2007 Selected Videos and DVDs

The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), the fastest growing division of the American Library Association (ALA), has announced its 2007 annual selected list of best DVDs and videos for young adults. The list was released during the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, Washington on January 23, 2007. The committee solicited submissions from film producers and distributors from around the country.

The annual DVD/Video list recognizes productions for technical merit, content, and use with, and interest to young adults ages 12-18. Selections are chosen for the list using a round table discussion followed by a simple majority vote. After a weekend of friendly yet passionate debate, the list was narrowed to 7 titles that the committee considered notable.

Aruba. 11min. National Film Board of Canada. DVD, $129.00 www.nfb.ca.  A young boy tries to escape his difficult intercity surroundings through the power of his imagination.

Breaking the Silence: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Foster Youth Tell Their Stories. Approximately 30 min. National Center for Lesbian Rights. DVD. $25.00. www.nclrights.org. The successes and failures of a group of former foster care youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer.

Danish Poet. 15min., 1 sec. National Film Board of Canada. DVD. $129.00. www.nfb.ca. Kasper, a poet whose creative well has run dry, questions the scheme of things.

Far From Home. 40 min. Women Makes Movies. VHS and DVD, $195.00. www.wmm.com. Meet an African-American teen determined to break stereotypes while struggling with conflicting emotions during a voluntary school busing program.

Homeland: Four Portraits of Native Action. 88min. Bullfrog Films. VHS and DVD. $295.00. www.bullfrogfilms.com. Tells four inspiring stories of Native American tribal activists battling to serve their land, sovereignty, and culture.

Monster. 10 min. Flickerfest, P.O. Box 7416, Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia 2026. DVD. www.flickerfest.com.au. This Australian gem delivers its promised scare while uniquely reaffirming the fierceness of parental protection. A child’s vivid imagination sparks his fight against a hideous doll to save his mother. But the resolution to this conflict holds some surprises.

On the Outs . 83 min. Polychrome Pictures. DVD, $19.98 www.ontheouts.com. A gritty urban drama that exposes the shocking true story about three teens, who through their choices, are living on the fringes –on the outs – of society. Violence and language.

Whose Children Are These? 28 min. Filmakers Library, VHS and DVD, $295.00. www.filmakers.com. Profiles three Muslim teenagers impacted by Special Registration, a security measure implemented after 9/11, coping with life-changing realities as they face deportation proceedings and prejudices.

Members of the 2006 committee include Jeri Lynn Gunther, Chair, Ocean County Library System, Beachwood, NJ; Michael T. Wallace, (Administrative Assistant), ReadingHelp4Teens LLC, Washington, DC; Jeana Actkinson, Bridgeport High School, Bridgeport, TX; Rachel Kay Aronowitz, San Francisco Public Library, San Francisco, CA; Julie Beukema, Caroline Kennedy Public Library, Dearborn Heights, MI; Krista K. Britton, Old Bridge Elementary School, Wooddbridge, VA; Bridgid Fennell, Glendale Public Library, Glendale, CA; Marc Andrew Laslow, Clarion University of Pennsylvania, Clarion, PA; Angela Semifero, Marshall District Library, Marshall, MI; John Sigwald, Unger Memorial Library, Plainview, TX; Stephanie Anne Squicciarini, Fairport Public Library, Fairport, NY; Derek T. Wilson, East Point Public Library, East Point, GA; Brooke Alison Young, Salt Lake City Public Library, Salt Lake City, UT.