Category Archives: documentary

Picking your nature narrative


National Geographic videographer Paul Nicklen gets an incredible story and series of images from his time with an instructive leopard seal.  A few thoughts:

1.  Nicklen could have moved on after the first day when it was obvious that the Leopard Seal was taking care of him.  The choice to stay suggests that Nickelen was overjoyed to get this particular interaction with the seal — as a means of telling a story.

2.  It is cool that we get a contrast to the usual story of brutal nature, but the cute nature is just as toxic to the animals that live out there.  Global warming, pesticides, chemical run-off, garbage, and general intrusion into a low-human area are all recent human contributions to the arctic.  I sincerely love the video and the suggestion of care from a predator is distinctive.   It seemed like there was a lot of food around for the seal.  I wonder if the leopard seal would be as generous when food is scarce.

3. I feel bad for the penguins.

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Filed under Animals, communication, documentary, nature, representation

Bad Brains: this band is obviously better than any other band

Totally grooving on the un-embeddable Bad Brains documentary: A Band in D.C.  Click the link.  Watch the video.  Learn and get inspired. 

Thanks to Gwarizm for the link. 

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Filed under do-it-yourself, documentary, funk & soul, music, punk, race, representation

Digital direct action: accountability for rape

From the Mother Jones article.

Josh Harkinson has written an excellent essay on the digital direct action involved in the documentation of the Steubenville rapes and a Canadian instance of sexual assault and cyber-bullying which resulted in death of Rehtaeh Parsons. 

I didn’t know that Anonymous had helped to document the evidence about the Steubenville Ohio assault (much of it drawn from social media).

About two weeks later, the Anonymous subgroup KnightSec hacked RollRedRoll.com. The hackers posted the incriminating tweets, Saltsman’s Instagram photo, and the names of 11 bystanders. “This is a warning shot,” said a video communiqué featuring a computer-generated voice and the group’s trademark Guy Fawkes figure. The video (watch below) warned that KnightSec would release the phone numbers and Social Security numbers of the entire football team unless “all accused parties come forward by New Year’s Day and issue a public apology to the girl and her family.”

via Exclusive: Meet the Woman Who Kicked Off Anonymous’ Anti-Rape Operations | Mother Jones.

One result of the increased focus was the visibility of community support for the rapists.   In some ways the hacking made community accountability in Steubenville possible.  And after the evidence had been released, Anonymous hosted at least nine protests to force police action against the perpetrators. After one significant video was released the numbers swelled to what might be described as critical mass and in front of thousands of angry protesters, the women of Steubenville spoke about other rapes.

And vent they did. For four hours, there was a catharsis of personal pain and grief that nobody in the small town could have imagined. Women who had been raped stood in front of the crowd, clad in Guy Fawkes masks, to share their stories. Some of them unmasked at the end of their testimonies as they burst into tears. Rapes at parties, date rapes, rapes by friends and relatives—their pent-up secrets came pouring out. “It turned into this women’s liberation movement, in a way,” MC recalls. “And it just changed everything. There was nothing anybody could do against us at that point because it was so real and so true.”

via Exclusive: Meet the Woman Who Kicked Off Anonymous’ Anti-Rape Operations | Mother Jones.

The audio clips are available on the Mother Jones site.

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Filed under communication, documentary, feminism, hacking, protest, representation, resistance, sexual assault

Tupperware documentary

The PBS documentary series “The American Experience” is top notch.  During dinner tonight we watched the Tupperware documentary.

This film covers the gendered workplace, women’s opportunity after World War II, Brownie Wise (the inventor of the home party model), marketing consumerism, new uses for plastics, sexism, gender norms and so much more.  Get down!

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Filed under capitalism, documentary, feminism, food

Away from the keyboard: pirate bay documentary

So much interesting stuff in this documentary.  Thanks to Pigeons and Planes for the link.

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Filed under capitalism, communication, documentary, hacking, human rights, learning, police, propaganda

Amazing Randi


Wonderful kickstarter to help fund a documentary on the Amazing Randi.  Drop ’em some cash.  For reason, inquiry and love.

Thanks to boing boing for the link.

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Filed under documentary, Gay, magic, representation

Cool “Disco” Dan documentary promo

Hell yeah!  Thanks to Dante Ross for the tip!

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Filed under art, communication, documentary, funk & soul, graffiti, music

Documentary on the Ghetto Brothers

Nice documentary on the formidable culture changers the Ghetto Brothers.  Filmmaker Andreas Vingaard has seven wonderful short films up on his page dedicated to New York City community activists and hip hop pioneers.  I appreciate the editing and the focus on the subjects telling their own stories.

And don’t sleep on the interview with Joseph Mpa who is a black panther organizer who becomes the manager of the Cold Crush Brothers.

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Filed under art, documentary, funk & soul, graffiti, hip hop, music, protest, race

Documentary on Miami’s Liberty City

This is part one.  If you only know about this community based on Grand Theft Auto, then get your learn on.

If you are deciding to watch this or not, zip this video up to the 6:40 mark and pay attention to the young man in the red hat.

Don’t forget to watch parts two and three.

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Filed under documentary, drugs, police, race, representation

Caine’s Arcade going global!

A few months ago I posted the kick-ass video of nine year old Caine, who made a cardboard arcade.
Here is the update.

 

It looks pretty sick!

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Filed under art, documentary, learning, media