Explore the top film-producing nations in this interactive feature. Click on a country to learn about its film industry.

Below, read a Q&A on the growth of the Nigerian film industry.

* Data courtesy of the U.N. and UNESCO. Read more.

Jamie Meltzer, director of the documentary “Welcome to Nollywood,” joins Worldfocus to discuss Nigeria’s blooming film industry.

Watch a clip from the film, in which Nigerians discuss the rise of Nollywood:

Worldfocus: Films from so-called “Bollywood” and “Hollywood” often have distinct styles or themes. Is this true of “Nollywood” as well? Are particular styles/themes/genres popular?

Jamie Meltzer: Well, the interesting thing about Nollywood is that the genres and style keep evolving. It’s a very young industry (15 years or so), so there is no prototypical Nollywood film or genre. At first, films depicting cults and occult activity were popular, and an explosion of those kinds of films flooded the market, and then interest died down due to overexposure. Then, “epic” films — period films about tribes and West African history — were popular, and then the market was flooded, then interested waned…then love films, then action films. It is always in flux.

Worldfocus: How do the production and distribution of films in Nigeria differ from the U.S.?

Meltzer: Very different. Nigeria has the first all-digital film industry — all films are shot, edited and distributed through digital means. This is an industry that exists because of the democratizing effects of technology — cheaper and better video cameras and desktop editing systems allowed this industry to start and thrive. The productions are generally done on the cheap ($20,000 - 60,000 U.S.) and put out quite quickly. They are distributed through home video — DVDs and VCDs — through markets throughout Lagos and Nigeria. For a number of reasons, theaters aren’t popular in Nigeria, so people watch these at home mostly.

Worldfocus: Can you describe the culture surrounding movies?

Meltzer: There is a strong celebrity culture — a few stars that are known throughout the country and that are immensely popular and command large salaries. People love to discuss the films, and I found that they provide a real service to those in the diaspora, linking them to their home culture in a profound way. You can find Nigerian films in African and West African markets across the world. They have also spawned a host of imitators in other African countries, which is great because the success of Nollywood is pushing other nations and cultures to get into the act of making films by, for, and about themselves — a real antidote to the monoculture that often results from the disproportionate impact of American pop culture and Hollywood.

Worldfocus: As the U.S. film industry wrestles with the Internet and other changes, what challenges is the Nigerian film industry facing right now and what future do you envision for it?

Meltzer: As an all-digital industry, Nollywood is ahead of the U.S. in many respects, and even though most people in Nigeria have Internet access — though Internet cafes, etc. — there isn’t much of an online viewership for Nollywood, but maybe that will change.

- Katie Combs

Cosplay, short for “costume roleplay.”

Hsin-Yin Lee, a former associate producer for Worldfocus, is now an international news editor at a Chinese newspaper.

To save some money for the Japanese people, Yukio Hatoyama, the new Prime Minister of Japan, has made a decisive cut that might break many comic fans’ hearts.

One month after beating the long-governing Liberal Democratic Party, Hatoyama vowed to end extravagancy by rolling back several policies implemented by Japan’s former leader, Taro Aso. For example, Hatoyama abolished one of Aso’s most ambitious plans — the establishment of the “National Center for Media Arts,” a $32 million-budget museum that demonstrates art forms such as manga and animation.

Yukio Hatoyama said Aso’s idea about the museum is naive, calling it a “giant manga cafe.”

Aso is well-known for his zeal for manga, the Japanese term for comic books. When he studied in Stanford, he had his family send manga magazines from Japan. In 2003, he described reading up to 20 manga magazines every week, and complained that his work had prevented him from reading more.

However, not many people appreciate his passion. Even the animation guru Hayao Miyazaki, director of the Oscar winner “Spirited Away,” told Aso to “keep his interest personal.”

Miyazaki said in a press conference that Aso’s manga propaganda is the “great shame of Japan.”

But before you make any judgment about Aso, consider this:

According to research, manga constituted an annual $3.6 billion publication-industry in Japan by 2007 — and it is still expanding rapidly to the global market, as distributing companies license and reprint manga in various languages.

