True Stories: Life in the USA is a groundbreaking 16-part documentary series hosted by Benicio Del Toro that shares the stories of American people and places with international audiences. Made by independent filmmakers, these films show the richness and complexity of life in the United States.

Learn about the films broadcast on Season One of True Stories: Life in the USA.

BEYOND THE BORDER: Más Allá de la Frontera by Eren McGinnis and Ari Palos Over the past decade, thousands of Latinos seeking una vida mejor (a better life) have migrated to Kentucky, finding low-paying service jobs. As the Latino communities have swelled, so too have xenophobia and discrimination. BEYOND THE BORDER traces the painful transition made by four sons who leave their family in Mexico and fight cultural, class and language barriers in the United States.

THE BUFFALO WAR by Matthew Testa and Bryan Cole THE BUFFALO WAR examines the culture clash between Native Americans, ranchers, environmentalists and government officials battling over the yearly slaughter of America's last wild bison. A 500-mile protest march by Lakota Sioux, the travails of a ranching family and the civil disobedience tactics of a radical environmental group reveal tensions in the American West at the start of a new century.

EVERY CHILD IS BORN A POET: The Life and Work of Piri Thomas by Jonathan Robinson In his life and his work, acclaimed Afro-Cuban-Puerto Rican poet Piri Thomas has used creative expression as a means to confront and overcome poverty, racism, violence and isolation. Author of the acclaimed autobiographical novel Down These Mean Streets, Thomas, through poetry, stories and performances, chronicles his journey from Spanish Harlem to prison to life as an author, educator and activist.

FENCELINE: A Company Town Divided by Slawomir Grünberg and Jane Greenberg Named after a refinery now owned by Shell Oil, Norco, Louisiana is home to two distinct communities -one black and one white. Though separated by mere blocks, their realities are worlds apart. African American residents who believe pollution is affecting their health demand to be relocated. The white neighborhoods, largely home to employees of Norco, see no problems, and neither does the company. FENCELINE shows how one small community and one big corporation struggle to come to terms.

FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE by David Collier A funny and touching look at the nature of commitment through the philosophy and advice of five couples who have stayed together for 50 years or longer.

FREEDOM MACHINES by Jamie Stobie and Janet Cole Breakthrough technologies have opened up unprecedented possibilities for the 54 million Americans with disabilities-even as age-old barriers of class, public policy and deep discrimination persist. FREEDOM MACHINES explores the invention and impact of these astonishing new tools, showing how people with disabilities are transforming their lives even as they wrestle with the demons of outmoded policies and attitudes.

GIRL WRESTLER by Diane Zander Texas teenager Tara Neal insists that girls and boys should be able to wrestle on the same mat. Follow Neal through the last year in which state guidelines allow her to wrestle boys. It's a year filled with family conflict, pressure to cut weight and fierce policy debates over Title IX, which grants women's athletics proportionality in public schools.

HEART OF THE SEA: Kapolioka'ehukai by Charlotte Lagarde Stunningly beautiful and famously charming, Hawaiian surf legend Rell Kapolioka'ehukai Sunn carved the way for women in a sport dominated by men. When she died of breast cancer at the age of 47, her legacy had grown far beyond athletic feats to include high-profile community activism. HEART OF THE SEA tells the larger-than-life story that was Sunn's greatest gift.

HOMELAND by Jilann Spitzmiller and Hank Rogerson Recording four Lakota families over three years, HOMELAND explores what it takes for the Lakota community to build a better future in the face of tribal and government corruption, scarce housing, unemployment and alcoholism. Intimate interviews with a spiritual leader, a grandmother, an artist and a community activist from South Dakota's Pine Ridge Indian Reservation reveal how each survives through family ties, cultural tradition, humor and a palpable yearning for self-reliance and personal freedom.

OFF THE CHARTS: The Song-Poem Story by Jamie Meltzer OFF THE CHARTS is a fascinating, hilarious, and at times unsettling film that explores the strange underworld of the song-poem industry. In this little known subculture, "ordinary people" respond to come-on ads in the back pages of magazines ("Send in Your Lyrics-Make $50,000 in Royalties!"), mailing in their heartfelt but often bizarre poems to music industry companies that, for cash, set those poems to music.

OKIE NOODLING by Bradley Beesley There's nothing like noodling-catching a fish with your bare hands. In Oklahoma, noodlers in search of catfish have been diving into creeks, rivers and lakes for hundreds of years. The tradition originated as a Native American hunting practice, and has survived as a sport with its own distinctive sub-culture.

RAZING APPALACHIA by Sasha Waters In the face of thunderous blasting and choking dust caused by mountaintop mining, the last forty families of Blair, West Virginia stay to fight America's second-largest coal company as it threatens their homes. RAZING APPALACHIA is the story of a remarkable grassroots effort to redefine the role of government and power of corporations over our daily lives.

RED HOOK JUSTICE by Meema Spadola In 2000, an experimental court opened in Red Hook, Brooklyn, a neighborhood plagued by a cycle of unemployment, poverty and crime. Instead of jail time, offenders are sentenced to job training, drug counseling and community service. Follow the ups and downs of several defendants and staffers involved in this legal revolution that has become a model for courts nationwide.

SHAOLIN ULYSSES: Kungfu Monks in America by Mei-Juin Chen and Martha Burr The famous fighting monks of the Shaolin monastery have seen a resurgence throughout the world, aided in part by the popularity of kungfu movies among the hip-hop set and films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The film follows a handful of Shaolin monks who have brought the style to America, chronicling their adventures in New York City, Houston and Las Vegas.

STORE WARS: When Wal-Mart Comes to Town by Micha Peled STORE WARS: When Wal-mart Comes To Town takes a look at the populist spirit that engulfs a small Virginia town when retail giant Wal-Mart comes knocking. The ensuing debate, which pits neighbor against neighbor, illustrates the struggle between conflicting versions of the American dream.

SWEET OLD SONG by Leah Mahan Howard "Louie Bluie" Armstrong has been performing for most of his 91 years, ever since his father carved his first fiddle from a wooden crate. At the film's center are the two great loves of Howard's life: his music, and artist Barbara Ward. Their two-decade romance is a creative partnership yielding new work and an outpouring of memories, defying our most basic assumptions about what it means to grow older. Learn about True Stories Season Two >>