TEACHSOC: work-family documentaries - thanks to all who helped!

[Stephen Sweet]

Greetings All- Some time back I asked for your ideas of films suited to teaching work-family courses.  We thought you would like to see the compendium that members of the list help construct (we are focusing on identifying documentaries....but couldn't resist putting in Chaplin's Modern Times).  If you have another favorite, by all means, please do share.  We still have about a week where-in we can enter them in our  ASA Resource Manual.  Thanks to all who helped! -steve sweet FILMS ON WORK-FAMILY Modern Times (1936) - by Charlie Chaplin (Warner Home Video, orig. released 1936)             "A devastating satire on the effects of mass production on the lives of factory workers. Shows Charlie as a factory worker, jailbird, night watchman, and a singing waiter. Primarily a silent film with music and sound effects, but voices emanate from TV sets and radios." - Abstract Juggling Work and Family (2001) - by Hedrick Smith (Films for the Humanities and Sciences)             "Juggling Work and Family focuses on the increasing tensions between workplace expectations and family needs. The traditional family with a stay-at-home mother and working father has been replaced by the growing number of single parents and dual-career couples. In this fast-paced new economy, Americans are feeling the stress of working more and have less time than ever for their family. This program looks at how working parents in various occupations across the country are trying to reconcile work and family conflicts. The program explores how companies and unions are seeking to ease the work-family conflict with child care centers, subsidies, and alternative work schedules that include part-time work, job-sharing, and telecommuting. Experts analyze the problems, address solutions, and pose the question: what else can be done?" - Abstract Stolen Childhoods (2003) - by Galen Films and Romano Productions             "Stolen Childhoods is a feature length documentary on child labor. The story is told in the words of laboring children, their parents, and the people working daily to help them. Children share their experiences of exploitation and their hopes for better life and future... Filmed in seven countries; Brazil, India, the United States, Mexico, Indonesia, Kenya and Nepal, stolen childhoods examines the cost of child labor to the global community, probes the causes of this complex phenomenon and recommends actions that can be taken to eliminate this gross human rights violation in our lifetime" - Container. Women, war and work: shaping space for productivity in the shipyards during the Second World War (1994) - by Victoria O'Donnel and Paul Monaco (KUSM-TV Montana Public Television)             "Documents the growth and demise of Vanport City, Oregon, a community built to house workers for the Kaiser shipyards during WWII and subsequently dismantled after the war." - Abstract Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter (1980) - dir. Connie Field (Clarity Films)             "The U.S. entry into World War II created an unprecedented demand for new workers. After whirlwind training, women found themselves doing "men’s work" and they did it so well that production levels rose despite the military call-up of millions of male workers. When the war was over, Rosie wanted to stay. But neither the structure of the American economy nor the dominant view of women’s place in society sustained such hopes. This story is told by the women themselves -five former "Rosies" who movingly recall their histories working in Detroit, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco during the war. Their testimony is interwoven with rare archival recruitment films, stills, posters, ads, and music from the period which contrast their experiences with the popular legend and mythology of Rosie the Riveter." - Abstract  The Occupation: A Film About the Harvard Living Wage Sit-In (2003) - dir. Maple Raza and Pancho Velez (EnMasse Films)             "During the time that the university's endowment tripled and it enjoyed a more than $100-million budget surplus, it busted unions and cut the pay and benefits of its lowest paid and most vulnerable workers. Students organized a living-wage action which culminated in an occupation of the president's building and national attention to their cause. It became part of a national movement on university campuses for living wages for non-faculty workers. These kids fought the Man--and they won!" (Review from ifilm.com)   Strange Justice (1999) - dir. Ernest R. Dickerson (Paramount)             "Fact-based story about the sexual harassment suit filed by Anita Hill (Regina Taylor) during the appointment trials of Clarence Thomas (Delroy Lindo) for the Supreme Court during the George Bush presidential administration. The film gives both parties a fairly even presentation and does not try to assess blame. It does, however, show a lot of background political maneuvering that took place, particularly on the part of Kenneth Duberstein (Mandy Patinkin), an administrative spin doctor." (Review from Amazon.com) Affluenza (1997) - by John De Graaf (KTCS Seatle and Oregon Public Broadcasting)             "A one-hour television special that explores the high social and environmental costs of materialism and overconsumption." (Lonnie Golden, from Syllabus) Escape from Affluenza (1998) - by John De Graaf (KTCS Seatle and Oregon Public Broadcasting)              "The solution-oriented sequel, profiling people and organizations that are reducing consumption and waste, choosing work that reflects their values and working to live in better balance." (Lonnie Golden, from Syllabus) Chain of Love (2001) - by Marije Meerman (First Run/Icarus Films)             A film about the Philippines' second largest export product - maternal love - and how this export affects the women involved, their families in the Philippines, and families in the West. (Rec. by Christine McKenna) Website: http://www.frif.com/new2002/chain.html   Maid in America (2003) - by Anayansi Prado, prod. Kevin Leedingham (Impacto Films)             An intimate look into the lives of three Latina immigrants working as nannies and housekeepers in Los Angeles, three of the nearly 100,000 domestic workers living in that city today. (Rec. by Christine McKenna) Website: http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/pages/c664.shtml   With Babies and Banners (1978) - by Lorraine Gray, prod. Lyn Goldfarb, Ann Bohlen (New Day Films)             "The victory of the Great General Motors Sit-Down Strike in Flint, Michigan, in 1937 was the key to the success of the CIO's drive for industrial unionism. The now classic With Babies and Banners presents the untold story of the women--the working women, wives, mothers and sisters--who became the backbone of the strike. Forty years later, nine of these women reunite and dramatically show the relevance of their experience for working men and women today." (Review from www.newday.com)   <> Wage Slaves (2002) - dir. Richard Ross (A&E)             "Originally telecast as a two-hour entry in the A&E cable documentary series Investigative Reports, Nickel and Dimed in America is based on the similarly titled best-seller by Barbara Ehrenreich. The program chronicles the struggle of America's "working poor" to make ends meet in an increasingly (and often prohibitively) expensive society. Emphasis is placed upon five workers, most of them single parents, trying to survive on salaries ranging from six to seven dollars hourly. Much of the air time is given over to the ongoing debate about increasing the national minimum wage and improving the working conditions of those in the lowest financial brackets. Nickel and Dimed in America was first broadcast in 2002."  (Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide)   <> Brats: Growing Up Military (An Intimate Portrait of a Lost American Tribe) (2004) - by Donna Musil (Brats Productions, Inc./ Image FIlm & Video Center)             For more information, visit http://www.tckworld.com/thebratsfilm.   <> The Farmer's Wife (1998) - by David & Nancy Sutherland (David Sutherland Productions, Inc. and FRONTLINE with Independent Television Service (ITVS))             "Acclaimed filmmaker David Sutherland takes us deep inside the passionate, yet troubled, marriage of Juanita and Darrel Buschkoetter, a young farm couple in rural Nebraska facing the loss of everything they hold dear. Part 1 of 'The Farmer's Wife' recounts the moving story of Juanita and Darrel's romantic love affair and begins the journey to the core of their emotional struggles, which have pushed their marriage to the brink. Darrel and Juanita tell their own story, in their own words, without the intrusion of a narrator. It unfolds before our eyes, as it is happening.             In Part 2 of 'The Farmer's Wife,' the camera focuses on the rhythms of everyday life on the Buschkoetters' farm. We follow Juanita, Darrel, and their three girls through days reminiscent of a forgotten, simpler time in America. In September, an early frost destroys thirty percent of their crop. Darrel must go to work at a nearby farm for seven dollars an hour and does his own farming at night. Juanita cleans houses while trying to get a college degree so Darrel can stay home and farm, but Darrel worries that if she goes off the farm she'll find something she likes better. By Christmas, they are dead broke and unsure of their future.             In the concluding episode of 'The Farmer's Wife,' Darrel finally harvests the bumper crop he had dreamt about his whole life. But Darrel has to go to work for another farmer to make enough money to feed his family, and the stress and exhaustion cause him to explode. In December, Juanita takes the girls and leaves for a week--it has a deep and profound effect on Darrel. Two months later, the marriage that had seemed almost doomed is miraculously transformed. Through counseling, Darrel learns to deal with his anger and undergoes extraordinary personal growth. Now he is the at-home parent, farming and caring for his three daughters. Juanita, who has earned a college degree, works at a respected crop insurance company in town, helping other farmers." (review from PBS.org)   <> Fast Food Women (1991) - by Anne Lewis (Appalshop Film & Video)             "Fast Food Women takes an inside look at the lives of the women who fry chicken, make pizzas, and flip burgers at four different fast food restaurants in eastern Kentucky. These women, mostly middle-aged and raising children, are often the sole income source for their families. They work for wages barely above the minimum wage, have trouble getting full-time hours because of their employers’ scheduling policies, and are without health care and other benefits.             Analysis by Barbara Garson (author of The Electronic Sweatshop) of the way fast food jobs systematically dehumanize and devalue the worker is intercut with comments from human resources managers at the Druther’s chain. Scenes of women at work round out this incisive, sometimes troubling look at life on the other side of the counter. A useful introduction to economic conditions in contemporary America, Fast Food Women is recommended for discussion of the changing roles of women and the changing face of the American workplace." (review from buyindies.com)   Beyond the Glass Ceiling...(info still to be added) --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Teaching Sociology" group. To post to this group, send email to teachsoc@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/teachsoc -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---