Education

A fresh spin on the story of high school sports as the path to transformation and redemption, Lucha takes us inside the Taft High School women’s wrestling team on their journey to a championship. Personal Challenges abound, from unsupportive families to homelessness, but these four young women from the Bronx—Shirley, Nyasia, Mariam, and Alba—find solace and hope in each other and on the mat. Their Empowering story is a testament to the human spirit and true grit.

THE ABCS OF BOOK BANNING

2024 Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Short. Over 2,000 books have been removed from school districts in the U.S. The ABCs of Book Banning, directed by Sheila Nevins in her inaugural debut, follows the human toll the future will pay for depriving children of their right to read and learn about a complex world. Interviews with children and authors shed light on this ongoing dangerous precedent.

ROSIE'S THEATER KIDS

Ten years ago, inspired by the teacher who inspired her, actor-comedian Rosie O'Donnell established a school, giving kids access to dance, music, and drama. Through archival footage, interviews, first-person accounts, and performances, this heartwarming and memorable film tells of the life-changing impact that the organization has had on its students and alumni - and how the power of musical theater and the performing arts helps young people unlock their full potential.

AFGHAN DREAMERS

In Afghanistan, an all-girl robotics team risk everything to prove they can build a name for themselves in the world. Working in secret under the Taliban regime and in a male-dominated cultural environment, the girls encounter enormous challenges. With exceptional access, Afghan Dreamers tells an insprirational story about an extraodinarily brave group of young women.

MEMORY GAMES

Memory makes us human. Memory Games offers a thrilling insight into the lives of four athletes as they compete for the title of World Memory Champion. Their unique approaches to memorizing and recalling mind boggling amounts of information and their life stories form the basis for a visually stunning and thought-provoking documentary that also looks at how memory permeates every aspect of our lives.

PUBLIC LIBRARY

Every day, hundreds of visitors seek refuge at the Bibliothèque Publique d’Information (Public Information Library) in the heart of Paris. Between the bookshelves, we meet inspired students, passionate experts, and researchers exploring a topic , as well as individuals just seeking quiet and respite from the outside world. Each of these people “inhabits” the library in their own way. And through this wonderful documentary, they share with us what this public space means to them.

HEALERS

By examining bodies and exploring the corners of the human psyche, Healers draws the contours of tomorrow's medicine, and weaves a portrait of a rapidly changing healthcare system. At the intersection of generations and practices, the film questions the vocation and profound meaning of caring for others, and focuses on the human dimension of medicine in a system undergoing great change.

BULLETPROOF

An urgent and vital documentary, Bulletproof explores the complexities of violence in our schools by looking at the ways we try to prevent it. The film travels across the United States, observing the longstanding rituals that take place in and around schools: homecoming parades, basketball practice, morning announcements. Unfolding alongside these scenes are a collection of newer traditions: lockdown drills, teacher firearms training, metal detector screenings, and school safety trade shows.

COME AND TAKE IT

This short documentary film captures the transformation of a young woman to the leadership of America’s most inspired anti-gun violence movement called #CocksNotGlocks. After concealed carry of handguns is legalized on the University of Texas campus, Jessica Jin posts clever humor on social media, and with the help of a tight-knit group of young female students, a movement is born: The Great Texas Dildo Revolt.

ANGELS ARE MADE OF LIGHT

A stirring and beautiful documentary from Academy Award nominated director James Longley (Iraq in Fragments), Angels Are Made of Light traces the lives of young students and their teachers at a school in the old city of Kabul. Interweaving the modern history of Afghanistan with present-day portraits, the film offers an intimate and nuanced vision of a society living in the shadow of war.

NIGHT SCHOOL

Emmy-winning director Andrew Cohn’s absorbing documentary observes the individual pursuits of four adult learners seeking a high school diploma, fraught with the challenges of daily life and the broader systemic roadblocks faced by many low income Americans.

THE RIDE

This intimate, moving documentary follows young Lakota riders on a 300-mile trek on horseback through the South Dakota badlands, as they retrace the fateful journey of their ancestors that culminated at Wounded Knee.

IN SEARCH OF PERFECT CONSONANCE

An inspirational new documentary from Oscar-winner Ruby Yang (The Blood of Yingzhou District), a profile of the renowned Asian Youth Orchestra, founded 25 years ago with the aim of connecting the region’s young people through music.

THE ACADEMY OF MUSES

A university professor espouses the role of muses in art and literature as a means of romancing his students in this breathtaking new film from the acclaimed director of In the City of Sylvia.

IN THE GAME

The struggles of a girls soccer team in a mostly hispanic, inner city neighborhood reveals the obstacles that low-income students face in their quest for higher education.