Last week, the film China Blue was online for FREE helping to mark the 20th anniversary of the Independent Television Service (ITVS), one of the largest sources of funding for independent filmmakers. In recognition of this milestone, ITVS has launched the ITVS Indies Showcase, a free online film festival running from July 25 to September 23, 2011 in honor of the extraordinary contributions of independent filmmakers to public television. The next few days, they are showing the documentary “Please Vote for Me.” Here’s more about the film:

Is democracy a universal value that suits human nature? Do elections inevitably lead to manipulation? Please Vote for Me is a portrait of a society and a town in through a school, its children and its families.

Wuhan is a city about the size of London located in central China. It is here that director Weijun Chen has conducted an experiment in democracy. A Grade 3 class at Evergreen Primary School has their first encounter with democracy by holding an election to select a Class Monitor. Eight-year-olds compete against each other for the coveted position, abetted and egged on by teachers and doting parents.

Elections in China take place only within the Communist Party, but recently millions of Chinese voted in their version of Pop Idol. The purpose of Weijun Chen’s experiment is to determine how democracy would be received if it came to China.

You can watch this free online screening Thursday, August 18 – Saturday, August 20, 2011 here.

Here’s more films on China: Xmas without China, Young & Restless in China, and Made In China: The People’s Republic of Profit

Please Vote for Me documentary trailer