Political Science

A landmark collection of ten documentary films by ten renowned filmmakers, Why Democracy? explores questions of modern democracy in the 21st century. The set includes the educational version of Taxi to the Dark Side, 2008 Academy Award winner for Best Documentary Feature.

The educational version of the 2008 Academy Award® winner for Best Documentary Feature, Taxi to the Dark Side is the definitive investigation into the introduction of torture as an interrogation technique in U.S. facilities and the role played by key figures of the Bush Administration in the process.

On January 16, 2006, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was inaugurated President of Liberia, the first elected female head of state in Africa. With unprecedented access, Iron Ladies of Liberia follows her historic first year in office.

What are the implications for democracy in Pakistan? Before his sudden resignation, President Musharraf agreed to discuss these issues over dinner at his official residence, the Army House. Supplemented by a diverse range of interviews, this documentary provides an important study of today's Pakistan.

From the director of the acclaimed Al-Jazeera documentary Control Room, this extremely prescient and insightful film shows how three women activists used digital cameras and a website to expose widespread fraud and violence in the country's last presidential elections - in which Mubarak won with 88.6% of the vote.

Over the past two decades India has experienced steady economic growth resulting in the rise of a new middle class. But what does it mean to actually live in the world's largest democracy? In Search of Gandhi seeks to discover the current and future state of democracy in India.

Is the small village of Durakovo - where residents unquestioningly obey a self-appointed leader - a microcosm of Russia today? For God, Tsar and the Fatherland deftly explores what drives the current strain of Russian patriotism, and why many of the country's citizens oppose Western-style democracy.

Che Guevara died in Bolivia while trying to ignite the sparks of revolution. Forty years later, the country's first indigenous President, Evo Morales, is promising to continue his work. This documentary takes a closer look at the successes and failures of Morales' 'revolution.'

Filmed across the Middle East, Bloody Cartoons looks at how and why 12 drawings in a Danish newspaper drew a small country into a confrontation with Muslims all over the world. Featuring interviews with key players, this documentary goes behind the controversy to investigate the roots of the crisis.

This is democracy - Japanese style. Campaign provides a startling insider's view of Japanese electoral politics in this portrait of a man plucked from obscurity by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to run for a critical seat on a suburban city council.

An experiment in democracy is taking place in a third grade classroom in China. For the first time, students will be able to elect their own class monitor. A surprising and insightful documentary, Please Vote for Me seeks to determine how - if democracy should come to China - it would be received.

Filmed inside a unique hospital for rape survivors in eastern Congo, Lumo follows a young woman after a brutal attack on her uncertain path to recovery. It is an intimate look at the widespread use of rape as a tool of political terror across central Africa.

What does it mean to be exiled in your own country? In the aftermath of Katrina, two filmmakers embark on a road trip to meet displaced evacuees. An important American documentary, The Axe in the Attic tackles questions of race, class, and the breakdown of trust between a government and its citizens.

On an abandoned beach off the coast of Israel, against all odds, Israeli and Palestinian fishermen live and work together. Men on the Edge: Fishermen's Diary documents four years in their lives, an eclectic group of men brought together by a shared relationship with the sea.

In 1998, judge Juan Guzman, a longtime Pinochet supporter, was assigned to prosecute the ex-Chilean dictator for human rights crimes. This engrossing documentary follows the twists and turns of this landmark case; one that influenced the application of human rights laws around the world.

Is the U.N. still relevant? This behind-the-scenes documentary follows the efforts of diplomats trying to pass a Security Council resolution authorizing the deployment of a peacekeeping force to Darfur.

Planted in Israel, harvested in Gaza, and exported to gourmet markets across Europe, the Gazan strawberry is the only product sold abroad as Palestinian produce. The amazing story of this little red fruit is a study in globalization and politics that offers a fresh perspective on the current Israeli-Palestinian crisis.

An urgent, beautifully crafted examination of urban sprawl and its impact on the environment, The Unforeseen is a critically-acclaimed, award-winning documentary from director Laura Dunn and executive producers Terrence Malick and Robert Redford.

What can the construction of a golf course in Mexico teach us about globalization? This disarmingly engaging documentary offers a primer on how 'free market' economics can distort both culture and the environment.

The tumultuous history of Afghanistan from the perspective of the country's female population, Afghan Women: A History of Struggle chronicles the stories of women who have risked their lives to achieve political, economic, and social equality.