“What was it like coming back to America after fighting in Vietnam?” asks an off-screen narrator. A 22-year-old black man nods and begins to talk, his weary expression suggesting this is a question he’s prepared to answer, but one he dreads. “It’s almost the same as when I left, ” he begins. “I say this because when a man goes to fight for his country and then comes back over here and almost have to fight for his life in certain parts of the country, get ridiculed and discriminated, you know, and be less than a man. I don’t think it’s right, you know.” It’s 1967. 

This early scene sets the stage for Göran Olsson’s terrific documentary, Black Power Mixtape 1967-195, which premieres on Independent Lens on 9 February. Specfically, it lays out the film’s premise, that the Black Power Movement, building and then suppressed from 1967 to 1975, emerged out of needs to resist injury and endure trauma, and also, to make visible what was going on in America, what remained unknown to people who didn’t have to know. The film features interviews with civil rights figures like SNCC’s Stokely Carmichael and Angela Davis, as well as today’s activists (Talib Kweli, ?uestlove), tracing how the Panthers resisted oppression (see especially, the FBI’s COINTELPRO) and also built a lasting sense community. Looking back, it looks forward, observing from the outside (the Swedish reporters’ footage that makes up the bulk of the film), it reveals what goes on inside.

See PopMatters’ review.

Watch Looking Back at the Black Power Movement on PBS. See more from Independent Lens.

The votes are in! The list of nominees for the 84th annual Academy Awards was announced on January 24th by the lovely Jennifer Lawrence. While most of the contenders were predictable, given their recent nominations for Golden Globe or SAG awards, going into the process the one wild card in the bunch was this summer’s female-driven blockbuster comedy Bridesmaids. Though the Academy has not favored comedies in the past, there was speculation that the film might drum up enough enthusiasm to garner a Best Picture recognition. But alas, while this was not to be, the movie’s breakout star Melissa McCarthy did receive a supporting actress nod for her hilarious portrayal of Megan, the bride’s soon-to-be sister in law with a personality ten cruise ships bigger than her five-foot-two stance.

McCarthy has had quite the banner year-from gaining fan recognition for her role in Bridesmaids to winning an Emmy for her portrayal of Mike and Molly star Molly Flynn, to having Ricky Gervais single her out at the Golden Globes. Though this was clearly a defining year for the actress, here are five other interesting things to know about the Oscar nominee’s career in the entertainment industry:

Stanley Nelson’s exceptional documentary tells the story of the Freedom Rides, from their initiation in May 1961, by James Farmer and the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), to the Interstate Commerce Commission’s (ICC) ruling that September, that passengers on interstate buses could sit wherever they wanted, “the first unambiguous victory in the long history of the civil rights movement.” Freedom Riders—airing on PBS on 7 February—offers some incredible images from the period to show how this victory was the result of months of struggle, including assaults on the freedom riders by angry citizens as well as police officers. Boarding commercial buses (Trailways and Greyhound) in Washington, DC and intending to ride through the Deep South, the riders set out deliberately to violate Southern segregation laws. Each CORE member signed a formal agreement, stating, “I understand that I shall be participating in a nonviolent protest… against racial discrimination, that arrest or personal injury to me might result.” They had little expectation of the violence that would be inflicted on them.

See PopMatters’ review.

Watch Freedom Riders Theatrical Trailer on PBS. See more from Freedom Riders.

A feather-light, engaging documentary, Love Etc. charts the evolutions of five romantic relationships in New York over the course of a year. Director Jill Andresevic selected a cross section of lovers from three boroughs (Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens) in various stages of their lives, all affable and all inclined to colorful self-expression. The film—which premieres on Oprah’s OWN Documentary Club on 2 February—features interviews shot in the subjects’ homes. As they discuss their pleasures and challenges. In other situations, they’re liable to perform a bit for the camera. They tell stories of ups and downs, though we don’t see anything too ugly or upsetting. With more than 500 hours of footage, it seems unlikely that none of it captured a difficult moment, so one can’t help wondering whether or why Andresevic chose not to include them.

See PopMatters’ review.

Sometimes rejection is the best motivator. This was certainly the case for filmmakers Dan Mirvish, Jon Fitzgerald, Shane Kuhn and Peter Baxter, who took their rejection from the Sundance Film Festival and channeled it into the creation of their own, alternative film festival. Slamdance Film Festival, begun in 1995, has become a yearly event, taking place, “coincidentally”, at the exact same time as Sundance, in scenic Park City, Utah. Run and operated with the mantra of “by filmmakers, for filmmakers” in mind, the Festival, which aims to showcase truly independent films, has drawn quite a following in its 18 years of operation, and even boasts the discovery of directors Christopher Nolan, Marc Foster, and Oren Peli.

Proving a veritable breeding ground for documentaries, in 2005, the Festival showcased Mad Hot Ballroom, which was then purchased by Paramount for a record-breaking sum, and in 2010 was home to the world premiere of Steven Soderberg’s documentary And Everything is Going Fine, which chronicles the life of deceased actor Spalding Gray.