Filmmaker Shukree Hassan Tilghman Discusses MORE THAN A MONTH

ITVS funds, distributes and promotes new programs produced by independent producers primarily for public television and beyond.

Check out the clip below with filmmaker Shukree Hassan Tilghman, who received Open Call funds for MORE THAN A MONTH, a tongue-in-cheek film about his cross-country campaign to end Black History Month. The film looks at what the treatment of history tells us about race and equality in a “post-racial” America. Learn more about his film, which filmmakers inspire him and the challenges of exploring this topic.

Find more information about Open Call funding >>

Tags: African American, Black History Month, Open Call, race

Six New Projects Selected for Funding Through ITVS International Call

ITVS recently contracted six projects from ITVS International Call 2009, providing them with production funding and eventual U.S. television broadcast. This year’s application process was highly competitive and included 482 submissions from 82 countries––spanning the globe and offering insights from countries such as Chile, Kenya, Vietnam and Jordan. Since the launch of the Call in 2005, nearly 91 international programs have been supported through ITVS International’s Global Perspectives Project and its International Media Development Fund.

All six documentary projects are slated for eventual broadcast on PBS, including prime-time slots on the Emmy Award-winning PBS series Independent Lens and the new PBS WORLD series Global Voices. The programs may also be distributed on commercial outlets, including the Sundance Channel, the National Geographic Channel and HBO, and on online video sites, such as Caachi, Jaman, SnagFilms and others.

The submission deadline for projects to be considered for the next ITVS International Call is February 5, 2010. Learn more >>

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Tags: film resources, filmmakers, independent film

BUTTE, AMERICA Premiering Tonight on Independent Lens

“[BUTTE, AMERICA] is one of those films you just couldn’t imagine on commercial TV—a tale about a Montana mining town that died more than a generation ago, a rich catalog of memory that ends in 1985, a story of tragedy and triumph that’s mostly played out before the invention of videotape.”
-Kansas City Star

You see the world differently when you work underground. That made Butte, Montana different right from the start as immigrants came from around the world to work the mines. But what they blasted out of the 10,000 miles of tunnels was more than just copper. It was the rise of unions and multinational corporations, and the seeds of the current debate over the environment.

BUTTE, AMERICA premieres tonight, Oct. 20, at 10:00 PM on Independent Lens on PBS (check local listings).

Tags: Anaconda Company, Butte, copper, mining, Montana

Connect with Independent Lens Online

We’ve only just begun––wait until you see what’s coming up on this season of Independent Lens.

Afraid you’ll miss out on something? Join the Independent Lens Facebook Fan Page and follow us on Twitter where you can watch previews, share your thoughts and interact with others.

Join the Fan Page today >>

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Watch this exclusive welcome video below:

Tags: Facebook, Twitter

Filmmaker Kathy Huang Discusses TALES OF THE WARIA

ITVS’s Open Call provides finishing funds for single non-fiction or animation public television programs on any subject and from any viewpoint. Projects must have begun production as evidenced by a work-in-progress video.

Check out the clip below with filmmaker Kathy Huang, who received Open Call funds for her film TALES OF THE WARIA. The film looks at three transgender individuals in Indonesia––the world’s largest Muslim country––who search for love and acceptance with unexpected results. Learn more about what Huang hopes people will learn from the film.

Find more information about Open Call funding >>

Tags: Indonesia, Muslim, Open Call, transgender, waria

Season Finale of Global Voices: REVOLUCION: Five Visions

“… an absorbing documentary…”
- The Virginian-Pilot

REVOLUCION tells the story of five Cuban photographers whose lives and work span more than four decades and whose perspectives on photography are as varied as their opinions about the Cuban Revolution. From revolution-era photographers whose lenses captured the heroic masses to more contemporary photographers who seek to portray individual truths, their stories reveal the power of art to liberate.

