Criminal Justice Films

Academy Award-nominated LEGACY is the unflinching chronicle of one family’s triumphant journey out of poverty and despair. Touchingly narrated by Nickcole Collins, a teenage girl wise beyond her years, the film follows the Collins family over five years as they slowly pull themselves out of the haze of poverty, drug addiction, and violence that plagues their public housing project in Chicago.

Aimee’s Crossing

Directed by: Tod Lending

In this very intimate, honest and provocative character study, the story of juvenile offender Aimee Meyers unfolds over four years as she struggles to overcome her addictions and destructive behavior.

Blue Collar and Buddha

"BLUE COLLAR AND BUDDHA" is that rarity among documentary films - a compelling human document, a proactive statement, a moving exploration of both anger and gentleness. This is not merely a first rate film—it's an important one."
- Donald Spoto, author, The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock

This Dramatic Documentary explores America's most recent refugees, struggling against the mounting tension of a post-Vietnam era filled with guilt and anger. A group of Laotian era filled with guilt and anger. A group of Laotian refugees have built a Buddhist temple on a small farmstead on the outskirts of a resolutely blue collar town. Their efforts to preserve their culture and religious heritage have been greeted by several terrorist attacks upon their temple.

Blue Collar and Buddha is a moving portrait of the experience of today's refugees and the dramas that results when East meets West.

Correction

Directed by: Michael Mulcahy

CORRECTION follows four recruits through the Arizona Department of Corrections seven-week training academy, and then over their first eight months within the state prison system. By exploring the complex relationship between correctional officer and prison inmate, this documentary tells a story about power, justice and the American prison system.

A Dream in Doubt is an immigrant story in a world in which patriotism has morphed into murder. When Rana Singh Sodhi’s brother is killed in America’s first post-9/11 revenge murder, he begins a journey to reclaim his American dream and fight the hate that continues to threaten his community. This intimate, hour-long documentary of one man’s odyssey from persecution in India to embracing America as his homeland proves that courage and hope have the power to overcome hate.

LICENSE	PRICE
University and College	$265
High School, Community Libraries & Non Profits	$99
Home Viewing	$24.95

Every Child Is Born A Poet

"The deeply felt resonance of "EVERY CHILD IS BORN A POET" derives from Piri Thomas' unique ability to connect with his own interior life of feelings, and then to verbalize them through his art to the rest of the world."
– Jon Gartenberg

A fiery mix of documentary, drama, & spoken-word poetry, EVERY CHILD IS BORN A POET explores the life and work of Piri Thomas, the Afro-Cuban-Puerto Rican author of the classic autobiographical novel Down These Mean Streets. The film traces Thomas’ path from childhood to manhood in New York City’s Spanish Harlem, El Barrio, from the 1930's through the 1960’s – from home life during the Great Depression, to membership in barrio youth gangs, from a life of crime through six years spent in prison to his emergence as a writer.

Special Educational 16 Page Study Guide Included

The Heart Broken in Half

The "HEART BROKEN IN HALF" reminded me of Spike Lee's best work; as a documentary it taught me about street life in today's Chicago—and by analogy about many of America's inner-cities."
- Richard Schechner, Professor of Performance Studies, New York University

Gangs are society's ultimate devil figure. They symbolize transgression and embody the deepest fears of middle class citizens. Few filmmakers have dared or been able to get behind the headlines to confront the human reality and complexity of street gangs in urban America. Challenging stereotypes, this documentary gives voice to the street youths and reveals their underground culture. Here is an intricate web of symbols and passions, territory and brotherhood, honor and all to often, death.

OMAR & PETE is a compelling and highly personal film that examines the social, economic, and personal barriers two ex-offenders face as they try to reintegrate into their communities and families. Following the two long-time friends for several years after what they hope will be their final prison release, the film reveals two divergent paths as one wrestles with addiction and fear while the other finds success and freedom through helping others.