Telltale Bodies

Institut National de L’Audiovisual

By refining and expanding on the work of the founders of criminology, today's forensic scientists link crime victims to perpetrators in ways that almost defy belief. In this program, Professor Matile of France's Museum of Natural History; Professor Evenot, expert in odontology; and noted anthropologist Professor Perrot discuss the ways in which microscopy, entomology, dental records, and facial reconstruction help police solve crimes. The classic contributions of Lacassagne to ballistics, Revenstorf to forensic biology, Megnien to forensic entomology, and Guerassimov, who is shown actually doing a facial reconstruction, round out the historical background on these remarkable procedures. (55 minutes)

Eyewitness: What Actually Happened?

Open University

Ten people are asked to re-create, from memory, an abstract painting they viewed two months earlier. A fascinating psychological exercise, to be sure—but the experiment will soon become much more than a session with paints and brushes. This program documents the volunteers’ unwitting immersion in a staged crime, which they witness during a “break” in what they think is the real test. When a lunch-time pub patron is apparently murdered and the Greater Manchester police department invades the premises, each test subject must summon his or her recollections of the ordeal. Viewers discover how and why these memories prove disturbingly unreliable. Produced by the Open University. (59 minutes)

If I Could: Breaking the Vicious Cycle of Child Abuse-Educator's Edition

Filmsters

“Families destroy themselves, so families have to heal themselves.” If I Could is the heart-wrenching chronicle of Tracy Marasco, a single mother struggling to help her adolescent son James cope with severe emotional trauma resulting from abandonment by his father and sexual abuse by his father’s cousin. To complicate the situation, Tracy herself was victimized as a child, sexually abused by her father and forced, for a time, into prostitution. Rage and despair permeate this disturbing program, but so do hope and determination—represented, in part, by VisionQuest, a provider of innovative intervention services to at-risk youth and families. Tracy benefited from it as a teen; can it turn James around, too? Will the Marascos’ multigenerational cycle of abuse be broken? Sally Field narrates. Contains mature content; viewer discretion is advised. Comes with 90 minutes of bonus material (DVD only)—comments by NPR’s Fred Goodwin, post-viewing reactions of numerous medical professionals, an interview with director Patti Obrow White, and more. (99 minutes + 90 minutes of bonus material)

Should We Be Afraid of Google?

ARTE France

Google's company slogan is "Don't be evil." But as Google navigates the turbulent and uncharted techno-social currents the company has itself in part created, is Google drifting to the dark side? Is Google the new Big Brother? This program recounts the remarkable story of Google, but with a twist. In addition to detailed background on cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the birth and exponential growth of their company, and the heady experience of working at the Googleplex, Should We Be Afraid of Google? scrutinizes Google Web Search and various other initiatives-AdWords, Google Earth, Google Book Search, and more-within the context of how the aggregation and commoditization of data threatens both personal privacy and the free spread of uncensored information around the world. Commentary is provided by David Vise, author of The Google Story; New York Times tech writer John Markoff; Brad Templeton, president of the Electric Frontier Foundation; and many others. (88 minutes)

The Sociology of Crime and Deviance

ClickView Pty Limited

Taking into account the dramatic shift in the focus of research in recent years, from theories about criminal activity to applications of crime prevention, this multi-section program compares and contrasts the concepts of social causation, social construction, and social control as they relate to the sociology of crime and deviance. Topics include the influence of wider social forces on theories about crime, the reevaluation of criminals as victims or rebels, and three examples of the movement toward a greater pragmatism concerning crime: socio-environmental control, situational crime prevention, and Braithwaite’s restorative justice. Viewable/printable educational resources are available online. A part of the series Understanding Sociology. (40 minutes)

Life Behind Bars

University of Notre Dame

Are prisons supposed to rehabilitate convicts, punish them, or simply keep them off the streets? The answer depends on who is being asked. This program explores the current state of prisons in America and examines their conflicting mandates. The Directors of the National Prison Project of the ACLU and the National Center on Institutions and Alternatives, the Governor of South Dakota, an Arizona sheriff, adult and juvenile inmates, and others consider issues such as the societal impact of mandatory sentencing and the prison-building boom. (29 minutes)

Reducing Violent Crime

Ivanhoe Broadcast News

Every year, 20 million violent crimes are committed in America. This program looks at some of the ways in which people are trying to stop the cycle of crime and violence: working with inmates and ex-offenders; citizens and police working together to get prostitutes, drug dealers, and gang activities off the streets. Citizens on Patrol works in tandem with the Fort Worth, TX, police department; Gainesville, FL, has an innovative program to help retrain prisoners and reduce recidivism; and New Orleans has a community building program for inmates. In addition to examples of how communities are intervening to reduce crime, the program also shows some ways in which crime can be prevented and people can avoid becoming victims. (23 minutes)

School Crime: Sounding the Alarm

TRINITY WORKPLACE LEARNING INC

This program promotes a proactive approach to fighting school crime, while examining its myriad causes and possible solutions. The contributing roles of dysfunctional families, alcohol, drugs, and violence in the media are examined, along with the rise of gangs. Profiles of typical gang members help police and school officials to identify potential members before they become involved in crime. Enforcement techniques used to combat gang violence are provided in detail. (24 minutes)

Criminal Conversations

Ivanhoe Communications

This program interviews criminals to learn how and why they commit crimes. In a segment on burglary and auto theft, criminals describe how they break into homes and cars, what keeps them out, what they look for, and where they find it. In a segment on fraud, fast-talking flim-flam men and women describe the most popular schemes and how they gain the trust of their victims. In a segment on rape, rapists reveal what they look for in a victim, and how to spot and discourage sexual predators. Rape survivors also explain the benefits of fighting back. Finally, the program looks at kidnapping and how to teach children to be safe without instilling fear, how to spot dangerous situations, and effective self-defense techniques. (23 minutes)

Early Intervention

Doctoroff Media Group

Prof. James Wilson of UCLA is one of the country's leading authorities on crime. In this program, he examines early intervention and incarceration as solutions to crime and violence. Personal accountability should be the aim of education and rehabilitation, Wilson maintains, and it is critical to link penalties with small offenses committed early so that children learn to connect their conduct to its consequences. (27 minutes)

