Sara Chin

A documentary about an important rape case in 1930 Hawaii

This documentary brings to the public, for the first time, a story that was classified as secret by the US government for over four decades. Exploring the roots and legacy of the Cold War on the Chinese American community during the 1950s and the 1960s, it presents first hand accounts of seven men and women's experiences of being hunted down, jailed and targeted for deportation in America.

In 1966, Deann Borshay Liem was adopted by an American family and sent from Korea to her new home in California. There, the memory of her birth family was nearly obliterated, until recurring dreams led her to investigate her own past, and she discovered that her Korean mother was very much alive. Bravely uniting her biological and adoptive families, Borshay Liem embarks on a heartfelt journey in this acclaimed film that first premiered on POV in 2000. First Person Plural is a poignant essay on family, loss and the reconciling of two identities.

CORPUS explores the mass adulation and explosive posthumous recognition of Selena Quintanilla, the Tejano rock singer murdered by the president of her fan club in 1995. Pushing beyond the mainstream media's fascination with her violent death, Portillo interviews Selena's family and friends as well as the devoted fans that pilgrimage to Selena's grave in Corpus Christi, Texas, to pay homage to the slain star. Moving and provocative, this humble investigative portrait explores Selena's cultural significance as a pop icon and shines a light on the hopes, fantasies, fears, and realities of young Latinas today.

From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Freida Lee Mock, ‘Bird by Bird with Annie’ offers an intimate portrait of a writer and her craft, interweaving the story of Anne Lamott's life—in itself a deeply moving tale of addiction and redemption, grief and joy, intellect and faith—with a year's worth of interviews, public lectures, and footage of the writer at work, focusing particularly on Lamott's candid, humorous, and disarmingly straightforward advice on the struggles and joys of writing. The author's reassurance and guidance concerning the process of writing—which has little resemblance to its glorified image—becomes a stirring call to action celebrating the potential of each individual, the silencing of our inner critics, and the courage to create something honest and meaningful. Poignant and inspirational, ‘Bird by Bird with Annie’ takes us deep into Anne Lamott's intoxicatingly brave world, one in which writing is a means of finding out who we are, how we live, and why we're here.

Just before the advent of the Great Depression, Henry Ford controlled the most important company in the most important industry in the booming American economy. His offer of high wages in exchange for hard work attracted workers to Detroit, but it began to come apart when Ford hired a private police force to speed up production and spy on employees. After the depression hit in 1929, these workers faced a new, grim reality as unemployment skyrocketed.

85년 아카데미 장편다큐멘터리 부문 수상작 하비 밀크는 게이 활동가로서는 최초로 샌프란시스코의 시정 감시관(Supervisor)에 선출된 인물이다. 그러나, 공개적으로 자신이 게이임을 선언했을 뿐만 아니라 지역 사회의 산적한 문제를 진보적인 관점에서 해결하고자 했던 그의 노력은 수많은 편견과 장애물에 부딪치게 되고, 결국 그를 죽음에까지 이르게 한다. 1985년도 아카데미 장편 다큐멘터리 작품상을 수상하기도 한 이 작품은, 80년대 미국의 대표적인 독립 다큐멘터리이다. 감독 로버트 엡스타인은, 게이들에 대한 편견을 지니고 있던 좌파 운동가의 고백으로부터 하비가 살해당한 바로 그 날 조직된 45000 명의 촛불 시위 장면에 이르기까지, 주변 인물의 인터뷰 및 방대한 자료 화면을 동원하며, 새로운 세상을 갈구한 사회 운동과 게이 액티비즘에 대한 면밀한 케이스 스터디와도 같은 작품을 만들어냈다. 개인과 사회의 상호작용이 언제나 구체적인 역사적 계기를 통해서 교차하듯, 은 60년대 이후 동성애운동이 발화하기 시작한 샌프란시스코의 정치적·사회적 분위기를 그려냄과 동시에, 장벽을 돌파하려던 활동가, 그의 조직적 활동, 그리고 그를 가로막은 거대한 편견의 요새를 세부묘사한다. 동성애자는 물론 미국내의 모든 정치적 소수자들과 함께 손잡고 권익옹호를 위해 애썼던 한 활동가의 초상은 진정 시대를 초월한 운동가의 의지를 실감하게 한다.

The story of Native Americans seeking to reconnect with their spiritual roots while incarcerated.

Minnie Evans is the embodiment of the visionary artist. She is an African American painter of Wilmington, N.C., who has created a world of mythical animals, religious symbols and natural beauty. The film explores the sources of Minnie Evans' art--Airlie Garden, with its magnificent azaleas and swans, where Minnie worked as a gate keeper for 27 years and where she did most of her paintings. Angel That Stands By Me is part of the "Visions of Paradise" series on contemporary folk artists directed and produced by Irving Saraf and Allie Light.

Two cabbies search San Francisco's Chinatown for a mysterious character who has disappeared with their $4000. Their quest leads them on a humorous, if mundane, journey which illuminates the many problems experienced by Chinese-Americans trying to assimilate into contemporary American society.

Two cabbies search San Francisco's Chinatown for a mysterious character who has disappeared with their $4000. Their quest leads them on a humorous, if mundane, journey which illuminates the many problems experienced by Chinese-Americans trying to assimilate into contemporary American society.