Documentary Educational Resources - Subject / Politics, Law & Justice / Social Activism

Thabyay

Mon, 6 Apr 2026 10:20:24 GMT

Set against one of the world's deadliest yet least-covered conflicts, Thabyay: Creative Resistance in Myanmar examines how creativity becomes both a tool and a lifeline under a brutal military junta: how songs, poems, paintings, and grassroots cultural events can be as potent as any weapon. The film also traces the moral and emotional journey of non-violent leaders forced to decide whether to endorse armed struggle, while still holding onto a vision of a peaceful, inclusive Myanmar.

The film profiles four figures working at the intersection of art, activism, and armed struggle: Susanna Hla Hla Soe, painter and government-in-exile minister, whose canvases document the impact of war on women and children; Maung Saungkha, poet and free-speech advocate turned commander of the first Bamar ethnic army; Phoe San, musician and composer who uses sound to sustain revolutionary spirit and support trauma recovery; and Thet Swe Win, human rights activist whose "artivist" gatherings mobilize the collective power of creative expression against repression.

Through intimate portraits and on-the-ground footage, Thabyay captures a movement that refuses to surrender its humanity, asking what is lost, and what might be gained, when non-violent leaders are pushed toward armed struggle in a war the world has largely chosen to ignore.

This is the latest work by Jeanne Hallacy, a documentary filmmaker with over two decades of engagement with social and human rights issues in Southeast Asia, particularly Burma and Thailand. Her filmography charts a sustained commitment to the region's most urgent stories, from Burma Diary (1997) and Mercy (Meddah) (2002) through This Kind of Love (2015), Sittwe (2017), Mother, Daughter, Sister (2018), and Padauk: Myanmar Spring (2021).

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS

HUMAN Int'l Documentary Festival, Norway, 2026

City College of San Francisco, USA, 2026

University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2026

FRAME, Thailand, 2025

Reconference: CREA's Global Conference, Nepal, 2025

University of Bielefeld, Germany, 2025

Asia Pacific Social Forum, Thailand, 2025

National Chengchi University, Taiwan, 2025

George Washington University, Washington, DC, 2025

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Padauk: Myanmar Spring

Mon, 31 Jan 2022 17:50:59 GMT

Padauk: Myanmar Spring
Buy Now: $320.00

Padauk: Myanmar Spring takes the viewer to the streets of Myanmar during the heady days following the February 2021 military coup. Through Nant, a young, first-time protester, we meet three human rights activists whose lives have been turned upside down by the coup.

As the protests continue, Nant comes to understand the truth of a brutal regime that has continued to wage war against its own people for decades. Against a foreboding backdrop, Nant’s political awakening regarding the plight of others in her ethnically diverse country gives hope for the future.

Beautifully augmented by poetry and art, Padauk: Myanmar Spring shows the resilience and determination of the people of Myanmar, and the sacrifices they've made.

"This film fits well within the discussion of global protest during 2020-2021 against discrimination and threats to democracy and is highly recommended." – Tashia Miller, Educational Media Reviews Online

Selected Screenings & Awards

Burma Spring Benefit Film Festival, USA, 2021

Seoul International Women’s Film Festival, South Korea, 2021

Busan Peace Film Festival, Busan, South Korea, 2021

Dharamshala International Film Festival, India, 2021

Myanmar Film Festival of Los Angeles, 2021

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages: Amazon Projects series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages: Amazon Projects series
Buy Now: $400.00

These videos give examples of environmental protection and sustainable development projects taking place in indigenous areas of the Amazon. With their cultural respect for natural resources, these indigenous groups have a lot to teach other cultures about co-operation with the environment.

Films in the Amazon Projects series:
Agenda 31

Signs Don't Speak

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages: Ashanika Villages series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages: Ashanika Villages series
Buy Now: $850.00

Made by indigenous filmmakers, these inventive videos document a range of development projects, beliefs and cultural practices in indigenous communities of Acre, Brazil. We see how contemporary people have maintained some traditional practices and adopted new ones in these dynamic and diverse cultures.