Manhood and Violence: Fatal Peril

American Public Television (APT)

The Resolve to Stop the Violence Program places male convicts in highly structured encounter groups, helping them recognize the warped concepts of masculinity behind their violent behavior. This documentary follows nine inmates through the rigorous self-discovery process, recording their growing sense of accountability and willingness to change. With commentary from law enforcement officers, violence-prevention experts, victims' relatives, and the inmates themselves, the video also follows up on RSVP participants after their release, highlighting the ultimate benefit of the program-a dramatic reduction in recidivism among its graduates. (58 minutes)

Peter Jennings Reporting-LAPD

PJ Productions

Southeast Los Angeles: it could be the most violent 10 square miles in America. In LAPD, Peter Jennings reports from inside that notorious police department, riding with anti-gang officers, interviewing top brass, and listening to community members. Focusing on Chief William Bratton's efforts to repeat the crime-reduction success of New York City-and to go one better by building trust in poor, predominantly minority neighborhoods-the program explores how a military-style police force with a brutal reputation struggles not just to stem violence, but to dig up its roots. A challenging and intimate look at cops trying to reinvent themselves, and their city. (43 minutes)

Racial Profiling and Law Enforcement: America in Black and White

Nightline

DWB: driving while black. For many African-Americans, simply having dark skin seems to be grounds for being pulled over on the highway and searched for drugs. Police call it "profiling," based on years of successful drug interdiction through traffic stops, but angry and humiliated victims call it "racial profiling"—a blatant form of discrimination—and want it stopped. In part one of this program, ABC News anchor Ted Koppel and correspondent Michel McQueen investigate the issue from the victims’ points of view. In part two, Koppel and McQueen look at profiling through the eyes of the police, with special commentary by law professor and former O. J. Simpson prosecutor Christopher Darden. Some language may be objectionable. (41 minutes)

Glen Mills Gang: Arrested Without Locks and Bars

True Stories International

Filmed over the course of a year, this documentary goes inside Glen Mills Schools in Pennsylvania, a "boarding school" alternative to prison for about 1,000 young members of street gangs convicted of crimes. Sam Ferrainola, the school's director, has pioneered a system of rewards and privileges where the young men keep themselves under strict surveillance, reporting infractions of the rules to upperclassmen, or "Big Brothers." Ferrainola stresses that Glen Mills is not a boot camp but an educational institution in which the goal is to bring about fundamental changes in behavior without incarceration. The system seems to work: of all institutions for juvenile offenders, Glen Mills' 32 percent recidivism rate is the lowest in the country. (50 minutes)

Juvenile Correction Facilities

Nightline

No one yearns to experience the inside of a prison—but to understand the American criminal justice system and those who enter it at an early age, spending a couple of nights behind bars yields powerful results. This ABC News program is the product of unprecedented access to Arizona’s juvenile correction facilities, documenting six months in the lives of inmates between 12 and 17 years old. Although the settings can be violent, the young interviewees display remarkable honesty, resilience, and hope for the future, reminding viewers that even in “juvie,” opportunities for learning and self-discovery are still available. (39 minutes)

Brother 2 Brother: Positive Personal Change for At-Risk Youths

National Film Board of Canada

Many at-risk youths see negative lifestyles such as hustling drugs as the only real alternatives open to them. Introspective in tone, this documentary presents a different point of view through the emotional journey of at-risk young black men attending an intensive retreat led by older black men whose life experiences qualify them as powerful mentors for positive personal change. Overall, the participants come away with a stronger sense of themselves, a new bond of brotherhood as a group, and a feeling of connection with elders who have faced similar circumstances and succeeded in turning their lives around. Some language may be offensive. (41 minutes)

Bodies, Blood, and Ballistics: Forensics School, Part One

Indigo Film & Television

From the physics of bullet trajectories to the grim details of human decay, forensic science is a challenging discipline for any student to enter. This program ushers viewers into the prestigious Forensic Science department at the University of Central Lancashire in Great Britain. Tests and coursework involve ballistics experiments used to solve a shotgun shooting case; an introduction to blood splatter analysis at the school’s mock crime scene facility; and an ordeal that every first-year forensics school scholar, regardless of his or her personal goals and sensitivities, is required to undergo—the Death and Decomposition lecture. Viewer discretion is advised. (23 minutes)

The Released

Frontline

In 2009, hundreds of thousands of offenders with serious mental illnesses were to be released into communities across America—the largest exodus in the nation’s history. In this follow-up to the groundbreaking documentary The New Asylums, Frontline investigates what happens to the mentally ill when they leave prison and why they are reincarcerated at such alarming rates. The intimate stories of the released, along with interviews with parole officers, social workers, and psychiatrists, provide a rare look at the lives of mentally ill ex-cons as they struggle to reintegrate into society and remain free. Distributed by PBS Distribution. (60 minutes)

The Coen Brothers

BBC Worldwide Learning

The Coen brothers appear to have pulled off the ultimate balancing act: they are financed by the major studios, yet remain true independents. Films such as The Big Lebowski and Fargo have revealed their distinctive stamp: a determined rejection of commercial cliches, richly conceived characters, crisp dialogue and brilliant casting. With unique access to their movie Oh Brother Where Art Thou?, this film tells the extraordinary story of these enigmatically close brothers.

What are Journalism Ethics?

National Endowment for Democracy

This film shows the good and the bad of news reporting. It suggests how policymakers, civil society, media organizations, and consumers all can contribute to creating the conditions for ethical journalism to thrive.

Social Theory and Crime

ShortCuts TV

For many criminologists, you can't explain crime just by looking at the characteristics offenders, you also have to consider the role social, cultural & environmental influences. This film brilliantly captures the essence of three of the major social theories of crime and looks at their continuing relevance to the study and control of crime in contemporary societies. Strain Theory and the American Dream looks at application of Merton's theory to consumer societies. Labelling Theory Today documents the switch from crime to social control and looks at the theory's continuing influence on criminology and criminal justice. Place, Space and Broken Windows begins with the question of why most recorded crime is concentrated in very specific areas and looks at research suggesting that it's possible to reduce crime by changing these spaces?

