An examination of efforts in the United States to tighten regulations on commercial dog kennels, known as 'puppy mills,' where animals are kept without adequate regard for their welfare.
"The Atheist Experience," produced in Austin, Texas, is the only atheist TV show in the United States. Every Sunday afternoon, two atheists debate callers for one hour, on camera. "Mission Control Texas" portrays the show, its protagonists, and the discussions between the hosts and callers. The debates between believers and skeptics are funny, touching, and shocking in turn, and they're interspersed with footage of the very public religious displays common in the state of Texas. The film is an intimate, concentrated, and entertaining insight into the culture wars, and is sure to provoke inspiration as well as frustration, no matter which side of the divide you fall on.
Dubbed “The Cannibal Cop,” former NYPD officer Gilberto Valle was charged with conspiring to kidnap and eat women but argued it was all a fantasy. His story made headlines both for its disturbing details and its potential to kick off a trend of thought-policing across the nation. Featuring intimate interviews with Valle and insights from experts, Thought Crimes explores if someone can be found guilty for their most dangerous thoughts.
The world knows Paul Newman as an Academy Award winning actor with a fifty-plus year career as one of the most prolific and revered actors in American Cinema. He was also well known for his philanthropy; Newman's Own has given more than four hundred and thirty million dollars to charities around the world. Yet few know the gasoline-fueled passion that became so important in this complex, multifaceted man's makeup. Newman’s deep-seated passion for racing was so intense it nearly sidelined his acting career. His racing career spanned thirty-five years; Newman won four national championships as a driver and eight championships as an owner. Not bad for a guy who didn't even start racing until he was forty-seven years old.
A documentary about Caroll Spinney who has been Sesame Street's Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch since 1969. At 78-years-old, he has no intention of stopping.
The first name in skateboarding footwear and apparel introduces its highly anticipated first-ever feature-length global skateboarding video, PROPELLER. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Greg Hunt and featuring full parts from some of the biggest names in modern skateboarding alongside appearances from legends and true pioneers, PROPELLER presents a sweeping snapshot of modern skateboarding that only Vans can deliver.
Groundbreaking documentary, "With a Kite," takes an inside look at the growing sport of kiteboarding through the lives and lifestyles of a group of core pro riders against the backdrop of one of the sport's most respected competitions, the Triple-S Invitational live event.
Between 1900 and 1920 more than 14 million immigrants arrived in the US, like Howard Zinn's parents. They came fleeing poverty or war, or racism, or religious persecution. They dreamed of a promised land, of wealth, or simply of a better life.
RADICAL GRACE follows three fearless nuns who risk their place in the Catholic Church to follow another higher calling: social justice. When the Vatican reprimands the sisters – citing their “radical feminism” – they become the spiritual and symbolic center of a battle for the heart of the Catholic Church. From their cross-country Nuns on the Bus tour, to serving those on the margins, to a continued struggle for women’s religious equality under Pope Francis, these sisters are transforming American politics — and the Church itself.
A people's struggle to save the animal at the heart of their culture. For centuries the Bunong indigenous people on the Cambodian-Vietnamese border lived with elephants, believing they shared the same destiny. Today, as the forests and rivers both man and animal depend on are threatened, their fates seem even more inseparable. Last of the Elephant Men follows over a period of time several members of the tribe as they attempt to save the animal that once defined their way of life and may hold the key to their own survival.
'Country: Portraits of an American Sound' is a documentary film that explores the history and culture of country music through the lens of photography, which has portrayed the ideals, lifestyle and personalities of country music artists for over 80 years. The film features imagery and commentary from Grand Ole Opry photographer Les Leverett, the late celebrity photographer Leigh Wiener, documentary photographer Henry Horenstein, iconic music photographers Henry Diltz and Raeanne Rubenstein, and contemporary photographers David McClister and Michael Wilson. Over a dozen country music artists also appear, including Rosanne Cash, Roy Clark, Merle Haggard, Lyle Lovett, Charley Pride, LeAnn Rimes, Kenny Rogers, Tanya Tucker, The Band Perry and Keith Urban. The film weaves iconic images, historical footage and over 25 country music hits into a dynamic look at this uniquely American sound.
Thousands of years ago a special, genetically advanced race of beings came to Earth. They were seen as Gods by primitive man and worshipped. They set themselves apart. Some mated with humans and created a special race. When the beings departed, a hybrid species remained and taught mankind. The human race, which had existed for tens of thousands of years as hunters and gatherers, now had systematic knowledge on a startling level. They control our hearts and minds; they control this world; they control every individual from the depths of outer space. From the moment you are born, you are numbered and moved through a process to feed their machine. Nobody is truly free. We are all working for the masters. On rare occasions, they are revealed to the world and in the 18th century we had a glimpse of their massive power. We know them as the Illuminati. From huge international corporations, to hidden governments, from secret societies to medicine, the Illuminati are in control.
If you want to impress your dining companions in Cyprus, it's not caviar that you order, but ambelopoulia: a tiny songbird. But as this gripping doc reveals, the cost to bring such delicacies to the table is enormous. Bestselling novelist Jonathan Franzen takes a break from the world of fiction to guide us through an all too horrifying reality: tens of millions of protected migratory songbirds are illegally killed every year. Franzen, a longtime bird lover, accompanies young staffers of the Committee Against Bird Slaughter on their expeditions. With police enforcement in Southern Europe practically non-existent, they risk their lives to rescue trapped birds, and confront hostile poachers. It's a topic that proves a cultural flashpoint -- the Cypriot landowners cannot understand why a bunch of Italians can tell them what to do on their land.
When fans cannot get close to the real thing, these professionals step in to fill the void. As the old adage goes, 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.' From a celebrity impersonator convention to their lives across the country, JUST ABOUT FAMOUS chronicles the few who have had the fortune, or curse, of looking like the most recognizable people on the planet.
Can you imagine what it means to grow up as the child of a mass murderer? Hans Frank and Otto von Wächter were indicted as war criminals for their roles in WWII. Nazi Governors and consultants to Hitler himself, the two are collectively responsible for thousands of deaths. But what stood out to Philippe Sands were the impressions they left on their sons. While researching the Nuremberg trials, the human rights lawyer came across two men who re-focused his studies: Niklas Frank and Horst von Wächter. The men hold polar opposite views on the men who raised them.
In 2005, 20-year-old Ryan Ferguson was convicted and sentenced to 40 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. dream/killer is the story of how his father Bill embarked on 10-year campaign to prove Ryan’s innocence. The film is chock-full of incredible characters. From the questionable District Attorney Kevin Crane, and the highly-confused witness Chuck Erickson, to the high-powered Chicago attorney Kathleen Zellner, the doc depicts both a highly flawed justice system, as well as one that can work brilliantly.
Yallah! Underground follows some of today’s most influential and progressive artists in Arab underground culture from 2009 to 2013 and documents their work, dreams and fears in a time of great change for Arab societies. In a region full of tension, young Arab artists in the Middle East have struggled for years to express themselves freely and to promote more liberal attitudes within their societies. During the Arab Spring, like many others of this new generation, local artists had high hopes for the future and took part in the protests. However, after years of turmoil and instability, young Arabs now have to challenge both old and new problems, being torn between feelings of disillusion and a vague hope for a better future.