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DocuPicks: Discover Essential Documentaries for Social Justice

As a documentary filmmaker, research is everything. When I began developing my new series, A Few Mad Apples—which exposes the systemic roots of policing and family separation in Black communities—I realized how hard it was to find a single, reliable place to discover and compare essential documentaries on these topics. I needed a tool to help me research comparable films, understand their creative teams, and see where they were available to watch. That’s why I built DocuPicks.

Try DocuPicks: DocuPicks.com

Why I Built DocuPicks

While working on the project, I found myself constantly toggling between IMDb, streaming platforms, and scattered film lists, trying to answer questions like:

• What are the best documentaries on police reform and racial justice?

• Who directed and produced them?

• Where can I legally stream them?

• How have these films been received by critics and audiences?

There wasn’t a single app that did all of this—so I decided to start building one.

What is DocuPicks?

DocuPicks is a curated, React/TypeScript-powered platform designed to help filmmakers, researchers, educators, and activists discover the most relevant documentaries about racial justice, policing, and African American history in America. It’s more than just a list:

• Every film is validated for quality (IMDb rating ≥6.0) and relevance (genre, keywords).

• The app pulls detailed data from both TMDB and OMDB APIs, ensuring up-to-date streaming provider info, director and crew details, and more.

• If the APIs miss a classic, DocuPicks falls back to a hand-picked list of essential titles.

• You can instantly see where each film is available to stream in the US.

But a quick heads-up: DocuPicks is very much in its early “alpha” phase. That means you might run into missing features, incomplete data, or the occasional bug. I’m sharing it early because I want your feedback to help shape what it becomes!

How I Built It

• Frontend: React 18 + TypeScript for type safety and speed, styled with Material-UI for a modern, accessible interface. Vite powers fast development.

• Backend: AWS Amplify manages the infrastructure, with Lambda functions and API Gateway providing a robust REST API. DynamoDB stores curated film data for speed and scalability.

• CI/CD: Automated builds and deploys keep the app up-to-date.

• Theming: Both light and dark modes, inspired by IMDB Pro, for comfortable research day or night.

Why It Matters (and What’s Next)

DocuPicks started as a tool for my own documentary research, but it’s grown into something I hope will help other filmmakers, educators, and activists. As I continue developing A Few Mad Apples—and its companion podcast—I’ll be expanding DocuPicks to:

• Track more crew and director credits for pitch deck research.
• Add search and filtering by topic, director, or streaming service.
• Build out community features for sharing recommendations and reviews.

If you’re a documentary lover, researcher, or just curious about the stories shaping our world, I invite you to try DocuPicks and follow along as both the app and A Few Mad Apples evolve.

But I can’t do this alone! If you’re a documentary lover, researcher, educator, or just curious about the stories shaping our world, I’d love for you to try DocuPicks and let me know what you think. What features would make your research easier? What films or topics should be included? What would make DocuPicks truly useful for you?

Help Shape DocuPicks

This is a work in progress, and your feedback is invaluable. If you have ideas, suggestions, or just want to share what you’d love to see, please reach out! You can contact me directly through the site or drop your thoughts in the feedback form.
Let’s build the ultimate documentary discovery tool—together.

DocuPicks: Discover Essential Documentaries for Social Justice

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