Winner of the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, American Promise is an intimate and provocative account, recorded over 12 years, of the experiences of two middle-class African-American boys who entered a very prestigious and historically white private school on Manhattan's Upper East Side.

The Dalton School had made a commitment to recruit students of color, and five-year-old best friends Idris Brewster and Oluwaseun (Seun) Summers of Brooklyn were two of the gifted children who were admitted. The boys were placed in a demanding environment that provided new opportunities and challenges, if little reflection of their cultural identities.

Idris' parents, Joe Brewster, a Harvard- and Stanford-trained psychiatrist, and Michèle Stephenson, a Columbia Law School graduate and filmmaker, decided to film the boys' progress starting in 1999. They and members of the large Summers family soon found themselves struggling not only with kids' typical growing pains and the kinds of racial issues one might expect, but also with surprising class, gender and generational gaps.

American Promise, which traces the boys' journey from kindergarten through high school graduation, finds the greatest challenge for the families--and perhaps the country--is to close the black male educational achievement gap, which has been called "the civil rights crusade of the 21st century."

This event is a collaboration with POV, PBS’ award-winning nonfiction film series. For more information, visit http://www.pbs.org/pov/

“How does it feel when your ancestors have been surviving off the same land for thousands of years and then that land is threatened?” Residing about 250 miles southwest of Anchorage the people of Dillingham, Alaska have lived off of caribou and the world’s largest, most spectacular sockeye salmon fishery located in Bristol Bay. But now the proposed Pebble Mine that seeks to extract valuable deposits of gold, copper, and molybdenum threatens that way of life.

The 2013 documentary “We Can’t Eat Gold, “ casts light on the sustainable living the people have made off the land and sea. It also gives voice to the concern of the Alaska Native elders and youths not only about the future but also the impacts the exploration of Pebble Mine has already had on the Bristol Bay region’s King Salmon and Caribou populations. With government approval pending, will the people’s voice be heard?

Film director Joshua Tucker and producer Giovanna Marcantonio will be on hand to lead the discussion following the viewing of the film. This event is cosponsored by the University of Michigan Community Scholars' Program.

Cinema Night Special brings you something unusual and new by showing off an independent feature as well as live music, all with free popcorn! This round of CNS opens with a short set from local indie musicians The Low Voltage, and then follows up with the charming 2007 British comedy Son of Rambow.

An extraordinary cinematic work and the first-ever Palestinian film to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, the critically-acclaimed film is a deeply personal, first-hand account of life and non-violent resistance in Bil’in, a West Bank village surrounded by Israeli settlements. Shot almost entirely by Palestinian farmer Emad Burnat, who bought his first camera in 2005 to record the birth of his youngest son, the footage was later turned into a galvanizing cinematic experience by co-directors Guy Davidi and Burnat. Structured around the violent destruction of a succession of Burnat's video cameras, the filmmakers' collaboration follows one family's evolution over five years of village turmoil.

As the years pass in front of the camera, we witness Gibreel grow from a newborn baby into a young boy who observes the world unfolding around him with the astute powers of perception that only children possess. Burnat watches from behind the lens as olive trees are bulldozed, protests intensify, and lives are lost in this cinematic diary and unparalleled record of life in the West Bank. ''I feel like the camera protects me,'' he says, ''but it's an illusion.”

5 Broken Cameras, the winner of multiple international awards, is a Palestinian-Israeli-French co-production. This 94-minute film is not rated.

This inspiring 2012 documentary is the story of U-M’s Billy Taylor: his fall from college football’s largest stage, and the moment that led to his improbable recovery. The film will be followed by a discussion led by Billy Taylor and the film’s producer Dan Chace.

A record-setting, 3-time All-American and team MVP, Taylor began his career at Michigan at the same time that legendary head coach, Bo Schembechler, began his tenure. Despite his amazing college football achievements, Taylor saw his world come crashing in around him as he battled addiction, incarceration and homelessness on the streets of Detroit.

The film highlights Taylor’s notable football accomplishments and explores the setbacks that sidelined him, addressing themes of drug and alcohol dependency, homelessness, rehabilitation, self-determination, loyalty, parenting and faith. Taylor's fight for recovery is at the core of the story, and a powerful reminder that it's never too late to change. The film reveals Schembechler’s important role in Taylor’s story, along with others who helped Billy reclaim his life. The documentary includes interviews with former Michigan coaches Gary Moeller and Jerry Hanlon, as well as teammates David Brandon, Don Moorhead, Thom Darden and Henry Hill. Other notables include John U. Bacon, Bruce Madej and Tom Ufer.

Read about Billy Taylor on Oldnews.

Winner of a 2011 Emmy and the Independent Spirit Award, "Where Soldiers Come From" follows the lives of northern Michigan best friends, Dominic and Cole, and other recent high school graduates as they join the National Guard and are eventually sent to Afghanistan.

The young men quickly realize their carefree days are over as they spend their time sweeping for roadside bombs. Repeated bombs blowing up around their convoys lead to Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) symptoms. They have all become increasingly disillusioned about their mission.

The challenges really begin to surface when they return to their families and communities in Michigan. "Where Soldiers Come From" looks beyond the guns and policies of an ongoing war to tell a human story about family, friendship, and community and how they all change when people go off to fight.

This event is cosponsored by the University of Michigan Community Scholars' Program.

Learn the basics of using iMovie with staff from CTN (Community Television Network) and practice video editing skills.

Optional: Bring your own video footage.

“You don’t transition alone. Your family, your friends, society transitions with you.” Danica Criss

Join us for the local premiere of TransBeing the 2013 documentary of transgender issues which was selected for the Chicago International Social Change Film Festival and scheduled to have its U.S. premiere at the Center for Gender in Global Context of Michigan State University in September. A discussion with the film’s directors - Gabrielle Pescador and Juan Javier Pescador will follow the 30 minute film screening.

The films of Canadian Filmmakers Gabrielle Pescador and Juan Javier Pescador focus on gender, sexual and ethnic identity and have been screened internationally. "Just Because I Am," a documentary on homophobia and youth, won Best LGBT Documentary at the Ferndale Film Festival in 2011 and was an official selection at Newfilmmakers Film Festival.

Based on the acclaimed book by ecologist and cancer survivor Sandra Steingraber, the 2010 award-winning documentary Living Downstream follows Sandra during one pivotal year as she travels across North America, working to break the silence about cancer and its environmental links.

After a routine cancer screening, Sandra Steingraber, receives a worrisome result. The film covers two journeys with Sandra: her private struggle with a possible cancer recurrence and her public quest to bring attention to the toxic chemicals in our environment.

We follow these invisible toxicants as they migrate to some of the most beautiful places in North America. We see how they enter our bodies and, once inside, how they may contribute to cancer formation. Experts in the fields of toxicology and cancer research talk about their own findings - findings that illuminate the significant connection between a healthy environment and human health.

A discussion will follow the screening of this 60 minute film, led by members of the Michigan Breast Cancer Coalition

Learn the basics of using iMovie with staff from CTN (Community Television Network) and practice video editing skills. Optional: Bring your own video footage. Classes are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

Classrooms will open 15 minutes before the class start times. Registration is not required.