2005 YALSA Selected Videos & DVDs for Young Adults Annotated List
Let’s Get Real.
35 minutes, The Respect for All Project/Women’s Educational Media.
$249 ($99 for public libraries, K-12 schools, and community groups).
This film gives young people a chance to speak up, in their own words, about the real issues behind bullying and name-calling.
From the students who are targeted, to the students that pick on them, young adults talk with courage and candor about racial differences, sexual orientation, disabilities, religious differences, sexual harassment, and more.
What’s Going On (ten-part series)
28 minutes each, Zenger Media. $285 (set); $29.95 individual titles
Developed in partnership with the United Nations and the Emmy award-winning producer, RCN Entertainment,
“What's Going On?” meets real kids, in real places, and tells their stories. Whether they live in Sierra Leone, Brazil, the United States, or India, the series shows the shared experiences of children.
Powershift
26 minutes.
The Video Project.
$89.95
This program circles the globe, exploring the remarkable ways that energy touches our daily lives.
Weaving together the lives of astronauts in the Space Station, villagers in the Amazon, and an actress in Hollywood, the film examines the vital energy issues and suggests ways that students can create a sustainable future.
In My Own Skin: the complexity of living as an Arab American
Arab Film Distribution.
$95 ($45 to public libraries and other non-profits)
This short documentary, made in response to the events of September 11, is a portrait of five young Arab-American women in New York City and their search for identity in this difficult time. Each woman discusses the issues and decisions she faces, from the way to wear a head scarf to how non-Arab friends perceive Arab-Americans.
Wet Dreams & False Images
11 minutes, New Day Films.
$149 ($99 for public libraries, K-12 schools, and community groups)
This film, for mature audiences only, introduces Dee-Dee, a Brooklyn barber and self-proclaimed “booty expert,” who covers his wall with magazine cut-outs of women. He wishes that real women could look more like the images on his “wall of beauty.” However, when Dee-Dee is introduced to the art of photo-retouching, his perceptions of beauty are called into question.
(The video viewed at Midwinter included content and language suitable for mature teen audiences only.
The producer offers a version more appropriate for use in a school setting.
However, this title was not shown to committee members).
Girl Wrestler
58 minutes, Women Make Movies.
$89 plus s/h (price for public libraries, K-12 schools, and community organizations)
This documentary follows 13-year-old Texas teenager Tara Neal on her determined journey to the national wrestling championships as she battles sexism from officials and fans, confronts conflicts within her family, and struggles with her own body to control her weight.
