Black History Month on Doc Channel

In February, The Documentary Channel ® dedicates Sunday primetime lineup to Black History Month Films..

Noted Producer Debra Martin Chase Assists DOC In Selection of Special February Programming Focused On African-American Documentaries and Filmmakers

The Documentary Channel® (DOC) will celebrate “Black History Month” this February by showcasing rarely or never-before televised documentary films about the African-American experience and featuring African-American filmmakers, producers and directors.  Leading off is the 2005 Academy Award®-nominated documentary “Street Fight” on Feb. 7 at 8 p.m. ET, followed by award-winning films “The Visitors,” “Beyond the Steps: Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater” and “Chisholm’72: Unbought & Unbossed” on Feb. 14, 21 and 28, respectively.

“Given the state of both the economy and the motion picture business, the world of documentary filmmaking has never been more challenging,” says two-time Emmy® Award-nominated television and motion picture producer Debra Martin Chase, who worked with DOC to curate compelling and poignant films for its Sunday “Black History Month” primetime programming block.  ”It is particularly difficult for African-American filmmakers and I fear that as a result a whole generation will be lost.  Tom Neff and The Documentary Channel share my concern and we have designed this showcase to let the visions and voices of these talented filmmakers be seen, heard and celebrated.”

“We are thrilled to champion documentaries both by black filmmakers and about the black experience, and feel these are unique, important perspectives for the American public to see,” adds Tom Neff, The Documentary Channel founder and chief creative officer.  “DOC is committed to exposing these and other similar incredible films which are rarely seen, or have disappeared from the public eye for too long.  Working with Debra and her team on curating these films was a great privilege and pleasure, and has spurred us to work together on other, new projects involving black and minority filmmakers.”

Making its network premiere Sunday, Feb. 7 is “Street Fight,” a 2005 Oscar® nominee written, directed and produced by Marshall Curry which chronicles the underbelly of American democracy.  When Cory Booker, a 32-year-old Yale Law grad, takes on the four-term mayor of Newark, N.J., he gets an education in the politics of the streets. The city’s political machine unleashes a campaign of harassment and voter intimidation, and the election unfolds amid accusations of terrorism, a Watergate-style burglary, and sexual scandal. When it becomes racially charged—a surprising twist for a battle between two African-American candidates—voters are forced to ask what it means to be “really black” in America today.  In addition to Oscar nomination, “Street Fight” also won awards at the Hot Docs Canadian International, Tribeca, Silverdocs Documentary and Ashland film festivals, and was nominated for an Emmy® for outstanding continuing coverage of a news story (long form).

In its exclusive U.S. television premiere Sunday, Feb. 14, “The Visitors” is a documentary about passengers of a charter bus who leave New York City every weekend for various prisons located in remote rural towns and villages in Upstate New York, where 95 percent of the state’s 70 prisons are located.  Every Friday night about 800 people, mostly women and children, almost all of them African American and Latino, gather at Columbus Circle in Manhattan and board buses.  Depending on the destination, the trips can take 8 or 10 hours one way.  Reflecting the struggles of a unique culture living at the intersection of confinement and the free world, the story of “The Visitors” follows the coordinator of a bus -Denise- whose husband is coming home soon after 17 years of imprisonment.  Produced and directed by Melis Birder, the film was an official selection to the 2009 Urbanworld, Full Frame and Istanbul International film festivals.

“Beyond the Steps” premieres on DOC for the first time Sunday, Feb. 21 and follows Alvin Ailey’s American Dance Theater during a pivotal time in its history as the company ventures abroad while establishing new roots at home in New York City.  When the company moves into a state-of-the-art facility called “the largest in the country devoted exclusively to dance,” longtime company Artistic Director Judith Jamison creates a new ballet entitled Love Stories. Choreographed in collaboration with hip-hop pioneer Rennie Harris and modern dance maverick Robert Battle, Jamison explains that Love Stories expresses “the past, present and future” of the company.  Ailey dancers take center stage in this documentary as the troupe brings this new work to the White Nights Dance Festival in St. Petersburg, Russia.  “Beyond the Steps,” directed and produced by Phil Bertelsen, tells the story of what it takes to keep dance modern, art relevant, and a legacy alive.

“Chisholm ’72: Unbought & Unbossed” won the 2006 Peabody Award and makes its debut on DOC Sunday, Feb. 28.  It is the first historical documentary on Brooklyn Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm and her campaign to become the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee in 1972.  Director/producer Shola Lynch follows Chisholm from the announcement of her candidacy in January ‘72 to the Democratic National Convention in Miami, Florida in July ’72.   The story is like Chisholm herself– fabulous, fierce, and fundamentally “right on.” Chisholm’s fight is for inclusion, as she writes in her book The Good Fight (1973), and encompasses all Americans “who agree that the institutions of this country belong to all of the people who inhabit it.” Shunned by the political establishment, Congresswoman Chisholm asks people of color, feminists and young voters for their support to “reshape our society and take control of our destiny as we go down the Chisholm Trail in 1972.”  To the surprise of many, voters responded.  “Chisholm ’72” reflects Chisholm’s wit, spirit, and charisma, reminding all Americans of their power as citizens while inspiring some to join the Chisholm Trail and continue fighting “The Good Fight.”  A REALside Production, “Chisholm ‘72” also collected nominations at the Sundance Film Festival and Independent Spirit Awards.

A summary of network’s exclusive “Black History Month” programming schedule in February is as follows:

Sunday, Feb. 7 “Street Fight” 8 p.m. ET/PT
Sunday, Feb. 14 “The Visitors” (P) 8 p.m. ET/PT
Sunday, Feb. 21 “Beyond the Steps” 8 p.m. ET/PT
Sunday, Feb. 28 “Chisholm ’72: Unbought & Unbossed” 8 p.m. ET/PT
(P) – Denotes exclusive U.S. Television Premiere

DOC is available on DISH Network (Channel 197), and several broadcast stations in major markets including NYC TV (Channel 25) throughout the greater New York metropolitan area.

About The Documentary Channel®:  The Documentary Channel (DOC) is the USA’s first 24-hour television network exclusively devoted to documentary films and the independent documentary filmmaker, providing viewers with round-the-clock opportunities to see fascinating, eclectic and award-winning documentary films of all lengths and genres.  For more information on DOC, visit www.documentarychannel.com.

Street Fight is a Marshall Curry Production, in association Moxie Firecracker Films. A co-production of the Independent Television Service (ITVS) in association with POV/American Documentary Inc. Executive Producer for ITVS Sally Jo Fifer

Funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting