Documentary shot in 14 different dancing rooms, showing the variety of genres, styles e social groups in the São Paulo city.
Social & External
This revealing documentary from director Philippe Kohly examines the storied life of renowned soprano Maria Callas, from her troubled childhood in New York City to her scandal-laden but triumphant international career in opera. Featuring archival interviews with Callas herself and footage of contemporaries such as her lover Aristotle Onassis, this celebration of "La Divina" pays tribute to her enduring legacy some three decades after her death.
This story began with a blind, bull elephant called Pla-Ra. Paul Barton took his piano to ElephantsWorld, a Sanctuary on the banks of the River Kwai in Thailand and began playing to the elephants while they were eating. "They were all having Barna Grass and it was that time of the day, when the elephants get to eat a lot and they don't waste a moment because they know that moment won't last forever," Paul recalls. "Pla-Ra was behind the piano with a mouthful of barna grass and I started to play Beethoven. Pla-Ra was chewing, and as soon as I played the first chords, he stopped eating with stalks of Barna grass protruding from each side of his mouth, and that's the way he stayed until the end of the piece." "Each time I played music for Pla-Ra, whether flute or piano, there was an identical reaction. Pla-Ra would stand for a while, and then he would curl his trunk and hold his trunk in his mouth until the piece was over. No matter how long that piece was, he would stay like that." ...
Cássia Eller Rejane. Cássia Eller. Cássia. A powerful restless force on stage, shined herself out of it. One of the greats of Brazilian music, Cássia Eller marked the 1990s and shocked the country with her early death in 2001. A film about the singer, the mother, the woman who exposed her personal life and broke barriers, leaving a beautiful social and artistic legacy.
The film chronicles Nina Simone's journey from child piano prodigy to iconic musician and passionate activist, told in her own words.
During the unique world tour of the RCO celebrating its jubilee in 2013 we meet musicians and concertgoers. The tour develops not just into a journey across the globe but also as a trip to the core of classical music, a quest for the palette of emotions which only classical music can arouse. In 2013 the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra tours the whole world to celebrate its 125th anniversary: 50 concerts spread over 6 continents. Unbounded passion and love for music brings musicians and concert goers together. Documentary maker Heddy Honigmann lands with the orchestra in Buenos Aires, Soweto and St Petersburg and shows how the ensemble succeeds in gaining the hearts of people with a different cultural background. A journey to the kernel and the power of music which knows how to touch unexpected emotions and which helps to overcome the pain of living.
Erbarme dich - Matthäus Passion Stories is a labyrinthine narrative in which notables such as Peter Sellars, Emio Greco, Simon Halsey and painter Rinke Nijburg explain their special relationship with Bach’s St Matthew Passion to Ramón Gieling (Johan Cruijff: en un momento dado). They speak against the backdrop of a church which has fallen into disrepair, while a choir of homeless people and Pieter Jan Leusink’s Bach Choir & Orchestra rehearse the Passion. Leusink isn't just the conductor, he is one of the main characters himself, with a painful past in which this musical piece has played a dominant role. Stories from the others alternate seamlessly with this. We learn how the St Matthew Passion played a decisive role in the relations between men and women, fathers and sons, fathers and daughters, mothers and their unborn children, and finally that in spite of our differences we all find a common denominator in the secret of Bach's music.
A look at the life and music of legendary singer and civil rights activist, Mavis Staples.
Mauro Mateus dos Santos was known by another name: Sabotage. Growing up amidst poverty in São Paulo, the musician, who became a legend after his death, is one of the most important names in national rap.
Shot in Cologne, Germany, the Respect Yourself DVD features one of the true great rock voices of all time delivering an outstanding live performance. Set in an intimate setting at the Limelight club, Cocker performs songs from his 2002 studio album "Respect Yourself", which is included in this amazing Special Edition. The DVD also includes an up close and personal interview with Joe Cocker himself.
