Join us in New York City - the next stop on the National Listening Tour for Independent Films on PBS - on February 23rd, from 2 PM ET to 5 PM ET, along with PBS, POV, ITVS, WNET, Independent Lens and the Indie Caucus. The event will take place at the SVA Theatre in Manhattan. RSVP now »

In keeping with its commitment to independent film and filmmakers, PBS leadership is hosting a series of open forums around the country with independent filmmakers, PBS series producers, and other public media and community partners. At each event, participants are invited to voice their priorities and innovative ideas on how all can work together to strengthen distribution, viewership and community engagement through Independent Lens, POV and all kinds of independent films.

Watch highlights from San Francisco, the first stop on the tour last month. The Indie Caucus and Kartemquin Films will host a third stop in Chicago in March, date TBD.

KINGDOM OF SHADOWS, the latest documentary by filmmaker Bernardo Ruiz (Director of the Emmy-nominated REPORTERO and former NALIP Board Member) will have its WORLD PREMIERE at SXSW 2015!

The talented crew includes many long-standing NALIPsters including Editor Carla Gutierrez, Producer Katia Maguire and Cinematographer Antonio Cisneros, among many other talented collaborators.

KINGDOM OF SHADOWS is a unique and provocative film that follows three people grappling with the hard choices and destructive consequences of the U.S.-Mexico narco conflict. At first glance, the lives and experiences of a nun in northern Mexico, a rancher in Texas and a U.S. Federal agent on the border, do not appear to be linked. As the film unfolds, however, the intrinsic connections between their stories and contexts are slowly revealed. ‘SHADOWS’ also delves into the recent history of this conflict by examining a key part of the human rights crisis that has been growing in Mexico for years, yet only recently made international headlines. The film was produced by PARTICIPANT MEDIA [http://www.participantmedia.com/] in association with Ruiz’s New York-based documentary production company, QUIET PICTURES [http://www.quietpictures.com.]

For more about the film’s premiere visit SXSW.

To learn more about upcoming screenings please check out:

F: facebook.com/quietpicturesmedia T: twitter.com/quietpictures

Director Kyle Patrick Alvarez with cast of ‘The Stanford Prison Experiment”

Following 10 jam-packed days of screenings, panels, press events, and parties, this past Saturday, the jurors for the 2015 Sundance Film Festivalannounced the winners. The chosen films, both documentary and narrative, featured stories about freedom of expression and denounced the racism that plagues our society. As the filmmakers picked up their awards — all from different countries — they gave impassioned and emotional speeches.

In the World Cinema Documentary Competition, the film The Russian Woodpecker was awarded the Grand Jury Prize. Director Chad Gracia dedicated the award to jailed Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov. Even more powerful were the acceptance speeches by the film’s subject, artist Fedor Alexandrovich, and cinematographer Artem Ryzhykov, who called for the West to help Ukraine stop Russia’s military campaign.

Watch the entire 2-hour-long Sundance Closing Night Ceremony

Similarly heartbreaking were the words of those involved with the documentary 3 ½ Minutes, which took home the U.S. Documentary Competition Jury Award for Social Impact. The film focuses on African American teen Jordan Davis’ death and the terrible repercussions of Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” laws. Although director Marc Silver wasn’t present, producer Minette Nelson was very moved by the recognition and decided to let Jordan’s parents, Ron Davis and Lucia McBath, take the stage. Mr. Davis finished his loving speech in honor of his son by chanting one of the most important lines of our time “Black Lives Matter!”

Especially noteworthy was the heavy presence of U.S. Latino and Latin American filmmakers as well as Latino-themed films among those who received awards. Miami-based director Kyle Patrick Alvarez received the Alfred P. Sloan Award for his latest feature The Stanford Prison Experiment, which explores the effects of Dr. Zimbardo’s infamous psychology study that simulated a prison. “I share this award with screenwriter Tim Talbott who’s been working on this script for over 10 years. One of our strong efforts with the film was to try to present the experiment as truthful and accurate as we could,” said Alvarez. The film also won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, given to Tim Talbott. Alvarez accepted the award on his behalf and added, “If you’ve written something you believe in, and it’s there in a drawer, don’t let it go away. Keep on fighting, for good material will always rise up.”

Ream more at Remezcla.com

The Hollywood Creative Forum is a complimentary, invitation-only event targeted at diverse showrunners, producers, directors and writers to promote diversity behind the cameras. The program incorporates a full day of sessions and a “meet and greet” with cable network and production company executives and focuses on programming and creative content in the non-fiction and reality genres. The Forum includes some of the following features:

• Continental Breakfast
• Keynote Speaker
• One-on-one “Meet and Greet” structured introductions with cable network and production company executives;
• Professional skills-enhancement briefings which provide access to network executives;
• Closing Panel featuring speakers from top network and production companies

Show Runners, Producers, Directors and Writers of diverse backgrounds are encouraged to “apply” for the program at no cost until Friday, February 13, 2015.