Real manga fans not only read manga — they practice it. These people build up discussion groups, hold cosplays and publish their amateur comic works. Wandering between the imaginary world and the real life is truly a cherished lifestyle for many.

If you go to Harajuku or Akihabara, the pop-culture capitals in Japan, you would understand such philosophy. There are so many people — young and old, male and female (sometimes with their pets) — simply dressing and acting like manga characters. Unlike New York’s Halloween parade, these year-round carnivals are taken seriously by manga followers. And once you witness the spectacle, it is hard not to get shaken.

Leaving the politics aside, I do feel sorry for Aso and his museum. After all, at this gloomy time, holding on to one’s passion would be blissful.

- Hsin-Yin Lee

Photo courtesy of Flickr user ehnmark under a Creative Commons license.

In this extended interview — recorded in May, prior to the crackdown following the disputed election — Iranian students discuss how they bypass filters to find music and films, both online and in shops on the streets. They also share their ambivalence about the prevalence of Western popular culture in Iran.

The other day, my friends and I were having a serious discussion: Should we spend our money on “Final Destination 4” or “The Founding of a Republic,” a Chinese film that commemorates the 60th anniversary of China’s Communist revolution?

While struggling between Hollywood sensation and Beijing propaganda seems a little awkward, I did find something interesting when I examined the movie reviews for “The Founding of a Republic.”

Watch the trailer of “The Founding of a Republic”:

This state-funded movie is magnificent in many ways, and here is why:

The two-hour film is clogged up with 176 famous movie stars, including some Hollywood faces like Jackie Chen, Jet Li and Zhang Ziyi. Many of them volunteered for cameo appearances, only to deliver a few words, which helped keep the budget under $9.6 million.

The cast traveled to 90 settings across mainland China, with eight directors working one after another to put the scenes together.

And to get the job done, it took only 120 days.

Such efforts have inspired many people. Chinese blogger “Yu In” urged on CRI, an online news portal, “Let this movie go to the Oscars!”

“Do you think Hollywood could get so many superstars for [...] Independence Day?” she doubted. “Only China can achieve this “mission impossible.’”

Probably too agitated by patriotism, some people are “hugely disgusted” by those movie stars who hold American passports.

Blogger “Crystal” asked on Sina.com, another popular portal site, “Why are there so many ‘foreigners’ appearing in our movie?” She said that she felt “ashamed and embarrassed.”

It is true that for many Chinese, disregarding where you are from suggests that you are a bastard. And once you abandon your nationality, there is no way back.

However, as Taiwanese, my friends and I don’t even know if we abandoned Communist China or if it abandoned us. “The Founding of a Republic” might give us some clue — but perhaps “Final Destination 4″ might be more substantial.

My friends and I haven’t decided which one to watch. Still, it’s a nice thing to know that there is so much a movie can reveal.

- Hsin Yin Lee

The Worldfocus signature story “Iranian authorities can’t stop flood of Western culture” explores Iran’s thriving popular culture and the government’s futile attempts to control what Iranian citizens see and hear.

Worldfocus producer Rebecca Haggerty spoke via Skype with Iranian film scholar Negar Mottahedeh, an associate professor of literature and women’s studies at Duke University. She discusses the evolution of Iranian cinema and the impact of the 1979 revolution on the industry, arguing that in adapting to government restraints, Iranian directors have introduced a “whole new language” to world cinema.

Watch a clip from an early Iranian film, “Lor Girl” — the first with sound ever to be produced in the Persian language. In the film, which was made in the early 1930s, a girl is kidnapped by thieves:

Watch a clip from a more modern Iranian film, “Char Changule,” a comedy about a pair of conjoined twins — one devout, the other a party animal:

Worldfocus special correspondent Martin Himel reports from Israel.

For more:

• Read Martin Himel’s blog: Heroes, Hollywood and making it through the day
• Read commentary from a Jerusalem film scholar: Israeli cinema: Growing up

The Worldfocus signature story “Israeli films explore realities of warfare, faith” explores the themes of Israeli cinema. Amy Kronish is an author living in Jerusalem. She lectures on a variety of subjects dealing with film and has written two books on Israeli cinema. She blogs at Israeli Film and Filmmakers.

Israeli films and filmmakers have been enjoying a tremendous amount of recognition all over the world during these last 10-15 years. A government increase in funding for filmmaking combined with the establishment of commercial TV have encouraged the growth and development of the industry, leading to a dramatic change in the quantity and quality of the feature films being produced. The aesthetics of these high-quality, self-critical films, which are characterized by multifaceted and complex scripts, reflecting a wide diversity of style and substance, are what makes Israeli film so interesting today.

Like Israeli literature, and Israel itself, the country’s cinema has been moving away from the overriding political and ideological issues of existence such as war, heroism and ideology, which were part and parcel of the state-in-the-making of the past 60 years. Instead, during the last 10-15 years, Israeli filmmakers have turned their cameras to personal, humanistic stories — of love, loss and relationships — and social issues, such as feminism and homosexuality, ethnic assimilation and social alienation. These new themes can be seen not in opposition to the political, but rather in adding complexity and humanity to the political. In addition, the camera has become focused on a new subject — the Palestinian Arab minority within the State of Israel – the relationship to this minority, their issues and culture, and their historical narrative. From decades of stereotypical heroic images to more complex yet individualistic ones, Israeli cinema continues to evolve, confronting both the critical collective and personal existential dilemmas which are in the consciousness of the people of Israel today.

Not surprisingly, however, Israelis flock to see Hollywood films, as do filmgoers everywhere. How do we reconcile these two, but very different, forms of popular cinema? We go to see Hollywood films out of a desire for good entertainment mixed with a need for escapism, and we go to see locally produced films that help us grapple with contemporary issues, relive historical trauma, and consider societal trends in a self-critical manner.

Take for example two award-winning films produced in 2009 – Ajami, directed by Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, deals with contemporary issues and Lebanon, directed by Shmuel Maoz, brings the viewer to almost experience the horror of wartime. Ajami, which won special mention at Cannes and recently won the Israeli Ophir Award for best feature film of 2009, is about issues of identity, crime, drugs, and the violence and desperation of life in the Israeli Arab neighborhood of Jaffa. Constructed in the style of Pulp Fiction, the narrative moves back and forth in time, until all the plot lines intertwine.

During the last few years, we have seen major award-winning films about the war in Lebanon which lasted from 1982 to 2000 – Beaufort (Joseph Cedar), Waltz with Bashir (Ori Folman), and a few earlier films. All of these films illustrate a move in Israeli society from the heroism of the earlier periods to a new understanding of the complexity and futility of war. This year’s big prize winner at the Venice Film Festival, Lebanon, takes place completely within the claustrophobic confines of a tank and the viewer cringes each time he hears the clanking as the turret turns and as soldiers slam closed the opening.

Israeli society has matured and the recent films are a reflection of this new maturity. The films have become complex and the images portrayed are diverse and multifaceted. No longer are women marginalized, nor are ethnic characters portrayed as stereotypes or Arab characters seen as one-dimensional figures. On the contrary, the films portray quirky, in-depth and varied characters, all grappling with issues of contemporary society. Although the films still deal with existential issues of war and peace, Jews and Arabs, and are panoramic in their scope, they are emotional and intimate in their glimpse at real and everyday life in contemporary Israel.

These films deal with issues in a more complex and humanistic way, integrating elements of gender, societal alienation, and social issues. Creating films that are both particularistic and universal at the same time, these films are still uniquely Israeli yet also speak to an international audience.

Watch a trailer of Ajami, a film made by an Israeli and Palestinian.

Watch a trailer of Waltzing with Bashir, the Israeli film nominated for an Academy Award.

Felice Friedson of Worldfocus partner The Media Line reports from Jerusalem.

Saudi Arabia’s “guardianship” system requires women to receive permission from their husbands to perform a host of daily activities.

Women in Saudi Arabia often face discrimination and violence, and the country’s “guardianship” system requires women to receive permission from their husbands to perform a host of daily activities.

