Brian Huberman documentary filmmaker

February 07, 2011 This news of Kathryn's death is hard to believe. When I knew her in the early '90s she was a force to contend with. Half horse, half alligator; at our first meeting, she threatened to drive her six inch stiletto heel through my brain! Despite a rough start, Kathryn persuaded me to film her daily life during the time she was preparing for surgery to become a "new woman". Together we filmed at social events in Houston, a drag race, at her home with local transvestites and finally in England where she had the operation. The film, The Last days of Charles/ Kathryn was screened on PBS and won some awards. I remember Kathryn as a great soul unafraid to live life to the fullest. Her closet shall forever remain empty. ~Brian Huberman [You can preview Brian's film on Kathryn here:]

Seattle multidisciplinary artist Paul Rucker created this animated video and music, which effectively demonstrates the dramatic growth of prison systems in America between 1778 and 2005. It's a visceral experience, to say the least: From the artist himself: "In May of 2009, I was honored to be part of a Prison Issues residency at the Blue Mountain Center. While there I had the honor of being in the company of some amazing people. Artists, activist from around the world provided over two weeks of inspiration, knowledge, and camaraderie. "While doing my individual research, I happened upon some maps created by Rose Heyer that showed the growth of the US Prison system. With that information, I was inspired to create Proliferation, an animated mapping of the US Prison system set to original music." Timeline Green Dots: 1778-1900 Yellow Dots: 1901-1940 Orange Dots: 1941-1980 Red Dots: 1981-2005 Nathan Eyring - Animation Aaron Bourget- Video Editing Rose Heyer - Research Troy Glessner - Music Mastering Learn more about the artist's work at paulrucker.com

If you've seen Battle in Seattle...you need to see this film also. The documentary is a quilt of compelling footage shot by over 100 independent filmmakers during the 1999 WTO protests in Seattle - and a strong example of the part filmmaking has to play in capturing important and fleeting movements and moments. Order a copy of the film via this Web site: http://www.thisisdemocracy.org/

A contemporary look at the casualties of a war started over a century ago. Watch this.