S44.E19 ∙ Hard Lessons

Are utopias doomed to failure? Are Thoreau and his children Eugene V. Debs, the 60s and B.F. Skinner nothing more then the stuff of textbooks barely read in undergraduate seminars? 'The Idiocratic Life' is a stylishly shot look at the counter-culture today that attempts to answer this question by capturing the faces, stories, and inner struggles of members of communes across America. Throughout the process the film shines a light upon a part of America rarely seen in film or anywhere else and proves that far from medias spotlight there are great social experiments from Egalitarianism to Anarchy continuing to percolate and sometimes thrive.

Demerius 'Bus' Evens was one of the big-time drug dealers in Newark, Ohio. Kevin Scott had taken two trips to state prison for charges relating to his addiction to cocaine. Paul Garret had been doing crack for 20 years. All three had poor prospects in this post-industrial town where gossip spread fast. But when Chris Ramsey purchased the historic Sparta Restaurant a stone's through from the county courthouse, and sought to employ those looking for second or third chances, they each found a rare opportunity. And the Sparta became a lively meeting spot that enlivened the activist community across the county, fostering relationships with progressive churches, organizations, and the local liberal arts university. This film tells the story about the place and the people.

Dr. Carla Ceratto is an OBGYN doctor who works in a public hospital in Managua, Nicaragua and who struggles with Nicaragua law about terminating pregnancy.

In the Shadow of a Doubt is a documentary film about what happens when people try to find a crime for the accused instead of looking for the accused for a crime.

Sitting at God's Table - Given the current state of religion in our world, one filmmaker seeks the answers to why we do what we do in the name of God. She invites five religious leaders from different faiths (Jewish, Muslim, Catholic, Baptist, and Episcopal) to join her for a 7-hour progressive meal as they 'break-bread' with one another, engaged in a surprising conversation based on their candid responses, marked differences, and surprising commonalities.

Jeremy is moving into a new apartment with his girlfriend the following day, but receives a phone call telling him he has to go to Haiti to cover the earthquake. His dream of covering a life-changing story has come, but when he arrives at his office, his editor has changed his mind and tells Jeremy to hold back one day. In the meantime, Jeremy is assigned to cover a story of a missing boy. Jeremy goes to the missing child's house. Back at the television station, he is told that he's not going to Haiti. Disillusioned, on the train back home, Jeremy sees a young boy sitting alone across from him, but he gets up at his stop. The child was Camilo, the missing boy.