SIGNS OF CHANGE:  DAILY FILM SCREENINGS

EXIT UNDERGROUND

TUES-THURS 3:30 PM, FRI-SAT 5:30 PM

WEEK ONE: September 23 – 27: Videos About Land and Housing Struggles

Newe Segobia is Not for Sale: The Struggle for Western Shoshone Land (1993, 29:00 minutes, Jesse Drew, courtesy of the artist and Video Data Bank) This video documents a confrontation between Western Shoshone ranchers, sisters Carrie and Mary Dann, and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) over disputed grazing lands. The Dann sisters purchased a video camera to document the BLM’s misconduct. Filmmaker Jesse Drew was given the unedited footage and created a documentary that was distributed by Native American activists and public access stations to gain support for the Western Shoshone struggle. Though this incident involved only a few people, it is part of the ongoing battle for Native North American land rights.

The Land Belongs to Those Who Work It/La tierra es de quien la trabaja (2005, 15:00 minutes, Caracol V, Northern Zone, Chiapas Media Project, in Spanish and Tzeltal with English subtitles, courtesy of Chiapas Media Project/Promedios) For over a decade, the Chiapas Media Project has partnered with indigenous and campesino (farm worker) communities in Chiapas and Guerrero, Mexico to provide video production and computer equipment and training. This film from the Chiapas Media Project documents a meeting between Zapatista authorities and Mexican government officials to discuss the sale of land to a private eco-tourism company without permission from the local community.  

Uku Hamba 'Ze/To Walk Naked  (1995, 12:00 minutes, Jaqueline Maingard, Sheila Meintjes and Heather Thompson, courtesy of Third World Newsreel) After an exhausting fight to procure housing, a group of women in Soweto, South Africa built a settlement of makeshift shacks. When police tried to evict them with bulldozers and dogs, the women defiantly stripped naked in a peaceful protest against the destruction of their homes. This unconventional action gained massive media attention and caught the attention of filmmakers who documented the struggle in Uku Hamba ‘Ze / To Walk Naked.

IndyMedia Brazil Inside an MST Camp (2002, 10:00 minutes, Indymedia Brazil, courtesy of Indymedia Brazil) Brazil's Landless Workers Movement, Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (MST), is the largest social movement in Latin America with an estimated 1.5 million members. This short documentary represents an MST camp from the inside. Some 12,000 families, who work together to oversee security and governance, occupy this territory. The documentary features the workers’ abilities to self-govern, provide food, child care, and housing for all, and to deal with unwanted visits from government officials and mainstream media. Indymedia is a global network of grassroots reporters and citizens who cover issues and events important to diverse social movements.

Break and Enter (1970, 42 min, Newsreel, courtesy of Third World Newsreel)Break and Enter captures the efforts of several hundred Puerto Rican and Dominican families to take over and live in abandoned buildings in New York City. Third World Newsreel developed out of the progressive social movements of the 1960s. Established in New York in 1967 as an activist filmmaking collective, it grew to have a network of national chapters. These chapters would produce short 16mm films that would counter the way events and issues were being presented in the mainstream media. Today three Newsreel organizations remain: Third World Newsreel in New York, California Newsreel in San Francisco, and Vermont Newsreel Archives.

WEEK TWO: September 30 – October 4: No Nukes, No Way!

Stronger Than Before (1983, 27:00 minutes, the Boston Women’s Video Collective, courtesy of the Boston Women’s Video Collective)This film documents the militant actions and creative activities of the Women’s Encampment for a Future of Peace and Justice in Seneca, New York in 1983.  Although the Boston Women’s Video Collective was formed specifically to document this encampment, they continued producing video projects after it closed.

Carry Greenham Home (1984, 66:00 minutes, Beeban Kidron and Amanda Richardson, courtesy of Women Make Movies) Carry Greenham Home is an on-the-ground look at the activities of the Greenham Common Women’s Encampment. The film focuses not just on the women’s anti-nuclear and anti-military actions, but also on the feminist practices on which their lives were based.

