Inspired by the bestselling book from Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, the evening will feature musical performances, celebrity commentary, and uplifting stories about women and girls overcoming tremendous obstacles.

The event will be the world premiere of Woineshet, a short film by Academy Award winner Marisa Tomei and Lisa Leone. Appearances will include performers India.Arie, Diane Birch, Angelique Kidjo, and Michael Franti; actresses Maria Bello and Marisa Tomei; president/CEO of CARE Dr. Helene Gayle; New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof; United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women Rachel Mayanja; Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York; New York Times editor Sheryl WuDunn and others.

The goal of the event is to help women and girls around the world turn oppression into opportunity.

Learn more about this event and download a discussion guide >>

Watch the video below to learn more:

Executive Producer Avon Kirkland, Narrator Danny Glover, and Producer John Antonelli.

How did you first get involved with filmmaking? Are there any specific topics that interest you?
My production company came out of the experience of making my Jack Kerouac documentary in the early 80s. My partner Will Parrinello and I have been working together since then making a variety of films that focus on the environment, culture, and politics. The Sam Cooke program goes full circle back to producing a full-length documentary about a cultural icon.

What made you interested in Sam Cooke?
I’ve always loved Sam Cooke’s music since I discovered it as a teenager back in the early sixties. When I read Daniel Wolff’s biography You Send Me, I was quickly convinced that I should try and make a film about him. Wolff was supportive but wasn’t interested in forming a partnership. At that point, I decided that I would make the film for PBS directly. We managed to reach many of Cooke’s closest friends and relatives to do interviews for the film.

Why did you approach ITVS for funding?
I’ve always wanted to do a project with ITVS and have applied there with various films. I knew when I decided to do this project for PBS that I had two strong options for funding and distribution –– ITVS and American Masters. If ITVS were an individual, you could say that I was their stalker. I started applying to ITVS back in 1998 when I started making the film. I applied and got rejected, and as I had on previous projects, signed up for their feedback session. Although I didn’t like hearing the reasons from different anonymous panel members why they didn’t like the project, I also heard some encouragement sprinkled in with the criticisms. I then set out to improve the proposal and sample tape. Little did I know that this process of applying and getting feedback would take another nine years before it would get funded. The feedback–– almost as much as the financing –– is a big reason why I was able to complete the film. The feedback always gave me specific ways that I could make the project stronger. As far as I know, ITVS is the only entity in the documentary world that gives this kind of feedback –– it is something that every filmmaker should take advantage of.

What do you hope viewers will get out of the film?
I want viewers to see how rich and complicated a character Sam Cooke was. He is often remembered as having a beautiful voice and for having died in sordid circumstances. Not very many people realize what a prolific songwriter, producer, entrepreneur and activist he was. Those are the points that I tried to bring home in the film.

Can you tell us about other related work you’ve done?
My Jack Kerouac documentary is the most pertinent piece of work that I’ve done. I also produce short documentaries about environmental heroes around the world for a program called Global Focus: The New Environmentalists, which is broadcast on PBS stations and on the Sundance Channel. It’s narrated by Robert Redford.

Learn more about Sam Cooke on American Masters >>

Toussaint Louverture of Haiti.

Since the massive earthquake devastated Haiti two weeks ago, volunteers and organizations from around the world have rallied together in support. Recently, the Hope for Haiti Now telethon, which aired on public television stations and other media outlets, raised more than $58 million in donations.

Despite the massive worldwide effort, the news coverage continues to grow dire –– with rising death toll numbers and reports of missing children and families.

But how much does the world really know about Haiti? While most media coverage mentions Haiti’s severe poverty, little has been told about its revolutionary past and leading role in the human rights movement.

In the clip below of the ITVS film Egalité for All: Toussaint Louverture and the Haitian Revolution, learn more about how Toussaint Louverture led the only successful slave insurrection in history. His thoughts transformed the way people thought during the nineteenth century and inspired slaves and abolitionist worldwide.

Everyone at ITVS would like to express our deepest sympathy to all those impacted by this tragedy as well as thank everyone who has supported the rebuilding efforts. The National Center for Media Engagement has also been active in supporting the nationwide public station response in the Haitian relief effort.

Learn more about NCME and their impact >>

Looking to lend your support in the form of a donation? Here are some options:

• Make your donation online at www.hopeforhaitinow.org
• Phone: 877-99-HAITI
• Text: Text “GIVE” to 50555 to donate $10.
• Mail: Hope For Haiti Now Fund, Entertainment Industry Foundation, 1201 West 5th Street, Suite T-700, Los Angeles, CA 90017

In 1958, when Sam Cooke crossed over from gospel to “the devil’s music,” he set in motion a chain of events that altered the course of popular music and race relations in America. Sam Cooke: Crossing Over examines Cooke’s musical and political significance during the early civil rights movement and unravels some of the myths surrounding his life and death, revealing a complex portrait of a flawed but talented man.

Sam Cooke: Crossing Over premieres tonight, January 11 at 9:00 PM on American Masters on PBS (check local listings).

A co-production of ITVS in association with the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC).

