The L.A. Riots: 25 Years Later

HISTORY brings you an all-encompassing documentary event cantered around the 25th anniversary of the LA Riots, the most destructive riot in American history that left 53 people dead and caused over a billion dollars in damage.

Tote Schwule – Lebende Lesben

As a result of the Holocaust and later, AIDS, the male homosexual community has sustained bitter losses and, according to Praunheim, lesbian women have now placed themselves at the head of the so-called queer movement. The female protagonists in the film represent two different generations; they also incorporate the past and present status of homosexuals in society.

Mythos Othello

A fascinating exploration of the literary — The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice, by English playwright William Shakespeare (1604) — and lyrical — Othello, by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (1887) — myth of Othello, the desperately tragic story of a Moorish general in the army of the Venetian Republic whose absurd jealousy poisons his love for his wife Desdemona.

I Hugged the Berlin Patient

A spirited cancer survivor goes on a spontaneous search for 'The Berlin Patient' - the first man in the world actually cured of HIV.

Carta Para Além dos Muros

Letter Beyond the Walls reconstructs the trajectory of HIV and AIDS with a focus on Brazil, through interviews with doctors, activists, patients and other actors, in addition to extensive archival material. From the initial panic to awareness campaigns, passing through the stigma imposed on people living with HIV, the documentary shows how society faced this epidemic in its deadliest phase over more than two decades. With this historical approach as its base, the film looks at the way HIV is viewed in today's society, revealing a picture of persistent misinformation and prejudice, which especially affects Brazil’s most historically vulnerable populations.

Breath of Freedom

In World War II. African-American GIs liberate Germany from Nazi rule while racism prevailed in their own army and home country. Returning home they continue fighting for their own rights in the civil rights movement.

Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives

When the Civil War ended in 1865, more than four million slaves were set free. Over 70 years later, the memories of some 2,000 slave-era survivors were transcribed and preserved by the Library of Congress. These first-person anecdotes, ranging from the brutal to the bittersweet, have been brought to vivid life in this unique HBO documentary special, featuring the on-camera voices of over a dozen top African-American actors.

Still A Brother: Inside the Negro Middle Class

The Black middle class, torn between white goals and Black needs, are examined by producers William Greaves and William Branch in a 90-minute NET Journal documentary.

Ashes

Conversations with four people — an artist, a woman struggling with her identity as a high achiever, an actor, and a priest — exploring their inner worlds, their self-image and how they feel they fit into society.

When We Were Kings

It's 1974. Muhammad Ali is 32 and thought by many to be past his prime. George Foreman is ten years younger and the heavyweight champion of the world. Promoter Don King wants to make a name for himself and offers both fighters five million dollars apiece to fight one another, and when they accept, King has only to come up with the money. He finds a willing backer in Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire, and the "Rumble in the Jungle" is set, including a musical festival featuring some of America's top black performers, like James Brown and B.B. King.

Sophia, na primeira pessoa

Using the author's personal estate, current images of places where she lived or were dear to her, and archival images of television and film; using parts of her prose and poetry always with first-person testimonies; from Porto to Lisbon, from Granja to Lagos, from the Atlantic Sea to the Mediterranean, from Greece to 25 April: the passions and disappointments of a life and work dedicated to the search for the real, freedom and justice.

Likhaya

A look at the rampant HIV epidemic rate in Swaziland.

The Salt Mines

Explores the lives of Sara, Gigi and Giovanna, three Latino transvestites who for years have lived on the streets of Manhattan supporting their drug addictions through prostitution. They made their temporary home inside broken garbage trucks that the Sanitation Department keeps next to the salt deposits used in the winter to melt the snow. The three friends share the place known as "The Salt Mines".

The Transformation

Ricardo was once Sara, a homeless HIV positive transvestite, living in the underbelly of Manhattan. Today he is a churchgoing, married man, "saved" by a Dallas ministry. He has renounced his homosexuality, but is his conversion complete? Susana Aiken and Carlos Aparicio offer an intimate look at Ricardo's transformation.

That World Is Gone

Kathy's family left on a Saturday morning in 1965. The rumble of bulldozers echoed through the neighborhood, and her block was empty. Federally-funded urban renewal had arrived in Charlottesville, scattering dozens of families like Kathy's. The once-vibrant African American community, built by formerly enslaved men and women who had secured a long-denied piece of the American dream, disappeared.

Fried Shoes Cooked Diamonds

After World War II a group of young writers, outsiders and friends who were disillusioned by the pursuit of the American dream met in New York City. Associated through mutual friendships, these cultural dissidents looked for new ways and means to express themselves. Soon their writings found an audience and the American media took notice, dubbing them the Beat Generation. Members of this group included writers Jack Kerouac, William Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg. a trinity that would ultimately influence the works of others during that era, including the "hippie" movement of the '60s. In this 55-minute video narrated by Allen Ginsberg, members of the Beat Generation (including the aforementioned Burroughs, Anne Waldman, Peter Orlovsky, Amiri Baraka, Diane Di Prima, and Timothy Leary) are reunited at Naropa University in Boulder, CO during the late 1970's to share their works and influence a new generation of young American bohemians.

Fernanda Pivano: A Farewell to Beat

Isla Negra: Neruda y el mar

A Fanatic Heart: Geldof On Yeats

A biography of the poet W. B. Yeats and his contribution to the Irish independence movement as a Protestant nationalist.

Finding the Gold Within

Six young black men from Akron, Ohio, enter college, determined to redefine society's images and low expectations. Despite their confidence, the stark reality of being away from home brings a series of crises. Well trained in critical and metaphorical thinking, and unusually articulate about their inner lives, each of the protagonists guides us to his core. Since sixth grade, they have been part of an innovative mentoring program called 'Alchemy, Inc.' that uses mythological stories, drumming and writing. In the twice-yearly reunion workshops everyone speaks of his trials and his triumphs with authenticity, intelligence, honesty and heart. In turns quiet, thoughtful and exuberant, the six protagonists grow before our eyes, whether navigating racial provocations, or seeking support with new friends, estranged fathers and wise grandmothers.