Filmed as part of the VH1 Storytellers series, Taylor Swift performed a live acoustic concert on October 15, 2012 at the Bridges Auditorium, after the Harvey Mudd College won the "Taylor Swift on Campus" contest.
I have to give it up to Howie Day for putting on an amazing one man show. I've never seen a performance quite like it. He samples his own vocals, and guitar riffs live on stage. Then he loops them seamlessly together. Before you know it, you have what sounds like some percussion, a rhythm guitar, a lead guitar, a bass guitar and layered up vocals (all by himself). He basically brought his studio to the stage. He does it so incredibly well. He has some undeniable talent not only with instruments, but also in the studio, producing. I own both of his studio albums; Australia and Stop All The World Now; both quality releases. But if you want to see how truly talented Howie Day is; you must get this DVD. It's only 30 minutes long, but it will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entire 30 minutes.
This fascinating documentary explores the life and music of Saz, an Arab rapper living in a Jewish neighborhood who offers up a unique perspective as he creates music he hopes will aid in the reconciliation between Israel and Palestine. Believing people of differing viewpoints can come together as they enjoy his music, Saz travels from Tel Aviv and Haifa to London, presenting his own kind of musical peace treaty wherever he goes.
Sculptor/painter Katie Dallam entered the boxing ring for her first professional fight and, 140 blows to the head later, suffered major brain damage. (Her life became the basis for the movie Million Dollar Baby). Irish musician Graham Sharpe’s career was on the rise when advancing tinnitus caused a ringing in his ears so bad that it put an end to his rock-and-roll dreams. Sculptor Alice Wingwall experienced complete loss of sight from a degenerative eye disease. Game over for these three, right? Not so fast. Each managed to struggle, innovate, and, ultimately, through their art, transform themselves into someone new.
When modern artists embrace her forgotten album "Just Another Diamond Day," failed U.K. folk singer Vashti Bunyan experiences popularity like never before. This documentary profiles her disappointing career and astonishing resurgence 30 years later. Featuring interviews with Andrew Loog Oldham, Joe Boyd and Robert Kirby, this charming movie follows Bunyan as she takes a nostalgic road trip and prepares for the biggest concert of her life.
Directed by German filmmaker Rüdiger Nüchtern, this behind-the-scenes rock documentary captures Amon Düül II, as the progressive rockers record their debut album, "Phallus Dei," in a Munich recording studio in 1968. Blending performance footage with a collection of psychedelic nature clips, Nüchtern's meditative film captures the true essence of the legendary krautrock collective. The movie premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival.
Cao Fei recorded her experiences within the online social platform Second Life. The result is a wistful, surreal vision of an alternative reality sprung from the pop culture fantasies and hyper-consumerism of contemporary urban China, while also trying to transcend its real-life limitations. It can be seen as an answer to the challenge posed by River Elegy: how to envision a new Chinese destiny founded on principles of individuality, creativity, discovery, and freedom. The film also reflects the contemporary condition of the virtual supplanting our experience of the real.
A couple of dancers appear one morning in a High School. It's Monday and they announce to a group of youngsters that they have five days to get up on stage and dance. A short time but a big challenge. The dance compels these youngsters to break through their roles exactly at the time of their lives when the social roles are being forged. The handsome boy is no longer the most admired, the timid one takes a step forward. Wilfried van Popple and Amaya Lubeigt are the choreographers. Professional dancers who have decided now to work with people who have never danced before. This is the challenge: five days, a class of teenagers, a microcosm in which occurs a little big bang.
SEX AND BROADCASTING is a feature length documentary about New Jersey's WFMU, the world's strangest and most unique radio station, and one man's attempt to keep it alive in the face of recession, the persistent threat of commercial media, and the challenges that come with keeping a rebellious group of outsiders together.