Goodbye, Sgt. Ross?

Tony Brown Productions

This program from Tony Brown's Journal discusses the role of the Black male lead on White-controlled television?

The Evolution of Sammy Davis, Jr.

Tony Brown Productions

In this program from Tony Brown's Journal from the 1980s, Sammy Davis reflects on his television interview with Tony Brown in 1971. Davis says, "I’ve survived where other cats would have been down the tubes. A lot of people don’t like themselves. I’ve stopped trying to adjust because its uncomfortable, let me be the best me I can be."

Who Was Stepin Fetchit

Tony Brown Productions

Who was the real man behind one of Hollywood’s most negative images, Stepin Fetchit? In this program from Tony Brown's Journal, Mel Watkins, author of Who Was Stepin Fetchit?, explains that Lincoln Perry was very different from the lazy, bug-eyed buffoon on screen.

Juvenile Sex Offender Interview: Anthony B.

Calamari Productions

A teen describes his early childhood and what led to him committing sex offenses.

Voice of America: Lowell Thomas and the Rise of Broadcast News

So Long Productions LLC

If you watch a news video today, listen to a newscast, or download a podcast, then you are benefiting from the work of Lowell Thomas. As Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather, the Dalai Lama, and many others explain in this lively film about a dynamo of a man, Thomas pioneered what is now often celebrated or disparaged as “traditional journalism.”Beginning in 1930, Thomas hosted his first nightly national news programs for NBC and CBS, and he remained on the radio through 1976. He was also a great adventurer. Walter Cronkite concluded that Thomas had “crammed a couple of centuries worth of living into” his 89 years. Lowell returned from Arabia in 1919 with film of Lawrence of Arabia, a legend he also invented through a multi-media show he presented to millions. After riding a mule caravan up into forbidden Tibet in 1949, just before the Chinese invaded, Lowell returned with his leg broken in eight places but also with film of the young Dalai Lama. Today as truthful journalists are accused of "fake news," the life of Lowell Thomas reminds us why a free press is important to democracy and shared faith in factual reporting is a cornerstone of a civil society.

Juvenile Prison Release Hearing: Morales

Calamari Productions

Juvenile offender Anthony M. goes in front of the release board after struggling with issues related to anger. Topics include runaway, car theft, counseling, substance abuse, and learning disabilities.

Investigating Sexual Assault in Prison

Calamari Productions

Interviews with investigators and staff inside prison. They discuss signs to look for, interview techniques, and how they combat sexual assault behind bars.

Delinquency Court: Jacklyn's Court Hearing

Calamari Productions

Juvenile Delinquency Court hearing of 15-year-old Jacklyn for possession of cocaine and resisting arrest. Jacklyn's father accuses police of planting evidence, while Judge Mary Beth Bonaventura recites the police report from the night of the arrest.

Mr. Brett, Juvenile Detention Teacher: Interview

Calamari Productions

Juvenile detention teacher Mr. Brett, a former NBA player, discusses mentoring kids in detention, his observations of kids who are repeat offenders, peer pressure, and the rewards of the job.

Flyin' Cut Sleeves

MVD Entertainment Group

Flyin' Cut Sleeves, completed in 1993, portrays street gang presidents in the Bronx. The project grew out of the experiences of Rita Fecher, the film's co-producer. Fecher, who taught in a South Bronx school in the late 1960s and early 1970s, became intimately involved with the gangs, their leaders, and the leaders' families and began to document their lives. Their world was the streets, set against a backdrop of uprooted families, cultural alienation, drugs and violence. Neighborhood teenagers responded by organizing into street groups known to the members as "families," but labeled in the most alarming terms as violent gangs by the press. In fact, the "families" had a stabilizing effect, enabling the youths to cope with their troubled environment. The political climate at the time, movements of national liberation and such organizations as the Black Panthers and Young Lords Party influenced the young gang leaders to aspire to be more than warriors and to become, to some degree, a positive force in their communities. When Rita Fecher returned after 20 years to see what had become of her old friends, she found that they had stayed in the community of their youth, that they were deeply committed to improving conditions there and that they were engaged in helping their own children survive in the hazardous street environment. The documentation of these lives over a 20-year period offers a remarkable perspective on life in the ghetto (spanning four generations) and the means that people devise to cope from the time that they are children to when they serve as parents and role models for a new generation.

In El Salvador, a Program Lays Out a Path to Escape Gang Violence (2/25/18)

NewsHour Productions

Since 2014, more than 250,000 unaccompanied minors have made a dangerous journey to the U.S. from Central America, with 40 percent coming from El Salvador, where jobs are scarce and gangs are rampant. One program, funded by U.S. government aid and private philanthropy, is supporting young people in San Salvador with leadership and job training. Special Correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro reports.

McLuhan Unclaimed: I Am A Winnipigeon!

Hiltz Squared Media Group

The effect of Winnipeg's unique topography on the great Canadian professor Marshall McLuhan's mind helped to formulate his philosophical media theories and perceptions: "The Seer of the Global Village, Grew Up in Osborne Village" and the worldwide and local implications for contemporary society. McLuhan is everywhere, permeating the ether of our modern digitally market-driven age. Yet McLuhan seems to stand next-to-last in line as a celebrated person in Winnipeg where he is currently: McLuhan Unclaimed!

