S2.E15 ∙ The Expansion

Amid the backdrop of a contentious presidential election, a health clinic in Southwest Houston is run by and for immigrants and refugees. A family from Iran is bound by love as they build a new home in the city's most diverse neighborhood.

The Cuban Dream is a feature-­length documentary that takes viewers to the country of Cuba, following the journey of Cuban-­American baseball player Luke Salas. Luke sets out to use baseball as a way to connect the people of Cuba with the people of the United States by playing in La Serie Nacional - Cuba's version of Major League Baseball. Since Fidel Castro seized power, no foreigner, let alone American, has played in Cuba's system of baseball since 1961. Through the lens of baseball, the film captures the reality and truth of Cuba, exposing the struggle of the Cuban people -­ specifically, the difficulty that Cubans are faced with everyday known as "La Lucha". The Cuban Dream is a testament to the power of the human spirit, while recognizing the reality of Cuba's vast political and social issues; and the stifling effect they have on the development of Cuba's future generations.

Depicts a year of tending the reindeer's and follows a family's move with the herd from the winter pasture in the Luleå archipelago, Sweden to the calving land in Badjelánnda (Padjelanta).

Myth of Father is a video documentary about acceptance. My father, Jodie, is a transgender woman. She came out to me a few years ago and I've since begun a journey to discover who my father really is. Upon learning of my father's gender dysphoria, I've had to rewind, review, then reposition the puzzle pieces of the past to try to figure out who my father is, not only for myself but for my family as well. In the film I contrast my relationship with my father with the relationship between my father and her own dad. I interview my father, as well as other family members who relate their remembrances of Jodie's youth: "She seemed to live the normal life. She was into cars, she was into rock bands, she went into the Army...married...child..." But no one really knew Jodie, as she explains, "No one knew who I was. I trashed relationships with everyone I knew, including my own son." My family tries to understand who Jodie has become in relation to the person they knew as Bruce. I took my father's news as an opportunity to give my family a chance to express themselves about each other in an attempt to re-establish a bond within our family. My journey culminates in a family reunion, where many of the family members meet Jodie for the first time. Ultimately this documentary is an exploration of the struggle of family members reuniting while going through a change in their relationships.

Markku has schizophrenia and has lived in various mental care facilities over the last ten years. He feels abandoned by his older brother Lauri, who he partly blames for his illness. Lauri returns to Finland in the hope of gaining a better understanding of his brother's condition and to try and rebuild their relationship. He suggests they could film together, as they had often done in their childhood. Told through the eyes of the filmmaker, Markku and Me explores the impact of a mental health condition on the relationship between two brothers.

Vancouver's Downtown East side is home to thousands of drug addicts, prostitutes, and the mentally ill. Amateur cameraman K.R.T. spent one summer on these mean streets getting to know longtime homeless drug addicts Ken and Lisa. This seemingly random footage was given to first time writer/director Josh Laner who found a story of people trying to connect in an area where no one seems connected to much of anything. An intimate and surreal look at life on the streets in Canada's most impoverished postal code. This is Josh Laner's first film.