A documentary that goes behind the scenes with some of today's most talented songwriters as they make new music based on long-lost, newly discovered lyrics from Bob Dylan's legendary Basement Tapes sessions. T Bone Burnett brings Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens, Taylor Goldsmith, Jim James and Marcus Mumford together in a dramatic two-week studio session in the basement of Capitol Records. Features an exclusive interview with Bob Dylan.
A documentary about the Norwegian Christian death metal band Extol.
Behind the scenes look at fight choreography and action training.
A documentary about the sport of boxing, as seen through the eyes of champions Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield and Bernard Hopkins.
The daily lives and routine of 37 families living in a huge 12-story building in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: their drama, aspirations, intimate revelations, loneliness, dreams...
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
A documentary about ten very different lives connected by having appeared onscreen wearing masks or helmets in Star Wars.
A documentary on legendary movie-poster artist Drew Struzan.
A depiction of the Wrangelkiez neighbourhood in Berlin. The people portrayed tell their life stories. One woman came to the neighbourhood a decade ago to work in Berlin’s still unfinished Brandenburger Airport, one man reminisces his childhood on a Tobacco farm in Kentucky, another speaks of an exceptional day in an otherwise monotonous workplace. These portraits are interwoven with the story of Elpi, a Greek woman who is waiting for the long overdue visit of an old important friend. The outcome of this mixture is a film which captures the lives and perspectives of some of Wrangelkiez’s most commanding citizens, while at the same time evoking the loss that change and time passing means for places and for people.
A behind the scenes look into George Romero's groundbreaking horror classic Night of the Living Dead.
Documentary about the arena-packing Swedish DJ, chronicling his explosive rise to fame and surprising decision to retire from live performances in 2016.
A documentary focused on plastic pollution in the world's oceans.
A detailing of the rise to prominence and global sporting superstardom of six supremely talented young Manchester United football players (David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Phil and Gary Neville). The film covers the period 1992-1999, culminating in Manchester United's European Cup triumph.
A years-in-the-making documentary on the legendary punk band the Ramones. Through a mixture of archival footage, archival and new interviews with all members of the band's various lineups, and new interviews with a number of their contemporaries, the film traces the peaks and valleys the band experienced over the course of its 20-plus year career before disbanding in 1995.
Following a newspaper ad, ordinary women tell part of their life stories to director Eduardo Coutinho, which are then re-enacted by actresses, blurring the barriers between truth, fiction and interpretation.
Follow the evolution of the 'Halloween' movies over the past twenty-five years. It examines why the films are so popular and revisits many of the original locations used in the films - seeing the effects on the local community. For the first time, cast, crew, critics and fans join together in the ultimate 'Halloween' retrospective.
A promotional making-of documentary for the film The Matrix (1999) that devotes its time to explaining the digital and practical effects contained in the film. This is very interesting, seeing as how they're giving away the cinematic secrets that they created solely for the this movie, that have now been spoofed and referenced in countless other films.
A documentary about the life and films of director John Ford.
A documentary that explores the downloading revolution; the kids that created it, the bands and the businesses that were affected by it, and its impact on the world at large.
From the heights of her modeling fame to her tragic death, this documentary reveals Anna Nicole Smith through the eyes of the people closest to her.
When a cross-section of seven-year-olds were interviewed for 7 Up in 1964 it was immediately evident that their social backgrounds influenced their attitudes towards life. While the upper class children were confident and self-assured, those from middle and working class backgrounds were resigned to a challenging life of hard work. This premise was put to the test every seven years when the same group were interviewed about the progression of their lives. 49 years in the making, the changes that occurred to the original 14 make for fascinating television and are in many ways the stories of all our lives. From success and disappointment, marriage and childbirth, to poverty and illness, nearly every facet of life has been captured on film. Now, at the age of 56, the group are once more brought together and, with the benefit of hindsight, assess whether their lives have been ruled by circumstance or self-determination.
A purely observational non-fiction film that takes viewers into the ethically murky world of end-of-life decision making in a public hospital.