In Your Hands: Life after Prison

Pittsure Company

For ex-convicts, the road back into society is paved with good intentions. But a freed prisoner's plans for the future can quickly go awry, and the local support system, if one exists, may be just as ineffectual. Do public services provide what a former inmate needs? Is the "system" a safety net or a trap, every bit as confining as prison? This film documents two case studies in which the end of incarceration means not only a fresh start but also a new phase of hardship, hard luck, and hard-won dignity. Jailed since her mid-20s and emerging with nothing but the clothes on her back, Kim is soon spending her nights on a park bench. Will she fare better or worse than Xavier, who has served 13 years for murder? Where does a young man with that kind of record find a decent job? By the end of the program viewers will be able to reach their own conclusions about the hidden and human costs of maintaining a "safe" society. Issues of race, poverty, and substance abuse are discussed. Contains profanity and mature subject matter. (59 minutes)

Hospital Security: In the Line of Duty, Volume 9

In the Line of Duty

When a criminal is hurt, injured, or wounded, he/she must receive proper treatment. However, the security challenges for law enforcement can be innumerable. Contains graphic crime-related violence. Some language may be offensive. Part of the series In the Line of Duty, Volume 9. (35 minutes)

On the Trail of Evil: A Journey to the Center of the Brain

Albatross World Sales

They're charming, they lie effortlessly, and they can commit acts of extreme violence without the slightest twinge of remorse. Are such people born with no conscience? What are their thoughts as they rape, torture, and kill? Is there a way to recognize them before they do harm? In this fascinating documentary, experts trace the roots of psychopathy as they take on the “nature vs. nurture” debate, using medical technology and interviews with criminal offenders to support their theories. Chilling testimony from Congolese child soldiers and former Nazis reveals that even decent people from loving homes can become ruthless murderers...and are capable of justifying their actions. Some content may be objectionable. (53 minutes)

Invisible War Shines Light on Rape in the Military

ABC News

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, up to 30 percent of women in the military have been raped or sexually assaulted while serving. This ABC News report highlights the Oscar-nominated documentary The Invisible War, and discusses the response of the military. Victims talk about how they were punished but the predators went free, and how the military sees rape as an occupational hazard. Broadcast date: February 22, 2013. (5 minutes)

The War on Kids

Cinetic Rights Management LLC.

The stories are nearly unbelievable: a middle schooler suspended for bringing a Tweety Bird keychain to class (because all chains are classified as weapons); another, for pretending a fast-food chicken strip was a gun; a third, for carrying ibuprofen in violation of the school’s strict policy against drugs—except, of course, for Ritalin. This documentary argues that measures intended to keep children safe have turned schools into prisons and that regimentation in the public educational system produces adults who are unable to think for themselves. Taking aim at “zero tolerance” rules, authoritarian teachers, the D.A.R.E. program and its devolution into a joke among kids, and more, the video posits that the mainstays of public education are worse than ineffectual—they may be downright harmful. With Henry Giroux (Stealing Innocence: Corporate Culture’s War on Children), John Holt (Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Agenda of Compulsory Schooling), and Laurie Couture (Instead of Medicating and Punishing). (96 minutes)

Profiles of Delinquency: Joshua

Calamari Productions

Joshua Cordell, a seemingly soft-spoken and mild-mannered 13-year-old, finds himself in juvenile court on charges that he battered his own mother. This character profile illuminates how juvenile crime is not only a social issue but, all too often, a family one as well. Viewer discretion advised. (40 minutes)

Home Is Where the Heart Lies: Mapping Murder

Abacus Media Rights Limited

"The fact is that most offenders do not travel very far to commit their crimes," says Professor David Canter. "Like you and me, their home is where their heart lies." In this program, Canter makes his point through the case of British TV personality Jill Dando, who was murdered on her doorstep by a man who lived just a few streets away; the Railway Rapists, a pair of men who raped and, in two cases, murdered their way up and down a rail line that passed by perpetrator John Duffy's dwelling; and Jack the Ripper, who terrorized London's East End and probably resided there. A look at the Soho cholera epidemic of 1854, which was brought under control through the geographical mapping of Dr. John Snow, is also included. A part of the series Mapping Murder: Investigative Psychology Meets Geographical Profiling. (23 minutes)

Black Holes and Spider Webs: Mapping Murder

Abacus Media Rights Limited

Not all serial killers travel to commit their crimes; some lure their victims to their lair, where they are silenced forever. In this program, Professor David Canter uses the case of Fred and Rosemary West-a British husband/wife duo who cleverly concealed the bodies of no fewer than 13 girls and young women they tortured, sexually abused, and murdered-to explain how a black hole-like absence of victim bodies can itself provide insights into the whereabouts of a predator. The case of the Belgian serial killer and child pornographer Marc Dutroux is also exhibited, showing how a wide cluster of black holes can indicate the presence of a multi-person, web-like crime network. A part of the series Mapping Murder: Investigative Psychology Meets Geographical Profiling. (23 minutes)

Marauders and Commuters: Mapping Murder

Abacus Media Rights Limited

In the world of criminal investigation, a marauder is a serial predator who works from a centrally placed home base. A commuter, on the other hand, is one who travels to a locale in search of victims. What happens when commuting and marauding are combined? In this program, Professor David Canter compares and contrasts two commuter-marauders who perpetrated homicidal assaults on women: Frenchman Jacques Plumain (the Phantom), who marauded in Strasbourg, crossed the border into the German town of Kehl, and marauded some more, and Birmingham resident Adrian Babb, who crossed a highway into a different Birmingham neighborhood to commit his crimes. A part of the series Mapping Murder: Investigative Psychology Meets Geographical Profiling. (23 minutes)

Of Dolls and Murder

MVD Entertainment Group

Of Dolls and Murder explores a haunting collection of dollhouse crime scenes and our universal fascination with murder. The documentary film explores the dioramas, the woman who created them, and their relationship to modern day forensics. From the iconic CSI television show to the Body Farm and criminally minded college students and a crime fighting granny, legendary filmmaker and true crime aficionado, John Waters narrates the tiny world of big time murder. (82 minutes)

Visions of Abolition: From Critical Resistance to a New Way of Life

MVD Entertainment Group

This two-part documentary presents a critical view of the current prison system from an abolitionist perspective. Breaking Down the Prison Industrial Complex, the first part, examines the racial and gendered violence of the prison system through the voices of two groups: women caught in the criminal justice system and leading scholars of prison abolition. Abolition: Past, Present, and Future, the second part, documents the recent history of the prison abolition movement through the organizing efforts of Critical Resistance and explores the meaning of abolitionist politics. Interviews with Melissa Burch, Susan Burton, Angela Davis, Ruth Wilson Gilmore, and Dylan Rodriguez are featured throughout. (93 minutes total)

