Celebrate the innovative and catchy electronic dance music that continues to inspire prominent artists today, including Charli XCX, Peggy Gou, Beyoncé, and Fisher.

House Music – A Cultural Revolution: American Stories premieres Monday, June 30  at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streams live on the WXXI app.

Chicago has long been known for its diverse music genres and, infamously, as the city where disco met its demise. But from its ashes rose another groundbreaking musical form: house music. The documentary marks the 40th anniversary of the creation of house music that emerged in the early 1980s in Chicago’s underground Black and gay clubs, where it was played by house music producers and DJs such as Frankie Knuckles, who welcomed marginalized communities into these safe spaces.

Photo: Women of House
Credit: Lori Branch

This powerful new documentary explores the work of acclaimed photographer Titus Brooks Heagins.

Always Looking: Titus Brooks Heagins premieres Friday, June 27, 2025 at 10:30 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streams live on the WXXI app.

Directed by award-winning North Carolina filmmaker Olympia Stone, Always Looking examines the evocative, humanizing yet confrontational photography of Titus Heagins, whose work challenges perceptions of race, poverty, gender, and marginalization. Through his lens, Heagins captures the strength, dignity, and complexity of individuals often overlooked by society, raising profound questions about systemic neglect and the role of the artist in telling others’ stories.

Photo: Titus with his mentee Brittany Taylor.
Credit: American Public Television.

Diving into the story behind Janis Ian’s musical artistry, this documentary charts her beginnings as a precocious teenager who transforms into a groundbreaking voice in folk music and beyond.

American Masters – Janis Ian: Breaking Silence premieres Friday, June 20, 2025 at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streams on the WXXI app.

Featuring archival footage, animations, mood shots and new interviews, Janis Ian: Breaking Silence follows the artist’s life, showing how her politically active parents influenced her songwriting, particularly the song “Society’s Child,” which cemented her place as a stalwart in the folk genre. As Ian’s growing fame came with pressures to conform to the music industry’s expectations of young female artists and took an emotional toll on her, Ian continued to hone her craft and stay true to her evolving artistic voice. Her Grammy Award-winning record “At Seventeen” tapped into the pain of isolation, struggles with self-worth, and the angst of a generation, solidifying her as one of the most celebrated female songwriters of the 20th century. 

Along with her musical accomplishments spanning several decades, the film gives an intimate look into Ian’s relationships and her struggles to hide her sexual identity before coming out as a lesbian during the release of her 1993 album “Breaking Silence.” Janis Ian: Breaking Silence made its world premiere at the DOC NYC Festival in November 2024 and has a star-studded lineup of interviews including Lily Tomlin, Joan Baez, Arlo Guthrie, Jean Smart, Laurie Metcalf and more.

Photo: Janis Ian performing at the piano, 1976
Credit: Peter Cunningham

Created with executive producer Bradley Cooper, this film highlights the challenges and triumphs of caregiving in America.

Caregiving premieres Tuesday, June 24, 2025 at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streams live on the WXXI app.

Narrated by Award-winning actress Uzo Aduba, who share her own experience as a caregiver for her mother, this documentary interweaves the broader context of the cultural and economic conditions in the U.S., centered on the personal experiences of caregivers providing for loved ones, and the challenges and triumphs they face each day. Caregiving examines the historical and contemporary efforts to address this often unrecognized and rapidly increasing need, leading to a care system tipping into crisis.

The documentary will also repeat on Thursday, June 26 at 4 p.m. and Saturday, June 28 at 3 p.m. on WXXI-TV.

Photo: Caregiver Malcoma Brown-Ekeogu and her husband, Kenneth, dance on their wedding anniversary. Both are featured in Caregiving.
Credit: Ark Media

Take a wild ride through history as nostalgia and great cars combine in this uniquely American story of grit, innovation, and hard work.

The Last Independent Automaker airs Sunday, June 22 at 1 p.m. on WXXI-TV  and streaming live on the WXXI app.

The Last Independent Automaker is a documentary series featuring six half-hour episodes that detail the unlikely rise and tragic fall of American Motors Corporation (AMC). Through more than 40 exclusive interviews with CEOs, engineers, designers, salespeople, journalists, factory workers, and labor union members, the seres is a deep, unvarnished look at the inner workings of a car company. It traces AMC’s history through more than four decades and tells its story through hours of lost film archives combined with thousands of historic photographs and new 4K footage of gorgeous classic cars. Each episode focuses on a different period, weaving together the drama of a cutthroat industry packed with big personalities and iconic cars.

Photo: 1970 Pacer Clay Sculpters
Credit: APT