"Access Points" (open access)

"Access Points"

Access Points explores the different relationships that humans have to land, focusing on the various ways that the area known as the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge is used, appreciated, and preserved by disparate groups. The natural beauty of this Wildlife Refuge and its striking appearance amidst encircling plains makes it a popular destination for many groups of people, including the local rock-climbing community and generations of indigenous peoples whose connection with this land is as deep as it is longstanding. While climbing organizations have long had to negotiate access and rules regarding climbing within the park, members of the Kiowa community negotiate a much different relationship to a natural area that is now managed by the United States government. These disparate voices, identities, and ways of thinking about land all impact the modern-day Wildlife Refuge in terms of its appearance, individuals' access to the land, and the conservation efforts happening there.
Date: August 2022
Creator: Dye, Aaron Charles
System: The UNT Digital Library
"Visceral Data" (open access)

"Visceral Data"

Visceral Data is a short documentary formatted for 360-cinema (commonly referred to as virtual reality or VR) that explores the integration of art and science, and how aesthetically creative treatments of raw data are an engaging way to interpret complex information. With Roger Malina, executive editor of Leonardo, the world's foremost academic journal for the intersections of art, science, and technology, providing a narrative overview of the subject, six art-scientists/science-artists discuss specific pieces of their artistic output to provide examples. As Roger Malina asserts, civilization is "going through an epistemological revolution as deep as the Copernican Revolution," and as we progress further into the 21st century, we will need hybrid professionals working in the arts and sciences to help humanity navigate through the age of big data.
Date: August 2022
Creator: DiFalco, Elaine Celleste
System: The UNT Digital Library
"World Life" (open access)

"World Life"

During this time of interest and uncertainty in immigration, a foreigner seeking an education, home, and career wonders how welcoming America really is. This documentary film focuses on how the organization known as World Life is involved in helping international students in terms of language, accommodation, and religion. It follows an organization that is willing to open up and welcome them into the community.
Date: August 2018
Creator: Ingabire, Cyuzuzo
System: The UNT Digital Library
"Her Name Was" (open access)

"Her Name Was"

Her Name Was is an examination of the oppression of transgender people in a society that is built on the nominalization of cisgender people, those who gender matchers their sex assigned at birth, and how this oppression lends itself to violence. In the summer of 2015, the body of Shade Schuler, an African American transgender woman, was found in a field outside of Dallas, Texas. Ms. Shade is part of an alarming epidemic of escalating levels of targeted violence against the transgender community. This documentary pulls back the curtain as it captures the feelings and struggles of the transgender community as they attempt to navigate and survive in a cis dominating society.
Date: August 2018
Creator: Almendariz, Sergio E
System: The UNT Digital Library
"Tales of My Cities" (open access)

"Tales of My Cities"

Tales of My Cities is a poetic observation of life in the cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, India. The documentary is an intimate first-person exploration of the culture in these cities. The viewer should find a surreal peace in the life and atmosphere of the cities where life extends from centuries old traditions to the current hi-tech pace of life.
Date: August 2018
Creator: Kilaru, Sunilrao Mohanrao M
System: The UNT Digital Library
"Restless Soul" (open access)

"Restless Soul"

Restless Soul is composed of observational and expository style to depict a culture of youth, strength, and passion. The film captures an improvising musician and composer named Garrett Wingfield, who expresses spontaneous sound reflected in his mind, body and spirit. By working with his music friends, he releases his creative energies through his compositions and his different types of saxophones. The documentary allows its audience to experience the youth culture in a postmodern world.
Date: August 2018
Creator: Choi, Bokyung
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Suspensionists (open access)

The Suspensionists

A description of a documentary produced about human flesh-hook suspension. This document covers the pre-production, production, and post production of the documentary film and the research behind it.
Date: August 2019
Creator: Valentine, Andrew Lee
System: The UNT Digital Library

489 Days

Access: Use of this item is restricted to the UNT Community
489 Days is an animated documentary about the harrowing experiences of Egyptian-American Mohamed Soltan, who survived 16 months of hunger strike in an Egyptian prison. Caught up in the political turmoil which followed the Arab Spring uprisings, Soltan was unjustly incarcerated between August 2013 and May 2015, when the United States government intervened to release him weeks after an Egyptian court sentenced him to life in prison. The film is also the larger story of an estimated 60,000 political detainees currently held in Egypt without due process, and in violation of local and international human rights conventions.
Date: August 2019
Creator: Elmalky, Rania
System: The UNT Digital Library

Lookouts

Access: Use of this item is restricted to the UNT Community
Lookouts follows Matt and Joann, two fire tower lookouts for the United States Forest Service, as they discuss their happiness living in seclusion as well as the decline of fire towers due to technological advances.
Date: August 2019
Creator: Dejarnett, Claire
System: The UNT Digital Library
Bright Mosaic (open access)

Bright Mosaic

Bright Mosaic is a 30-minute documentary about a comprehensive autism center for children with an organic and unconventional approach. The Bright Mosaic Autism Therapy Center's exceptional curriculum consists of a mix of Montessori practices, natural sciences, applied behavior analysis, occupational therapy, speech therapy, physical therapy, play therapy, music therapy, sensory integration, daily life skills and art. Bright Mosaic mixes observational and participatory styles in an effort to portray an exceptionally skilled and passionate team who fights a tough daily battle to prepare their children for the life ahead of them.
Date: August 2019
Creator: Mares, Vicente
System: The UNT Digital Library
"Bad Paper" (open access)

"Bad Paper"

Bad Paper follows the lives of former military service members, who have received an other-than-honorable discharge, but also have service-connected post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Due to the "suck it up" culture of the military, many of these veterans would not report any psychological troubles in fear of being labeled "weak" and potentially affecting their promotions. With no outlet for their PTSD, drugs and alcohol became a way of "self-medicating," which led to their dismissal from the service. A dishonorable discharge, commonly called "bad paper," from the military disqualifies veterans from receiving help from the VA. The process to overturn this status is arduous and veterans must navigate the bureaucracy of the Veterans Affairs (VA) administration as well as the individual military branches with virtually no help from either.
Date: August 2021
Creator: Beard, Daniel Lee
System: The UNT Digital Library

"The '91 Roos"

The ‘91 Roos is a sports documentary focused in Killeen, Texas. exploring the 1991 Killeen Kangaroos high school football team and their journey to their city's one and only state championship in football. Killeen is a small central Texas town that is directly adjacent and provides support to Ft Hood, one of the world's largest military bases. With the Persian Gulf War raging in 1991, soldiers that lived in Killeen were being sent off to fight, leaving the city almost like a ghost town. In October 1991, the Luby's Massacre occurred in Killeen, bringing the already depleted city further down by tragedy. At the time, this was the worst mass shooting in US history. This high school football team went on a fairy tale type of run during their 1991 season, resulting in winning a state title and bringing big hope back to a small town in need. Using direct interviews, narration and archival footage, this film provides an emotional yet inspirational look at a small town football team and their improbable season.
Date: August 2022
Creator: Graham, Derwin Anthony
System: The UNT Digital Library