125+ films about nonviolence

Like all Israeli youth, Atalya is obligated to become a soldier. Unlike most, she questions the practices of her country's military, and becomes determined to challenge this rite of passage. Despite her family's political disagreements and personal concerns, she refuses military duty and is imprisoned for her dissent. Her courage moves those around her to reconsider their own moral positions and personal power. OBJECTOR follows Atalya to prison and beyond, offering a unique window into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the perspective of a young woman who seeks truth and takes a stand for justice.

This documentary on the 2017 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons covers their history, anti-nuclear activism, their humanitarian impacts and the steps taken since 2010 to turn the treaty from a dream into a reality.

The Austrian Franz Jägerstätter, a conscientious objector, refuses to fight for the Nazis in World War II.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in North Dakota captures world attention through their peaceful resistance against the U.S. government's plan to construct an oil pipeline through their land.

World War II American Army Medic Desmond T. Doss, serving during the Battle of Okinawa, refuses to kill people and becomes the first man in American history to receive the Medal of Honor without firing a shot.

What can people do to change a world full of violence and hate? Is nonviolent revolution possible? 'Love and Solidarity' addresses these questions through the life and thought of Rev. James Lawson, an African American Methodist minister who worked with Martin Luther King, Jr., to initiate civil rights struggles in the South in the 1960s, and in recent years taught nonviolence organizing to poor Black and Latino workers in coalitions that have remade the labor movement in Los Angeles. Through interviews with Rev. Lawson and historic film footage, acclaimed labor and civil rights historian Michael Honey and award-winning filmmaker Errol Webber place a needed discourse on nonviolent social change at the forefront of today's struggles against violence and for human rights, peace, and economic justice.

A chronicle of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s campaign to secure equal voting rights via an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1965.

In autumn of 2013, the Ukrainian government suspended meetings regarding accession to the EU. This prompted a period of civil unrest culminating in the resignation of pro-Russian president Yanukovych and open conflict in the eastern part of the country. A group of filmmakers began recording these developments in their country from up close; their collective documentary presents a mosaic of suggestive images and personal stories organized into chapters according to theme and the filmmaker's approach. The "Rough Cut" in the film's title is not an indication of the incompleteness of the work but rather a metaphorical description of the situation in which the Ukrainian state currently exists.

Comedy troupe The Yes Men stage phony events and press releases in an effort to bring attention to environmental dangers and corporate greed.

The film is a view from the inside on how it is to be in opposition in Russia of Putin. Attempts, mistakes, political tricks, seen through the eyes of the opposition leaders.

To embrace non-violent forms of activism for the respect and rights of the defenseless, breaking free from the vicious circle of misunderstanding is crucial. It involves using your voice, not guns, to open hearts to the possibility of peaceful coexistence with other species. In this talk, PETA President Ingrid Newkirk guides the audience to ponder how our treatment of animals reflects our true values. She explains why we should strive to address our fundamental problem-a lack of empathy for other species. Developing this awareness is essential to confront our ingrained prejudices.

The story of a notorious 1971 activist burglary of an FBI office that led to the Bureau's numerous abuses against dissidents being exposed.

Vlad Petri followed the Romanian protesters who occupied the streets of Bucharest in 2012. A poignant documentary about people who are devastated and impulsive, lost and encouraged, all at once. And about a revolution that becomes a tragic absurdity.

Twelve young filmmakers made this the guiding principle of the featured documentary film. They mingle amongst the demonstrators on Independence Square and in the Donetsk region, shooting a "Chronicle of Civil Protest", a kaleidoscope of voices, opinions and events which bears witness to the circumstances surrounding solidarity and struggle. The viewer observes the Ukrainians at first hand, experiencing how a hard-pressed society becomes more militant and slides ever deeper into the abyss of civil war.

Beyond Forgiving is a documentary film which depicts the journey of two South Africans to bring healing and reconciliation to their country. Ginn Fourie and Letlapa Mphalele form an unlikely pair: a black atheist man and a white Christian woman. One has suffered directly from actions of the other, but both have been victims -- and risen beyond their pain. What brings them together is a pro- found story of tragedy and hope.

This essential documentary film focuses on Iranian women's rights activists who are on the forefront of a decentralized but surprisingly powerful movement. These women are part of the largest, non-violent movement in the world that survives within the heart of a bitterly anti-female theocratic state. In this film, the first of its kind, these activists speak of their struggle for gender equality, and the price they have to pay for it. They also speak of their inspiring achievements in a state where misogyny is the order of the day.

A documentary about modern and creative forms of non-violent protest and civil disobedience.

Exploring offenses practiced by popular media, big business, police forces and Governments helping the Australian 225 year campaign of genocide continue against Aboriginal Australians.

A chronicle of Nelson Mandela's life journey from his childhood in a rural village through to his inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa.

Ukraine's topless feminist sensation Femen has created a media frenzy across Europe, but before they take the world by storm, these bold and beautiful women must confront the dark and perverse forces that power their organisation.

In 2008, we travel to Egypt to tell the story of heavy metal in a conservative Muslim country. We meet the kids in Cairo's tight knit underground music scene who are the film's main characters, including the sons of the country's foremost political dissidents and the Muslim World's first all-female metal band. Living under an oppressive regime, they're denied the basic right to free expression, and risk arrest just for playing their music... Then halfway through our story, a revolution begins, casting them, and us, into the unknown, opening new horizons, and presenting our main characters with a new set of life changing dilemmas.

A compelling portrait of the Occupy Wall Street movement. From personal stories to analysis of the big picture issues, supporters, participants and critics shed light on why and how this movement took off with such explosive force, and what it means. Made in a unique and unprecedented collaboration of 99 filmmakers across the country, the production process of this feature film offers a uniquely diverse way of bringing meaning and context to the movement that has swept up America, and much of the world, with its story.

A group of Egyptian revolutionaries battle leaders and regimes, risking their lives to build a new society of conscience.

Follows the court case of three members of the Russian feminist punk protest group Pussy Riot after their performance in a Russian Orthodox cathedral.