A poetic exploration of mental health issues among creatives in communities on the African continent and in the diaspora, exploring myths, stigma and solutions through the personal stories of the characters.
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David Attenborough returns to the island of Madagascar on a very personal quest. In 1960 he visited the island to film one of his first ever wildlife series, Zoo Quest. Whilst he was there, he acquired a giant egg. It was the egg of an extinct bird known as the 'elephant bird' - the largest bird that ever lived. It has been one of his most treasured possessions ever since. Fifty years older, he now returns to the island to find out more about this amazing creature and to see how the island has changed. Could the elephant bird's fate provide lessons that may help protect Madagascar's remaining wildlife? Using Zoo Quest archive and specially shot location footage, this film follows David as he revisits scenes from his youth and meets people at the front line of wildlife protection. On his return, scientists at Oxford University are able to reveal for the first time how old David's egg actually is - and what that might tell us about the legendary elephant bird.
David Attenborough recounts his very personal experiences with the mountain gorillas of Rwanda. Ever since they were discovered over a century ago, these remarkable creatures have been threatened by loss of habitat, poaching, disease and political instability. But despite all odds their numbers have increased. David tells the extraordinary tale of how conservationists like Dian Fossey have battled to save the mountain gorilla from the brink of extinction.
Privilege is an intelligently conceived, boldly anarchic, and wickedly insightful exposition on the culturally ingrained and socially divisive malaise of isms that artificially define and characterize empowerment in contemporary society: ageism, sexism, economic elitism, and racism. Yvonne Rainer conveys texture through the intercutting of archival footage, video, and film - as well as compositional layering through the film-within-a-film structure, elliptical (and self-referential) fusion of past and present, and the filmmaker's idiosyncratic penchant for superimposed typed text.
Through a series of twenty six short stories, a girl describes the childhood events that shaped her ideas about fatherhood, family relations, work and play. As the stories unfold, a dual portrait emerges: that of a father who cared more for his career than for his family, and of a daughter who was deeply affected by his behavior. Working in counterpoint to the forceful text are sensual black and white images that depict both the extraordinary and ordinary events of daily life. Together, they create a formally complex and emotionally intense film.
Coverup: Behind the Iran Contra Affair is the third feature-length documentary produced by the Empowerment Project. The shadow government of assassins, arms dealers, drug smugglers, former CIA operatives and top US military personnel who were running foreign policy unaccountable to the public, revealing the Reagan/Bush administration's plan to use FEMA to institute martial law and ultimately suspend the Constitution. Strikingly relevant to current events.
The story of a pioneer, Germaine Le Goff (1891-1986). After World War I, the Breton teacher left Douarnenez for adventure, with a journey that led her to Senegal. In 1938, she founded and directed a teacher training college in Rufisque, near Dakar, the first for primary school teachers in Africa.
Like a road movie, the film accompanies a water delivery truck through the Brazilian landscapes of the Sertão region, plagued by drought. Between fiction and documentary, the driver’s trip bears witness to a determined population endeavouring to live out their daily lives, while the sterile words of politicians seem to soar over the arid lands. A collective portrait that respects the right distance.
The portrait of a community as they face their country's economic recession.
As described by Oliver Sykes, "The most offensive, vulgar, awkward, retarded band DVD of all time. But also the funniest and the best."
To celebrate Arena's 40th anniversary, a new film made entirely from its own archive, evoking the one experience common to all - the 24-hour cycle from dawn to dusk to dawn again.
Whether a veil of the soul, the mind or the body; the layers of the veil in history and the many meanings behind it will be revealed. 'Women are either judged for wearing the hijab or not wearing it' (the hijab refers to the head covering). In 'The Tainted Veil,' the challenges surrounding these ideas are exposed in a debate by diverse guests and extraordinary stories.
The actor and musician turns 65 on March 26, 2025. Time for a portrait. Axel Prahl is known to a wide audience for his role as Chief Inspector Frank Thiel in the popular “Tatort” series from Münster, a character he has embodied with gruff charm since 2002.
Documentary about the history of the Belgium-Congo route, made on the occasion of the thousandth flight.
A portrait of pianist Alfred Brendel performing and analysing Franz Schubert's final three sonatas.