Women also face obstacles when trying to obtain divorces. Islam allows men to have up to four wives at a time. A Worldfocus contributing blogger at the “American Bedu” blog speaks with a divorced Saudi woman now living in the United States for her perspective on polygamy.

Q: Your mother was a second wife. What was that like for you growing up? Did you and your siblings have any contact with your father’s first wife and children?

A: Yes, my mother was the second wife. We stayed in a different house, but same area, so I met Khala’s children regularly; also we go to school together. They are same as my brothers. We didn’t have much contact with Khala except when we went on trips or Eid’s or marriages. My step-siblings also came to my house with father sometimes. But my mother and Khala don’t talk much to each other. It was like any other family, I guess, except that my father had two wives.

Q: In your view, how accepting was your mother of being a second wife?

A: My father is from a well-known family. He was in a good position so when his sister/mom approached my mother’s father, they agreed, she has no choice. This is what I hear from her. She is sad always but initially, she says, it’s tough and then she adjusted by praying a lot and accepting that it’s only Allah’s wish. She always told me never to become anyone’s second wife.

Q: Because your father had two wives, two families, do you feel this impacted on the amount and quality of time he spent with you?

A: Father was busy so he didn’t spend [time] with us children too much except maybe vacations and holidays, on a daily basis our mother only took care of us a lot. I wish he had only one family, some days he comes home, but [the majority of time] he spent in Khala’s house as that’s where my grandmother also stays. So yes, we missed him a lot. So many days we were alone and to be fair so many days Khala and my step-siblings were alone. I sometimes felt why have a father when he’s there only 50 percent at best.

Q: Growing up as a child of polygamy, how did it affect your own views of marriage? And what about your siblings, did any of them also elect to have polygamous marriages?

A: I know Islam permits having four wives, but I wish it were not so. I have seen my mother suffer and I have suffered; my mother was not very happy with her married life. When she was young she said she had dreams of marriage and they were all gone. I did not want to accept polygamy in my marriage but again Allah has his plans for us. One of my brother[s] and one step-brother has two wives. The others all have only one family. I wanted to put in my marriage contract that I did not want a co-wife but that did not happen.

Q: [...] Tell us about your marriage. Was it arranged?

A: Yes, I had big dreams of studying to become a doctor, but that was not to happen. We got a proposal from a well-known family and my father does business with them also so it was arranged. I [told] my father I wanted to finish university and do some more studies, but he refused. I wanted to contact my two brothers — we were very close — but I couldn’t and they were not told also (since they both lived outside the country). My mother told me it is best not to go against the wishes of my father. [...]

Q: What can you share about your own personal experience and feelings when your husband chose to take a second wife?

A: I was broken. WeIl, I could not accept that happily — all my life I did not want that one thing in my marriage and it had to happen to me. We were married for such a short time and he said he fell in love with her and wanted to marry her. If I could I would have left the marriage. I could not agree to polygamy and that’s when the abuse started. I wish I had the courage then to stand up to him, but there are no options, everyone tells you to work it out and accepts Allah’s will , but it was hard, his family knew how I felt yet they never saw my side, we had arguments about polygamy, his rights, Islam etc., and then always it would end with it being permitted in Islam and my disobedience and hitting. I did everything he asked just I couldn’t get to accept a co-wife. I prayed and I was no one to deny him his right but my heart did not agree. But he married again and she came to live with us. I cried to my brothers here and mom but unfortunately he had taken a second wife by then and they told me to pray and try to be a good wife, but did not support me.

Q: Was it easy to get away from your husband and obtain a divorce?

A: No, it was very hard. I don’t wish it on anyone. I was afraid to tell anyone about the abuse for the shame; I was not permitted to go on my own. Even if I did where could I go. Luckily my step-brother and his family had moved to Riyadh and he heard about my marriage from Khala (I thank her for that). My father had suffered a stroke by then. My brother came to see me one day and saw my face all swollen –- my husband always never hits on my face but happened that time. [He] yelled at my husband, I think it was the first time a woman has questioned him and his faith [...] my brother simply told my husband that he will take me to stay with them and in [the] future my ex-husband will have to deal with him. This caused such a bad rift in our family to this day we are all not one. After that it was a nightmare; I don’t know where to begin or end, but my other brother came from England and together they both paid a large amount of money and got me a divorce and also [a] visa to another country where my aunt/uncle stayed. From there I came to the U.S. and have since settled here.

