Tag Archives: propoganda

Broken Harmony: China’s Dissidents

Broken Harmony: China’s Dissidents tells the story of Hua Ze, an ordinary Chinese citizen for whom a discovery of corruption led her into a hidden world of dissidents, citizen journalism, police harassment and kidnappings.

Once a mild mannered TV director, Hua Ze discovered that an old friend reporting on alleged corruption after the Sichuan earthquake had disappeared, along with any mention of him online. Following a trail of leads over the great internet fire wall of China, she discovers not just the fate of her friend, but the truth behind Sichuan’s fatal building code violations, a jaw-dropping array of human rights abuses across China and comes to the realization that the entire internet in China is a state controlled fiction.

Hua’s awakening takes her into a new world of dissidents, journalists and human rights lawyers. As she begins her own reporting, pressure from the government is swift, and her world is turned upside down. She is forced out of her job and placed under surveillance. One by one, her new friends are arrested or detained. Phones are tapped and secretive threats and warnings are made. But Hua cannot turn a blind eye to the corruption and she pays the price.

When ordinary Chinese citizens go to extraordinary lengths to fight human rights abuses, the risks are enormous, even life-threatening. Broken Harmony reveals Hua’s courageous acts and willingness to lose everything to fight for justice and the rule of law.

End of Truth

“They are gone.” These are the words that propelled photojournalist Nicole Tung into a daunting situation which nothing could have prepared her for. Masked men wielding Kalashnikovs had abducted her friends John Cantlie and James Foley while they were en route from Syria back into Turkey. Nicole had been nervously waiting for their arrival at the border. Instantly, their fate rested upon her ability to find out who captured her friends and how to get them back alive.

The abductions of John Cantlie and James Foley were the beginning of a hostage taking frenzy which impacted the foreign policy of many countries.  Because of media blackouts surrounding the kidnappings, many others unwittingly ventured forth into hostile ISIS territory. Fixers were targeted, causing people who thought they were safe to be captured. These unsuspecting journalists and aid workers were thrown into a dark and desperate situation that ended horribly for those whose countries didn’t pay ransom. These crimes revealed what can happen when truths are obscured – causing negotiations and rescue missions to go horribly wrong.

End of Truth is an emotionally powerful investigation into the political and criminal enterprise of kidnappings as ISIS rose to power in war torn Syria. By intercutting exclusive footage with intimate interviews of negotiators, investigators, fixers and even a used car salesman who are caught up in the confusion, we examine the leads that led to lies revealing the terrible consequence of misinformation when lives are at stake.

The Coming War on China

The Coming War on China, from award winning journalist John Pilger, reveals what the news doesn’t – that the world’s greatest military power, the United States, and the world’s second economic power, China, both nuclear-armed, may well be on the road to war. 

Nuclear war is not only imaginable, but planned. The greatest build-up of NATO military forces since the Second World War is under way on the western borders of Russia. On the other side of the world, the rise of China is viewed in Washington as a threat to American dominance. 

To counter this, President Obama announced a ‘pivot to Asia’, which meant that almost two-thirds of all US naval forces would be transferred to Asia and the Pacific, their weapons aimed at China. A policy which has been taken up by his successor Donald Trump, who during his election campaign said “We can’t continue to allow China to rape our country and that’s what they’re doing”.

Filmed on five possible front-lines across Asia and the Pacific over two years, the story is told in chapters that connect a secret and ‘forgotten’ past to the rapacious actions of great power today and to a resistance, of which little is known in the West.

Freedom From Choice

Life is about choice. What we eat, what we read, who we elect; every day we make choices that determine how we want to live.

But what if these choices are just an illusion?

In an era where regulations and red tape rule every industry, where lobby groups and big business wield more influence than ever before, our daily choices have become increasingly limited. And with all our options so deliberately handpicked, are we really making a choice at all?

Freedom From Choice examines the current state of life and personal choice today. Experts from many different fields offer a frank and startling look at the hidden limitations in our daily lives. Focusing on key areas such as food, medicine, finance, and media, Freedom From Choice provides viewers with a glimpse at the myriad of ways their lives are being dictated, and tells us who stands to gain.

America’s Surveillance State

We live in the United States of Surveillance – with cameras positioned on every street corner and much more invisible spying online and on the phone. Anyone paying attention knows that privacy is dead. All of this is not happening by accident – well funded powerful agencies and companies are engaged in the business of keeping tabs on what we do, what we say, and what we think.

To many in the world today, the face of America also has a big nose for sniffing and sifting mountains of data – phone calls, emails and texts. And with many mouths silenced by paranoia to keep what they decide is secret, secret.  America has become a Surveillance-Industrial State where everyone’s business has become its business, and where one huge US intelligence Agency has been given the sanction and unlimited amounts of money to spy on the whole world.

Mass Surveillance is the focus of this new 6 part investigative documentary series examining who is watching whom and why.

