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INDEPENDENT LENS

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Airing weekly on PBS, the five-time Emmy Award-winning series Independent Lens is an independent film festival in your living room. Each week we bring you another original documentary film, each made by one of the best independent filmmakers working today.

This season, Independent Lens returns with 22 independent films that will transport you and challenge you to experience universal human themes from unique perspectives. We will delve into issues emerging from the economic crisis in America, from job loss to wealth disparity; examine the origins of soul food, its importance in African American culture, and its serious health implications; we will examine a military culture in which female soldiers are sexually assaulted at a terrifying rate, and their attackers often left unpunished; we



Latest Articles About Independent Lens on PBS

Nominations Announced For The 35th Annual Imagen Awards Photo Nominations Announced For The 35th Annual Imagen Awards
by A.A. Cristi - August 05, 2020

The Imagen Foundation President Helen Hernandez today announced 114 nominees in 20 categories for this year's 35th Annual Imagen Awards....


A THOUSAND PINES Set To Premiere On Independent Lens in April Photo A THOUSAND PINES Set To Premiere On Independent Lens in April
by Michael Major - March 04, 2024

“A Thousand Pines,” the intimate documentary following a season of Oaxacan tree planters traveling the United States, directed and produced by Noam Osband and Sebastián Díaz, explores the hidden world of guest workers regrowing America's forests and the challenges the workers and their families face...


Sundance Institute Names 2021 Momentum Fellows Photo Sundance Institute Names 2021 Momentum Fellows
by A.A. Cristi - November 23, 2020

Sundance Institute announced today the third class of the Momentum Fellowship, a full-year program of deep, customized creative and professional support for mid-career writers and directors from underrepresented communities who are poised to take the next step in their careers in fiction and documen...


PBS's INDEPENDENT LENS Wins Award for Best Curated Series Photo PBS's INDEPENDENT LENS Wins Award for Best Curated Series
by Marissa Tomeo - March 05, 2022

The award-winning documentary anthology series INDEPENDENT LENS, which airs weekly on PBS and is presented by ITVS, was awarded Best Curated Series at the 37th Annual IDA Documentary Awards at a virtual ceremony held this evening (March 4). An additional ITVS-backed title, “Whirlybird,” was previous...


RAZING LIBERTY SQUARE to Premiere On Independent Lens Photo RAZING LIBERTY SQUARE to Premiere On Independent Lens
by Michael Major - December 29, 2023

Three contemporary issues – climate change, housing insecurity, and economic inequity – become a unifying force driving redevelopment in Liberty City, Miami. Until recently, it was home to the oldest segregated public housing project in the United States, Liberty Square. Now, it is ground zero for a...


PBS Shines Spotlight On Vital Ocean-Focused Programming Complementing Ongoing Initiat Photo PBS Shines Spotlight On Vital Ocean-Focused Programming Complementing Ongoing Initiative
by Michael Major - February 12, 2024

PBS shines a spotlight on vital ocean-focused programming complementing ongoing environmental and climate initiatives. The article explores a mix of new and returning series showcasing titles such as Hope in the Water, Nature: Patrick and the Whale, Dynamic Planet, Independent Lens: One with the Wha...


DOC NYC Announces MISSING IN BROOKS COUNTY As Part Of 2020 Festival Lineup Photo DOC NYC Announces MISSING IN BROOKS COUNTY As Part Of 2020 Festival Lineup
by A.A. Cristi - October 15, 2020

Missing in Brooks County, a gripping documentary that follows two families searching for their missing loved ones near the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas, has been selected to screen In Competition at the 2020 edition of DOC NYC, the country's most comprehensive annual curated festival of non-fiction f...


Sundance Institute Names 2020 January Screenwriters Lab Fellows Photo Sundance Institute Names 2020 January Screenwriters Lab Fellows
by Sarah Jae Leiber - December 17, 2019

Fifteen screenwriters will convene to advance their independent projects at Sundance Institute's January Screenwriters Lab, taking place at the Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah, from January 17-22, 2020. At the Lab, the screenwriters will immerse themselves in a rigorous and holistic creative proces...


Sundance Institute Selects 2020 Art of Editing Fellows Photo Sundance Institute Selects 2020 Art of Editing Fellows
by Chloe Rabinowitz - June 26, 2020

8 filmmakers have been chosen to participate in the Sundance Institute's inaugural Art of Editing Lab and Fellowship....


FilmRise Announces the Video On Demand Release of the Documentary REWIND Photo FilmRise Announces the Video On Demand Release of the Documentary REWIND
by Kaitlin Milligan - April 20, 2020

FilmRise, a New York-based film and TV distribution company, has announced the VOD and digital release of their latest film “Rewind.”...


 BELLY OF THE BEAST Director, Erika Cohn, Talks Eugenics & The Sterilization of Women Photo BELLY OF THE BEAST Director, Erika Cohn, Talks Eugenics & The Sterilization of Women Prisoners on Tom Needham's SOUNDS OF FILM
by Kaitlin Milligan - June 16, 2020

Emmy Award-winning director/producer, Erika Cohn, joins Tom Needham for a shocking conversation about BELLY OF THE BEAST, a film about the mass sterilization of women of color in California's prison system on this Thursday's SOUNDS OF FILM....


Latino Public Broadcasting Announces Two New VOCES Documentaries on PBS Photo Latino Public Broadcasting Announces Two New VOCES Documentaries on PBS
by Kaitlin Milligan - July 28, 2020

 Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB) today announced that VOCES, the acclaimed PBS documentary series exploring Latino arts, culture and history, will premiere two new films this fall on PBS....


