Xavier Phifer, a 17 year-old student from Brooklyn, describes how his mother’s incarceration ten years ago shaped the person he is now. With her support, he has pursued education and filmmaking, advocating for laws that would place incarcerated parents closer to their children. Francis Adjei
Archive | Short Docs
Fighting For Justice
Anuz Thapa’s “Fighting for Justice” focuses on how the criminal justice system is reluctant to charge people with a ‘hate crime.’ Bangladeshi Imam Maulana Akonjee and his assistant, Thara Uddin were murdered in broad daylight in Queens in 2016. Since losing his father, Saif Akonjee becomes the head of his devastated family, deferring his […]
Tim Okamura’s Journey
Original tape date: November 3, 2017. First aired: May 17, 2018. CUNY TV Digital Series’ Producer Darrell Brown interviews painter Tim Okamura, whose art blends graffiti and realism depicting New York City’s diverse inhabitants. Born and raised in Canada, with his background being Newfoundland and Japanese, Okamura focuses his art on a slice of life […]
Caring Through Struggle
In this short documentary, young filmmakers with incarcerated parents set out to unveil some of the hidden consequences of our nation’s approach to imprisonment. The crew journeyed to understand their childhoods being brought up by grandparents, and by extension, the issues caregivers face when raising a child with an incarcerated parent. Part of the Echoes […]
Surviving Child Abuse – Monica’s Refuge
This piece describes the ordeal of Monica, a young woman from Medellin, Colombia. After the death of her parents, she was sold to various childless couples who continuously abused and molested her. At the age of 11, she finds shelter at an orphanage supported by the Orphaned Starfish Foundation. There, she finds educational assistance […]
Visiting Through the Youth Lens
Research has shown that a sustained relationship with a parent in prison is one of the most influential factors in both reducing a child’s trauma, and also in lowering that parent’s rate of recidivism. However, children often face great resistance to visiting a parent. This short film describes the challenges, the sorrows, and the […]
Surviving Sex Trafficking
Minnie Roh, Asian American Life’s reporter, speaks to Shandra Woworuntu, an activist who survived sex trafficking and shares her harrowing account of being held captive as a sex slave in Brooklyn. Tanya Domi interview Tanya Domi
DACA – Dreams on Hold
Asian American Life’s correspondent Paul Lin reports on DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and the challenges undocumented students face pursuing a college education. Shirley Leyro
Walking With Furee
Wanda Imasuen, a Harlem-raised believer in the American Dream, found herself jobless and going to the welfare office. The humiliation she felt, and the persistent efforts of the women at FUREE (Families United for Racial and Economic Equality), led Wanda to become an activist and speaker and to recruit other women to empower themselves. […]
Saj – Muslim in America
Sajda Abdul-Rahim, a college student living in New York City, talks about her religious upbringing as a Muslim and her quest for a less traditional and more personal spiritual connection with God. Michelle Fine
Produced by 
