Independent Lens: Season 27
Season 27 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Independent Lens Season 26.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 27 Progress Shield
Cracking the Code: Phil Sharp and the Biotech Revolution
Oct 6, 2025 · 85 min
Phil Sharp's RNA discovery reshaped science, medicine, and the global biotech industry.
Ratified
Oct 20, 2025 · 84 min
A bipartisan coalition continues a century-long fight to add gender equality into the Constitution.
Life After
Oct 27, 2025 · 84 min
Disabled filmmaker Reid Davenport investigates assisted dying and uncovers how ableism, policy, and systemic failures can make death seem like the only option. Who gets real choice
Vivien's Wild Ride
Jan 26, 2026 · 85 min
When her eyesight begins to fade, a film editor reimagines belonging and what it truly means to see.
The Librarians
Feb 9, 2026 · 86 min
Librarians across the U.S. examine how restrictions on library content are shaping communities. Drawing on historical context, the film explores the broader implications for educat
The Inquisitor
Feb 23, 2026 · 86 min
Barbara Jordan was a groundbreaking Texas congresswoman whose sharp intellect and moral clarity transformed U.S. politics. From Nixon's impeachment to civil rights battles, her voi
Keep Quiet and Forgive
Mar 23, 2026 · 85 min
Three decades after her assault, Lizzie confronts her Amish community’s silence around sexual abuse. She leads a movement to support fellow Amish and Mennonite survivors as they na
The Tallest Dwarf
Apr 6, 2026 · 86 min
The Tallest Dwarf follows filmmaker Julie Forrest Wyman as she searches for her place in the little people community and unpacks rumors of dwarfism in her own family. Through intim
BACKSIDE: The Unseen Hands of Horse Racing
Apr 13, 2026 · 56 min
Immigrant grooms work year-round on the hidden “backside” of Churchill Downs. Rising before dawn, they care for some of the world’s most prized Kentucky Derby racehorses, revealing
Natchez
May 11, 2026 · 86 min
Antebellum homes draw visitors to Natchez, Mississippi, but not everyone agrees on the stories being told. As tour guides, homeowners, and activists navigate competing histories, t
Light of the Setting Sun
May 18, 2026 · 72 min
A Chinese family’s multigenerational trauma unfolds across time, place, and identity. Turning the camera inward, filmmaker Vicky Du traces her family’s mental illness back to the C
Third Act
May 25, 2026 · 86 min
Generations call Robert A. Nakamura the godfather of Asian American film. Tadashi Nakamura calls him Dad. Tadashi turns the camera on his father as they confront art, activism, and
Assembly
Jun 22, 2026 · 56 min
Artist Rashaad Newsome prepares to showcase "Assembly," a groundbreaking exhibit at New York’s Park Avenue Armory. By blending visual art, performance, and artificial intelligence,
True North: Canadian Myths and Black Power
Jul 6, 2026 · 86 min
Through rare archival footage and firsthand accounts, True North revisits 1968 Montreal, where Black liberation movements converged at the Congress of Black Writers. As student pro
Flood
Jul 13, 2026 · 76 min
Returning home to California’s Inland Empire, filmmaker Katy Scoggin seeks to reconnect with her estranged father, who works as an elementary science teacher. He is the only evange