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IU Themester Streaming and DVD Resources

Background

Looking at and beyond the current world crisis brought on by the novel coronavirus, the College will partner with the Integrated Program in the Environment (IPE), Sustain IU, and the Environmental Resilience Institute (ERI) to present Themester 2021: Resilience.

Resilience is the capacity of a system—be it natural, social, cultural, economic, or technological— to return to its original state or evolve to a new functional state after being disturbed. Resilient systems are diverse and adaptable, connected yet modular, sustainable and regenerative, accessible and equitable. And, they are needed now more than ever. 

Even before the current global pandemic, the extent and frequency of both stress and shock disturbance events were accelerating. Impacted by climate change, increasingly intense and more frequent natural disasters, the globalized nature of our political economy, and major shifts in social paradigms, the foundations of human and ecological communities were already vulnerable. Countering these myriad and interconnected disturbances is the capacity to maintain or enhance our collective well-being in the face of dramatic change. As the world faces monumental challenges, a discussion of resilience has never been more relevant or consequential. - Adapted from IU Themester Homepage

Representation

Images from top left to bottom right: Selma, Hidden Figures, He Named Me Malala, The Florida Project, The Pursuit of Happyness, Wild.  

All images courtesy of imdb.com; accessed August 2021

IUB Streaming Titles

The following resources require IUB CAS Authentication.

Chinatown: Strangers in a Strange Land (94 min., 2000) Their ancestors came from one of the world's most ancient civilizations. From a country rich in history and tradition, they journeyed across the globe to a new frontier rich in little but opportunity. Excluded from most of those opportunities by a dark wall of racial discrimination, they were forced to settle in stifling tenements that came to be called Chinatown. Yet they not only survived, but prospered, becoming one of the most successful immigrant groups in North America. This program presents a unique view of a unique place, taking viewers inside Chinatown to view the Chinese-American experience through the eyes of the people who live it every day. 

The Climate Blueprint (54 min., 2014) The Climate Blueprint is the first documentary to explore the history of the COP climate change summit and the fight against the planet's most challenging issue. Under the framework of the United Nations, 194 countries meet once a year during two extremely hectic weeks at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Fighting the System (55 min., 2015) Few people have the commitment to turn their backs on friends, family and security for the sake of something they passionately believe in. Even fewer have the strength to do it when they've just entered adulthood, but today there is a growing number of young people whose frustration and lack of faith in parliament is driving them to take matters into their own hands. This program meets the environmental activists taking over a power station, the feminists confronting Rupert Murdoch and his entourage, and the animal rights champions invading high street stores. It offers a genuine insight into their beliefs and asks why so many are choosing this way of life, sometimes with serious consequences.

He Named Me Malala (88 min., 2015) HE NAMED ME MALALA is an intimate portrait of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai, who was targeted by the Taliban and severely wounded by a gunshot when returning home on her school bus in Pakistan's Swat Valley. The then 15-year-old (she turns 18 this July) was singled out, along with her father, for advocating for girls' education, and the attack on her sparked an outcry from supporters around the world. She miraculously survived and is now a leading campaigner for girls' education globally as co-founder of the Malala Fund.

Hidden Figures (126 min., 2017) As the United States raced against Russia to put a man in space, NASA found untapped talent in a group of African-American female mathematicians that served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in U.S. history. Based on the unbelievably true life stories of three of these women, known as "human computers", we follow these women as they quickly rose the ranks of NASA alongside many of history's greatest minds specifically tasked with calculating the momentous launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, and guaranteeing his safe return. Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, and Katherine Johnson crossed all gender, race, and professional lines while their brilliance and desire to dream big, beyond anything ever accomplished before by the human race, firmly cemented them in U.S. history as true American heroes.

Love, Life, & the Virus (53 min., 2020) A mother’s fight to survive COVID and see her newborn baby. The program also discusses life of the undocumented works in the coronavirus pandemic and how the pandemic is impacting immigrant families. Produced in partnership with The Marshall Project.