Killing the Messenger: The Deadly Cost of News

In December 2006, the UN Security Council unanimously passed landmark Resolution 1738 which demanded greater safety for journalists in conflict areas and called for an end to impunity for their killers. Since the UN resolution was passed, over 600 news media workers have been killed, while more have been imprisoned or have simply disappeared while on the job. Countless others have been intimidated into self-censorship or have gone into exile.

If no story is worth a life, then why is murder the number one cause of journalists’ deaths worldwide?

Murder is the leading cause of work related deaths for journalists as censorship increases worldwide. In addition to those who have been killed, dozens have been attacked, kidnapped, or forced into exile in connection with their coverage of crime and corruption.

Journalists reporting from Mexico, Russia and the conflict zones of Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria tell their personal stories of kidnapping, intimidation, and beatings. They’ve experienced the loss of colleagues in the field and have been close to death themselves. Their stories are heartfelt, captivating, engaging and at moments – unbelievable.

The targeting of Journalists worldwide affects anyone who believes that information and accurate reporting play a part in healthy societies.

Awards:

2015: The Edward R. Murrow Award, from The Radio Television Digital News Association, recognising excellence in electronic journalism.

2015: National Headliner Award, recognising journalistic merit in the communications industry.

Programming the Nation

Programming the Nation is a feature documentary about the history of subliminal messaging in America. According to many authorities, since the late 1950′s subliminal content has been delivered through all forms of mass-media. The modern military has even been accused of these practices in the War on Terror. Director, Jeff Warrick, leads this journey through the subconscious mind while examining the reported history, scientific research and potential effects of such techniques on society.

With eye-opening footage, revealing interviews, humorous anecdotes, and an array of visual effects, this fast-paced film explores the alleged use of subliminals in advertising, music, film, political propaganda and the military. It takes in the entire history of alleged subliminal messages, from hidden sexual imagery in Disney cartoons and satanic messages in rock music, to the James Vicary experiment where “drink coca-cola” was flashed between frames at a cinema, and the infamous Republican “RATS” campaign that won Bush the presidency.

Warrick makes it his mission to determine if these manipulative tactics have succeeded in Programming the Nation, or if subliminal programming belongs in the category of what many consider an urban legend. Now, you be the judge…

Who Rules America?

Who Rules America? takes a comprehensive look into the governing system of the United States of America and reveals the behind-the-scene powers that rule the nation. There are two Americas; one in which people have freedom in choosing their leaders within the framework of the constitution living in the land of the free, and another, wherein all is dedicated to the ruling 1%  and within which a  hidden network of power governs including the media, Wall Street , the Military and Corporations.

This new expose from Danny Schechter (In Debt We Trust, WMD: Weapons on Mass Deception) lifts the lid on the true decision makers behind the worlds self-proclaimed democratic  role model.


Beyond Pollution

A thought provoking, in-depth look at the causes and effects of the most devastating man made environmental disaster America has ever experienced.

Beyond Pollution is a firsthand investigation into BP’s disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Traveling thousands of miles across the Gulf coast interviewing environmental experts, government officials, fisherman & distributors, scientists, drilling engineers, and key BP contractors, the film reveals, in depth the immediate and long term environmental, economic, and health impacts the tragedy is having on the local communities.

In the context of BP’s record on safety and the environment, the oil spill now seems sadly inevitable, so why weren’t measures put in place to avoid the disaster that will be felt for generations to come? How were they able to play down the consequences and avoid criminal responsibility, and how did their response further devestate those communities affected?

Beyond Pollution is an exhaustively researched and elegantly executed expose on an avoidable tragedy that began with an oil spill but had far-reaching, and unreported repercussions, uncovering what really happened, why, and who really benefited

Cult Witness

At the age of 19 Samuel Stefan, consumed by crisis, was drawn into a cult. It would be 10 years before he was able to escape.

Using a technique called ‘love-bombing’ cults prey on the vulnerable, recruiting new members with love and warmth. After a period of brain-washing, members are forbidden to leave, enslaved through psychological control, and in Samuel’s case, even violence. He was finally able to escape in the dead of night, persued by other members and seek help.

Cult Witness is an intelligent exploration of how cults attract and manipulate their followers, sharing the disturbing firsthand experiences of Cult Witness director Samuel Stefan and six others who have freed themselves from cults: Jill Mytton (The Exclusive Brethren), Jim Bergin and Judy Garvey (The Gentle Wind Project), Lea Saskia Laasner (The Janus Project), and Celeste Jones and Amoreena Winkler (The Children of God).

Analytical insights into the cult experience are provided by leadership expert Betty Sue Flowers; Benjamin Zablocki, chair of the Department of Sociology at Rutgers University; UCLA Professor Emeritus Bertram Raven, an expert on interpersonal influence and social power relationships; psychotherapist Miguel Perlado, who specializes in cult-related problems; and Urs Eschmann, a specialist in legal issues involving cults.

Cult Witness unravels the hidden world of cults; the hold they have on their victims, the reasons people form and fall prey to them and what takes place within..