Juvenile Justice

Frontline

FRONTLINE explores whether children who commit serious crimes should be tried as juveniles or adults. The program shows what can happen to young offenders who reach the "end of the line" in the juvenile court system and how these children can be rehabilitated to prevent future criminal behavior. Distributed by PBS Distribution. (90 minutes)

Development Communication and Communication Technology: Everett M. Rogers—Media Researchers Series, with Cindy Lont and Susan Kehoe

TMW Media Group

Everett M. Rogers, communication scholar, theorist, writer, and teacher, discusses his research in the field of development communication, diffusion of innovations, and communication technology. Part of the series Media Researchers Series, with Cindy Lont and Susan Kehoe. (48 minutes)

Violence and Television: George Gerbner—Media Researchers Series, with Cindy Lont and Susan Kehoe

TMW Media Group

George Gerbner, communication scholar, theorist, teacher, poet, and the founder of cultivation theory, discusses his work, which influenced four decades of research on violence and television. Part of the series Media Researchers Series, with Cindy Lont and Susan Kehoe. (25 minutes)

Beyond Punishment

Java Films

"Freedom is what you do with what has been done to you." Three different countries. Three men who have killed and three families who have lost a loved one. The common idea of guilt and punishment is that the killers are punished, which helps the families to move on. But the people involved in these life-changing acts of violence have still not found peace. Years after judgements are made and sentences served, both sides are still searching… Beyond Punishment challenges our ideas of guilt and punishment by examining the need for forgiveness and the inner conflict this wish brings about. What does it mean to forgive? Would that be a betrayal of the victim of the crime? Is there an alternate concept of forgiveness?

Rape on the Night Shift

PBS

An investigation into the sexual abuse of undocumented women in the service industry. The film examines allegations of abuse across the janitorial industry, and how the government, law enforcement and companies fall short in dealing with the problem. Distributed by PBS Distribution.

Psychology, Criminality, and Incarceration in America

Promedion/American MultiMedia

This program explores current trends in criminal justice policy. It covers such topics as the U.S. incarceration rate and psychological explanations for criminality. It outlines the four classic functions of incarceration (incapacitation, deterrence, retribution, and rehabilitation).

The History of American Criminal Justice

Promedion/American MultiMedia

This program offers a brief history of U.S. criminal justice. It covers such topics as criminal justice in colonial America, the Quakers’ penitentiary, and the development of criminology. The program explains the organization of the U.S. criminal justice system.

A Question of Identity: Catching History's Criminals—The Forensics Story

BBC Worldwide Learning

Where there’s a murder, there’s a body, and it’s often the most significant piece of evidence, preserving important clues. This episode features the first investigation in which DNA fingerprinting was used to convict a serial killer, unearths a historic case involving a college janitor turned detective, and explains how you go about putting a name to a body when it’s been dissolved in acid. A BBC Production.

The Mystery of Murder: A Horizon Guide

BBC Worldwide Learning

What drives people to kill? Science has spent more than 50 years trying to get inside the mind of murderers to find in what ways they are different to the rest of us—and also the ways in which they are disturbingly similar. Michael Mosley opens up the Horizon casebook to discover how scientists have used extraordinary techniques and experiments to see what goes on inside the brain of a murderer. He shows how they have created a surprisingly comprehensive picture of the different factors that can drive someone to kill. And he asks the ultimate question—will we one day be able to intervene to prevent someone becoming a killer? A BBC Production.

The University

Juliana Roth

Narratives thread together in The University a film following the aftermath of a sexual assault on a college campus. Told through the stories recounted to a Title IX tribunal, The University asks what justice might look like for survivors.

In the Face of Terror: Episode 3

BBC Worldwide Learning

On 15 March 2019, an anonymous user posts a message on the internet stating that they intend to carry out an attack 'against the invaders' and will live-stream the attack via Facebook. The post is written by Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian living in New Zealand. After uploading the message, he turns on his body-worn camera and drives to the Al-Noor mosque in Christchurch, where he opens fire on worshippers. The live-streaming of an attack heralds a new era of terrorism and confirms the far right as the world's fastest-growing terror threat. A week later, Christchurch's small Muslim community is still in shock. Giving the final blessing to one of the victims is former Imam Farid Ahmed, who survived the shooting. He had separated from his wife Husna as they went to different parts of the mosque to pray. When the shooting started, he escaped. When it was over, he went searching for his wife, only to learn that she had rescued many people, but was killed as she returned to the mosque to look for him. At Linwood, the city's second mosque, survivor Abdul Aziz describes how he was praying when a fellow worshipper was shot through a window, and he ran outside to confront the attacker. He found a weapon and chased Tarrant back to his car, throwing the gun at him as he fled. The police gave chase and rammed Tarrant's car, arresting him by the side of the road. In London, Jacob Davey is a far-right analyst working at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue. He recalls hearing of the shooting and rushing to monitor the digital footprint of the attack. He could see millions were watching the video in dark corners of the web. Facebook themselves blocked or took down 1.5 million uploads of the video.

A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks

HBO

For decades, trailblazing photographer Gordon Parks brought the human struggle of the Black community out of the shadows and onto the pages of LIFE magazine. This documentary explores Parks' enduring legacy through the lens of three contemporary photographers, and spotlights his visionary work and its impact on the next generation of artists.

Being Mary Tyler Moore

HBO

With unprecedented access to Mary Tyler Moore’s vast archive, Being Mary Tyler Moore chronicles the screen icon whose storied career spanned sixty years. Weaving Moore’s personal narrative with the beats of her professional accomplishments, the film highlights her groundbreaking roles and the indelible impact she had on generations of women who came after her.

Tareena: Return from Isis

BBC Worldwide Learning

The exclusive story of Britain’s most high profile ISIS returnee, Tareena Shakil. A victim of domestic abuse and looking for a way out for herself and her son, Tareena was groomed and recruited by ISIS. She eventually travelled to Syria, but soon realised she’d made a terrible mistake. When Tareena returned to England, she was arrested and condemned by the press. Now free from prison, Tareena wants to join the fight against ISIS. With exclusive access to Tareena, her family, and de-radicalisation expert Mike Jervis, this is a story of radicalisation, return – and the search for redemption.