REVOLUCION: Five Visions airs Sunday, October 18 at 10:00 PM on Global Voices on PBS WORLD (check local listings).

Tags: art, artists, Cuba, photography

Play the Corn Maze Challenge

It’s fall and who doesn’t love a good corn maze? It’s a chance to test your navigation skills and compete for bragging rights among your friends.

Try our very own corn maze inspired by the Independent Lens film KING CORN. The film follows two recent college graduates who plant a single acre of corn and set out to follow it on its journey from a seed to the dinner plate.

Master the corn maze to get an earful of corn fun and facts >>

Tags: corn, maze

Filmmakers Sean Flynn and Beth Murphy Discuss THE PROMISE OF FREEDOM

ITVS funds, distributes and promotes new programs produced by independent producers primarily for public television and beyond.

Check out the clip below with co-producer Sean Flynn and director/producer Beth Murphy, who received Open Call funds for their film THE PROMISE OF FREEDOM, which looks at the story of Kirk Johnson, a 26-year-old American aid worker, fighting to save thousands of Iraqis whose lives are in danger because they worked for the United States to help rebuild Iraq. Learn more about their film and hear what they have to say about working in indie film–a field that seems glamorous on the surface, but can be grueling work.

Find more information about Open Call funding >>

Tags: Human Rights, Iraq, Kirk Johnson, Open Call

BODY AND SOUL: Diana and Kathy, Airing This Month on Public Television

“It’s unlikely that any movie released this year will feature characters more remarkable than Kathy Conour and Diana Braun. The subjects of a moving new documentary from director Alice Elliott, the unlikely cinematic heroes are waging a war for their lives––and the lives of many others.”
- Journal News (Lower Hudson Valley, NY)

When they met 37 years ago, Diana and Kathy faced early death or a restricted life in a nursing home. Instead, they slipped out of the “system,” became advocates for all people with disabilities and began a grand experiment in living meaningful, independent lives. BODY AND SOUL: Diana and Kathy is an exploration of the remarkable bond that has made that possible.

BODY AND SOUL: Diana and Kathy airs this month on public television (check local listings).

Editor’s note: Kathy Conour, one of the main characters of the film, recently passed away. Born with Cerebral Palsy, Kathy had some mobility but lost that when she had an operation on a spinal cyst in 1990. Kathy was a leader and an activist for disability rights. She served on the board of United Cerebral Palsy of Illinois and was active in the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities, the Illinois Center for Independent Living, and People First.

Kathy and Diana met Academy Award nominated documentary filmmaker Alice Elliott in 2003 and convinced her to make a film about them. BODY AND SOUL: Diana and Kathy will air this month on Public Television during National Disabilities Awareness Month. Having her story told was a life-long dream of Kathy’s. She loved being the star of the documentary and helped move it forward, encouraging the filmmaker to push through to the finish. This film has won many honors both in the film community and the area of disabilities. Kathy’s dream is still playing out as the film screens in North Carolina, Munich, Germany and Salt Lake City within the next few months.

Her humor, intelligence, gracious thoughtfulness and candor will be missed.

Tags: activism, cerebral palsy, disability, down syndrome

U.S. INPUT 2010 Call for Entries, Deadline Nov. 6

The International Public Television Screening Conference (INPUT) is a global, voluntary organization set up by television professionals for television professionals––centered around an annual screening conference. INPUT 2010 will be held in Budapest, Hungary, May 8-12. The aim is to showcase, inspire and lead television programs in the public service.

The deadline for U.S. INPUT pre-selection is Friday, November 6, 2009. There is no entry fee.

For more information, contact Amy Shumaker at shumaker@scetv.org or (803) 737-3433.

Visit the INPUT Web site for a submission form and more information >>

Also, be sure to check out the Beyond the Box Blog entry by ITVS’s Executive Vice President and CFO Judy Tam in which she discusses the selection process and history of INPUT. Learn more >>

Tags: film resources, INPUT