For more, see the “American Bedu” blog.

The views expressed by contributing bloggers do not reflect the views of Worldfocus or its partners.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user letsbook under a Creative Commons license.

Indian netizens are mourning the passing of an Internet comic heroine, weeks after the country’s Ministry of Telecommunications banned this contemporary take on Kama Sutra for violating public decency.

Savita Bhabhi was a curvaceous and promiscuous young woman, whose sexual adventures won over 60 million online erotica fans per month — in India and abroad.

The intro to Savita Bhabhi’s first episode, “Bra Salesman.”

Having gained a following of over 200,000 Internet viewers per day and 30,000 e-mail subscribers, Savita Bhabhi’s tendency to shed her sari represented a dramatic departure from traditional norms of Indian sexuality. Though a mere animated online character, Savita Bhabhi’s viewers faithfully watched her pornographic cartoon sequences — published in 10 Indian languages and in English — for its racy content and explorations of infidelity.

Indian left-leaning newsweekly magazine Tehelka praised the comic for its ability to “poke fun at the coy Indian attitude towards sexuality.” An editorial titled Bhabhi Anticlimax derided the government’s decision:

A PROMISCUOUS BHABHI is the latest threat to the sovereignty of our nation — that’s what our government would have us believe. Not the real life ones (we’ll pretend those don’t exist) but a wanton cartoon caricature so raunchy, she might be too real for the IT ministry’s comfort. They had to ban her.

“Bhabhi” is the Hindi term for “sister-in-law” but more closely connotes the American slang term “MILF” in this context. The cartoon, which has 12 episodes that ran in less than a year, is an escape from the sexual repression of Indian middle-class life. The last episode, “College Girl Savvil,” was released on July 1.

The assertive and well-endowed seductress — whose response to the global recession was a menage-a-trois with her female co-worker and boss — clashed with India’s anti-pornography laws. The creator of the Savita Bhabhi series initially went by the names “Deshmukh” and “Indian Porn Empire.” But 38-year-old British-Indian businessman Puneet Agarwal emerged as the creator of the trailblazing cartoon, which combines Hindu religious mythology with modern sexual sensibilities.

In response to the Indian government’s June 3 order for India Internet service providers to block the site, Agarwal’s Save Savita campaign attracted the attention of millions. Indian dailies have been running headlines pleading the public to file Right to Information complaints that would reverse the unpopular ban on Savita Bhabhi.

But since last week, when Agarwal capitulated due to personal reasons, the Indian blogosphere has been awash in RIP notices and eulogies for the toon porn star with a ravenous appetite for misadventures with milk men, old lovers and cricket stars.

During my nine months of research in Mumbai, I did not see much libertine expression of sexuality — despite living in a relatively liberal and upscale area of India’s most cosmopolitan city. But in speaking with some of my Mumbai friends recently, I realized that Savita Bhabhi threatens Indian sensibility.

“Her sexual escapades have brought about a lot of curiousity among readers who get a kick out of reading Savita in action,” said Pritesh Jethwani, a stockbroker in Mumbai who confirmed that the block prevents him from viewing Savita’s online exploits. “I think the cartoon is trashy. But from a democratic point of view, I oppose the ban.”

With women’s liberation activists also unhappy about the government ban, conservative forces in India revel in the triumph of traditional values. No longer will Indian sexual hypocrisies be exposed to Internet voyeurs in such a public forum — unless Savita’s programmers create proxy sites that allow Indian viewers to dodge the ban.

- Ben Piven

Jon Jensen and Theodore May of Worldfocus partner GlobalPost report from Egypt.

Jon Jensen of Worldfocus partner GlobalPost reports on what may be one of the world’s ultimate yard sales.

Have your own memory of Michael Jackson? Share it in the comments section below.

A Hungarian schoolboy.