Episode 1: Beyond Belief (Louis Theroux: Life on the Edge)

BBC Worldwide Learning

Louis Theroux explores how some people's most fervent beliefs can lead to conflict.

Episode 3: Law and Disorder (Louis Theroux: Life on the Edge)

BBC Worldwide Learning

Louis reflects on the criminal justice system in the USA, which has more prisoners than any other country in the world. In documentaries such as Behind Bars and Miami Mega Jail, Louis spent time with hundreds of incarcerated men, discovering a world with its own rules and codes and a system that seemed to be broken. In A Place for Paedophiles, Louis came face to face with those responsible for serious sex crimes against children who were being locked up indefinitely, even after their sentences had been completed. Louis also revisits his documentaries in Philadelphia and Milwaukee, where tensions between the African-American community and the police were already at boiling point, years before the recent killing of George Floyd.

Episode 4: Family Ties (Louis Theroux: Life on the Edge)

BBC Worldwide Learning

Louis examines how the greatest source of love in our lives - our families - can often be the cause of our deepest pain. In his trilogy of documentaries centred on the Westboro Baptist Church, Louis explores the price the family was paying for its devotion to the distorted vision of its patriarch, Pastor Fred Phelps. With Pastor Phelps now dead, the family has been torn apart - some of its members are still utterly devoted, whilst others have left, forbidden from ever contacting their families again. Louis also reflects on how physical and mental health or forces beyond our own control can threaten to derail our family lives. He catches up with contributors from Trans Kids and A Different Brain to see how life has changed since he saw them last.

Unlikely Reunion

NewsHour Productions

America’s epidemic of gun violence gets plenty of coverage, but we don’t focus nearly enough on the victims living with the life-long impacts of that violence. We have the story of what happens when one of those survivors meets the person who pulled the trigger. In this NewsHour program, William Brangham tells how an unlikely reunion recently came about in Florida.

Crossroads Local Newspaper

NewsHour Productions

Over the past few decades, more than 2,000 newspapers across the country have closed, leaving many communities without a reliable source of local information. Researchers say this crisis in journalism, driven by changes in technology, is fueling the country's political divisions. In this NewsHour program from the America at a Crossroads series, Judy Woodruff visited a community in Texas that recently lost its newspaper.

Is Objectivity Essential in Journalism?: A Debate

Open to Debate

For much of the 20th century, newspapers, television newscasts, and most other media outlets strove to be objective, advising journalists to stick only to the facts, deliver both sides of a dispute, and keep their personal views to themselves. This way, supporters of objectivity argued, news consumers would get all the information they needed to understand an issue and form their own opinions. In the late 1900s, however, some media experts began challenging this view, arguing that objectivity is a myth. All journalist have biases and opinions, they contend, and denying this misleads consumers and presents a false sense of balance and fairness. In today’s hyperpartisan world, experts note, some news outlets slant in one political direction or another, shaping—and perhaps misinforming—consumers to the detriment citizens and society. Is objectivity essential to journalism?

Fake News: A True History

TVF International

Fake news is never out of today's headlines but it has been raking in cash and wreaking havoc long before our own confused, uncertain times. Ian Hislop looks back at 200 years of fake news and its consequences – from Victorians on the moon to 21st century deepfake.

Chapter 3: Evaluating Information Sources (Mastering the Art of Information Literacy)

Motion Masters

This program examines ways to know if a source is credible by looking at authorship and expertise, the publisher or platform, objectivity and bias, citations and references, and timeliness and currency of the information. It also presents tips for evaluating online sources by checking domain and URL, extensions, cross-referencing, and exercising caution with user-generated content.A MotionMasters Production.

Chapter 6: Ethical Use of Information (Mastering the Art of Information Literacy)

Motion Masters

Emphasizing the importance of using information in a way that is fair, honest, and shows respect for others, this program discusses aspects of copyright, plagiarism (including self-plagiarism), fair use, and privacy of information.A MotionMasters Production.

Chapter 7: Media Literacy (Mastering the Art of Information Literacy)

Motion Masters

How do you know if something is fake news? This program emphasizes the value of developing your critical thinking skills. It looks at source evaluation, media bias, political bias, ideological bias, corporate bias, sensationalism, and confirmation bias. It discusses how to use fact-checking sites, considers critical analysis of news media and deconstruction of messages, and looks at media manipulation.A MotionMasters Production.

Chapter 8: Media Literacy, A Summary (Mastering the Art of Information Literacy)

Motion Masters

This program emphasizes that information literacy is not just about knowing where to find information; it's about knowing how to evaluate, analyze and use that information effectively, and responsibly. It reviews the importance of critical thinking and building one's media literacy skills.A MotionMasters Production.

Cancel Culture Is Toxic: A Debate

Open to Debate

"Cancel Culture"—the effort to ostracize someone for comments or actions deemed offensive—has grown more pervasive in recent years. With the rise of Twitter and other social media platforms, people can quickly publicize such comments or actions and urge others to shun, or "cancel," them. Canceling can have serious repercussions, resulting in the loss of cultural cache, political clout, and even a job or career. Critics of cancel culture argue that it empowers digital mobs to police people's speech, invade their rights, and even endanger their physical safety. Cancel culture, they charge, erodes public discourse, inhibits free expression, and promotes censorship of unpopular ideas. Defenders of cancel culture dismiss these concerns, arguing that holding people to account for offensive—and often racist or sexist—comments is thoroughly appropriate. Such accountability can bring attention to prejudice and bigotry, they charge, and help break down ingrained systems of injustice, particularly on behalf of populations that have historically been discriminated against and exploited. Is cancel culture beneficial or is it toxic?

Part 2: The Punishment (Undercurrent: The Disappearance of Kim Wall)

HBO

As Madsen's trial gets underway, disturbing details about the inventor and Kim's final hours begin to surface.