Zeitgeist: The Series

The Zeitgeist documentaries are an international sensation, with over 1,000 theatrical screenings in 60 countries and 30 languages, viewed by millions on the internet and even spawning a movement.  For the first time they are now available to broadcast audiences and other license opportunities, as individual films or as an eleven part series.

Zeitgeist: The Movie is a treatment on Mythology and Belief in society today, presenting uncommon perspectives of common cultural issues.

Part One presents historical data relating to the astronomical/astrological origins of the Judeo-Christian theology (which can be extended to Islam as well), along with the understanding that these respective stories, beliefs & traditions are really an adaptation-extension of prior Pagan beliefs.

Part Two presents a controversial view of the events of Sept. 11th 2001. It describes how the event has been transformed into a sacred, near religious act and to challenge the orthodox view, regardless of the quality of the contrary arguments, is considered blasphemy and rejected.

Part Three presents a shotgun tour through the subjects of Central Banking, War Pretexts, Banking Panics, the Military Industrial Complex, Media Culture and ultimately the mental neurosis and deadly addiction known as “Power.”

The central theme is how society is often misled when it comes to certain pivotal historical events, what those events serve in function, along with how the overall social conditioning patterns we see today function to create values and perspectives which support and perpetuate the static, established order/power structure, as opposed to fluid social change and productive evolution for the betterment of the society as a whole.

Zeitgeist: Addendum was born out of public interest in possible solutions to the cultural issues presented in Zeitgeist: The Movie.

Building upon the topics of social distortion and corruption, Addendum moves to also present possible solutions. Featured in the work is former “Economic Hit-man” and New York Times bestselling author, John Perkins, along with The Venus Project, an organization for social redesign created by Social Engineer and Industrial Designer Jacque Fresco.

Part One (four in the series) explains the process of Money Creation and Expansion through the Fractional Reserve System. It explains how Debt and Bankruptcy are not mere byproducts of our current system, but rather are underlying realities of our existence with periodic failures guaranteed.

Part Two (five in the series) exposes various levels of international corruption via the financial/corporate system, including the manipulation of public leaders to further the interests of corporate institutions.

Part Three (six in the series) changes gears and depicts a possible solution to the growing social problems in the world today by the introduction of a new social concept known as a “Resource-Based Economy”.

Part Four (seven in the series) gives a philosophical perspective in the hope to inspire change in the viewer and enable action to affect society for the better.

Zeitgeist: Moving Forward focuses on the very fabric of the social order: Monetary-Market Economics.

The majority of the world today have come to see basic flaws in the economic system we share. Large scale debt defaults, inflation, industrial pollution, resource depletion, rising cancer rates and other signposts have emerged to bring the concern into the realm of “public health”.

The tendency is to demand reform in one area or another, avoiding the possibility that perhaps the entire system is intrinsically flawed at the foundational level.

Part One (eight in the series) presents a treatment on “Human Nature”, with the argument that society is out of line with what Science has taught us about positive human development, enabling distortions of health and behavior that could be thwarted if the social system was changed.

Part Two (nine in the series) details the central inherent flaws of the Monetary-Market System of economic conduct and how this system is destroying ourselves and the planet in a very direct way.

Part Three (ten in the series) begins a thought exercise where the Earth and Natural Law is considered a starting point for human decision-making rather than politics, with the subject explored from all sides.

Part Four (eleven in the series) ends with a prediction of what is to come as the society becomes more destabilized due to our outdated traditional practices.

 

download PDF onesheet – ‘The Movie’>
download PDF onesheet – ‘Addendum’>
download PDF onesheet – ‘Moving Forward’>
download PDF onesheet – ‘The Series’>

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Awards:

WINNER: Award of Excellence; LA Movie Awards, USA. Best Visual Effects; LA Movie Awards, USA. Best Documentary; Image Gazer, USA. Honourable Mention; Indie Gathering, USA. USA. First Documentary, LA Arthouse, USA. Best Cinematography, LA Arthouse, USA. Best Documentary, LA Arthouse, USA. Best Political Documentary, Action on Film, USA.

Official Selections:

Marbella International Film Festival, SPAIN. Salt lake City, USA. White Sands International Film Festival, USA.

The Devil Operation

The charismatic Father Marco Arana, named a Hero of the Environment in 2009 by TIME Magazine, has been so effective in advocating against the US-owned Yanacocha mine that he’s code-named “the Devil” and targeted in a campaign of harassment and terror.

When one colleague is threatened with rape and another is killed, the activists fight back, capture a spy, and uncover a military-scale operation of surveillance and violence that shocks even them.

When billions of dollars are at stake, just how far are corporations willing to go to protect their bottom line?

A gripping David and Goliath tale of corporate espionage unfolds in this exposé of torture, intimidation, and murder of Peruvian eco-activists and indigenous farmers. Shocking video footage, horrifying photos, and meticulous reports compiled by private security firms working for gold mines are uncovered by the filmmakers to reveal the truth in this real-life political thriller.