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CHILDREN UNDERGROUND  2001  104 min.  (DVD) 

Director:  Edet Belzberg

In a style that is shocking, brutal, and deeply humanistic, filmmaker Edet Belzberg transports us to the streets of Bucharest, Romania, where we are introduced to a "family" of five homeless children, begging on the streets, living in subway tunnels, drug addicted, and painfully unaware of the cruel horrors of their existence.  As the children's story unfolds, the windows to their individual lives open up, revealing a day-to-day struggle for survival.

COMRADES  1998  105 min.  (VHS)

Written and Directed by Mitko Panov

"On the nature of war and friendship in the former Yugoslavia, through a search for the comrades who were once friends, but went separate ways as a consequence of the war." (Soros Foundation)

CSEZLAW MILOSZ  2001   77 min.  (VHS)  

Directed by Thunder Road Productions

Csezlaw Milosz, born in Lithuania in 1911, received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1980.  He read form Selected Poems, The Separate Notebooks and Unattainable Earth in Los Angeles on September 12, 1988.  Harvard professor and poetry critic Helen Vendler interviewed the poet, novelist, critic, and philosopher. 

CZECH WOMEN: NOW WE ARE FREE  1998  56 min.   (VHS)  

CZECHOSLOVAKIA  1991   55 min.  (VHS)   

By Video Visits. A video tour through the capital city of Prague with its historic Old Town Square, Prague castle, and St. Vitus Cathedral.  Also includes spectacular scenes of the Abyss of Macocha, Punkva Cave and the High Tatra mountains of Slovakia.

EASTERN EUROPE: BREAKING WITH THE PAST  1990  (VHS)  
Series of 13 programs (51 minutes each).  Narration in English, some subtitled episodes in original languages. 

1. America's Relations with Eastern Europe
   "Ah America." Hungarian film depicting the arrival and life of early immigrants in America. 
   "The Truth about Communism." 1962 program narrated by Ronald Reagan. 
   "Gorbachev-Reagan Summit."  Satirical claymation short from Hungary. 

2. Vaclav Havel: Leadership in Eastern Europe
   "Who Is Vaclav Havel?" Czech documentary on Havel's struggle against   totalitarianism. 
   "The Other Europe." 1988 interview with Havel and other dissidents. 
   "Audience." Excerpt from recent production of Havel's play. 
   "Havel Animation." Animated tribute by Czech-American. 
   "Balance." Animated short provides a metaphoric look at balance of power and the nature of greed. 

3. Ceaucescu: Eastern Europe's Last Dictator?
   "A Lesson in Dying."  A Yugoslav poet's clandestine film of the Romanian revolution. 
   "A Day in Bucharest."  Sculptor Ovid Maitec reflects on December 1989 revolution. 
   "The Other Europe." Excerpts from documentary made in 1988. 
   "Rondino." Animation about man's capacity for cruelty to his fellow men. 

4. Touched by the Revolution
   "Let There Be Peace in This House." A Romanian village in the last days of  Ceausescu. 
   "Free Us from Evil." The filmmaker returns to the same village after the revolution. 
   "Gravity." Hungarian animation examines the challenges and dangers inherent in  breaking with the system. 

5. Tapestry of History
   "Hitler and Stalin 1939." Highlights the Estonian experience in World War II.
   "Cogito Ergo Sum." Reflections of an elderly Estonian. 

6. Memories of Childhood and War
   "Gaudiopolis." Excerpt from Hungarian drama. 
   "The Man Who Saved the Lives of Children." Hungarian documentary on Gabor Szteino. 
   "When Were You Born?" Hungarian filmmaker Gyorgy Szilagy's personal exploration of a life filled with memory of war. 

7. At the Crossroads: Eastern European Jewry
   "At the Crossroads: The Jews of Eastern Europe."  By an American filmmaker. 

8. Theatre and the Revolution
   "Theater at the End of November."  Impassioned speeches made back stage. 
   "Audience." Excerpt from Havel's play. 
   "The Other Europe." excerpt showing the use of theater in the "show trials" in the 1950s. 
   "Gardzience." Excerpt from performance of Polish avant garde theater group. 

9. Germany Reunites
   "Klartest - Molbis Poisoned." Frightening pollution problem and decreased life expectancy in Molbis. 
   "Der Speigel TV." 

