Maggie Gyllenhaal
Independent Lens Celebrates 40th Anniversary of Earth Day
Did you know that April marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day? To celebrate, Independent Lens will premiere a brand new line-up of programs, as well as offer free educational lesson plans, and an interactive game to help inspire viewers to reduce, reuse, and recycle.
First up on Independent Lens is Dirt! The Movie, airing April 20 at 10:00 PM, by Bill Benenson and Gene Rosow. Narrated by Jamie Lee Curtis, Dirt! takes viewers inside the wonders of the soil and looks at how industrial farming, mining, and urban development have led us toward cataclysmic droughts, starvation, floods, and climate change. Inspired by William Bryant Logan’s acclaimed book, Dirt: The Ecstatic Skin of the Earth, the film deftly combines science and humor as it digs into the history and current state of the living organic matter from which we come from and where we will one day return. Dirt is a part of everything we eat, drink and breathe, which is why we should stop treating it like, well … dirt.
Then on April 27 at 10:00 PM, watch Garbage Dreams. Filmed over four years, director Mai Iskander goes inside the world of Egypt’s Zaballeen (Arabic for “garbage people”) to reveal the lives of two teenage boys born into the trash trade. The film reveals how –– for generations –– the residents of Cairo have depended on the Zaballeen to collect their trash, paying them only a minimal amount for their garbage collection services. These entrepreneurial garbage workers survive by recycling 80 percent of all the garbage they collect, creating what is arguably the world’s most efficient waste disposal system. Recycling to lift themselves out of poverty, the Zaballeen have, through necessity, devised ingenious solutions to one of the world’s most pressing problems.
The broadcast of Garbage Dreams will also be accompanied by an interactive game in which players assume the role of the Zaballeen. Players will sort through trash and recycle everyday items found in Cairo –– all against a ticking clock! So put on your eco-savvy hats because you’ll have to quickly sort everything to match the 80 percent recycling rate of the Zaballeen within 12 rounds of play.
Corresponding lesson plans for grades 9-12, complement the game and the film, and further explore the issue of recycling and the globalized economy.
Learn more about Independent Lens Earth Day >>
ITVS Film Vies for 2010 Academy Award for Best Documentary
The Oscar buzz is in the air! This Sunday, March 7, Hollywood takes center stage for one of its biggest nights of the year with the 2010 Academy Awards.
Competing for Best Documentary Feature is the ITVS film The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers. Also, Independent Lens host Maggie Gyllenhaal received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress for the feature film Crazy Heart.
In addition, several previously funded ITVS filmmakers received nominations for their work in the category of short documentary.
- China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province (Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill)
- The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner (Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher)
- The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant (Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert)
Julia Reichert and Steve Bognar produced A Lion in the House; Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher made Iron Ladies of Liberia; and Jon Alpert made The Last Cowboy. All three films aired on Independent Lens on PBS.
Congratulations and good luck to all the filmmakers!
Check out this the video preview of The Most Dangerous Man in America:
Who do you think will win? Share your thoughts in our comment section.
Win an Autographed Poster from Maggie Gyllenhaal
Love collecting autographs, but don’t spot celebrities on a daily basis? No fear — we recently caught up with our host (and 2010 Oscar nominee) Maggie Gyllenhaal between shoots where she signed our official Independent Lens season poster.
Once a week from now until the end of this month, we’ll be giving a poster away. Entries will be randomly selected from the Independent Lens newsletter subscription list. If you currently receive the newsletter, you are already entered to win.
Tell your family, friends, and neighbors to sign up for the newsletter. Who knows, they might just give you their poster if they’re the lucky winners!
Sign up to be eligible for the Independent Lens poster giveaway >>
Oscar Noms for The Most Dangerous Man in America; Indie Lens Host Maggie Gyllenhaal
This morning, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences officially announced that The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. This marks the 11th Academy Award nomination for ITVS.
In 1971, Daniel Ellsberg, a leading Vietnam War strategist, concludes that America’s role in the war is based on decades of lies. He leaks 7,000 pages of top-secret documents to The New York Times, a daring act of conscience that leads directly to Watergate, President Nixon’s resignation, and the end of the Vietnam War. Ellsberg and a who’s-who of Vietnam-era movers and shakers give a riveting account of those world-changing events. The film is by award-winning filmmakers Judith Ehrlich (The Good War and Those Who Refused to Fight It) and Rick Goldsmith (Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press). The film will air later this year on P.O.V. on PBS.
