Films about arts & culture
Feature Film
PBS Premiere: Aug. 6, 2018
A rural poet becomes a sudden star in China, whose writings ponder life, love and pain.
Feature Film
PBS Premiere: July 2, 2018
A plunge into the fire of Tultepec, Mexico, the site of the National Pyrotechnic Festival.
Feature Film
Encore Broadcast: Jan. 1, 2018
The proud Mexican tradition of corrido music provides both heartbeat and backbone to this rich examination of songs, drugs and dreams along the U.S./Mexico border.
Feature Film
Encore Broadcast: Jan. 1, 2018
Few American icons are as well known for their popular kitsch as the hula dance. From old Hollywood movies to entertainment for tourists, the hip-swaying girls in grass skirts and colorful lei have long masked an ancient cultural tradition.
Feature Film
Encore Broadcast: Jan. 1, 2018
An Oscar®-nominated reflection on love, sacrifice and the creative spirit, this candid New York tale explores the chaotic 40-year marriage of famed "boxing" painter Ushio Shinohara and artist Noriko Shinohara.Winner, Directing Award: U.S. Documentary, 2013 Sundance Film Festival.
Feature Film
Encore Broadcast: Jan. 1, 2018
Jason DaSilva was 25 and a rising filmmaker when he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and inspired to film this forthright — and surprisingly uplifting — look at his new life. He searches for a cure, yet a different miracle comes his way.Official Selection of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. A co-production of ITVS. A co-presentation with CAAM.
Feature Film
Encore Broadcast: Aug. 7, 2017
Iris pairs the late documentarian Albert Maysles (Grey Gardens, Gimme Shelter), then 87, with Iris Apfel, the quick-witted, flamboyantly dressed 93-year-old style maven who has had an outsized presence on the New York fashion scene for decades.
Short Film
PBS Premiere: July 24, 2017
In the Oscar-nominated Joe's Violin, a donated musical instrument forges an improbable friendship. Nominated, 2017 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject.
Feature Film
PBS Premiere: July 17, 2017
Presenting Princess Shaw is the extraordinary story of an aspiring musician, down on her luck, who inspired internationally famous musician, composer and video artist Ophir "Kutiman" Kutiel to create a magical collaboration that would introduce her talent to a whole new audience. Nominated, 2017 Critics' Choice Award for Best Music Documentary. A co-presentation with the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC).
Digital Project
Digital Premiere: Oct. 23, 2016
What does a film look like on Snapchat? POV and NowThis are the first to bring independent films to Snapchat Discover. Watch the Snapchat-native films We'll Still Be Here and The Way It Should Be while you can.
Feature Film
PBS Premiere: Sept. 5, 2016
Go behind the scenes at Japan's Yoshida Brewery, where a brotherhood of artisans, ranging from 20 to 70, spend six months in nearly monastic isolation as they follow an age-old process to create saké, the nation's revered rice wine. A co-presentation with the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM). Winner, Special Jury Mention for Best Documentary Director, 2015 Tribeca Film Festival.
Feature Film
Encore Broadcast: Aug. 22, 2016
A cat-and-mouse caper told with humor and compassion, Art and Craft uncovers the universal in one man's search for connection and respect. Official Selection of the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival and International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam. Named a Top 5 Documentary by the National Board of Review. Produced in association with American Documentary | POV.