Peter Gilbert

The feature documentary Searching for Mr. Rugoff is the story of Donald Rugoff, who was the crazy genius behind Cinema 5, the mid-century theater chain and film distribution company. Rugoff was a difficult (some would say impossible) person but was also the man who kicked art films into the mainstream with outrageous marketing schemes and pure bluster. Rugoff's impact on cinema culture in the United States is inestimable, and his influence on the art film business-from the studio classics divisions to the independent film movement to the rise of the Weinsteins-is undeniable. Yet, mysteriously, Rugoff has become a virtually forgotten figure. The story is told through the eyes of former employee Ira Deutchman, who sets out to find the truth about the man who had such a major impact on his life, and to understand how such an important figure could have disappeared so completely.

The feature documentary Searching for Mr. Rugoff is the story of Donald Rugoff, who was the crazy genius behind Cinema 5, the mid-century theater chain and film distribution company. Rugoff was a difficult (some would say impossible) person but was also the man who kicked art films into the mainstream with outrageous marketing schemes and pure bluster. Rugoff's impact on cinema culture in the United States is inestimable, and his influence on the art film business-from the studio classics divisions to the independent film movement to the rise of the Weinsteins-is undeniable. Yet, mysteriously, Rugoff has become a virtually forgotten figure. The story is told through the eyes of former employee Ira Deutchman, who sets out to find the truth about the man who had such a major impact on his life, and to understand how such an important figure could have disappeared so completely.

A field surgeon suffering from PTSD after combat in the Middle East creates a living human out of body parts in his Brooklyn lab.

In this eye-popping, spiritually rollicking film, queer femme dominatrix Trinity huffs a magic aerosol can and develops the ability to speak to the dead. Trinity’s submissive partner, Baby, is by her side as she journeys in and out of reality on this wild ride of John Waters–style queer spirituality and alternative sexuality. Absurdity, kink, and camp abound in this film filled with the cream of Chicago’s queer artist community, including the infamous Imp Queen.

When Cynthia and Mary show up to collect Cynthia's inheritance from her deceased grandfather, the only item she's received is an antique sword that he believed to be proof that the South won the Civil War.

Madeline has become an integral part of a prestigious physical theater troupe. When the workshop's ambitious director pushes the teenager to weave her rich interior world and troubled history with her mother into their collective art, the lines between performance and reality begin to blur. The resulting battle between imagination and appropriation rips out of the rehearsal space and through all three women's lives.

An intersectional narrative of two families in Brooklyn and the unraveling of unspoken unhappiness that occurs when a young foreign girl spending time abroad upsets the balance on both sides.

A gambling addict faces a conflict when entrusted with keeping a bunch of money that isn't his.

After returning to her childhood home, young nun Colleen finds her old room exactly how she left it: painted black and covered in goth/metal posters. Her parents are happy enough to see her, but her brother is living as a recluse in the guesthouse since returning home from the Iraq war.

Through the stories of a Hispanic girls soccer team at Kelly High School in Chicago, IN THE GAME illustrates the enormous challenges facing inner-city girls in their quest for higher education and, most importantly, success in life.

This forty-minute program was produced by the Criterion Collection in 2014

Two women retreat to a lake house to get a break from the pressures of the outside world, only to realize how disconnected from each other they have become, allowing their suspicions to bleed into reality.

After a breakup with her boyfriend, a young woman moves in with her older brother, his wife, and their 2-year-old son.

By 14 he had written five novels and penned a diary about the Nazi occupation of Prague. By 16 he had produced more than 170 drawings and paintings, edited an underground magazine in the Theresienstadt Ghetto, written numerous short stories and had walked to the gas chamber at Auschwitz. But this is a story of celebration as well as tragedy, a testament to how a boy’s wonder and creative expression represent the best of what makes us human.

Two wounded souls commiserate through drinking and aimless wandering while acting out the roles of the happy relationships that elude them in reality. Greta Gerwig and Olly Alexander deliver beautifully-tuned comic performances in their portrayal of young adults learning to cope with the unavoidable perils of emotional dependency.

An investigation of the wrongful death of Carlos DeLuna, who was executed in Texas on December 7, 1989, after prosecutors ignored evidence inculpating a man, who bragged to friends about committing the crimes of which DeLuna was convicted.

In 2000, Illinois Gov. George Ryan ordered a moratorium on the death penalty after university students uncovered new evidence proving the innocence of 13 men on death row. This documentary follows the hearings held by a panel Ryan appointed to study the issue and interviews activists, scholars and prisoners, while examining the history of the American death penalty. As Ryan's time in office comes to an end, he must decide what steps to take to reform the judicial system.

Documentary filmmaker Peter Gilbert unearths the legacy of the landmark Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education — where it was ruled that "in the field of public education, the doctrine of 'separate but equal' has no place" — via never-before-heard stories from people directly responsible for, and greatly affected by, the original case.

Their love of dance, and their friendship, is challenged for two high school girls when one is diagnosed with cancer.

Their love of dance, and their friendship, is challenged for two high school girls when one is diagnosed with cancer.

Following the experiences of a handful of couples over the course of a decade, producer Michael Apted shows how this ancient institution expresses itself in contemporary American society. Introduces the couples and follows them through the days and weeks preceding their weddings.

Dr. Fuentes is a medical professor approaching his retirement and journeys to find old students, with sometimes disturbing results.

It's the true-life story of legendary track star Steve Prefontaine, the exciting and sometimes controversial "James Dean of Track," whose spirit captured the heart of the nation! Cocky, charismatic, and tough, "Pre" was a running rebel who defied rules, pushed limits ... and smashed records ...

It's the true-life story of legendary track star Steve Prefontaine, the exciting and sometimes controversial "James Dean of Track," whose spirit captured the heart of the nation! Cocky, charismatic, and tough, "Pre" was a running rebel who defied rules, pushed limits ... and smashed records ...

Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.

Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.

An educational companion piece to Hoop Dreams, Higher Goals features NBA star Isiah Thomas in a fast-paced, entertaining PBS special that encourages young athletes to put their dreams of professional sports in perspective and focus on getting an education.

An educational companion piece to Hoop Dreams, Higher Goals features NBA star Isiah Thomas in a fast-paced, entertaining PBS special that encourages young athletes to put their dreams of professional sports in perspective and focus on getting an education.

When workers at the Hormel meatpacking plant in Austin, Minnesota are asked to take a substantial pay cut in a highly profitable year, the local labor union decides to go on strike and fight for a wage they believe is fair. But as the work stoppage drags on and the strikers face losing everything, friends become enemies, families are divided and the very future of this typical mid American town is threatened.

A documentary about Boris Grebenshikov, frontman of the legendary Russian art-rock band Akvarium ("Аквариум"). It was filmed as part of promo campaign for his own first album released in English and recorded with Eurythmics.