Films in the Ashanika Villages series:
Iauaretê, Waterfall of the Jaguars

Imbé Gikegü, The Scent of Pequi Fruit
Kiarãsâ Yõ Sâty, The Agouti's Peanut

New Era

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages: Conflicts in the Amazon series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages: Conflicts in the Amazon series
Buy Now: $400.00

This series examines conflict and sustainable development in indigenous areas.

Films in the Conflicts in the Amazon series

Free-For-All In Sararé

It's Now or Never!

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages: Encounters series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages: Encounters series
Buy Now: $400.00

The Encounters series demonstrates of the ways in which video can facilitate interchanges and solidarity between indigenous groups. Using a combination recorded images and personal contacts, Indians previously isolated from one another are able to form friendships and forge cultural and political alliances.

Films in the Encounters series

Meeting Ancestors

We Gather as a Family

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages: Indians in Brazil series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages: Indians in Brazil series
Buy Now: $1,400.00

A series of videos produced for the 'TV Escola' (TV School) of Brazil's Ministry of Education. Presented by Indian leader Ailton Krenak, "Indians in Brazil" draws a picture of contemporary indigenous reality, attempting to overcome stereotypes and promote understanding between Indians and non-Indians.

Films in the Indians in Brazil series:
A Different Story
The First Contacts
From the Other Side of the Sky
Our Languages
Our Rights
Our Territory
Who Are They?

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages: Indigenous Video Makers series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages: Indigenous Video Makers series
Buy Now: $2,700.00

In production workshops, young indigenous filmmakers learn to use video equipment and set their own priorities about what to film. The result is a wide variety of videos about rituals, natural resources, village life, family, mythology and even video making.

Films in the Indigenous Video Makers series

Dancing with a Dog
From the Ikpeng Children to the World
Kinja Iakaha, A Day in the Village
The Living Forest
Moyngo
Nguné Elü
One Must Be Curious
A Path to Live
The Rainy Season
Shomõtsi
Trainees for the Future
Wapté Mnhõnõ, The Xavante's Initiation
Wai'á Rini, The Power of the Dream

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages: Rituals series

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages: Rituals series
Buy Now: $320.00

This series approaches ritual and cultural traditions in complicity with Indians, allowing for respectful documentation that is staged by ritual participants. Indians themselves give insight into the beliefs that motivate their traditional rites, as opposed to an outside observer.

Films in the Rituals series

Yákwa, The Banquet of the Spirits

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.

Video in the Villages collection

Wed, 5 Sep 2018 11:07:00 GMT

Video in the Villages collection
Buy Now: $7,995.00

Since the 1980s, the Video in the Villages' project has encouraged the encounter of the Amazonian Indians with their images. The project's proposal is to turn video into a tool that will enable the expression of their identity, reflecting their vision about themselves and about the world.

While providing the indigenous communities with video equipment, the project has stimulated image and information exchange among the nations. Initially the training of Indian video-makers was done village-by-village, providing records for their own use. Today, through national and regional workshops, they learn and discuss together ways to present their reality, for their own people and for the world. The documentaries develop issues that are considered important by their communities. The project's collection includes a series of documentaries produced by the team of trainers and by indigenous video-makers.

Its vision of using filmmaking and communication to empower indigenous communities has... gained the group wide acclaim, from humanitarian organizations, film critics, and scholars alike.

- Zoe Graham, Visual Anthropology Review

The collection contains the following series:

Video in the Villages Series

The use of video by different communities.

Encounters Series

Encounters and interchange between nations that have met through video recording.

Rituals Series

A way of approaching ritual and cultural traditions in complicity with the Indians.

Indigenous Video-Makers Series

Documentaries produced during workshops.

Amazon Projects Series

Environmental protection projects and innovative experiences of sustainable development in indigenous areas of the Amazon.

Conflicts in the Amazon Series

Conflicts and sustainable development in indigenous areas.

Indians in Brazil Series

A series of videos produced for the 'TV Escola' (TV School) of the Ministry of Education draw a picture of contemporary indigenous reality for college students.

Ashaninka Villages Series

Documentation of new sustainable development efforts in the Ashaninka villages of Acre, Brazil

Visit Social Activism to see additional products in this category.