By 1990, it was no longer compulsory to learn Russian in Hungary. Students celebrated, no longer forced to learn the “language of oppression.” But fast-forward to 2009, and Hungary may be facing a foreign language gap — a 2004 study showed fewer Hungarians spoke second languages than almost any other country in Europe, except Britain. 

Eva S. Balogh is a Hungarian academic and blogger who writes at “Hungarian Spectrum” about the state of language education in her country. 

Learning a language in Hungary

The teaching of foreign languages in Hungarian schools is bad. Very, very bad. As far back as I can remember it was bad. Although my father in the early part of the twentieth century managed to learn German and French quite well in gymnasium, by the time I got to gymnasium it was a hopeless proposition.

Let me recount my own tortuous linguistic journey. Aside from being enrolled in a so-called German-language kindergarten where we learned no German whatsoever, I started studying French in grade five. [...] Although the parochial school I attended was run by a French order (Notre Dame), out of the four parallel classes they taught German in three and French in only one.

Our French teacher by Hungarian standards wasn’t even half bad. The fact that she was a nun stood her in good stead in mastering a foreign language. Because she majored in French she was sent by the order to a French university for a couple of years. So she could at least speak the language tolerably well. However, the class focused on reading and writing, with virtually no conversation. So after three years of French I switched to Russian. That was an interesting experience. I don’t think our teacher knew more Russian than we did. I.e. zero. She was at best a couple of lessons ahead of us. Not surprisingly we learned practically nothing by the end of the year.

[...]With the change of regime Russian was no longer a compulsory language. So students rushed to English, German, and French classes. But who were their teachers? The former Russian teachers who tried to learn English, German, or French with the same poor results as the German and French teachers who had earlier tried to learn Russian.

Today, aside from the lack of experienced teachers, the problem seems to be the same as in earlier times. Students don’t learn to communicate in a foreign language; they can neither speak nor comprehend. They are in the same boat as the Hungarian students who were trying to converse with the Russian soldiers in 1956.

Some people have tried to explain Hungarian deficiencies in learning a foreign language by pointing out that Hungarian is not an Indo-European language and therefore Hungarian speakers find it harder to learn a western language. This is hogwash. Finns manage; the percentage of Finns speaking one or two foreign languages is among the highest in Europe. Moreover, Hungarians find it easier to learn a western language than to learn Finnish whose grammatical structure is very similar to Hungarian. 

To read more, see the original post.

The views expressed by contributing bloggers do not reflect the views of Worldfocus or its partners.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user Jo Peattie under a Creative Commons license.

Women don jelabas in Morocco. See more photos from producer Rebecca Haggerty below.

Worldfocus producer Rebecca Haggerty is currently reporting from Morocco and explores the meaning behind the country’s clothing, from tight jeans to heavy headscarves.

Everywhere I travel, I check out what people wear.

Goth kids in Mexico City, in solidarity with mopey teenagers worldwide, stick to a uniform of skinny pencil leg jeans and abundant black eyeliner. French Canadians of a certain age protect their footwear from wintery slush with sensible rubber galoshes, whose design hasn’t changed since I was a child. Young Finnish women, bucking the global trend of revering blondeness, have a marked affinity for dark brown hair dye.

Here in Morocco, the traditional outfit for both men and women is a long-hooded caftan called a jelaba. Men pull up their hoods and stroll city streets with their hands clasped behind their backs. The deliberate pace, combined with the vaguely medieval silhouette, makes nearly all jelaba-wearing Moroccan men look like they’re contemplating weighty philosophical issues — even if they’re just headed to the store to buy milk.

After Worldfocus’ excellent story last year on women in Egypt choosing to wear the hijab –- the Islamic headscarf — I was looking forward to checking out Moroccan attire. I saw plenty of variety. On the streets of Casablanca, young women with tight jeans, hip sunglasses, and big hair jostled old-school grannies in jelabas and leteh, the traditional Moroccan veil that covers the mouth and cheeks.

Students wore the hijab along with form-fitting jeans and bright sweaters, and I spotted a very sharp pair of leopard-skin mules paired with an olive-green tunic and a black head scarf –- proof that stylish women can adapt to pretty much anything culture throws their way. Most chose a pretty embroidered jelaba in a range of colors and added a coordinating hijab, although plenty left off any head covering at all.