10. The Polish Experience
    "Be Aware." Footage from the first Solidarity Congress. 
    "All That Is alive." Frightening look at severe pollution problems. 

11. A New World of Television
    A variety of programs. 

12. An Animated Journey
    Animation from Yugoslavia, Hungary, Poland, Estonia, and Czechoslovakia. 

13. A Generation of Artists
    Three generations of Czechoslovakian artists. 

EAST SIDE STORY  In German:  1997  78 min.  (VHS)  ***See also Russia/Eurasia Documentary***

Director: Dana Ranga
A fun documentary that unveils a part of film history little known in the West: Soviet and Eastern bloc communist musicals.  Featuring hearty peasants and workers singing and dancing their way through fields and factories, these Hollywood-style musicals interpret American escapism through socialist terms.  This video also includes newsreels, commercials, and outtakes from press and censorship files.

FROM THE SHADOW OF HISTORY  1997  56 min.   (VHS)
Director: Sanjeev Chatterjee
Chronicles the efforts of the newly independent Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to establish a democratic society, to avoid involvement in the ongoing wars in the northern Balkans, and to join the European Community. The video features interviews with leading Macedonian politicians, government officials, university professors, and UN officials, who discuss how they have dealt with ethnic conflicts within the fledgling democracy.

FRONTLINE: WAR IN EUROPE  1999  120 min.   (VHS)  

Frontline correspondent Peter Boyer undertakes the first in-depth examination of a European war rife (Kosovo) with diplomatic infighting and military stumbling.  

HUNGARY - A VIDEO HISTORY  1994  (VHS) 
3-part series; produced by Roger Conant. 

1. Arpad Hungary (earliest origins to 1301)  45 min. 
   The migrations of the ancient Hungarian tribes are traced from their original  homeland. A Christian kingdom is founded by Prince Geza and his son St. Stephen at the close of the tenth century. Building on St. Stephen's achievement,  a series of gifted rulers from the Arpad dynasty firmly establishes Hungary as an integral part of medieval Latin Christendom. 

2. The Golden Age of Hungary (1301-1437)   40 min. 
   The 14th century witnessed a "golden age." An economic  boom promoted external trade and the rise of free royal cities. With the election of Sigismund of  Luxembourg Hungary's ties with the West became closer but was challenged by   the rapid expansion of the Ottoman Empire. 

3. Hungary in Greatness and Decline(1437-1526)  48 min. 
   Janos Hunyadi led campaigns to drive the Turks from the Balkans. During the reign of his son, Matthias "Corvinus," Hungary reached the zenith of her power and his court became a center of Italian Humanism and Renaissance art north of the  Alps. Royal power collapsed under the ineffectual Jagiellonian monarchs who  followed and growing inequality led to deterioration of the lower classes. A greatly weakened Hungary was overwhelmed by superior forces of the Turkish sultan. 

I HAVE AN IDEA  1997   56 min.  (VHS)    

Director:  Iyan Simeonov

Talented, young Bulgarian artists share their ideas, against the background of the political events in Sofia in January 1997, in which they were active participants.  Original, funny and sad at the same time, their ideas for films, theater, music, etc. cannot be accomplished and are doomed to die around the pub table.  Just like authentic Bulgarian culture.  

AN INSIDER'S GUIDE TO EASTERN EUROPEAN SCHOOLS  27 min.  (VHS)
A production of the American Federation of Teachers, Focus on Education.

LATCHO DROM   1993/1996  103 min.  (VHS)  -  NEW

Director: Tony Gatlif

"With its lush imagery and vibrant sounds, 'Latcho Drom' (Safe Journey) is a remarkable music travelogue of the Gypsies or the Rom people." Described as the "ultimate music video" and "one of the ten best films of the year," it follows the Gypsy musicians of India, Turkey, Egypt, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, France and Spain through their nomadic thousand year history.  In French with English subtitles.

LECH WALESA  1996/2004  50 min.  (VHS) 

A&E Biography Series.  He is best known as the founder of the Solidarity movement.  See how the one time mechanic became a symbole of anti-Soviet resistance and eventually the president of Poland.  See how Solidarity started as an illegal worker's organization, and in less than a decade later it was the most important political party in the nation.  From his first demonstration to losin his re-election bid in 1995.  At every step, you'll hear from those who lived and worked aside Walesa.  Grade 6 and up.

