Video Resources and Selected Documentaries available in the Library
Video Resources
- KanopyKanopy is an on-demand streaming video service for educational institutions that provides students and faculty with access to more than 26,000 films each year. Kanopy works directly with filmmakers and film distribution companies to offer award-winning collections including titles from PBS, BBC, Criterion Collection, Media Education Foundation and more.
Selected Documentaries
- Border StoriesSeveral shorter documentaries compiled into a 'mosaic documentary' on border life, border culture and border crossing between the U.S. and Mexico.
"Beyond a boundary drawn on a map, a border is a mosaic of stories from both sides of the line."
Children in no man's land (Niños en tierra de nadie) by Call Number: Uris Library Dean Room Videodisc 4647 (Streaming via Alexander Street)Publication Date: 2008"People who immigrate to the U.S. do so because they are looking for a better quality of life--risking their own lives, paying any price to survive--even if this means leaving behind their loved ones. Each year there are an estimated 100,000 unaccompanied minors entering the United States, crossing the US/Mexico border alone to reunite with their mothers. These children’s journeys illustrate a problem--presented by the mass media as a security crisis--which is really a question about how social policy, the legal system, and economic pressures conspire against men, women, and children trying to create a life with greater opportunities. A strong tool to help people desirous of finding peaceful and fair solutions to the "problem" of undocumented immigration, this film captures a piece of American history as it unfolds amidst misconceptions, confusion, and ultimately, transition."
Farmingville by Call Number: Uris Library Dean Room Videodisc 891Publication Date: 2004Documentary film about the next group of immigrants, the Mexicans, that are following in our long history of immigration. It looks at the people of Farmingville, New York, and at how they are dealing with the influx of about 1,500 Mexican workers.
Golden Venture by Call Number: Uris Library Asia A/V Videodisc 4270 (CHI)Publication Date: 2006In June, 1993, the Golden Venture, a freighter carrying 300 undocumented Chinese passengers, ran aground off New York. The deaths and deportations that followed became a crucial turning point, ushering in a new, repressive era that has led America (once a beacon of liberty) to tighten its borders.
Harvest of Loneliness by Call Number: ILR Library (Ives Hall) HD8081.M6 H39 2011 Request at Main Circulation DeskSheds light on the current debate over immigration reform and the use of ’guest workers’ in American agriculture, this historical documentary examines what was known as the Bracero Program--a system put in place from 1942 to 1964 to recruit Mexican farm laborers for temporary work in the United States.
Immigrant Nation! The Battle for the Dream by Call Number: Uris Library Dean Room Videodisc 4587Publication Date: 2010A documentary combining the story of activist Elvira Arellano with the larger story of the pro-immigrant movement that primarily began in Chicago.
Maid in America by Call Number: ILR Library HD6072.2.U6 L67 2004 (Streaming via Alexander Street)Publication Date: 2004"This documentary explores the lives of three Latina immigrant women who work as nannies and housekeepers in Los Angeles, California. Through these women's lives, this documentary explores the globalization of motherhood, the challenges they face while pursuing the American dream and the significant role they play in American households today."
Sin País (Without Country) by Call Number: Uris Library Dean Room Videodisc 4464Publication Date: 201020-minute documentary film that intimately follows one family's journey as they are fractured by deportation after living in the U.S. for seventeen years. The film speaks to the complexities of the immigration debate, as well as the emotional and psychological hardships that the parents and children face as the family is separated.The Border Wall by
Call Number: Uris Library Dean Room Videodisc 3197Publication Date: 2008About the attempt by the Department of Homeland Security under Secretary Michael Chertoff to erect 670 miles of walls along the 2000 mile southern border of the United States in the waning days of the Bush administration. Local activists argue that militarization of the border and the walls have simply driven undocumented aliens to cross through more dangerous terrain, causing the deaths of over 5000 people.
The Neo-African-Americans by Call Number: Africana Library Videodisc 485Publication Date: 2008A documentary about how rapid, voluntary immigration from Africa and the Caribbean is transforming the "African-American" narrative.
18 Ius soli: il diritto di esseri italiani by Call Number: Uris Library Dean Room Videodisc 5115Publication Date: 2012Fred Kuwornu is an Italian-Ghanaian director. His documentary 18 Ius soli deals with the stories of the many children born in Italy and who are entitled to obtain an Italian citizenship only when they turn eighteen. In Italy, the legislation regarding citizenship is based on Jus sanguinis ("the right of blood"), instead of Jus soli ("the right of the soil"), as in the United States.
To find more videos...
Search the library catalog using keyword terms, film titles, or directors. Click the "Video" filter under the "Format" options of the Limit your search facets to limit your search to video.
Use the Limit your search facets on the left to further limit your results to physical or online (streaming) video. Under the "Availability" options selecting "At the library" will limit to physical video media (DVDs) while selecting "Online" will return streaming video results. Please note you can also search for titles not available at Cornell by using the "Request from Libraries Worldwide" link under the "Looking for More?" section. We are unable to request online or streaming video. If you are unable to find the film you are looking for, Ask a Librarian.
