World Press Freedom Day
In a world increasingly shaped by fake news, celebrating the dogged search for truth is more important than ever. This week we’re spotlighting films that show the role of the Fourth Estate in holding the powerful accountable, and the important work of journalists around the world.
Gunda
An intimate look at the life of a sow and her companions.
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- Norway, United States • 2021
- Director Viktor Kossakovsky
- Cast
- Genre Documentary
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Tubi TV, Kanopy
Writing with Fire
Armed with smartphones, the journalists of India’s only female-run newspaper break traditions and tackle the country’s biggest issues.
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- India • 2021
- Director Sushmit Ghosh, Rintu Thomas
- Cast Meera Devi, Suneeta Prajapati, Shyamkali Devi
- Genre Documentary
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy, Hoopla
Collective
(Colectiv)
A documentary portrait of a group of Romanian journalists attempting to uncover fraud and corruption in public healthcare.
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- Romania • 2020
- Director Alexander Nanau
- Cast Catalin Tolontan, Mirela Neag, Razvan Lutac, Tedy Ursuleanu, Vlad Voiculescu
- Genre Documentary
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, The Roku Channel, Kanopy, Hoopla, Plex Channel
The County
(Héraðið)
A widowed dairy farmer stands up for her contained community in rural Iceland.
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- Iceland • 2019
- Director Grímur Hákonarson
- Cast Arndís Hrönn Egilsdóttir, Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Sveinn Ólafur Gunnarsson, Þorsteinn Bachmann, Ævar Þór Benediktsson
- Genre Comedy, Drama
- Available on OVID, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Tubi TV, VUDU Free, Kanopy
A Private War
The Most Powerful Weapon Is The Truth.
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- United Kingdom, United States • 2018
- Director Matthew Heineman
- Cast Rosamund Pike, Jamie Dornan, Tom Hollander, Stanley Tucci, Corey Johnson, Faye Marsay
- Genre Drama, War
- Available on Amazon Video
Bellingcat: Truth in a Post-Truth World
Investigative journalism group Bellingcat, comprised of an international society of citizen journalists, uses open-source methods to fight against fake news.
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- Netherlands • 2018
- Director Hans Pool
- Cast Eliot Higgins, Christiaan Triebert
- Genre Documentary
- Available on MZ Choice Amazon Channel
Karl Marx City
A filmmaker goes on a personal journey through East Berlin to investigate her father’s suicide.
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- Germany • 2016
- Director Michael Tucker
- Cast Petra Epperlein, Christa Epperlein, Uwe Epperlein, Volker Epperlein, Udo Grashoff, Hubertus Knabe
- Genre Documentary
- Available on Film Movement Plus, Apple TV, Amazon Video, Spectrum On Demand, Kanopy, Hoopla
Frame by Frame
Four Afghan photojournalists attempt to reframe their country in the post-Taliban photo revolution.
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- Afghanistan • 2015
- Director Alexandria Bombach, Mo Scarpelli
- Cast Massoud Hossaini, Wakil Kohsar, Najibullah Mosafer, Farzana Wahidy
- Genre Documentary
- Available on Apple TV, Hoopla
Virunga
Journalists and park rangers struggle to save the mountain gorillas and their natural habitat, and to expose political corruption.
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- United Kingdom, Congo • 2014
- Director Orlando von Einsiedel
- Cast André Bauma, Emmanuel de Merode, Mélanie Gouby, Rodrigue Mugaruka Katembo, Vianney Kazarama
- Genre Documentary, War
- Available on Netflix, Netflix basic with Ads
Return to Homs
Filmed over three years in Homs, this film accompanies two young men as the war alters their lives.
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- Syria, Germany • 2013
- Director Talal Derki
- Cast
- Genre Documentary
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy
Five Broken Cameras
Five broken cameras – and each one has a powerful tale to tell.
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- Palestine, Israel, France • 2011
- Director Guy Davidi, Emad Burnat
- Cast Emad Burnat, Mohammed Burnat, Soraya Burnat
- Genre Documentary, War
- Available on OVID, Chai Flicks, Tubi TV, Kanopy, Hoopla, Plex, Plex Channel
Burma VJ: Reporting from a Closed Country
(Burma VJ: Reporter i et lukket land)
Thirty heroic underground video journalists secretly videotaped the peaceful protests and violent military response of the 2007 uprising in Burma.
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- Denmark, Sweden, Norway • 2008
- Director Anders Østergaard
- Cast George W. Bush, Ko Muang, Aung San Suu Kyi
- Genre Documentary
- Available on DocAlliance Films, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Amazon Video
Frost/Nixon
Former President Nixon sits down for his first interview following his resignation from office in the wake of the Watergate scandal.
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- United Kingdom, France, United States • 2008
- Director Ron Howard
- Cast Michael Sheen, Frank Langella, Kevin Bacon, Sam Rockwell, Matthew Macfadyen, Oliver Platt
- Genre Drama, History
- Available on Max Amazon Channel, Max, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube
The Killing Fields
Here, only the silent survive.
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- United Kingdom • 1984
- Director Roland Joffé
- Cast Sam Waterston, Haing S. Ngor, Craig T. Nelson, John Malkovich, Athol Fugard, Julian Sands
- Genre Drama, History, War
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Spectrum On Demand, Tubi TV, The Roku Channel, Kanopy, Plex, Plex Channel