Books
World Film Locations: Boston by
Founded by the Puritans in 1630 and the site of many of the American RevolutionOCOs major precursors and events (including the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, and Paul RevereOCOs midnight ride, among others), Boston has playedOCoand continues to playOCoan influential role in the shaping of the historic, intellectual, cultural, and political landscapes of the United States."
Publication Date: 2014 - online
Big Screen Boston:: from Mystery Street to The departed and beyond by Location: Mugar Stacks PN1993.5.U75 S54 2008 online via Internet ArchivePublication Date: 2008
Featured Films
- Six locked doors : the legacy of Cocoanut Grove (streaming, Academic Video Online) Six Locked Doors explores the events leading up to the deadliest nightclub fire in American history on November 28, 1942, at the Cocoanut Grove nightclub in Boston, Massachusetts. With double the allowed occupants, locked doors, flammable materials, and other deadly conditions, the fire left 492 people dead. Through interviews with survivors who have never before spoken on camera and an extensive archive collection of photos, and unreleased footage the film explores how corruption, greed and a former gangster-run speakeasy led to an unimaginable tragedy.
- A Chinatown banquet : exploring Boston Chinatown (streaming, Academic Video Online) A Chinatown Banquet offers an unprecedented glimpse into the history, culture and character of Boston Chinatown through vignettes offering unique snapshots of this rich community. Blending public art, education and community development in an innovative, interdisciplinary format, the videos deepen public awareness about Chinatown and create a new, hybrid form of cultural landmark. This project directly engages community members across generations and geographic boundaries to discover and share Chinatown's untold stories, revealing the forces that have shaped and continue to influence Boston Chinatown.
- City Hall (BLU) City government touches almost every aspect of our lives. Most of us are unaware of or take for granted these necessary services such as police, fire, sanitation, veterans affairs, elder support, parks, licensing of various professional activities, record keeping of birth, marriage and death as wells as hundreds of other activities that support Boston residents and visitors. CITY HALL, by Frederick Wiseman, shows the efforts by Boston city government to provide these services.
- Boston's North End : An Italian American Story (dvd) This is the first feature length, high definition film to chronicle the vibrant Italian American community that has called the North End of Boston home for well over 100 years. "Boston's North End: An Italian American Story" is based on historical records and interviews with Italian American North Enders and their descendants, ranging in age from 7 to 94, from around the Boston area. It also features original music written especially for the film, home videos, and many photographs. Highlights include early political struggles, former World Welterweight Boxing Champion Tony DeMarco, and Stephen Puleo, author of "The Boston Italians," and "Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919."
- Code Switching (streaming, Kanopy) CODESWITCHING is a mash-up of personal stories from three generations of African American students who participated in a landmark voluntary desegregation program (METCO). Shuttling between their inner-city Boston neighborhoods and predominantly white suburban schools in pursuit of a better education, they find themselves swapping elements of culture, language, and behavior to fit in with their suburban counterparts.
- Gaining Ground : Building Community on Dudley Street (streaming, Kanopy) In the midst of the economic meltdown, Gaining Ground explores the innovative, grassroots organizing efforts of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative (DSNI) in Boston. DSNI was created 25 years ago when the community had been devastated by bank redlining, arson-for-profit and illegal dumping, and has become one of the preeminent models for community-based change. Over the course of two years, we watch a new generation of leaders working to prevent foreclosures and bring jobs and opportunities for young people to one of the city's most diverse and economically challenged neighborhoods.
- Holding Ground: The Rebirth Of Dudley Street (streaming, Kanopy) This documentary by Mark Lipman and Leah Mahan is at once a cautionary tale of urban policies gone wrong and a message of hope for all American cities. In 1985, African-American, Latino, Cape Verdean, and European-American residents of the Dudley area united to revitalize their community. Through the voices of committed residents, activists and city officials, the documentary shows how a Boston neighborhood is pro-actively creating and carrying out its own agenda for change.
