Parents, educators, students and college admissions professionals all intimately understand the financial, emotional and intellectual burden of the SAT/ACT—tests that are not only an integral part of the college admissions process for most American students, but also can be a rite of passage for teenagers in the United States. Even as adults, few of us forget our score, or how we felt about what it took to earn it. The Test & the Art of Thinking traces the history and evolution of the SAT/ACT as a major player on the pathway to higher education in America, and it documents its current power in our culture. In so doing, it strives to support individuals who are embarking on the road to college, by examining what the SAT/ACT measures and means, and asking a range of educational leaders, admissions professionals and stakeholders in the test—from tutors to parents to test designers—to grapple with the test’s use, ramifications and future.
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For fixed-gear cyclists, Los Angeles is a city that has it all. From the neon glow of Hollywood to the sun-drenched boardwalk of Venice Beach, fixed-gear has evolved into a vibrant street culture that is uniquely L.A. From director David Rowe (Fast Friday) comes a new documentary feature that explores a side of L.A. few outsiders have seen. From races through rush-hour traffic to midnight loft parties, To Live & Ride in L.A. is a fast paced-trip through the busy streets and back-alleys of one of the world’s largest cities. To Live & Ride in L.A. features talented local riders tearing up the streets with first-time visitor Keo Curry (Fast Friday, Macaframa) – one of the living legends of the sport. Bike to hidden spots off the map, race a midnight alley-cat, keep pace with the riders from Wolfpack, and hang with the local crews, graffiti artists and other L.A. personalities burning up the fixed-gear scene.
Fresh Dressed chronicles the history of Hip-Hop | Urban fashion and its rise from southern cotton plantations to the gangs of 1970s in the South Bronx, to corporate America, and everywhere in-between. Supported by rich archival materials and in depth interviews with individuals crucial to the evolution of a way of life–and the outsiders who studied and admired them–Fresh Dressed goes to the core of where style was born on the black and brown side of town.
For the first time one of Hollywood’s greatest stars tells his own story, in his own words. From a childhood of poverty to global fame, Cary Grant, the ultimate self-made star, explores his own screen image and what it took to create it.
Marwan Barghouti, often described as the ‘Palestinian Nelson Mandela’, is serving five life sentences in an Israeli prison. This is his story.
Taking more than six years to complete, The Cut is a feature-length documentary that conclusively proves that female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM) can be found as a native practice on all inhabitable continents. From war zones in the Middle-East to bucolic Middle America, the film visits 14 countries and features key interviews with FGM survivors, activists, cutters, doctors and researchers to uncover an often secret practice shrouded in centuries of traditions, mysticisms and irrationalities.
Through unprecedented backstage access and candid interviews, the film weaves through the absurd world of the working comedian and reveals a crazy and hilarious psychological profile of its practitioners. We also follow retired comic Ritch Shydner’s attempt to climb back on stage after a thirteen-year hiatus. At the top of his game in the 1980’s, Shydner had HBO specials, shot five pilot TV shows, and numerous late night appearances (Carson, Letterman, Leno, etc.) but the big time eluded him. Equipped with the collective wisdom and nutty musings of over 80 of his peers, he gives it another shot. Does Ritch have what it takes to connect with today’s young crowds and still get the laughs?
An intense insider’s portrait of New Orleans’ street celebrations and unique cultural gumbo: Second-line parades, Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest. Features live music from Professor Longhair, the Wild Tchoupitoulas, the Neville Brothers and more. This glorious, soul-satisfying film is among Blank’s special masterworks. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 1999.
The full uncensored story of punk rock band The Parkinsons.
The artist behind the sensation of a $10 million, 22-city tour, and the international media storm that ensued.
A cautionary tale for these times of democracy in crisis—the personal and political fuse to explore one of the most dramatic periods in Brazilian history. With unprecedented access to Presidents Dilma Rousseff and Lula da Silva, we witness their rise and fall and the tragically polarized nation that remains.
Once upon a time, villagers in a tiny hill town in Tuscany came up with a remarkable way to confront their issues: they turned their lives into a play. Every summer, their piazza became their stage and residents of all ages played a part – the role of themselves. Monticchiello’s annual tradition has attracted worldwide attention and kept the town together for 50 years, but with an aging population and a future generation more interested in Facebook than farming, the town’s 50th–anniversary performance just might be its last. SPETTACOLO tells the story of Teatro Povero di Monticchiello, interweaving episodes from its past with its modern-day process as the villagers turn a series of devastating blows into a new play about the end of their world.
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