Culture & Society

Us Now

Us Now

2009

In a world in which information is like air, what happens to power? New technologies and a closely related culture of collaboration present radical new models of social organisation. This project brings together leading practitioners and thinkers in this field and asks them to determine the opportunity for government.

World in the Balance: The Population Paradox

World in the Balance: The Population Paradox

2004

PBS Nova. It took all of human history until 1800 for the world’s population to reach its first billion. Now we add a new billion nearly every dozen years. Over the next half century, 98 percent of that growth will take place in our planet's poorest regions. And as the global total swells to nearly 9 billion by 2050, the social and environmental strains will be enormous. In this groundbreaking, worldwide investigation of humanity’s future, NOVA shows how decisions made now will change the fate of everyone over the next fifty years.

The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and the Collapse of the American Dream

The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and the Collapse of the American Dream

2004

With brutal honesty and a touch of irony, The End of Suburbia explores the American Way of Life and its prospects as the planet approaches a critical era, as global demand for fossil fuels begins to outstrip supply. World Oil Peak and the inevitable decline of fossil fuels are upon us now, some scientists and policy makers argue in this documentary.

Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price

Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price

2005

Everyone has seen Wal-Mart's lavish television commercials, but have you ever wondered why Wal-Mart spends so much money trying to convince you it cares about your family, your community, and even its own employees? What is it hiding? WAL-MART: The High Cost of Low Price takes you behind the glitz and into the real lives of workers and their families, business owners and their communities, in an extraordinary journey that will challenge the way you think, feel... and shop.

Black Gold

Black Gold

2007

Wake up and smell the coffee. After oil, coffee is the most actively traded commodity in the world. But for every $2 cup of coffee, a farmer receives only a few pennies. Black Gold asks us to face the unjust conditions under which our favorite drink is produced and to decide what we can do about it. The film traces the tangled trail from the two billion cups of coffee consumed each day back to the coffee farmers who produce the beans. Founder of the Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union, Tadesse Meskela is fighting to help his 70,000 Ethiopian coffee farmers by seeking out buyers willing to pay a fair price. Through his journey, Tadesse begins to expose the web of greed and corruption inherent to the international trading system, including the World Trade Organization. Black Gold reminds viewers of their power to affect positive social change by way of their consumer vote.

What a Way to Go: Life at the End of Empire

What a Way to Go: Life at the End of Empire

2007

This artistic and poetic documentary is long and dense. A middle class white guy comes to grips with Peak Oil, Climate Change, Mass Extinction,Population Overshoot and the demise of the Culture of Empire. Featuring interviews with renowned authors/analysts. Are you wondering why it's all falling apart? This movie tells you why and invites you to step into a new paradigm!

One Nation Under Siege

One Nation Under Siege

2006

Prepare to be instantly propelled into a world dominated by hi-tech surveillance and old fashioned spying as you go behind enemy lines drawn in our own backyards. One Nation Under Siege presents disturbing facts never before disclosed to a majority of the sleeping American public. Through the education system, the mainstream media and corporate America it will quickly become clear that the US Constitution and American way of life have been sacrificed on the almighty altar of Corporatism by the very people we have entrusted with their protection.

The American Ruling Class

The American Ruling Class

2005

One of the most unusual films to be made in America in recent years, both in terms of form and subject. The form is a first, a “dramatic-documentary-musical” that re-invents all three genres. And the subject is our country’s most taboo topic: class, power and privilege in our nominally democratic republic. At the bottom, the film is a morality tale, the story of two Yale students who seek their opportunities after graduation. Lewis Lapham, the renowned essayist, author and longtime Harper’s Magazine editor, conducts them through the corridors of power – Pentagon press briefings, the World Economic Forum, philanthropic foundations, Washington law firms, banks, the Council on Foreign Relations and New York society dinners.

Mind Control: American's Secret War

Mind Control: American's Secret War

2006

This powerful History Channel video documents how for decades, top secret government projects worked virtually non-stop to perfect means of controlling the human mind. Though for many years the government denied that these projects even existed, the details have long been preserved in the thousands of pages of now declassified government documents mentioned above, which were reluctantly released through the Freedom of Information Act. LSD and electroshock therapy in huge doses given to unsuspecting citizens are only a part of this unbelievable program.

A Crude Awakening - The Oil Crash

A Crude Awakening - The Oil Crash

2006

An unforgettable and shocking wake-up call, A CRUDE AWAKENING offers the rock-solid argument that the era of cheap oil is in the past. Relentless and clear-eyed, this intensively-researched film drills deep into the uncomfortable realities of a world that is both addicted to fossil fuels and blissfully unaware of the looming "peak oil" crisis. Amidst a dark and disturbing vision of our future, A CRUDE AWAKENING hints at a humbler way of life built around sustainability and alternative energy, providing a visually stunning, boldly prophetic testament which provokes not just thought but action.

Inside Job

Inside Job

2010

From filmmaker Charles Ferguson comes this sobering, Oscar-winning documentary that presents in comprehensive yet cogent detail the pervasive and deep-rooted corruption that led to the global economic meltdown of 2008. Through unflinching interviews with key financial insiders, politicos, journalists and academics, Ferguson paints a galling portrait of an unfettered financial system run amok -- without accountability. Actor Matt Damon narrates.

Affluenza

Affluenza

2005

Through revealing personal stories, expert commentary, hilarious old film clips, dramatized vignettes, and “anti-commercial” breaks, Affluenza examines the high cost of achieving the most extravagant lifestyle the world has ever seen. Add overwork, personal stress, the erosion of family and community, skyrocketing debt, and the growing gap between rich and poor, and it’s easy to understand why some people say that the American Dream is no bargain. Affluenza travels across the country to show you men and women who are working and shopping less, spending more time with friends and family, volunteering in their communities, and enjoying their lives more.

Collapse

Collapse

2009

This National Geographic production looks ahead to a bleak hypothetical future, in which our civilization has completely collapsed. In the year 2210, a team of scientists set out to learn exactly what took down our seemingly indestructible society. Did we make the same mistakes the Romans, Incas and Mayans did that led to the collapse of their empires, or did a whole new set of circumstances lead to our downfall?

Guns, Germs and Steel

Guns, Germs and Steel

2005

Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book and national best seller, Guns, Germs, and Steel is an epic detective story that offers a gripping expose on why the world is so unequal. Professor Jared Diamond traveled the globe for over 30 years trying to answer the biggest question of world history. Why is the world so unequal? The answers he found were simple yet extraordinary. Our destiny depends on geography and access to: Guns, Germs, and Steel. Weaving together anthropology and science with epic historical reenactments, Guns, Germs, and Steel brings Diamond's fascinating theories to life, and moves beyond the book to bring his ideas into the present day.

Big Brother, Big Business

Big Brother, Big Business

2006

CNBC Originals. Season 1  :  Ep. 4

This Emmy Award winner for Outstanding Documentary examines the big business of the technologies that allow companies to monitor our every move and record our private personal info. © 2006 CNBC, Inc.