WEEK THREE:  October 7 – 11: Popular Uprisings

Korea: Until Daybreak (a segment of …will be televised, 1990, 58:00 minutes, Deep Dish TV, Hye Jung Park and the Han-Kyoreh One Korea, One People Video Collective, courtesy of the Deep Dish TV Archives) This compilation includes grassroots footage from multiple protests in South Korea in the 1980s, including the massive Gwang-ju uprising, militant workers and farmers, and fights for Korean unification. Korea: Until Daybreak is just one segment from the series ...will be televised: Video Documents From Asia that was coordinated and produced by Shu Lea Cheang for Deep Dish TV. The first public access satellite network, Deep Dish TV was launched in 1986 by Paper Tiger TV as a way to link independent producers, activists and viewers who support movements for social change.

Un Poquito de Tanta Verdad / A Little Bit of So Much Truth (2007, 93:00 minutes, produced by Corrugated Films in collaboration with Mal de Ojo, courtesy of Corrugated Films) In the summer of 2006, a teachers' strike exploded into a popular uprising in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca. This film captures the unique media story that emerged when tens of thousands of schoolteachers, housewives, indigenous communities, health workers, farmers, and students took 14 radio stations and one TV station into their own hands and used them for the needs of the people. Mal de Ojo TV is a coalition of independent, indigenous and community media workers, including Indymedia-Oaxaca and Ojo de Agua Comunicación. Mal de Ojo produces and distributes media related to the movement. Corrugated Films with Jill Freidburg collaborated with them on this project.

WEEK FIVE: October 21 – 25 All Power to the People

Mayday (Black Panther) (1969, 13:30 minutes, Newsreel, courtesy of Roz Payne Archives)
On May 1, 1969, International Workers Day, the Black Panther Party held a massive rally in San Francisco to help free Huey P. Newton. From the compilation: What We Want, What We Believe: The Black Panther Party Library. Newsreel films, founded in the late 1960s, was composed of decentralized film collectives that produced films dealing with such issues as the Vietnam War, civil rights, anti-imperialism and alternative culture.

The Young Lords Film / El Pueblo Se Levanta (1971, 50:00 minutes, Newsreel, courtesy of Roz Payne Archives)
For over a year and a half, a Newsreel crew worked closely with the Young Lords Party, a chapter of the Puerto Rican nationalist and civil rights group. The film documents their many programs and plans for Puerto Rican communities.

WEEK SIX: October 28 – November 1: Engaged Global Counter Cultures

Five Days for Peace (1973, 37:00 minutes, Nils Vest, courtesy of Christiania, Copenhagen) In Five Days for Peace, the members of Solvognen — the theater collective from the squatted free town of Christiania, Copenhagen, Denmark — dress as North American Treaty Organization (NATO) troops and perform “military” operations in Copenhagen during the NATO Summit.

Indonesia: Art, Activism, and Rock ‘n’ Roll (2002, 26:00 minutes, Charlie Hill Smith and Jamie Nicolal, in Indonesian and English with English subtitles, courtesy of Marcom Projects)
This documentary film follows Taring Padi, an art collective based out of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Since 1998, the group has produced posters, murals, street performances, puppets, poetry, music, and published a newsletter. They describe themselves as an "independent non-profit cultural community, which is based on the concept of peoples' culture."  They are committed to contributing to autonomous culture, democracy, and social justice in Indonesia.

People's Park (1969, 25:00 minutes, Newsreel, courtesy of Roz Payne Archives)
This film documents the struggle over People's Park in Berkeley, California. In 1969, a vacant tract of University-owned land was occupied by community residents, who began to convert it into a "people's park" and a place for political organizing. Hundreds helped to clear the land, plant flowers and trees, and some even set up tents and started living there. Within a month, the University set the site for demolition, and police surrounded the area with an eight-foot tall fence. Approximately 3,000 protestors tried to reclaim the park, the area was in chaos, and police shot at the crowds. Hundreds were wounded by rioting or gunfire, one student was killed. Ronald Reagan called in the National Guard, who occupied the city for seventeen days.

