentary chronicles the late 20th century into the 21st, as experienced by a woman who might be the original news junkie. Marion Stokes (1929–2012) became known as a passionate activist, articulately espousing her leftist views on local television in Philadelphia.
Recorder pulls you into her secret life, revealing that she spent decades obsessively recording TV programs around the clock. From the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis to the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, Stokes captured revolutions, wars, triumphs, catastrophes, bloopers, talk shows, and commercials on 70,000 VHS tapes. A second marriage brought wealth, but she ultimately became a recluse who saw her life’s work to be protecting the truth by archiving everything on TV.
Ghosts of Sugar Land examines the radicalization of a young American Muslim. Through interviews with his friends, the documentary tells the story of “Mark,” who converted to Islam before college and became radicalized shortly thereafter. A number of years ago, through Facebook posts, “Mark” stated that he crossed over from Turkey to the “Islamic State.” His friends from Sugar Land, Texas—all masked to protect their identities—hypothesize about what may have happened that led their friend to join ISIS. Ghosts of Sugar Land won the Nonfiction Jury Award for Short Film at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival.
Please join us on January 29th for a film screening of this powerful movie.
Come share an article with us on the last Friday of the month. Bring a sack lunch and articles clipped from newspapers, magazines, journals or online publications. Anything related to discrimination, oppression and all forms of racism. Join us in a lively discussion and contribute your ideas and materials to the Center's tool kit.
Controversial upon its release, the first feature-length film of the modern women’s movement looks at female socialization through a peek into the lives of six women, ages 4 to 35, and the forces that shape them: teachers, counselors, advertising, music, and marriage. The film was widely used by consciousness-raising groups to generate interest and help explain feminism to a skeptical society. Viewers now have a chance to see how much has changed and how much remains the same.
Nominated for Best Documentary Feature, Seeing Red recounts the experiences of ordinary Americans who joined the Communist Party, and the high price many of them paid during the Red Scare in the 1950s. Compiled from more than 400 interviews with former and current Party members, the film delivers an engaging, funny, and human portrait of 50 years of activism. Iconic folk singer Pete Seeger and a dozen other members share personal stories that take on a special resonance today.
Richard Wright’s widely praised 1940 novel exposed the injustices of Black urban life. Bigger Thomas,in prison for murder and sentenced to death, reflects back on the circumstances that led to his incarceration. This new restoration of the 1951 screen adaptation, in the film-noir genre, stars author Richard Wright as Bigger Thomas, and is being released in its original length for the first time. This new restoration of the 1951 film version is preceded by a special filmed introduction by film historians Eddie Muller (Film Noir Foundation) and Jacqueline Najuma Stewart, courtesy of Turner Classic Movies.
In March 1972, an estimated 10,000 Black politicians, activists, artists, and performers congregated at the National Black Political Convention in Gary, Indiana. Attendees included Amiri Baraka, Dick Gregory, Isaac Hayes, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Coretta Scott King, and Bobby Seale. William Greaves (1926–2014), the established documentarian of Black history, culture and politics, directed a camera crew and captured it all. Narrated by Sidney Poitier with poetry recited by Harry Belafonte, the film was thought at the time to be too radical for television broadcast and was drastically edited. Now restored to its original length, this essential documentary reveals a rousing, at times contentious, yet undeniably significant historical event.
For the Houston Cinema Arts Festival 2020, Houston Cinema Arts Society features virtual and drive-in screenings of films in addition to live stream performances, interactive experiences, and Q&A and panels. This year, HCAF celebrates "Urbana," inspired by the globally popular Spanish-language genre música Urbana, which has its origin in African and the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
For the Houston Cinema Arts Festival 2020, Houston Cinema Arts Society features virtual and drive-in screenings of films in addition to live stream performances, interactive experiences, and Q&A and panels. This year, HCAF celebrates "Urbana," inspired by the globally popular Spanish-language genre música Urbana, which has its origin in African and the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
For the Houston Cinema Arts Festival 2020, Houston Cinema Arts Society features virtual and drive-in screenings of films in addition to live stream performances, interactive experiences, and Q&A and panels. This year, HCAF celebrates "Urbana," inspired by the globally popular Spanish-language genre música Urbana, which has its origin in African and the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
For the Houston Cinema Arts Festival 2020, Houston Cinema Arts Society features virtual and drive-in screenings of films in addition to live stream performances, interactive experiences, and Q&A and panels. This year, HCAF celebrates "Urbana," inspired by the globally popular Spanish-language genre música Urbana, which has its origin in African and the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
You are invited to join an online discussion series on Thursdays built around 15-minute videos featuring interviews with US faith leaders, representatives of climate-impacted communities from the global South, and presentations by UN officials and other experts. The videos walk viewers through four key climate policy issues that intersect with universal faith concerns for […]
Join other Christians to celebrate Earth Day by participating in a streamed pre-recorded creation-focused worship service. Listen to the wisdom, song, and stories from our fellow Creatures, human and non-human. The Rev. Dr. Carmelo Santos will share the message of the day. This 45-minute worship service is in English with full Spanish translation, and does […]
Join other Christians to celebrate Earth Day by participating in a streamed pre-recorded creation-focused worship service. Listen to the wisdom, song, and stories from our fellow Creatures, human and non-human. The Rev. Dr. R. Guy Erwin will share the message of the day. This 45-minute worship service is in English with full Spanish translation, and […]
You are invited to join an online discussion series built around 15-minute videos featuring interviews with US faith leaders, representatives of climate-impacted communities from the global South, and presentations by UN officials and other experts. The videos walk viewers through four key climate policy issues that intersect with universal faith concerns for vulnerable and marginalized […]
Join us to celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with a free screening of Emmy-nominated film A Village Called Versailles, on Thursday, May 11, 2023, 12:00 to 2:00 PM, 3412 Crawford Street, Houston 77004. In a New Orleans neighborhood called Versailles, a tight-knit group of Vietnamese Americans overcame obstacles to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, only […]
Join us for a screening and discussion of The Letter, a gorgeously filmed story featuring scenes from around the world that puts a human face on climate change. The Letter tells the story of the Laudato Si’ encyclical letter by Pope Francis through the eyes of frontline leaders battling the ecological crisis across continents. A […]