Occasionally, I came across women wearing outfits of flowing head-to-toe black drapes and heavy veils. A Moroccan journalist told me it was called a nakob, and was worn by followers of the fundamentalist Wahabist school of Islam from Saudi Arabia. The black-clad figures contrasted starkly with the vivid colors of Morocco, with its intricately tiled mosques and exuberant jumbles of red and yellow hibiscus blossoms.

They also served as a reminder that everywhere in the world, clothes carry a meaning far beyond their simple elements of thread and cloth.

- Rebecca Haggerty

Watch for Worldfocus’ series from Morocco in the coming weeks.

Worldfocus special correspondent Kristen Gillespie ventures through Lebanon’s vineyards.

Below, she blogs about her experience in the field.

From the Field

Let’s be up front about it: this story is unapologetically biased. I love Lebanese wine.

Putting together this story wasn’t exactly a hardship assignment. There are so many excellent producers in Lebanon, but I chose Chateau Belle-Vue because Naji and Jill Boutros represent a new generation of winemakers. It’s not just about the product — they are creating meaningful social change in their village while producing organically grown, award-winning wines. Jill made sure we had tasted plenty of samples from the oak barrels, which is where the wine from each specific grape variety lies for two years until it is blended to create a new vintage.

Chateau Ksara is one of Lebanon’s oldest producers, and aside from the consistent quality of their wines, the miles of mysterious, Roman-era subterranean tunnels fuel speculation as to what they were used for. Ksara graciously opened their doors, and their wine cellars, for us to film.

Another top producer not to be missed is Chateau Kefraya, which produces a reliably crisp Blanc de Blanc for about $6. For travelers to Lebanon, it’s available, along with many others, at Beirut’s airport.

Sahtain! (Cheers!)

- Kristen Gillespie

While producing the the signature series “Liberia’s Long Road Back,” Worldfocus producer Megan Thompson had a chance to witness the holiday at a cemetery in Monrovia.

“Freedom of the moment:” An Estonian boy cries out at the apex of a climbing tower in Tallinn. Photo: Ara Ayer

Symbols of ethnic pride abound in the Baltics. Whether it’s Riga’s Freedom Statue, Vilnius’ Gediminas Castle or a little boy exalting on a climbing tower in Tallinn, no definitive monument stands to represent the ongoing struggle for independence in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

The Baltic states may have traded membership in the former Soviet Union for entry into the European Union and NATO, but they struggle to maintain their separate identities. That they exist at all is a testament to the fortitude of their people. Before the Soviet onslaught, empires of Poland, Prussia, Russia and Scandinavia all tried to incorporate one or more of the Baltic states.

Possessing a prized coastline — an approximate collective land mass of two West Virginias, Vermont and New Hampshire, with a population less than New York City — the Baltic states remain vulnerable. Producing stories with Worldfocus colleague Sally Garner, I found each country has different approaches to self-preservation.

Up until the global economic downturn, Latvia had the fastest growing economy in Europe. It quickly shed its communist past and looked for security and success in the credit and economic structures of the West. Yet rather than providing safety and sustainable growth, Western banking policies and an awakened Latvian consumerism exposed the country to excessive risk.

Now, Latvia teeters toward bankruptcy. Street protests, government instability and rising unemployment are the hallmarks of a once-proud nation. In our reporting, we spoke with a Latvian on the brink of losing his job. He said Latvia is failing because it forgot itself, its strengths and limitations, in the headlong rush to become part of Europe. Disenchanted with a dream deferred, he says he’ll join thousands of his countrymen leaving Latvia for a better life. With over 40 percent of Latvians being of Russian, Ukrainian, Belorussian and Polish descent, the loss of every ethnic Latvian puts the country in a quandary.

Lithuania and Estonia are in better shape economically, but not by much. The Lithuanian government is investing in language, specifically Lithuanian, to help preserve its national identity. Lithuanian is the official and sole language in matters of law, commerce, government and public life. If you are Lithuanian and speak Russian, Polish or German, check your ancestry at the door.

