The New Americans
Encyclopedia
The New Americans is a seven-hour American
documentary
, produced by Kartemquin Films
, that was originally broadcast on American television
over three nights on the Public Broadcasting Service
(PBS) in late March 2004.
The observational documentary, which includes minimal voice-over narration and very little direct interviewing of its subjects (and none in which the interviewer's voice is heard), follows the lives of a series of immigrants
to the United States over the course of four years. The series was filmed between 1998 and 2001, although not all of its subjects were filmed during that entire length of time. The immigrants were filmed both in their countries of origin before immigrating as well as in the United States. The filming during this period was extensive and occurred in the subjects' homes, at their places of work, in government offices, and in a number of other situations, many of them quite intimate. As a result, The New Americans offers an unusually personal and comprehensive look at the people it profiles.
The immigrants profiled and filmed in The New Americans include a group of baseball players from the Dominican Republic
hoping to secure a career in Major League Baseball
; a computer programmer from India
and his wife; a family with six children from a farming community in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico
; a family of Ogoni refugees from Nigeria
; and a woman from Palestine
who moves to the United States to be with her new husband, a first-generation Palestinian-American who grew up in Chicago
.
The locations shown in the documentary include not only each of the immigrants' countries of origin, but also many places in the United States where the immigrants settled or traveled, including Chicago (the Palestinian and Nigerian immigrants), the Silicon Valley
of California
(the Indian immigrants), Garden City, Kansas
and Mecca, California
(the Mexican immigrants), and Florida
, Georgia
and Montana
(the Dominican immigrants).
The New Americans was executive produced by Steve James
(who also produced the acclaimed 1994 documentary Hoop Dreams
) and Gordon Quinn
, both of Kartemquin Films
. It was broadcast on PBS as part of the series Independent Lens
, in association with the Independent Television Service (ITVS). The program was also broadcast in the United Kingdom
on the cable network BBC Four
in early April 2004.
Steve James on the making of the New Americans, “From the beginning, we knew we wanted to tell multiple stories, because every immigrant I’ve met has a very rich and varied story to tell about where they come from. We also were excited about the idea of telling these people’s stories before they left their countries so that we could begin to understand these people in their own country before they gave it all up to come here. They’re all facing different problems different dreams, so there’s that diversity too. They’re a nice collection of stories because their differences and similarities.”
Primary funding was provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). Additional major funding was provided by The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and PBS. Additional funding also came from the National Endowment of the Arts, BBC, Nick Fraser, SBS, TV Australia, and VPRO, The Netherlands. The New Americans is a presentation of ITVS in association with Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB) and Asian Women United/National Asian American Telecommunications Association (NAATA).
The New Americans won a variety of awards including: The Chicago Award for Best Chicago or Illinois Production, Chicago International Television Competition [2004]; Gold Hugo for Best Overall Production, Chicago International Television Competition 2004]; Best Limited Series, Distinguished Documentary Achievement Awards, International Documentary Association (IDA) [2004]; and the Christopher Award, TV/Cable Category, [2005].
"New Americans" is also a generic term used to describe immigrants to the United States, although this term is used less often than its counterpart term in Australia
, where "New Australians" is a relatively common phrase.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
, produced by Kartemquin Films
Kartemquin Films
Kartemquin Films is a not-for-profit organization that was founded in 1966 by Gordon Quinn, Jerry Temaner and Stan Karter, three University of Chicago graduates who wanted to make documentary films guided by their principle of "Cinematic Social Inquiry." They were soon joined by Jerry Blumenthal...
, that was originally broadcast on American television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
over three nights on the Public Broadcasting Service
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
(PBS) in late March 2004.
The observational documentary, which includes minimal voice-over narration and very little direct interviewing of its subjects (and none in which the interviewer's voice is heard), follows the lives of a series of immigrants
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
to the United States over the course of four years. The series was filmed between 1998 and 2001, although not all of its subjects were filmed during that entire length of time. The immigrants were filmed both in their countries of origin before immigrating as well as in the United States. The filming during this period was extensive and occurred in the subjects' homes, at their places of work, in government offices, and in a number of other situations, many of them quite intimate. As a result, The New Americans offers an unusually personal and comprehensive look at the people it profiles.