LESSONS OF KOSOVO  1999  30 min. each  (VHS)
This thought-provoking series on Kosovo raises important questions about warfare in conflicts at the end of the twentieth century. Produced by the Center for Defense Information. 

1. The Environmental Impact of War
Long and short-term damage resulting from defoliation chemicals, the bombing of chemical plants, the use of land mines and other tactics used in Vietnam, the Gulf War, and the Balkans by the U.S. and other countries is investigated.    

2.  Casualty Phobia

This film begins with examples of media coverage of the Vietnam war and its effect on public opinion. In later conflicts such as the Persian Gulf War and Kosovo, the U.S. military restricted the press in order to prevent the dissemination of images that might have an adverse effect. Plus, the decision was made to reduce the risk of military casualties by deciding not to use ground troops. The result was few NATO losses of life but many civilian casualties, and this new pattern in warfare at the end of our century is distasteful to some military leaders. 

3.  The Limits of Air Power

Retired military strategists argue for the need of concerted efforts by all the branches of the military. While air power can destroy buildings and bridges, it is not useful in attacking entrenched ground troops. This was true in Vietnam and proven again in Kosovo, where the Serb army departed from Kosovo with its units and weapons largely intact. There is some graphic footage of war carnage, but its use is not gratuitous. 

LISA AND AARON'S STORY: A JOURNEY OF REMEMBRANCE  1997  59 min.  (VHS) 
In this awarding-winning documentary, Lisa and Aaron Derman, two Holocaust survivors, take a group of American students back to Poland to retell their story of survival in the Warsaw ghetto and as partisans.  Excellent video for a class on the Holocaust.  Made by the Holocaust Memorial Foundation of Illinois.

MURDER BY PROXY  1997  42 min.  (VHS)  -  NEW 

Director: Dimiter Petkov

Bulgarian with English subtitles

NATIONS OF THE WORLD SERIES: YUGOSLAVIA  1987  27 min.  (VHS)
A National Geographic Production.

NEWS FOOTAGE FROM THE CZECH REPUBLIC  (VHS)  

Czech TV news footage and documentaries.

1.  Filmova Kronika, 1989  In Czech

2.  November 17, 1989  In English

3.  The Velvet Revolution Walk  In English

4.  Czech TV:  A Public Affair  In English (with transcript)

5.  Czech Television Crisis December 2000 - January 2001 (with transcripts)

6.  The Owners of Czech Press, December 2001  In Czech

7.  TV News - Prima, 9/11/2001  In Czech

8.  Nova - Televizni Noviny, 9/11/2001   In Czech

NEWS MATTERS: CRISIS IN KOSOVO  1999  15 min.  (VHS)  

Knowledge Unlimited video.  The video explores the bombing of Yugoslavia and asks questions about how and when the US should  be involved in foreign crises.  Comes with a teacher's guide with reproducible activities and a poster.  Includes study guide and map.

NEWS MATTERS: CRISIS IN KOSOVO  1999  15 min.  (VHS)  

Knowledge Unlimited video.  The video explores the bombing of Yugoslavia and asks questions about how and when the US should  be involved in foreign crises.  Comes with a teacher's guide with reproducible activities and a poster.  Includes study guide and map.

NICHOLAS WINTON: THE POWER OF GOOD  2005  64 min.  (DVD)  -  NEW

Director: Matej Minac.

Narrator: Joe Schlesinger.
Documentary film and study guide. The story of courage and determination of one man who saved 669 children from certain death. In the fall of 1938, Nicholas Winton took a pleasure trip to Prague, Czechoslovakia. He saw that Czech children were stateless and would soon be doomed by Hitler. Although Winton was only 28 years old, he knew he had to take action. Winner of the International Emmy Award 2002.

ORATORIO FOR PRAGUE  1990  26 min.  (VHS) 
Director: Jan Nemec
One of the most powerful documentaries ever made and a unique document of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. The raw footage for this film, when broadcast by television, was seen by more than 600 million people, and became the first information that the Soviet Army had not been "invited" in. Narrated in English.