The Lithuanian government has empowered a language police corps to yank down foreign language street signs, correct publications and catch the nation’s newscasters in Lithuanian pronunciation and grammar mistakes. One wonders if such forced obedience will play out in a multilingual world. But then again, they aren’t trying to save the world — just Lithuania.

Estonia by and large is the most technologically-evolved of the trio. The country has placed its future in the digital age by building a “state of the art” civic Internet service. Via computer and phone, one can view everything, from a child’s report card to a live press briefing from the Estonian prime minister. A specially-encrypted Estonian identification card with an embedded digital signature allows Estonians to securely authenticate legal documents, vote, even pay for parking — all online. Estonians believe such Internet access makes for transparent government, responsible citizenry and better business — touchstones of resiliency in uncertain times.

No one can fault these small countries in their ongoing attempts to ensure their existence. Possibly the most important thing each is doing to protect themselves is participate in NATO, United Nations and U.S. coalition military missions. All sent combat troops to Iraq and all are continuing to send troops to Afghanistan. Though their collective deployment has never exceeded 2,000 troops per mission, their commitment to building modern armies and strengthening their ties with NATO cannot be questioned.

The reemergence of Russia as a world power has the Baltics — people, politicians and military men — on edge. Speaking softly but carrying a NATO membership may be the best defense and innovation in preserving Baltic identity and integrity yet.

- Ara Ayer

A sign outside a restaurant in Madrid says “Here, you can smoke.”

In 2006, Spain banned smoking in offices, hospitals, schools and enclosed spaces. Worldfocus correspondent Martin Seemungal is currently reporting from Spain. He writes that three years after the law banned smoking, the air is still thick with smoke.

Spain — a nice place to visit and a great place to live.

That’s certainly the impression you get speaking to just about anyone who has ever been here. They talk about the food, the wine, the weather, the friendly people and the atmosphere.

All that is true. But there’s one little tidbit of information they seem to have left out: The smoke.

Amid great national debate, Spain “imposed” a smoking ban three years ago. You’d never know it. Traveling around in Barcelona, Valencia and down in Andalusia, it’s not easy finding a smoke-free environment to eat in. As far as I can tell, virtually all the bars and cafés are smoke-filled, not smoke-free.

As it turns out, it’s the law’s fault. It gives restaurant and bar/café owners an option. They can, if they wish, declare their establishment “smoke-free.”  Or, they can put up a sign making it clear that “smoking is permitted.”

Of course, they have to clearly demarcate smoking and non-smoking sections, but in tiny Barcelona cafés — in winter, with the doors and window shut — it makes no difference.

I travel a lot, and in recent months my travels have taken me to France, Belgium, Germany, and Italy. I have never had to leave a place because a smoker “lit up” next to me, or walk in only to have to turn around and walk out again because of thick cigarette smoke. In Spain, I spent nearly an hour once trying to find a smoke free place to eat.

I believe there may well be more smokers in Spain than anywhere in the world. That’s certainly the way it seems. And they’re not all Spanish: I listen intently to the accents and have heard those of many different nationalities, many of them from European countries with strict smoking laws.

Of course, this is all very serious to organizations like Spain’s National Committee for the Prevention of Tobacco Addiction. It has released figures which underscore the impotence of the smoking ban. In the three years since the “ban” came into place, the number of adult smokers in Spain is pretty much the same — it’s gone from 24.2 percent to 24.1 percent.

The number of smoking-related deaths is also incredibly high at 50,000 every year. Given the way things are going in sunny Spain, that seems unlikely to change.

- Martin Seemungal

Watch for Worldfocus’ upcoming series on Spain in the coming weeks.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user DavidDennisPhotos.com under a Creative Commons license.

Pablo Armando Fernandez studied English literature in New York and returned to Cuba after the success of the 1959 revolution. An author of novels and poetry, he found his work celebrated, though it was banned for 10 years. Fernandez shares some thoughts on the revolution and Fidel Castro and recites one of his poems. This video was produced by Peter Eisner, shot by Ara Ayer, and edited by Bijan Rezvani.