Program areas at The Better Angels Society
Film production, outreach and education - The Society provided over $8.6 million in funding for The production and distribution of documentary films produced by ken burns which are broadcast on pbs television stations and available on pbs' digital platforms. Films supported in 2022 included The us and The holocaust, which aired in 2022, american buffalo, which will air in 2023, The american revolution, leonardo davinci, crime & punishment, and emancipation to exodus. In addition, through its Better Angels stories initiative, The Society supported american documentary films by a number of other filmmakers. Films supported by The Society which aired on pbs member stations in 2022 included marian anderson, plague at The golden gate, flood in The desert, joe papp in five acts, The adventures of saul bellow and taken hostage.
Other education initiatives - in 2022 grants totaling $150,000 were made by The Society to help local public television stations develop and distribute companion teaching materials related to history-based documentary films. These resources are used primarily by middle and high school students and teachers.
Legacy - in 2022 The Society awarded The fourth annual library of congress lavine/ken burns prize for film to support american historical documentary filmmaking and encourage a growing community of documentary filmmakers working on bringing america's stories to light. It oversaw The second year of The Better Angels lavine fellowship program, a mentoring program for promising filmmakers whose films were not selected as finalists for this prize but demonstrate The potential for excellence. In addition, The Society recognized next generation Angels, middle and high school students who have developed history documentary films, through its awards program. The Society also continued to build The ken burns public dialogue initiative, a partnership with georgetown university to advance The use of history documentary films in higher educational settings, and bring academic discourse to The public.