Mankiller (56min., 2019) She stands tall amongst the likes of Robert Kennedy, Harriet Tubman and Martin Luther King, Jr. She humbly defied the odds and overcame insurmountable obstacles to fight injustice and gave a voice to the voiceless. And yet few people know her name. MANKILLER is the story of an American legend, Wilma Mankiller, who overcame rampant sexism and personal challenges to emerge as the Cherokee Nation’s first woman Principal Chief in 1985. Official Selection at the **Mill Valley Film Festival** and the **Palm Springs International Film Festival**. *"MANKILLER is that rare documentary that is informative and moving, but will make you laugh, too." - Erika W. Smith, **Bust***

Minari (115min., 2021) A Korean-American family moves to an Arkansas farm in search of their own American Dream. Amidst the challenges of this new life in the strange and rugged Ozarks, they find the undeniable resilience of family and what really makes a home.

Moyers & Company: All Work and No Pay (27 min., 2014) In this episode of Moyers & Company, Bill interviews Saru Jayaraman, from the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, whose 13,000 members across the country are fighting for better wages and working conditions. She explains how the industry has convinced America that they shouldn't have to pay their workers-and why she remains hopeful that democracy will prevail. Saru Jayaraman is the author of Behind the Kitchen Door.

Stronger, The Battle Against COVID-19 (43 min., 2020) The world is facing a new threat - the infection COVID-19. How do you respond to an enemy that you can't see? We discover how one country has united to take on the new threat of COVID-19.Singapore is rallying together to fight this invisible enemy. From everyday heroes on the front line to businesses keeping it going, the island is fighting back.

Wild (115 min., 2014) With the dissolution of her marriage and the death of her mother, Cheryl Strayed has lost all hope. After years of reckless, destructive behavior, she makes a rash decision. With absolutely no experience, driven only by sheer determination, Cheryl hikes more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, alone.

Women Entrepreneurs Making a Difference (24 min., 1998) The focus of this documentary is the unique entrepreneurial qualities that women possess and the spirit with which they face the challenges of their personal and business lives. The four women profiled are Canadian, of different races, cultures and ages, and representing a cross section of businesses. All the women are self made; none have inherited their businesses. Starting with very little, their vision, their wits and their hard work have overcome setbacks and helped them keep going. There is a commonality among these women entrepreneurs in the way they manage their businesses, consider their employees as "family", reward hard work, and integrate their personal values into the corporate culture. The women are in disparate businesses. One turned a derelict hotel into a first class resort; one exports food to poor countries; one has an international software training company. The last runs a publishing empire from her home. Their businesses gross between one and twenty-seven million dollars. This documentary will dispell the myth that women entrepreneurs operate only small businesses, often in the retail sector, or cottage industries which are not regarded as serious business. It will be an inspiration to other women.

Explore more awesome documentaries and feature films via IUCAT as well as via IUB's licensed subscriptions to Films for Education, Kanopy and SWANK at Media Services Libguide to Streaming Databases.

IUB DVD/Video Films

Be sure to check with Media Services for hours.  VHS titles are housed off-site at ALF, and can be requested via IUCAT.

42 (128 min., 2013) History was made in 1947, when Jackie Robinson broke the professional baseball race barrier to become the first African American MLB player of the modern era. 42 tells the life story of Robinson and his history-making signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers under the guidance of team executive Branch Rickey.

Boy Erased (115 min., 2018) Boy Erased tells the courageous story of Jared Eamons, the son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town, who must overcome the fallout of being outed to his parents. His parents struggle with reconciling their love for their son with their beliefs. Fearing a loss of family, friends, and community, Jared is pressured into attending a conversion therapy program. While there, Jared comes into conflict with its leader and begins his journey to finding his own voice and accepting his true self.