Nominees for Best Documentary Feature of the year include:
- Burma VJ
- The Cove
- Food, Inc.
- The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers
- Which Way Home
Also, Independent Lens series host Maggie Gyllenhaal received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her compelling role as a journalist and single mom in the film Crazy Heart. When shooting the Independent Lens host introductions in New York City last August, Maggie talked about this flim and how proud she was of the work. She praised her co-star Jeff Bridges and predicted that his performance would receive wide acclaim. We want to congratulate Maggie on her Academy Award nomination and are honored to be working with her on Independent Lens.
Nominees for Best Actress in a Supporting Role include:
- Penélope Cruz in Nine
- Vera Farmiga in Up in the Air
- Maggie Gyllenhaal in Crazy Heart
- Anna Kendrick in Up in the Air
- Mo’Nique in Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
Check out the entire list of this year’s nominees >>
The 2010 Academy Awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, March 7. Stay tuned to Beyond the Box for further coverage.Congratulations and good luck to all the filmmakers!
Watch a clip of The Most Dangerous Man in America:
PBS’s Independent Lens Turns up the Volume With Four Music Docs
The Winter/Spring line-up of Independent Lens will truly bring music to your ears.
Kicking off the music-themed indie film line-up is Stephen Walker’s Young@Heart (January 12), featuring the New England senior citizens chorus. With a show only weeks away, they must learn a slate of new songs ranging from James Brown to Coldplay. The director leads the chorus through tough rehearsals, proving that rock and roll can be hard work — especially if you’re hard of hearing! Climaxing in a triumphant performance, their inspiring story celebrates the unbreakable bonds of friendship and the life-affirming power of music.
Independent Lens then presents three docs that examine the world of hip-hop music. Benjamin Franzen and Kembrew McLeod’s Copyright Criminals (January 19) examines the creative and commercial value of music sampling and it’s implications, featuring Public Enemy, De La Soul, and George Clinton. As hip-hop rose from the streets of New York to become a multibillion-dollar industry, artists such as Public Enemy and De La Soul began reusing parts of previously recorded music for their songs. But when record company lawyers got involved everything changed. Years before people started downloading and remixing music, hip-hop sampling sparked a debate about copyright, creativity, and technological change that still rages today.
Check out the video below with Independent Lens host Maggie Gyllenhaal to get a sneak peek of what’s ahead.
Maggie Gyllenhaal Discusses Community Cinema
Do you enjoy watching the latest indie films (before everyone else)? Join us at Community Cinema, which features films from the Emmy Award-winning PBS series Independent Lens. Best of all — it’s free!
In over 50 cities nationwide, screenings are followed by lively panel discussions that bring together citizens, organizations and public television stations to encourage dialogue and action around important and timely social issues.
Learn more about Community Cinema in this exclusive video below with host Maggie Gyllenhaal.
This October, Community Cinema will be screening COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS, which examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, including the related debates over artistic expression, copyright law, and (of course) money.
In the News: The Latest on ITVS Programs
Michel Martin, host of Tell Me More, interviews filmmaker Juan Mandelbaum about OUR DISAPPEARED/NUESTROS DISAPARECIDOS on Independent Lens.
Listen to the interview >>
“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 >>
Independent Lens on PBS Announces Maggie Gyllenhaal as New Host
The secret is out! A brand new season of Independent Lens begins on Tuesday, October 13, and we’re thrilled to have acclaimed actress Maggie Gyllenhaal as this season’s host.
No stranger to the indie film world, Gyllenhaal has starred in a wide-range of films including Secretary (2002), for which she received a Golden Globe nomination playing opposite James Spader, Donnie Darko (2001) and Sherrybaby (2006), where she received her second Golden Globe nomination.
Most recently Gyllenhaal played Rachel Dawes in the Warner Bros. box office hit The Dark Knight (2008) directed by Chris Nolan and in 2009 she appeared in Sam Mendes’s Away We Go. Upcoming, she’ll star in the dramatic film Crazy Heart, alongside Jeff Bridges and Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang with Emma Thompson.
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