''The Revisionaries'' is a 2012
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...
about the re-election of
Don McLeroy, the former chairman of the
Texas Board of Education
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is the branch of the government of Texas responsible for public education in Texas in the United States. . The film also details how the Texas Board's decisions on textbook content influence textbooks across the nation and affect the American
culture war
A culture war is a cultural conflict between social groups and the struggle for dominance of their values, beliefs, and practices. It commonly refers to topics on which there is general societal disagreement and polarization in societal valu ...
. ''The Revisionaries'' was directed by Scott Thurman and produced by Silver Lining Films, Magic Hour Productions and Naked Edge Films.
The film generated a great deal of buzz prior to its premiere on April 20, 2012 at the
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive programming. Tribeca was f ...
. Texas Monthly reported that "
e film received rave reviews after its Tribeca premiere." ''The Revisionaries'' went on to win the Festival's Special Jury Prize. During the awards presentation,
Michael Moore stated "I hope every American sees this film," and called ''The Revisionaries'' "a must-see film for anyone concerned about enforced ignorance and intolerance, and for those who still believe in science and in Thomas Jefferson."
On July 18, 2012,
Kino Lorber
Kino Lorber is an international film distribution company based in New York City. Founded in 1977, it was originally known as Kino International until it was acquired by and merged into Lorber HT Digital in 2009. It specializes in art house films, ...
acquired all North American rights to ''The Revisionaries''.
The film premiered theatrically on October 5, 2012 in Dallas, Texas, and the Public Broadcasting Service's (PBS)
Independent Lens
''Independent Lens'' is a weekly television series airing on PBS featuring documentary films made by independent filmmakers. Past seasons of ''Independent Lens'' were hosted by Angela Bassett, Don Cheadle, Susan Sarandon, Edie Falco, Terrence H ...
aired an abridged version of the film in late January 2013.
''The Revisionaries'' went on to win the 2013 PBS Independent Lens Audience Award and 2014 duPont Award for excellence in broadcast journalism.
References
External links
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* http://www.itvs.org/films/revisionaries
* https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/revisionaries/
* https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/award/
* http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_revisionaries_2012/
* https://www.facebook.com/TheRevisionaries
* https://www.amazon.com/The-Revisionaries-Scott-Thurman/dp/B00AOCDEDY
Documentary films about education in the United States
Textbook controversies
Documentary films about American politics
American documentary films
2012 films
2012 documentary films
Education in Texas
Films scored by Mark Orton
Education controversies in the United States
2010s English-language films
2010s American films
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