The Florida Project (111 min., 2017) Warm, winning, and gloriously alive, Sean Baker's The Florida Project is a deeply moving and unforgettably poignant look at childhood. Set on a stretch of highway just outside the imagined utopia of Disney World, The Florida Project follows six-year-old Moonee (Brooklynn Prince in a stunning breakout turn) and her rebellious mother Halley (Bria Vinaite, another major discovery) over the course of a single summer. The two live week to week at "The Magic Castle," a budget motel managed by Bobby (a career-best Willem Dafoe), whose stern exterior hides a deep reservoir of kindness and compassion. Despite her harsh surroundings, the precocious and ebullient Moonee has no trouble making each day a celebration of life, her endless afternoons overflowing with mischief and grand adventure as she and her ragtag playmates--including Jancey, a new arrival to the area who quickly becomes Moonee's best friend--fearlessly explore the utterly unique world into which they've been thrown. Unbeknownst to Moonee, however, her delicate fantasy is supported by the toil and sacrifice of Halley, who is forced to explore increasingly dangerous possibilities in order to provide for her daughter.

Hell and Back Again (88 min., 2011) From his time spent with U.S. Marines Echo Company in Afghanistan, photojournalist and filmmaker Danfung Dennis reveals the devastating impact a Taliban machine-gun bullet has on the life of 25-year-old Sergeant Nathan Harris. The film seamlessly transitions from stunning war reportage to an intimate portrait of one man's personal struggle at home in North Carolina, where Harris confronts the physical and emotional difficulties of re-adjusting to civilian life with the love and support of his wife, Ashley.

The Pursuit of Happyness (117 min., 2006) In 1981, Chris Gardner was a struggling salesman. His wife worked double shifts to support the family including their young son, Christopher. In the face of this difficult life, Chris has the desperate inspiration to try for a stockbroker internship where one in twenty has a chance of a lucrative full time career. Even when his wife leaves him because of this choice, Chris clings to this dream. The odds become more daunting by the day. Together, father and son struggle through homelessness, jail time, tax seizure and the overall punishing despair in a quest that would make Gardner a respected millionaire.

Rabbit-Proof Fence (93 min., 2002) In 1931, Molly and her younger cousins, Gracie and Daisy, were three half-caste children from Western Australia who were taken from their parents under government edict and sent to an institution, were taught to forget their families, their culture, and re-invent themselves as members of "white" Australian society. The three girls begin an epic journey back to Western Australia, travelling 1,500 miles on foot with no food or water, and navigating by following the fence that has been built across the nation to stem an over-population of rabbits.

Selma (128 min., 2014) The unforgettable true story chronicles the tumultuous three-month period in 1965, when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a dangerous campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant victories for the civil rights movement. Director Ava DuVernay's "Selma" tells the story of how the revered leader and visionary Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr and his brothers and sisters in the movement prompted change that forever altered history.

Shameless (2011) Meet the fabulously dysfunctional Gallagher family. Dad's a drunk, Mom split long ago, eldest daughter Fiona tries to hold the family together. Eldest son Philip (Lip) trades his physics tutoring skills for sexual favors from neighborhood girls. Middle son Ian is gay. Youngest daughter Debbie is stealing money from her UNICEF collection. Ten-year-old Carl is a budding sociopath and an arsonist, and toddler Liam is, well, he might actually be black, but nobody has a clue how.

Under the Same Moon (110 min., 2007) Tells the parallel stories of nine-year-old Carlitos and his mother, Rosario. In the hopes of providing a better life for her son, Rosario works illegally in the U.S. while Rosario's mother cares for Carlitos in Mexico. Mother and son face daunting challenges and obstacles to reunite, but are sustained by their constant hope of finally being together again. 

Wild Rose (86 min., 2018) Rose-Lynn Harlan is bursting with raw talent, charisma, and cheek. Fresh out of jail and with two young kids, all she wants is to get out of Glasgow and make it as a country singer in Nashville. Her mom Marion has had a bellyful of Rose-Lynn's Nashville nonsense. Forced to take responsibility, Rose-Lynn gets a cleaning job, only to find an unlikely champion in the middle-class lady of the house.

Internet Resources

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