49 Pulses

Filmhub

Utilizing survivor interviews, re-enactments, and police body cameras, this documentary examines the Orlando nightclub tragedy, one of the worst mass shootings in US history.

No Ordinary Life

Filmhub

In a male-dominated field, five pioneering camerawomen went to the frontlines of wars, disasters, and revolutions to find the truth. As colorful as accomplished, they made their mark by capturing iconic images from Tiananmen Square to the Arab Spring.

Exit

Filmhub

A journey out of the heart of human trafficking. Three women who were looking for a way out of their extreme poverty found themselves at the heart of human trafficking networks. "Exit" is not a straight road and many don't make it to the end.

The Power of the Actor: The Chubbuck Technique

John Benitz

Acting coach to some of Hollywood's biggest stars, Ivana Chubbuck explains her 12 step acting technique as outlined in the best-selling book, The Power of the Actor.

Case Study 8: Expert Evidence Series—Interview Videos

Seven Dimensions

In the first example, the expert, Dr Jodie Witkowski, makes a statement that suggests uncertainty about her material. She makes no eye contact with the judge. In the second example, the expert articulates her information clearly and carefully in an assertive way, looking at both the barrister and the judge.

The Basics

MZed

Philip gives us an overview of the essential kit required to shoot cinematic shots and sequences, as well as the range of equipment available. He then dives into camera settings and setup to show how to get the very best out of almost any type of camera.

Interviews

MZed

This video covers everything you need to know to get the most out of interviewing subjects. Starting with your setup—lighting, camera position, audio—and then to the actual interview technique and how to get the best results.

House of Suh

MVD Entertainment Group

One of Chicago's most famous murder cases surrounded sister and brother Catherine and Andrew Suh, first-generation Korean-Americans, who conspired against, shot, and killed Catherine's former boyfriend.

Broadmoor: A History of the Criminally Insane

MVD Entertainment Group

Criminology professor David Wilson uses interviews and archives to highlight Britain's most notorious criminals and the place they called home.

Prudent Paranoia

The Kindling Group

African Americans are more suspicious of doctors than the rest of the country and 50% believe conspiracy theories about HIV. This program probes the good reasons to be suspicious and questions how we draw the line between being prudent and being paranoid.

Intuitionists vs. Rationalists

The Kindling Group

Is the government covering up aliens? Whether or not you believe this conspiracy theory depends on whether you are an intuitionist or a rationalist. This program considers studies that show that these different world views are increasingly driving Americans apart.

Alice Guy, Pioneer of the 7th art - Forgotten by History

ARTE France

Who knows Alice Guy? This Frenchwoman was born in 1873 and she is nothing less than the first female director! The one who thought, imagined and felt that cinema would become an art and the best way to tell stories. With nearly a thousand films, the most abundant career of her time which she was the only one to carry out on both sides of the Atlantic, this pioneer was literally wiped out by film historians during her lifetime. This film paints a fascinating portrait of an ardent and visionary woman, who has never stopped conquering new territories, only to end up with one last dream: to regain her destiny. It finally gives her the floor to deliver her version of history and regain her place in history. "Alice Guy was an exceptional director, with a rare sensitivity, a remarkably poetic eye and a great instinct [...]. She has written, directed and produced over a thousand films. And yet, she was forgotten by the industry she helped create.” Martin Scorsese

Mass Media: Audience

Camille S. DeBose

This program offers a general introduction to the audience and its role in mass media.

Juvies

Collective Eye Films

Twenty years ago, juveniles committed 30% of all felony arrests. Today, juveniles commit only 15% of all felonies. This is not because they are committing fewer crimes. Narrator Mark Wahlberg points out that over 200,000 children are sent through the adult court system each year. The film follows 12 juveniles, who were all prosecuted as adults. The filmmakers taught a video production class to kids in Eastlake Central Juvenile Hall, Los Angeles to encourage them to open up about their lives and the choices they made that brought them to juvenile hall.

Durkheim and the Functions of Crime

ShortCuts TV

It seems obvious to most people that crime and social order are opposites. But more than a century ago French sociologist, Emile Durkheim, suggested that it wasn’t that simple. This film looks at the introduction of Zero Tolerance Policing in New York, the imprisonment of Dr Jack Kevorkian for assisting terminally-ill patients to die and the tragic murder in the UK of Jamie Bulger, to illustrate Durkheim’s three key functions of crime. It concludes by looking at how the legacy of these ideas has been so influential in the development of criminology.

D-Day, the Holocaust & the Atomic Bomb

3DD Entertainment

The most dynamic period as Nazism is in the death throes. 101st Division heroics in the Siege of Bastogne, Operation Market Garden and the collapse begins as Hitler holds on hoping his V2 rockets (and possibly the atomic bomb), will transform his power, but again his hopes are dashed by the allies in Operation Crossbow and with Berlin being approached from three sides Adolf Hitler’s reign ends as he commits suicide on 30 April 1945. The horrors of Nazi Holocaust are revealed and filmed by some of the world’s leading film directors. The German film Downfall, Judgement at Nuremburg, The Young Lions & Schindler's List tell this end and the misery, tragedy, and shame of the death camps of the final solution . The war continues in the Pacific, with the final battles such as Okinawa. Again, we see this story told in the John Wayne classic, and from both sides with Eastwood’s duet of films. The nuclear age has begun and on August 6th 1945 President Truman takes the decision to release the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima and again on the 9th on Nagasaki, the war in Japan is extinguished and VJ Day on August 15th marks the end of WW2.

Adventures of A Lifetime

3DD Entertainment

From the oral tradition of Ancient Greece, to a paperback grabbed at the airport, nothing captures the imagination of children and adults alike more than a great adventure story, and no genre of literature was more tailor-made for film adaptation. Tales of swashbuckling heroes in far-off lands have continued to inspire the most visionary directors in cinema.