August Wilson African American Cultural Center Announces Black History Month Programm Photo August Wilson African American Cultural Center Announces Black History Month Programming
by Chloe Rabinowitz - February 01, 2021

AWAACC will present Pittsburgh’s Black Art Scene: Past, Present & Future, a retrospective on Pittsburgh’s role in the cultural lexicon and the artforms and artists that have contributed to the city’s historic Black arts scene, along with special editions of ongoing programs....


Variety And PBS Socal Announce New Season And Talent Line-Up For VARIETY STUDIO: ACTO Photo Variety And PBS Socal Announce New Season And Talent Line-Up For VARIETY STUDIO: ACTORS ON ACTORS
by Tori Hartshorn - May 20, 2019

Variety and PBS SoCal announced today the actor lineup and schedule for the tenth season of their EMMY®Award-winning Variety Studio: Actors on Actors. The new season will include exclusive one-on-one conversations between top acting talent from this year's most notable television  shows who are expe...


Sundance Institute Announces 2020 Directors & Screenwriters Lab Fellows Photo Sundance Institute Announces 2020 Directors & Screenwriters Lab Fellows
by A.A. Cristi - May 28, 2020

11 independent filmmakers developing 10 projects have been selected for the 2020 Sundance Institute Directors and Screenwriters Labs, reimagined and expressed digitally this year on Sundance Co//ab. These Labs are at the heart of the nonprofit Institute's long-standing support for artists, and will ...


Oscar Contenders Air On Independent Lens In January Photo Oscar Contenders Air On Independent Lens In January
by Michael Major - December 27, 2023

Two Oscar-contender documentaries will debut on INDEPENDENT LENS. “Beyond Utopia,” the story of families who risk everything escaping North Korea, and the documentary short “If Dreams Were which explores the lives of people living in the rural South with limited or no access to healthcare, both made...


Kelli O'Hara, Melissa Errico & More to Perform at Feinstein's/54 Below Next Week Photo Kelli O'Hara, Melissa Errico & More to Perform at Feinstein's/54 Below Next Week
by Chloe Rabinowitz - September 24, 2021

Next week, FEINSTEIN’S/54 BELOW, Broadway’s Supper Club & Private Event Destination, will present some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond....


World Channel Celebrates Juneteenth With 19 Films Photo World Channel Celebrates Juneteenth With 19 Films
by Michael Major - June 14, 2022

Selections from its curated playlist by noted filmmakers including Stanley Nelson, Ken Burns, Michèle Stephenson, Joe Brewster, Sam Pollard and Yoruba Richen run all month on a variety of platforms, including WORLD Channel, WorldChannel.org, WORLD Channel’s YouTube Channel and Facebook page, PBS Pas...


BELLY OF THE BEAST Documentary Out Oct. 16 Photo BELLY OF THE BEAST Documentary Out Oct. 16
by Sarah Jae Leiber - September 11, 2020


When an unlikely duo discovers a pattern of illegal sterilizations in women’s prisons, they wage a near impossible battle against the Department of Corrections....


Sundance Institute Announces 2019 Creative Producing Labs & Summit Photo Sundance Institute Announces 2019 Creative Producing Labs & Summit
by Kaitlin Milligan - July 19, 2019

Sundance Institute today announced Fellows and Advisors for the five-day 2019 Creative Producing Labs, as well as the three-day Creative Producing Summit which immediately follows; both take place at Utah's Sundance Mountain Resort. The Labs begins July 29, and the Summit August 2. These are the fla...


Iranian Director Massoud Bakhshi & 76 DAYS Director Hao Wu Up Next On Tom Needham's S Photo Iranian Director Massoud Bakhshi & 76 DAYS Director Hao Wu Up Next On Tom Needham's SOUNDS OF FILM
by A.A. Cristi - December 08, 2020

Hau Wu, the director of 76 DAYS, and Massoud Bakshi, the director of YALDA: A NIGHT OF FORGIVENESS, are Tom Needham's exclusive guests this Thursday on THE SOUNDS OF FILM. ...


Sundance Institute Names 2021 Momentum Fellows Photo Sundance Institute Names 2021 Momentum Fellows
by Sarah Jae Leiber - November 23, 2020

Sundance Institute announced today the third class of the Momentum Fellowship, a full-year program of deep, customized creative and professional support for mid-career writers and directors from underrepresented communities who are poised to take the next step in their careers in fiction and documen...


WRESTLE Premieres on Independent Lens This May Photo WRESTLE Premieres on Independent Lens This May
by Tori Hartshorn - April 16, 2019

Go inside the lives of four members of the high school wrestling team at Huntsville's J.O. Johnson High School, a longstanding entry on Alabama's list of failing schools. Teammates Jailen, Jamario, Teague, and Jaquan face challenges far beyond a shot at the state championship: splintered families, d...


'TIL KINGDOM COME Filmmakers Talk Trump, Netanyahu & Religion On Tom Needham's SOUNDS Photo 'TIL KINGDOM COME Filmmakers Talk Trump, Netanyahu & Religion On Tom Needham's SOUNDS OF FILM
by A.A. Cristi - February 22, 2021

'TIL KINGDOM COME director Maya Zinshtein and producer Abraham 'Abie' Troen are Tom Needham's special guests on the next SOUNDS OF FILM. ...


Netflix to Release AMERICAN FACTORY on August 21 Photo Netflix to Release AMERICAN FACTORY on August 21
by Kaitlin Milligan - June 26, 2019

American Factory will be released globally on Netflix August 21, 2019. American Factory is a Netflix Original Documentary Presented by Higher Ground Productions and Participant Media....






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