Shot on location in Singapore, Japan, London, Paris, New York, Berlin and Amsterdam, artist and filmmaker Ang Sookoon takes us on an eye opening journey into the private lives of artists. Through candid conversations with fellow artists, these dialogues reveal the artists’ perspectives on the financial difficulties inherent in their unconventional career. In turn, together with Sookoon they question the current systems that govern an artist’s career and livelihood.
Follows filmmaker and actress, Maryam Zaree, on her quest to find out the violent circumstances surrounding her birth inside one of the most notorious political prisons in the world.
A look at the growing allure of Goth culture in England and the USA...on a boat.
This film tells the life story of Ziva Postec, emphasizing the period when she was editing Shoah from 350 hours of footage.
An independent documentary exploring the nature of identity, through the eyes of an adult trans-racial adoptee (Lucy Sheen). How being an adoptee affects and influences others like herself and what it means (if anything) to be both Chinese and British - if there is such a thing?
The film focuses on the light and shadow playing on the walls of the Castro Camera Store, a location in Gus Van Sant’s Milk. The soundtrack features Harvey Milk himself, shortly after his election to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977.
Musician and performance artist Laurie Anderson reflects on the deaths of her husband Lou Reed, her mother and her beloved dog.
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
A funny, intimate and heartbreaking portrait of one of the world’s most beloved and inventive comedians, Robin Williams, told largely through his own words. Celebrates what he brought to comedy and to the culture at large, from the wild days of late-1970s L.A. to his death in 2014.
The final word in the story of what really happened to Robin Williams at the end of his life, focusing on his fight against a deadly neurodegenerative disorder known as Lewy body dementia.
14-year-old Laura Dekker sets out on a two-year voyage in pursuit of her dream to become the youngest person ever to sail around the world alone.
Join former first lady Michelle Obama in an intimate documentary looking at her life, hopes and connection with others.
Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Brilliant, long in-the-works story of the life and art of the world's greatest comedian and the cinema's first genius, Charlie Chaplin. Produced, written and directed by renowned film critic Richard Schickel.
Filmmaker Christopher Quinn observes the ordeal of three Sudanese refugees -- Jon Bul Dau, Daniel Abul Pach and Panther Bior -- as they try to come to terms with the horrors they experienced in their homeland, while adjusting to their new lives in the United States.
This revealing documentary honors the legendary Sidney Poitier—iconic actor, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. Featuring interviews with Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Halle Berry, and more.
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
Her rise was a global phenomenon. Her downfall was a cruel national sport. People close to Britney Spears and lawyers tied to her conservatorship now reassess her career as she battles her father in court over who should control her life.
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
Alexander McQueen's rags-to-riches story is a modern-day fairy tale, laced with the gothic. Mirroring the savage beauty, boldness and vivacity of his design, this documentary is an intimate revelation of McQueen's own world, both tortured and inspired, which celebrates a radical and mesmerizing genius of profound influence.
In candid conversations with actor Jonah Hill, leading psychiatrist Phil Stutz explores his early life experiences and unique, visual model of therapy.
Using the book 'Fragments', which collects Marilyn Monroe's poems, notes and letters, and with participation from the Arthur Miller and Truman Capote estates who have contributed more material, each of the actresses will embody the legend at various stages in her life.
Just two years away from turning 30, participants in Michael Apted's documentary series are facing serious questions of identity and purpose, wondering whether they've found their place in the world.
When Allied forces liberated the Nazi concentration camps in 1944-45, their terrible discoveries were recorded by army and newsreel cameramen, revealing for the first time the full horror of what had happened. Making use of British, Soviet and American footage, the Ministry of Information’s Sidney Bernstein (later founder of Granada Television) aimed to create a documentary that would provide lasting, undeniable evidence of the Nazis’ unspeakable crimes. He commissioned a wealth of British talent, including editor Stewart McAllister, writer and future cabinet minister Richard Crossman – and, as treatment advisor, his friend Alfred Hitchcock. Yet, despite initial support from the British and US Governments, the film was shelved, and only now, 70 years on, has it been restored and completed by Imperial War Museums under its original title "German Concentration Camps Factual Survey".
A paralysingly beautiful documentary with a global vision—an odyssey through landscape and time—that attempts to capture the essence of life.