WEEK SEVEN:  November 4 – 8: Be the Media

Excerpt from Lanesville Overview 1 (1972, Videofreex, courtesy of the artists and Video Data Bank)
A behind the scenes look at America’s first pirate television station, Lanesville TV. Between 1972 and 1977, the Videofreex aired over 250 television broadcasts from their hand-built studio.  Videofreex, founded in 1969, was one of the first video collectives in the US. The collective made videos dealing with such issues as civil rights, women’s rights, television, and alternative culture.

Be a DIVA (1990, 28:00 minutes, DIVA TV, courtesy of Deep Dish TV)
This tape includes clips from a variety of DIVA (Damn Interfering Video Activists) TV programs. DIVA TV was one of several video groups that emerged from ACT UP (Aids Coalition To Unleash Power). The first public access satellite network, Deep Dish TV was launched in 1986 by Paper Tiger TV as a way to link independent producers, activists and viewers who support movements for social change.

I the film (2006, 84:00 minutes, Andres Ingoglia and Raphael Lyon, Spanish and English, Courtesy of the artists)
This film is about Indymedia, a grassroots, independent media network, and specifically focuses on Indymedia Argentina. The film documents demonstrations after the collapse of the Argentine economy--independent media played a major role in helping to organize the protesters. The film also reveals the growth of social movements transforming Argentine society, and functioning outside of government political structures.

WEEK EIGHT: November 11 – 15: Student Solidarity

What the Fuck are These Red Squares? (1970, 15:00 minutes, Kartemquin Film Collective, courtesy of Kartemquin Films)
Documentary of students during a "revolutionary seminar" at the Art Institute of Chicago during the 1970 national student strike that was call in response to the invasion of Cambodia and the killing of students at Kent and Jackson State Universities. The students raised questions related to artists' roles in a capitalist economic system, such as: "Is it possible not to be co-opted, as ‘radical’ as one’s art may be? What are the connections between money and art in America? Between the ‘New York Scene’ and the rest of the country?” Kartemquin Films, best known for its award-winning documentary Hoop Dreams (1994), was once known as Kartemquin Film Collective. The collective made social and politically charged films about various issues in Chicago including labor, gentrification, and student protests. They also collaborated with members of Newsreel.

The Columbia University Divestment Struggle: Paper Tiger at Mandela Hall

Standing with Palestine (2004, 12:00 minutes, Paper Tiger Television, courtesy of Paper Tiger Television Collective)
 Standing with Palestine documents the grassroots movement in the United States in support of the Palestinian people and against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The video includes interviews with groups such as the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) and campus activists who are working on a campaign (based on the successful student Divestment campaigns against Apartheid South Africa in the 1980's) to force universities to withdraw their ties to companies that support the Israeli Occupation.

Standing with the Students (2007, 23:00 minutes, Sphinx in cooperation with Sin Fronteras Media Collective and
Indymedia Amazonia, courtesy of the artist) In 2005 students at the University of Buea in Cameroon organized to demand more educational resources and basic human rights. The Cameroon government violently attacked them, killing five. This video was shot with a cell phone and the footage was snuck out of the country. 

WEEK NINE: November 18 – 22: Globalize Resistance

A Very Big Train Called The Other Campaign / Un tren muy grande que se llama: La Otra Campaña   (2006, 39:00 minutes, Chiapas Media Project, Spanish with English subtitles, courtesy of Chiapas Media Project/Promedios and Caracoles Productions) This video was produced by indigenous video makers from four of the five Zapatista Caracoles in Chiapas, Mexico. It documents the 2006 planning and organizing of the Other Campaign. This was a campaign by the Zapatista Army of National Liberation to build a self-governing national infrastructure. For over a decade, the Chiapas Media Project has partnered with indigenous and campesino (farm worker) communities in Chiapas and Guerrero, Mexico to provide video production and computer equipment and training.

