Free Speech Fear Free

Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing

Shut Up and Sing is a documentary about the country band from Texas called the Dixie Chicks and how one tiny comment against President Bush dropped their number one hit off the charts and caused fans to hate them, destroy their CD’s, and protest at their concerts. A film about freedom of speech gone out of control and the three girls lives that were forever changed by a small anti-Bush comment

Salman Rushdie: Death on a Trail

An intimate portrait, in his own words, of the Indian writer Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses (1988), thirty years after the fatwa uttered by the Iranian Ayatollah Khomeini: his youth in multicultural Bombay, his life in England, his many years of forced hiding, his thoughts on President Trump's United States of America.

Wealth of a Nation

"This film explores how freedom of speech — including dissent — is afforded to all Americans, and shows freedom of expression in art, music, dance, architecture, and science. The film also emphasizes the importance of the individual’s contribution to the whole of society and demonstrates how a productive and creative society is formed by the open and respectful exchange of ideas. The film was written, produced, and directed by William Greaves" (National Archives).

Acorn and the Firestorm

For 40 years, the community-organizing group ACORN advocated for America’s poorest communities, while its detractors accused it of promoting the worst of liberal policies. Riding high on the momentum of Barack Obama’s presidential victory in 2008, ACORN was at its political zenith when a hidden-camera video sparked a national scandal and brought it crashing down. The story involves voter fraud, a fake prostitute, and the rise of Breitbart.com.

Portraits of Mosquito Press

The documentary about the history and struggle for Press Freedom of Mosquito Press during the dark days of Marcos dictatorship.

Panodrama

Tommy Robinson goes on the offensive by documenting how his own “hit piece” on his character was being constructed by the taxpayer-funded BBC for their popular investigative news special “Panorama.” In the film he manages to capture footage of the blackmailing of his former employees to invent stories, along with an organization—known as “Hope not Hate”—on set with the BBC, intimidating ex-employees of Robinson during interviews. The host of “Panorama” at the time of filming is caught on camera casually using racist and homophobic slurs during a £220 champagne lunch with the same ex-employee they had planned to coach for a fake interview in which the BBC would possibly edit in which to make it appear as, “a gender, a sexual thing against Tommy Robinson,” according to the host. Within 24 hours of releasing the film, social media giant Facebook made a public statement of their own and removed Tommy Robinson’s accounts permanently.

Poland: A Nation under Stress

In the run-up to parliamentary elections in mid-October, Polish filmmaker Marcin Wierzchowski travelled across his country to gauge the atmosphere in a society that is more divided than ever.

Mighty Ira

Ira is one of America's unsung champions of civil rights and liberties. As his generation retires from the barricades, Ira reminisces on his life at the forefront of defending the rights of all Americans.

Adam the Apostate

In the realm of contemporary music, Adam “Nergal” Darski surely needs no further introduction. Yet the guitarist and singer has even made inroads into general pop culture and shaped social discourse, all the while not moving away an iota from the underground ethos his ongoing career is based on. Rising from his humble beginnings in Cold-war Poland to global fame with his band Behemoth, striving for musical excellence throughout the ignominies of life-threatening illness and dubious legal battles, staying deeply spiritual and focused during even the most casual appearances in mundane limelight, it is safe to say the 1977-born has many faces, the sum of which defies categorization. Satanist or dexterous money spinner? Academically certified historian or shallow media figure? Inspired and inspiring spokesperson of a generation or mere agent provocateur? Make your guesses...

Carceller, the Man Who Died Twice

The life story of Vicente Miguel Carceller (1890-1940), a Spanish editor committed to freedom who, through his weekly magazine La Traca, connected with the common people while maintaining a dangerous pulse with the powerful.

Endangered

A sobering look at the erosion of democracy & freedom of the press in the United States and abroad.

The Crime Messenger

European police infiltrate SkyECC, an encrypted app created by Eap to protect privacy, and dismantle a vast trafficking network. Sky ECC was a subscription-based messaging platform, developed by the Canadian company Sky Global. The platform offers end-to-end encryption and has been widely used for criminal purposes, including drug trafficking, money laundering, and distribution of child sexual abuse material.

Beat Generation

Tells the story of the wonderful and long-lasting friendship between Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and William Burroughs that gave birth to the Beat Generation movement.

An Independent Mind

How do you deal with threats of imprisonment for drawing a cartoon of the president? What does it mean if you are thrown out of your country for singing a song? How does it feel to be condemned for denying the existence of the Holocaust? An Independent Mind explores one of the most important and controversial human rights: freedom of speech.Through testimonies from eight people who have experienced problems as a result of expressing their personal opinions, filmmaker Rex Bloomstein explores the limits of freedom of expression. It is not always easy to to find out where these are. Obviously, it is not difficult to empathise with Reggae singer Tiken Jah Kakoly, who was forced to flee his native Ivory Coast, or with the Algerian cartoonist Ali Dilem, who was condemned to nine years in jail. But does the same apply to Holocaust denier David Irving or the Basque rock group Soziedad Alkoholika that ridicules victims of ETA violence?

Obaida

OBAIDA, a short film by Matthew Cassel, explores a Palestinian child’s experience of Israeli military arrest. Each year, some 700 Palestinian children undergo military detention in a system where ill-treatment is widespread and institutionalized. For these young detainees, few rights are guaranteed, even on paper. After release, the experience of detention continues to shape and mark former child prisoners’ path forward.

Outspoken: Music for Free Speech

Take a seat with us at FIRE’s first-ever classical music concert in support of free expression: “Outspoken: Music for Free Speech.” At the podium is conductor Rebecca Bryant Novak, a former doctoral student at the University of Rochester’s Eastman School of Music. Taking the stage for the first time since she was expelled without due process after speaking out about alleged harassment, Rebecca leads an all-volunteer orchestra in an unforgettable evening of music. Internationally acclaimed musicians, violinist Lara St. John and oboist Katherine Needleman, bring the stage to life with works by composers who themselves faced censorship, from Mozart to Shostakovich. Between performances, FIRE staff and special guests reflect on why free expression is essential for artists, and for all of us. The arts cannot thrive without free expression. Thank you to everyone who made this night possible!

The Gulag Archipelago: The Book That Changed Russian History

The story of Russian writer and Soviet dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918-2008) and his masterpiece, The Gulag Archipelago, published in Paris in 1973, which forever shook the very foundations of communist ideology.

Holocaust Denial vs. Freedom of Speech

Search and Seizure: The Rise of Insurrection

The film follows the 2023 raid by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office on investigative outlet Newstapa. Director Kim Yongjin, its former head, traces a pattern of political prosecutions against critical journalists—from reports on Yoon Suk-yeol to Cho Kuk and Kim Keon-hee. Combining on-site footage, journalist testimonies, and legal records, the film reveals how special funds were used to pressure the media, silence dissent, and manipulate public opinion. It is a powerful reminder of the ongoing struggle to protect press freedom and democratic values in South Korea.

Under Pressure: How Free Are Europe's Media?

How free and independent is the press in Europe? In recent years, multiple crises and the rise of authoritarianism have put pressure on journalists. We take a look at these countries, where aggression towards the media seems to be undermining the very idea of democracy.