1. nîpawistamâsowin : We Will Stand Up
On August 9, 2016, a young Cree man named Colten Boushie died from a gunshot to the back of his head after entering Gerald Stanley's rural property with his friends. The jury's subsequent acquittal of Stanley captured international attention, raising questions about racism embedded within Canada's legal system and propelling Colten's family to national and international stages in their pursuit of justice. Sensitively directed by Tasha Hubbard, "nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up" weaves a profound narrative encompassing the filmmaker's own adoption, the stark history of colonialism on the Prairies, and a vision of a future where Indigenous children can live safely on their homelands.
It has an average vote of 9 on TMDB.
2. Murder in America: The Lynching of Emmett Till
Based on A Few Days Full of Trouble by Reverend Wheeler Parker, Jr. and Christopher Benson, the feature doc will explore two parallel tracks of the Till story. One set in motion by the last four years of an FBI investigation with details never before revealed, including significant new revelations of the case and its discoveries. The traumatic memory of Parker Jr., last surviving witness to the crime and Till’s cousin, drives that investigation. The second track is a deep immersion into the latest, proprietary findings, as high schoolers prepare for a reenactment of the murder trial of two of Till’s killers, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam.
3. No Māori Allowed
When an academic unearths a forgotten history, residents of the small township of Pukekohe, including kaumātua who have never told their personal stories before, confront its deep and dark racist past.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
4. Pornotropic (Pornotropic : Marguerite Duras et l'illusion coloniale)
When French writer Marguerite Duras published her novel The Sea Wall in 1950, she came very close to winning the prestigious Prix Goncourt. Meanwhile, in Indochina, France was suffering its first military defeats in its war against the Việt Minh, the rebel movement for independence.
It has an average vote of 7.2 on TMDB.
5. Samba de Santo: Resistência Afro-Baiana (Samba de Santo: Resistência Afro-Baiana)
Three carnival blocks, born in candomblé terreiros in Bahia, are the center of this documentary: Ilê Aiyê, Cortejo Afro and Bankoma. Through work, centenary groups, the film explores black culture, its dances, its fabrics and its ancestry.
6. The Secret Policeman
Undercover reporter Mark Daly reveals racism among police recruits in Manchester, England.
7. But... Seriously
A documentary juxtaposing the events of the 20th century with the commentary of stand-up comedians.
It has an average vote of 10 on TMDB.
8. In My Skin (Dentro da Minha Pele)
A doctor mistaken for a thief. A cleaning lady treated as a slave. A mother who lost her son murdered by the police. A Trans employee who is never promoted. What do these people have in common? Their skin color. A human and poetic documentary sewn together with various narrative threads – characters, music, slams and black intellectual thinking – that unveil the racism rooted in Brazilian society.
9. Two Towns of Jasper
Using two separate filmmaking teams , TWO TOWNS OF JASPER captures very different racial views by townsfolk in Jasper, Texas, the location for a racially motivated murder of an African American man in 1998.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
10. Seadrift
On August 3rd, 1979, a Vietnamese refugee shoots and kills a white crab fisherman at the town docks in Seadrift, TX. What began as a fishing dispute erupts in violence and ignites a resurgence of the KKK and open hostilities against the Vietnamese along the Gulf Coast. Set during the early days of Vietnamese refugee arrival, “Seadrift” examines the circumstances that led up to the shooting, its tumultuous aftermath, and the unexpected consequences that continue to reverberate today.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
11. Cop It Sweet
In the winter of 1991 an ABC film crew spent six weeks following Sydney's Redfern police.</p><p> The inner city patrol of Redfern is predominantly working class with a large aboriginal and migrant population.</p><p> The police in this film are general duties officers mostly on mobile patrols.</p><p> At the time of filming 78% of police at Redfern were under the age of 25.
12. De Cabral a George Floyd: Onde Arde o Fogo Sagrado da Liberdade (De Cabral a George Floyd: Onde Arde o Fogo Sagrado da Liberdade)
Through clippings, the film draws a narrative line between the construction of racism in Brazil and the United States, having as base the European invasion of the continent, police violence, the genocide of the black people, the massacre of indigenous peoples, religious violence, the criminalization of funk music, structural racism in art and education, the importance of quota policy and the need urgent historical repair as a commitment by the Brazilian state to the black people.
13. On nous appelait Beurettes (On nous appelait Beurettes)
(On nous appelait Beurettes)
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
14. Driving While Black: Race, Space and Mobility in America
Discover how the advent of the automobile brought new mobility and freedom for African Americans but also exposed them to discrimination and deadly violence, and how that history resonates today.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
15. Beard, Hair & Stache (Barba, Cabelo & Bigode)
Afonsinho, Paulo Cézar Caju and Nei Conceição started their careers in the mid-1960s, a time of strong political repression in Brazil. Originally teammates of a celebrated generation of the Botafogo football team superstars, they did not give up their freedom when the military dictatorship decided to take control of the field.
16. Sambal Belacan in San Francisco
“Sambal Belacan in San Francisco” is a documentary which revolves around three women from Singapore who move to San Francisco in the 1980s to enjoy the lifestyle they wanted.
17. Trapped: Cash Bail In America
Every year, millions of Americans are incarcerated before even being convicted of a crime - all because they can't afford to post bail. How did we get here? “Trapped: Cash Bail in America” shines a light on our deeply flawed criminal justice system and the activists working to reform it. This new documentary explores the growing movement to end the inherent economic and racial inequalities of cash bail while highlighting victims impacted by an unjust system, the tireless campaigners fighting for criminal justice reform, and a bail industry lobbying to maintain the status quo.
18. Meeting David Wilson
African American filmmaker David A. Wilson decided to look into his family's history during the slave era. The result is this documentary, which provides a unique perspective on the long shadow cast by slavery in America. Wilson travels to North Carolina to visit the plantation where his ancestors once toiled and to meet its current owner -- a white man named David Wilson, whose slave-owning ancestors originally occupied the property.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
19. We Came to Heal
We Came to Heal” follows H.O.L.L.A!’s Healing Justice Movement - over a three years period capturing Healing Justice circles, the Healing Justice Summits and H.O.L.L.A!’ s human healing-centered praxis led by The Youth Organizing Collective . We believe to move towards healing you need to create a space to build, to grow, and share our stories. Alone we are strong spirited, but together we are unstoppable in the fight to end all forms of violence in our Nation, our families and all relationships.
20. Nuclear Savage: The Islands of Secret Project 4.1
A shocking political exposé, and an intimate ethnographic portrait of Pacific Islanders struggling for survival, dignity, and justice after decades of top-secret human radiation experiments conducted on them by the U.S. government.
It has an average vote of 6.4 on TMDB.