Oliver Stone

3DD Entertainment

Oliver Stone was born on September 15, 1946. He won Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for Midnight Express (1978). The first in a trilogy on The Vietnam War where he served was Platoon (1986), which earned him won Best Director and Picture Oscars. Born on the Fourth of July (1989) followed as did his 2nd Best Director Oscar. Works include Salvador (1986); Wall Street (1987) Natural Born Killers (1994); a trilogy on the American Presidency: JFK (1991), Nixon (1995), and W. (2008)

Martin Scorsese

3DD Entertainment

Martin Scorsese was born on 17thNovember 1942 in Queens, New York. His directorial career began to take off in the 1970s and since then, he has won BAFTAs, Oscars, and Golden Globe Awards. Some of Scorsese’s most dynamic films include ‘Taxi Driver’ (1976), ‘Raging Bull’ (1981), ‘Goodfellas’ (1990), and ‘The Departed’ (2006).

Understanding Movies: Horror

Camille S. DeBose

This program offers an introduction to the horror genre and explains how genre is used to classify films. Typical horror conventions like low-key lighting and archetypes are discussed. The program also mentions various symbolic representations found in the horror genre.

Understanding Movies: Horror 2

Camille S. DeBose

This program provides some historical context for the horror genre in US Cinema with a discussion of iconic characters such as Dracula, The Mummy, and the Wolfman created by Universal Studios between 1930 and 1950. The discussion then moves toward two contemporary films: A Cabin in The Woods is discussed as a meta textual narrative and Final Girl is offered as a discussion of changing archetypes in cinema.

Understanding Movies: Romantic Comedy

Camille S. DeBose

This program offers a comprehensive look at the Romantic Comedy genre. Offering historical context the video discusses the emergence of the genre and its development over time. Classic films like It Happened One Night are discussed. The concept of a “dual protagonist” is included. Then the discussion moves to contemporary Romantic comedies using the films: Leap Year and Hitch.

Understanding Movies: Fantasy

Camille S. DeBose

This program introduces the genre of fantasy film, offering context and examples. It discusses ontological rupture, fairytale films, earthbound fantasy films, heroic fantasy films, and epic fantasy films and and considers how fantasy films approach deeper philosophical or social issues.

Understanding Movies: Science Fiction

Camille S. DeBose

This short program introduces the viewer to the Science Fictions genre offering context and examples. Salient points include the four most common themes: our use of technology, the relationships between humanity and science, depictions of the “other,” and visions of the past, present, or future. It also includes a short discussion on how the science fiction genre approaches deeper philosophical questions like what it means to be human.

Stalin: Funeral of a God

Sarasota Fringe Films LLC

Based on the cinematography of Soviet (Georgian) Filmmaker Mikheil Chiaureli, this film by Academy-award winning Georgian filmmaker Nino Kirtadze follows the funeral of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. Chiaureli was one of Stalin's favorite filmmakers for his propaganda films and emerged as one of the most important Soviet directors and cinematographers in the 1940s. The footage shot by Chiaureli was intended by the Soviet authorities to be the definitive account of history’s greatest loss. Ranging widely across the Soviet Union and points beyond – from Warsaw to Moscow to Beijing and Korean War battlefronts, and culminating in the dictator’s colossal Red Square funeral – this video captures the pomp and intrigue-packed Soviet world of High Stalinism at its zenith. Long buried in Soviet-era archives, and unearthed by Kirtadze and her team, the footage jarringly returns us to a time when the slogan “Stalin is always with us” radiated hope and confidence in a bright Soviet future and offers insights into Soviet propaganda films of that era. It uses the official Russian State Radio Broadcast as the narrative track and features English narrative and voice-over. " The result [the film] is like an object rescued from a time capsule nearly seven decades old, a glimpse into the mindset of a twentieth-century totalitarian regime that had treated its leader with something very near to deification. Recommended for collections in twentieth-century, and especially Cold War, history," Video Librarian.

TurnSignl App: Safer Police Stops

NewsHour Productions

The murder of George Floyd thrust Minnesota into the center of the debate over police misconduct and profiling. As Fred de Sam Lazaro reports in this NewsHour production from the series Agents for Change, one effort coming out of that painful period hopes to use technology, such as the TurnSignl app to make traffic stops safer.

Teen Violence

Hedrick Smith Productions

In part one of this program, Hedrick Smith reports on how the Alliance of Concerned Men stopped a youth gang war in Benning Terrace, a public housing project in the nation's capital that had become a war zone. Alliance members Tyrone Parker and Rico Rush, former felons with new lives and a new mission, negotiate a truce with the rival gangs that ends the killing and brings hope and new mainstream jobs to former gang members and peace to other residents. In part two, viewers see how the Los Hermanos youth crime prevention program of the Oregon State Penitentiary keeps troubled teenagers in the Pacific Northwest from sliding into a life of crime. Inmates mentor young men in face-to-face sessions inside the prison walls over several months. Begun by Latinos but open to youth of all races, Los Hermanos has touched the lives of 150 teens in a remarkably successful effort to deter them from doing crimes-and doing time. Public dialogues draw out lessons for other communities. (58 minutes)

The Poet and the Con

Eric Trules

In this riveting and painfully honest documentary, poet and performance artist Eric Trules explores his multifaceted relationship with his uncle Harvey, an alcoholic mobster and confessed murderer. The program examines surprising parallels between the two men, revealing how artist and outlaw share a deep-rooted resistance to social and moral conventions—a notion of particular relevance when Trules is arrested for a felony himself. Featuring poignant scenes in which Eric and Harvey share their regrets, fears, and affection for each other, this is a provocative study of the criminal mind, family ties, and the psychology of personal recovery and redemption. (59 minutes)

Media Literacy in the 21st-Century Classroom

Carmelina Films

The more digital technology becomes inseparable from our daily lives, the more chances corporate and political media have to manipulate young people-unless students are taught how to dissect and defend against that manipulation. This program helps educators instill media literacy through an exploration of its basic concepts as well as examples drawn from film and television. Defining media literacy in terms of access, analysis, evaluation, and creation, the video examines race and gender issues, embedded social cues, the prevalence of media bias, and concrete methods for questioning the objectives and studying the techniques of media. Well-known TV commercials are used as case studies. (40 minutes)