THE PATIENCE OF THE STONE  1998  53 min.  (VHS)  -  NEW

Director: Kostadin Bonev

In a God-forsaken village somewhere in the eastern part of Rhodopes Mountains a bunch of old men and women carry on the remains of their days. They live bound to their own existence just like Sisyphus and the stone. The film story takes place within a single day - twenty-four hours before Christmas. (Bulgarian)

POLAND: 1000 YEARS OF HISTORY AND CULTURE  1986  (VHS)  
This four- part series illustrates Poland's rich cultural history with photography of art treasures, historical artifacts, and antiquities.  The historical narrative is set to Polish music from appropriate time periods. Produced by the University of Pittsburgh, the video series is the work of Roger Conant, Robert Scott, and Herb Ferguson. 

1.  Piast Poland (Origins to 1370)  25 min. 
Traces the country's evolution from a Slavic tribal confederation to a full-fledged participant in the political and cultural life of the Medieval Latin West by the late 14th century. 

2.  Jagellonian Poland (1386-1572)  25 min. 
Chronicles the "golden age" of the Polish Kingdom under the Jagellonian dynasty (1386-1572) when union with neighboring Lithuania made it the largest country in Europe. 

3.  The Gentry Commonwealth (1573-1795)  42 min. / Romantic and Modern Poland (1796-1945)  37 min. 

RETURNING HOME:  REVIVAL OF A BOSNIAN VILLAGE  2002  46 min.  (VHS) 

Filmed between 1999 and 2001, "Returning Home" documents the return of the internally displaced Muslims or Bosniaks to their homes seven years after being expelled from an ethnically mixed (Bosniak/Croat) village in central Bosnia.  The film is the sequel to "We are All Neighbors" (see below) produced in 1993.  "Returning Home" shows how the dream of getting back to their village was a constant in the refugee's lives.  Following some of the same families featured in the 1993 film.

RISE AND FALL OF THE SOVIET EMPIRE  1995  17 min. each  (VHS)  ***See also Russia/Eurasia Documentary*** 

The New York Times Live from the Past lesson plans. 4 modules. Each modules comes with a teacher's guide, articles from the NYT, and a poster reproduction of the NYT front page from the time.

Module 1: The Russian Revolutions and the Bolshevik Victory, 1917

Module 2: Stalin's Crimes Revealed, 1936 and 1956

Module 3: The End of Communism in Poland, 1980-1990

Module 4: the Demise of Communism and the Soviet Empire, 1991

SAFE HAVEN: THE UNITED NATIONS AND THE BETRAYAL OF SREBRENICA  1996  39 min.  (VHS) 
Director: Ilan Ziv 
The video investigates the possible complicity of the commanders of the UN forces in the massacre at Srebrenica by their miscalculation of the Serb's aggressive designs and ignoring their own intelligence reports. 

STRUGGLES FOR POLAND  1988  (VHS) 
A PBS series. We have  vols. 7 and 9

7.  The Sweepers of  Squares (1956-1970)  60 min. 
This segment examines Gomulka's reign, when many state farms were abandoned, political prisoners     released, and most of the terror and ideological frenzy were curbed. But structural reforms of the Party and the economy failed to take place. 

9. The Workers State (1970-1987)  60 min. 
This segment chronicles Poland's change from a rural to an industrial society and the impact of Solidarity during this period of transition. 

WE ARE ALL NEIGHBORS  1993  52 min.  (VHS) 

In a Muslim/Catholic village near Sarajevo, rumors fly and suspicions spread.  When Catholic Croats assert control, Muslim businesses are attacked, villagers arrested and harrassed, and homes threatened.  Three weeks later, neighbors who had been close friends for 50 years no longer speak to each other, and the peaceful coexistence between Croats and Muslims disintegrates into mutual distrust and fear. (Part 1 of 2; see above: Returning Home: Revival of a Bosnian Village).

WHOSE IS THIS SONG?  2003  70 min.  (VHS & DVD) 

An Adela Peera Film about a song that is claimed by many Balkan nationalites to have originated from their nation.

YELLOW WASPS: ANATOMY OF A WAR CRIME  70 min.  (VHS) 
Director: Ilan Ziv 
The program chronicles the yellow Wasps, a Serbian paramilitary unit operating in Bosnia in 1992.  Their victims, now refugees, tell chilling tales of torture and massacre.  Filmed over two years, this film documents a spurious war crimes trial held in Serbia itself. 

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