CIRCUS DREAMS
Grades 4-9
Circus Dreams documents a year in the life of Circus Smirkus, the only traveling youth circus in the US. This vibrant documentary immerses viewers into the lives of the 10- to 18-year-old performers, capturing their intense work ethic, passion for performance, deep friendships and budding loves. Director: Signe Taylor (USA 2012) 81min

Selected by Education Program Manager Melanie Nichols:
“I loved watching these talented, exuberant and hardworking young people, dedicated to living out their dreams of becoming circus performers for 10 weeks in the summer.”

VIEW ON AMAZON PRIME

Things to think, do, and talk about after watching the film:

• Have you ever auditioned for anything? A play? A musical? Choir? Band? What did that experience feel like?
• Many of the young people in Circus Dreams feel like they don’t fit in at school. Have you ever had those feelings? Have you found an activity or group of kids outside of school that you feel are “your people”?
• Consider taking a circus skills class. Research online to see if there are any circus camps or afterschool programs in your area.

CRIP CAMP
Grades 10-12  *Note: Some adult language and frank sexual dialogueIn the 1960s and ‘70s, just down the road from Woodstock, was a camp for disabled teens called Camp Jened. Crip Camp explores the universal experience of summer camp awakenings that would transform lives and shape the future of the disability rights movement. Told from the point of view of former camper Jim LeBrecht, the film traces the journeys of campers up to the present day, in this untold story of a powerful journey towards inclusion.

Selected by Director of Education, Joanne Parsont:
“It’s, sadly, so rare to see a film told entirely from the perspective of the disabled community. This film would be remarkable just for its joyous and liberating archival footage of the young people at Camp Jened. But it goes so many important steps further to tell the utterly engrossing and empowering story of the birth of the American disability rights movement.” 

VIEW ON NETFLIX

Things to think, do, and talk about after watching the film:

• Before watching this film, were their certain activities that you thought most disabled people could not participate in? Did the film change your perspective?
• How would you want people to interact with you if you had a disability?
• Are there issues you feel strongly enough about that you would advocate for as passionately and bravely as the activists featured in the film?

JESUS CAMP
Grades 9-12
Jesus Camp follows Levi, Rachael, and Tory to Pastor Becky Fischer’s Kids on Fire evangelical Christian summer camp, where kids as young as six are taught to become dedicated Christian soldiers in “God’s army.” The campers hone their “prophetic gifts” and are schooled in how to “take back America for Christ.”Directors: Heidi Ewing & Rachel Grady (US 2006) 84 min

Selected by Education Outreach Manager Shakira Refos:
“I became fascinated with Jesus Camp in college and am not exaggerating when I say I’ve seen it at least a dozen times throughout the years. While some people see the subjects in this documentary as extreme, in hindsight it feels like an important indicator of our current political landscape and how we got where we are. Jesus Camp is a must see for any students interested in Social Studies and Political Science. I still find it to be an objective observation of a relevant movement in American society.”

VIEW FOR FREE ON TUBI

Things to think, do, and talk about after watching the film:

• Did you learn anything about the evangelical youth movement that you didn’t know before?
• Did you think the filmmakers gave a fair and balanced view, or do you feel the characters were misrepresented?

AMERICAN FACTORY
Grades 9-12
This year’s Oscar® winner for Best Documentary Feature is a masterpiece of documentary storytelling and an epic saga of the consequences of America’s disappearing manufacturing sector and China’s resurgence as a world economic power. The filmmakers embed themselves in the life of a shuttered GM plant in Dayton, Ohio that has been reborn as an auto glass factory owned by a giant Chinese company. What ensues is a fascinating contrast in cultures that plays out on the floor of the plant, in executive offices, and throughout the community. Directors: Julia Reichert & Steven Bognar (US 2019) 115 min

Selected by Education Program Manager Melanie Nichols:
“What I find astonishing about American Factory is being able to see America through the eyes of Chinese workers and managers. This is a point of view we rarely get to see. We know our economic, political and cultural lives are very different, but in this film we get to see those clashes in close proximity.”

View on Netflix 

Things to think and talk about after watching the film:

This documentary explores a web of issues involving a number of groups active in the Sea of Cortez. Identify how each stakeholder is looking to benefit from the international intrigue revealed in the film:

• Between the Chinese and the Americans, who do you think is more willing to accommodate their cultural differences? 
• Why might the workers want to establish a union and why is management unenthusiastic about it? What is your opinion?
• Do you think the Chinese and the Americans have the same goals? What are the Chinese measures of success compared to those of the Americans? 

SEA OF SHADOWS
Grades 6-12
This environmental thriller is every bit as gripping and nail-biting as any pulp novel but with real world consequences for the imperiled vaquita (the world’s smallest whale) and for local fisherman in the Sea of Cortez. Trapped in nets used to catch the totoaba, a large fish whose bladders are highly prized in China for their supposed anti-aging properties, the vaquita gets tossed aside as collateral damage. While Mexican drug cartels seek to capitalize on this lucrative, illegal market, the Mexican government, conservationists and a famous TV reporter fight to save the vaquita. But with fewer than 10 vaquita left in the world, time is running out. In English and Spanish with English subtitles. Director: Richard Ladkani (Austria 2019) 106 min

Selected by Education Outreach Manager Shakira Refos:
“I love this documentary because of its subject matter, but mostly for its pace. It feels like a hybrid between a National Geographic documentary and a military science action film. It’s absolutely thrilling and at the same time informative, highlighting multiple sides of a complex conversation: the right to local fishermen’s livelihood vs. an environmental crisis and a rare species’ right to exist.”

View on Amazon

Things to think and talk about after watching the film:

This documentary explores a web of issues involving a number of groups active in the Sea of Cortez. Identify how each stakeholder is looking to benefit from the international intrigue revealed in the film:

• Sea of Cortez local fisherman
• Chinese smugglers / poachers
• Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
• Mexican Navy

STEP
Grades 6-12
In 2015, as the nation focused on the riots in Baltimore following the police brutality case of Freddie Gray, filmmaker Amanda Lipitz trained her camera on an inner city high school called the Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women and the spirited members of their step dance team. BLSYW aims to give its students a way out of their challenging urban environment by ensuring every one of them not only graduates, but also goes to college. Led by the indomitable Coach G, the step team demands discipline, courage and collaboration, and as they simultaneously apply for college and financial aid and prepare for their final competition as seniors, this remarkably resilient sisterhood proves their inherent strength and power with every synchronized stomp and clap. Director: Amanda Lipitz (US 2017) 84 min

Selected by Director of Education, Joanne Parsont:
“I’m a big fan of youth competition documentaries, whether it be spelling bees in Spellbound, chess in Brooklyn Castle, or poetry slams in Louder Than a Bomb. But I especially love the energy and spirit of STEP, and the film’s focus on young women of color demonstrating and owning their power.”

View on Amazon, Google Play, Vudu, or YouTube

Things to think and talk about after watching the film:

• What skills does step dancing teach that help the young women succeed in other areas of their life?
• What hobby or activity do you have in your life that makes you feel empowered?

LIYANA
Grades 7-12
Creative sparks fly when young Swazi orphans are invited to tell their own story, inspired by harsh life experience and rich imagination. Together they invent Liyana’s dangerous quest to rescue her twin brothers, which is brought to life by their own charismatic storytelling and gorgeous animation. In English & SiSwati w/ English subtitles. Directors: Aaron Kopp, Amanda Kopp (Swaziland/US 2017) 78 min
Available on Amazon Prime, Google Play, and YouTube
Download the CFI Education curriculum guide here.