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 >>

“If you have only…90 minutes: Watch HERB & DOROTHY, a charming documentary portrait of a Manhattan couple who amassed a superb art collection despite their modest salaries as a postal clerk and librarian (PBS, October 13 at 10 P.M.)”
Read more [PDF] >>

“Indie movie fave Maggie Gyllenhaal will be host of the new season of Independent Lens, premiering Oct. 13. Former hosts include Edie Falco, Angela Bassett, Don Cheadle and Susan Sarandon.”
Read more >>

“Recently, PBS’ Independent Lens published a handy Google map of arthouse theaters all across the US and Canada. One can build one’s own database and have the 411 on programmers, bookers and theater owners at one’s fingertips. It’s all about bringing people out of their homes and experiencing the magic of collective movie-watching again…”
Read more >>

A growing and potentially explosive humanitarian crisis is threatening East Asian peace: the life and death of North Koreans as they try to escape their homeland and China. SEOUL TRAIN exposes the complex geopolitics and bureaucracy entangling the lives of thousands of North Korean refugees as well as the story of activists who put themselves in harms way to save them via a clandestine underground railroad.

SEOUL TRAIN airs Sunday, September 27 at 10:00 PM on Global Voices on PBS WORLD (check local listings).

Watch the exclusive video below in which Mandelbaum explores how Argentineans attempt to embrace the memory of those who disappeared and the works of art, poems and films that remind the country what “our disappeared” stood for.

OUR DISAPPEARED/NUESTROS DESAPARECIDOS airs tonight at 10:00 PM on Independent Lens on PBS (check local listings)

Mandelbaum was recently interviewed by Marco Werman from Public Radio International’s The World. Listen to the broadcast >>

What has the reaction to the film been like?
Valérie Delpierre: In general, the reaction has been great. It’s strange because this documentary is being released at a time when people in Spain are very interested in this subject. Media outlets and TV programs had started to think that there was too much information on this, but the public is still reacting really well to everything that comes out about the civil war and Franco’s dictatorship. Every time a movie or a book comes out about these themes, people respond and that’s been the case with our documentary, too. At the international level the response has also been positive. Many people are surprised to see not only how cruel this period was but also to discover that until recently no one could touch this subject. It’s an open window to the most recent history in Spain, seen from the inside.

What were some of the challenges you faced in making this film?
VD: For me it’s been all about sticking with it. It was difficult to not lose concentration during all these months of work. It was not a continuous job, but we have been working together on this documentary for more than three years. Also, as a producer it was important never to lose sight of the main argument and the objectives that we had set out to achieve. We’ve been lucky because all of our collaborators and broadcast partners that joined this project really respected the work of the filmmakers. One of my greatest fears was that by having two directors, they would not be able to agree––but the truth is that they found an equilibrium and treated each other with a lot of respect.

Why do you think it’s important for a U.S. audience to see this film?
VD: I think that for an American audience it’s interesting to see a more realistic and above all accurate version of what happened and what is still happening in Spain with the recovery of historical memory. Perhaps a U.S. audience, like the European audience, has a somewhat romantic vision of what the civil war was like. What’s more, many times the events of the Second World War tend to obscure this whole period in Spain, and it’s good to see how what happened more than half a century ago still affects how Spaniards behave, consciously or unconsciously. It’s even difficult for me to understand the reactions of these two generations marked by fear and the absolute lack of freedom of opinion. They have had to choose one side or the other without any space for their own reflection or free thought. The survivors and their children have never had the opportunity to freely elaborate their own experience and that is what makes one grow as an individual. At least two generations have been deprived of that.

If you weren’t a producer, what kind of work do you think you’d be doing?
VD: One thing that I have no doubts about is that despite how difficult it is to be a producer, it’s something that I really enjoy. Sometimes it’s very hard to struggle with different interests, above all in the documentary field or independent film. But I’m passionate about it. The truth is that if I weren’t a producer, maybe I would have opted for a completely different life. I would have had a house in the country where I would work to make sure people are enjoying themselves while they rest, cook and organize workshops…but I think that would be too bucolic. The truth is that I would have really liked to teach children, but I don’t know if I would have been a good teacher. So for now, I’ll just settle for being a good mother!

Can you elaborate on where you come from? Where were you born, what led you to study at the Sorbonne, and how you’ve landed in Barcelona?
VD: I was studying in Nice, France and I really wanted to know Paris, so where better than the Sorbonne to study in the capital? Then, thanks to an exchange program for students called ERASMUS, I went to study for my last year of college in Madrid. After spending only 9 months in Spain, it wasn’t enough for me. So I looked for a job to be able to stay longer. First I was a French teacher, but I soon began to work for production companies as a production assistant on TV programs. One day they offered me a job in Barcelona for a film production company as a development coordinator, and I didn’t hesitate. I moved, and I’ve been here for 10 years now. After working for several companies, I decided to branch out and start my own company. I created Inicia Films three years ago, and since then, I’ve always been searching for new projects that move me and are feasible.

END OF WAITING TIME airs Sunday, September 20 at 10:00 PM on Global Voices on PBS WORLD (check local listings).