Crowd Bites Wolf (2001, 22:00 minutes, Guerillavision, NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0)
Part fictive-narrative, part protest-documentary, Crowd Bites Wolf tells the story of the protest against the 2001 meeting of the International Monetary Fund in Prague, Czech Republic.

Fourth World War (2003, 76:00 minutes, Big Noise Films, courtesy of Big Noise Films)
This documentary takes viewers around the world--Mexico, Argentina, South Africa, Palestine, Korea, Italy, Afghanistan, and Iraq--to reveal people fighting against war and corporate domination. Big Noise Films is a volunteer media collective that was first established to document the Zapatista uprising in Chiapas, Mexico and has continued making social movement media ever since.

WEEK TEN: November 25 – 29: Videos About Land and Housing Struggles

Newe Segobia is Not for Sale: The Struggle for Western Shoshone Land (1993, 29:00 minutes, Jesse Drew, courtesy of the artist and Video Data Bank) This video documents a confrontation between Western Shoshone ranchers, sisters Carrie and Mary Dann, and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) over disputed grazing lands. The Dann sisters purchased a video camera to document the BLM’s misconduct. Filmmaker Jesse Drew was given the unedited footage and created a documentary that was distributed by Native American activists and public access stations to gain support for the Western Shoshone struggle. Though this incident involved only a few people, it is part of the ongoing battle for Native North American land rights.

The Land Belongs to Those Who Work It/La tierra es de quien la trabaja (2005, 15:00 minutes, Caracol V, Northern Zone, Chiapas Media Project, in Spanish and Tzeltal with English subtitles, courtesy of Chiapas Media Project/Promedios) For over a decade, the Chiapas Media Project has partnered with indigenous and campesino (farm worker) communities in Chiapas and Guerrero, Mexico to provide video production and computer equipment and training. This film from the Chiapas Media Project documents a meeting between Zapatista authorities and Mexican government officials to discuss the sale of land to a private eco-tourism company without permission from the local community.  

Uku Hamba 'Ze/To Walk Naked  (1995, 12:00 minutes, Jaqueline Maingard, Sheila Meintjes and Heather Thompson, courtesy of Third World Newsreel) After an exhausting fight to procure housing, a group of women in Soweto, South Africa built a settlement of makeshift shacks. When police tried to evict them with bulldozers and dogs, the women defiantly stripped naked in a peaceful protest against the destruction of their homes. This unconventional action gained massive media attention and caught the attention of filmmakers who documented the struggle in Uku Hamba ‘Ze / To Walk Naked.

IndyMedia Brazil Inside an MST Camp (2002, 10:00 minutes, Indymedia Brazil, courtesy of Indymedia Brazil) Brazil's Landless Workers Movement, Movimento dos Trabalhadores Rurais Sem Terra (MST), is the largest social movement in Latin America with an estimated 1.5 million members. This short documentary represents an MST camp from the inside. Some 12,000 families, who work together to oversee security and governance, occupy this territory. The documentary features the workers’ abilities to self-govern, provide food, child care, and housing for all, and to deal with unwanted visits from government officials and mainstream media. Indymedia is a global network of grassroots reporters and citizens who cover issues and events important to diverse social movements.

Break and Enter (1970, 42 min, Newsreel, courtesy of Third World Newsreel)Break and Enter captures the efforts of several hundred Puerto Rican and Dominican families to take over and live in abandoned buildings in New York City. Third World Newsreel developed out of the progressive social movements of the 1960s. Established in New York in 1967 as an activist filmmaking collective, it grew to have a network of national chapters. These chapters would produce short 16mm films that would counter the way events and issues were being presented in the mainstream media. Today three Newsreel organizations remain: Third World Newsreel in New York, California Newsreel in San Francisco, and Vermont Newsreel Archives.