The immigrants profiled and filmed in The New Americans include a group of baseball players from the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
hoping to secure a career in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
; a computer programmer from India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and his wife; a family with six children from a farming community in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
; a family of Ogoni refugees from Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
; and a woman from Palestine
Palestinian territories
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...
who moves to the United States to be with her new husband, a first-generation Palestinian-American who grew up in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
The locations shown in the documentary include not only each of the immigrants' countries of origin, but also many places in the United States where the immigrants settled or traveled, including Chicago (the Palestinian and Nigerian immigrants), the Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
(the Indian immigrants), Garden City, Kansas
Garden City, Kansas
Garden City is a city in and the county seat of Finney County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 26,658. The city is home to Garden City Community College and the Lee Richardson Zoo, the largest zoological park in western Kansas.-History:In February 1878, James...
and Mecca, California
Mecca, California
Mecca is a census-designated place in Riverside County, California, United States. The population was 8,577 at the 2010 census, up from 5,402 at the 2000 census....
(the Mexican immigrants), and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
and Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
(the Dominican immigrants).
The New Americans was executive produced by Steve James
Steve James (producer)
Steve James is an American film producer and director of several documentaries, including the award-winning Hoop Dreams and Stevie. He is also the director of the 1997 feature film Prefontaine...
(who also produced the acclaimed 1994 documentary Hoop Dreams
Hoop Dreams
Hoop Dreams is a 1994 documentary film directed by Steve James, with Kartemquin Films. It follows the story of two African-American high school students in Chicago and their dream of becoming professional basketball players....
) and Gordon Quinn
Gordon Quinn
Gordon Quinn is Artistic Director and founding member of Kartemquin Films, a 2007 recipient of the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Gordon Quinn has been making documentaries for over 45 years and has produced or directed over 30 films. His recent directing credits...
, both of Kartemquin Films
Kartemquin Films
Kartemquin Films is a not-for-profit organization that was founded in 1966 by Gordon Quinn, Jerry Temaner and Stan Karter, three University of Chicago graduates who wanted to make documentary films guided by their principle of "Cinematic Social Inquiry." They were soon joined by Jerry Blumenthal...
. It was broadcast on PBS as part of the series Independent Lens
Independent Lens
Airing weekly on PBS through ITVS, the Emmy Award-winning series Independent Lens introduces new drama and documentary films made by independent filmmakers. Past seasons of Independent Lens have been presented by hosts Angela Bassett, Don Cheadle, Susan Sarandon, Edie Falco, Terrence Howard, Maggie...
, in association with the Independent Television Service (ITVS). The program was also broadcast in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on the cable network BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
in early April 2004.
Steve James on the making of the New Americans, “From the beginning, we knew we wanted to tell multiple stories, because every immigrant I’ve met has a very rich and varied story to tell about where they come from. We also were excited about the idea of telling these people’s stories before they left their countries so that we could begin to understand these people in their own country before they gave it all up to come here. They’re all facing different problems different dreams, so there’s that diversity too. They’re a nice collection of stories because their differences and similarities.”
Primary funding was provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). Additional major funding was provided by The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Annie E. Casey Foundation and PBS. Additional funding also came from the National Endowment of the Arts, BBC, Nick Fraser, SBS, TV Australia, and VPRO, The Netherlands. The New Americans is a presentation of ITVS in association with Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB) and Asian Women United/National Asian American Telecommunications Association (NAATA).
The New Americans won a variety of awards including: The Chicago Award for Best Chicago or Illinois Production, Chicago International Television Competition [2004]; Gold Hugo for Best Overall Production, Chicago International Television Competition 2004]; Best Limited Series, Distinguished Documentary Achievement Awards, International Documentary Association (IDA) [2004]; and the Christopher Award, TV/Cable Category, [2005].
"New Americans" is also a generic term used to describe immigrants to the United States, although this term is used less often than its counterpart term in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, where "New Australians" is a relatively common phrase.