Ilan Stavans of Amherst College, discusses The Seventh Heaven: Travels through Jewish Latin America (2020). In this travelogue, Stavans talks to families of the desaparecidos in Buenos Aires, to “Indian Jews,” and to people affiliated with neo-Nazi groups in Patagonia. He also visits Spain to understand the long-term effects of the Inquisition, the American Southwest habitat of “secret Jews,” and Israel, where immigrants from Latin America have reshaped the Jewish state. Series: "Taubman Symposia in Jewish Studies" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37322]

UC Santa Barbara (Video)

The Seventh Heaven: Travels through Jewish Latin America

Filmmaker and author Cheryl Foggo joins moderator Stephanie Batiste for a virtual discussion of Foggo’s new documentary, John Ware Reclaimed. The film follows Foggo’s quest to recover the story of John Ware, a Black cowboy and rancher who settled in Alberta, Canada prior to the turn of the twentieth century. In conversation with Batiste, Foggo addresses how Ware’s story illuminates histories of Black settlement and anti-Black racism in the Canadian west, touching on questions of national myth-making, intergenerational kinship, and identity across borders. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37195]

Borders: John Ware Reclaimed

Writer/director Sourav Sarangi discusses his 2012 documentary, Char...The No Man's Island, focusing on the challenges and opportunities of working in the India/Bangladesh borderlands. Joined by moderator Bhaskar Sarkar, Sarangi recounts his inspiration for making the film, the struggles he faced during production, and the importance of telling this unique story of life on the border. Char...The No Man's Island follows Rubel, a fourteen-year-old boy who makes a living for his family working as a smuggler around the border island of Char. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37072]

Borders: Char...No Man's Island

Moderator Diane Fujino joins activist and documentary subject Mike Africa Jr. for a discussion of Tommy Oliver’s new documentary, 40 Years A Prisoner. A riveting chronicle of the controversial 1978 Philadelphia police raid on the radical back-to-nature group MOVE, 40 Years a Prisoner follows Africa Jr.’s decades-long fight to free his parents from prison in the aftermath. Together, Fujino and Africa Jr. discuss how Oliver’s documentary situates the MOVE raid within a longer history of police violence against Black communities in Philadelphia, and the lasting impact of MOVE’s radical philosophy. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37108]

40 Years A Prisoner with Mike Africa Jr.

Actor, director, producer, and comedy icon Henry Winkler joins moderator Matt Ryan for a discussion of his work on the hit HBO comedy, Barry. Barry stars Bill Hader as a depressed, low-rent hitman from the Midwest who reluctantly travels to Los Angeles to execute a hit on an aspiring actor. In conversation with Ryan, Winkler provides an in-depth look at his character Gene Cousineau, while also recounting some highlights from his prolific, multi-decade career in television and film. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37110]

Barry: Script to Screen

Writer/director Catherine Hardwicke discusses her directorial debut film, Thirteen, a realistic drama of an innocent teenage girl thrown into a curious world of rebellion, sex, and drugs. In conversation with moderator Matt Ryan, Hardwicke discusses the process of working with co-writer Nikki Reed to capture the reality of Reed’s own teen years, and to transform them in turn into this harrowing yet relatable film. Hardwicke also discusses the joys and challenges of directing, touching briefly on her other directorial work, Twilight. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37106]

Thirteen: Script to Screen

Hester Blum, David Clark, and Korenna Estes discuss the film Frozen Obsession, which follows the 18-day, 2,000-mile Northwest Passage Project expedition through the stunningly beautiful and extreme Canadian Arctic, aboard the Swedish research icebreaker Oden. In conversation with Ian Kellett, Blum, Clark, and Estes discuss the process of making the documentary and the lessons they learned as a part of this project, as well as larger issues of climate change. Frozen Obsession follows the expedition of some of the many scientists who are racing to understand a fast-warming Arctic, exploring how environmental changes currently unfolding in the polar regions will affect life on a planetary scale. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37105]

Frozen Obsession: CWC Docs

In conversation with moderator Sara Pankenier Weld, filmmaker Holly Morris discusses her 2015 documentary, The Babushkas of Chernobyl. The film offers an intimate look at the remarkable women who continue to live, fish, and forage in the shadow of the ruined Chernobyl nuclear power plant, having refused to leave their homes following the 1986 explosion at reactor 4. Morris details the triumphs and challenges of making this film, the ongoing impacts of the Chernobyl disaster, and the power of community in the face of adversity. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37107]

The Babushkas of Chernobyl: CWC Docs

We all know how good a dog's sense of smell is, from sniffing out explosives to all sorts of contraband and even disease in humans. Tommy Dickey, emeritus professor from UC Santa Barbara, and service dog expert Heather Junquiera explain why and how dogs are being trained for COVID-19 screening. [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 36937]

Toward the Use of Medical Scent Dogs for COVID-19 Screening

Colin Gunckel and Mirasol Enríquez discuss the impact and importance of the 1983 epic film El Norte, directed by Gregory Nava. In conversation with moderator Ross Melnick, Gunckel and Enríquez reflect on the production and reception of the film in the context of Chicanx filmmaking in the 80s. El Norte tells the story of a Guatemalan brother and sister who flee persecution and journey north along the length of Mexico, with a dream of finding a new home in the United States. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37066]

Borders: El Norte

Director Sanjay Rawal and editor Alexander Meillier discuss their new documentary Gather, which explores the growing movement among Native Americans to reclaim their spiritual, political and cultural identities through food sovereignty, all while battling the trauma of centuries colonial genocide. In conversation with Greg Johnson, Rawal and Meillier discuss the process of making the film, addressing in particular the complicated ethics of documentary representation. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37065]

Gather - Discussion of Documentary

Moderator Emily Zinn sits down with director/executive producer Brad Silberling for a conversation about Netflix’s new holiday rom-com series, Dash & Lily. Their discussion explores how music, books, and location shooting come together to tell this heartwarming love story. Brad Silbering gives the audience an inside look into the production process and the joy of capturing Christmas in New York before the COVID-19 pandemic. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 36757]

Dash and Lily with Brad Silberling

This discussion considers the contemporary politics of wireless communication, with special attention paid to the cultural and governmental imaginaries that accrue to emerging wireless infrastructures like 5G. In conversation with Tyler Morgenstern, Marisa Duarte, Shannon Mattern and Rahul Mukherjee explore how wireless ICTs shape historical and current understandings of uncertainty, conspiracy, and development. Together, panelists considered how dreams of untrammeled, high-speed connectivity tend to obscure or crowd out alternative imaginaries of relation. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 36885]

Roundtable: The New Ethereality

The challenges of the past year have shaped the way we think about and watch television. Moderated by Patrice Petro, this conversation explores how television continues to mediate urgent debates over questions of community, racial justice, and protest. In addition, panelists consider how the pressures of the current moment—viral pandemic, social unrest, and political upheaval—are reshaping our understanding of news, sports, and celebrity culture. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 36828]

Television in the Age of Pandemic

Trent Atkinson and Brandon Stansell discuss their new film Three Chords and a Lie, which explores the experiences of LGBTQ+ people in country music. In a conversation with Tyler Morgenstern, Stansell and Atkinson discuss the process of making the documentary and the challenges it presented, as well as larger issues of representation and diversity in the country music industry. Three Chords and a Lie follows Stansell as he returns to his hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee, ten years after coming out as gay to his family. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 36815]

Three Chords and a Lie

Programs from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

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UC Santa Barbara (Video)

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