A trip behind and beneath the street-level skin of the city on the hidden paths of industrial history and once-and-future transit.
Social & External
An educational film about power sources that’s rendered as a lyrical meditation on heat and vapor, The Four Elements is a poetic and avant-garde documentary Curtis Harrington made for the United States Information Agency.
Considerations on collage as a cognitive act in artists’ cinema. A pedagogical film adrift: 35mm photographs and other materials collected over the last fifteen years by artist Stefano Miraglia meet a text written by Baptiste Jopeck and the voice of Margaux Guillemard.
This film takes a look at what expanding passenger rail service in America would look like, as well as asking passengers what they think about increasing rail investment. Would they use it? Would it be a waste of money? Why is building high speed rail in California so urgent?
Wisconsin has a remarkable heritage with trains, and is looking at an even more promising future. However this future is now in jeopardy as larger modern trains continue running over an aged rail system that was never designed for this type of weight. The result, a dramatic decrease in speed and increase in derailments costing the railroad thousands of dollars every year! Wisconsin & Southern Railroad has developed a multi-year rail upgrade plan. This plan will replace the aged rail network with new heavier track capable of handling the growing demands of Wisconsin's rail future.
The Heroes of the Massacre River is a powerful documentary that chronicles the stories of the pioneers behind the construction of the historic Canal of Ouanaminthe, a project that united Haitians across the nation and the diaspora. This film celebrates the groundbreaking efforts of key figures, centering on Dr. Bertrhude Albert, Dr. Naismy-Mary Fleurant, architect Wideline Pierre, economist Etzer Emile as well as dedicated canal workers Milourie Sylfrard, Theodore Johnson and Joseph Pressoir — all guided by the investigative journey of Max Angie Clervil. It also serves as a commentary on the complexity of colonialism and borders, tracing the role that the Massacre River continues to play in the history of Ayiti.
This story follows one man's quest to uncover the origins and reveal the mysteries of a possible Holocaust artifact some historians now say never existed: lampshades made of human skin. When the flood waters of Hurricane Katrina receded, they left behind a wrecked New Orleans and a strange looking lamp that an illicit dealer claimed was 'made from the skin of Jews.'
Home is where we grow up or settle permanently. And this home is always shaped by nature. Today, we human beings change and shape this more than any law of nature. HEIMAT NATUR is a visually stunning journey through the nature of our homeland, from the peaks of the Alps to the coasts and the depths of the North and Baltic Seas. In between is a cinematic foray through steaming forests, shimmering moors, over rose-blossoming heaths and the colorful cultural landscape around our villages and towns. In extraordinary images this nature is shown from its most beautiful side, examining the state of the native habitats. Slow-motion and time-lapse photography as well as intimate shots of familiar and unfamiliar species, some filmed for the first time, making the film a cinematic nature experience for the whole family.
The pilgrimage to Mecca is one of the most important religious journeys for millions of people around the world. But how to get there? This documentary shows us how 12 companies met the immense challenge of running a high-speed train through Saudi Arabia's sandy rocky desert in temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius. A true marvel of engineering and cooperation, and together, overcoming obstacles.
IJswee is a documentary film about an ice club, a village and the warm winters. In the film we follow Oringers, the inhabitants of Odoorn, through the winter. The Oringers all experience IJswee in their own way. You will also see the Icecounter (Rafael van der Ziel), who builds ice sculptures and drinks frozen milk. You see the Drenthe countryside changing with the weather. You see animations, archive material and you hear the mysterious sounds of IJswee in the music of Wietse de Haan. And there are two trumpet players, who welcome winter with their music and say goodbye to it.
"Adrift" is shot on the arctic island of Spitzbergen and in Norway. It combines time-lapse photography with stop-motion animation of the landscape. Through camera-angles and framing the film gradually dislocates the viewer from a stable base where one loses the sense of scale and grounding.
One man's journey to discover the bitter truth about sugar. Damon Gameau embarks on a unique experiment to document the effects of a high sugar diet on a healthy body, consuming only foods that are commonly perceived as 'healthy'. Through this entertaining and informative journey, Damon highlights some of the issues that plague the sugar industry, and where sugar lurks on supermarket shelves.
A short study on our relationship with natural landscapes, the evolution of spaces and the memories they hold
Iceland's first non-narrative full-feature film's focus is set on presenting Iceland in a way it has never been presented before, using various elements of high-end cinematography. There are places everyone knows, but there are also thousands of well hidden places. To find these locations one has to be adventurous or a local, and to capture them right, one has to be creative and extremely patient.
A group of friends come up with the brilliant idea of testing the non-existent drink known as "Tea Coffee".
Explorer Thor Heyerdahl and his ten-man crew sailed their reed boat, the Tigris, over routes he believes were followed by Sumerian traders 5,000 years ago. The film goes beyond science to focus on the man, Heyerdahl, in an effort to explain what motivates him to risk his life in the search for knowledge.
In 2015, in Damascus, the Basateen al-Razi district and its orchards were razed to the ground as punishment for the population's uprising against the regime. Having lost everything, two former residents recall their neighborhood.
The world-famous Greyhound bus is almost as old as the Wild West. It is a symbol of North America, of progress, and of nostalgia. Reporter Studs Terkel travelled 2,000 miles across the United States by Greyhound. From Seattle to Chicago, he observes his fellow-passengers. He meets a number of travelers who appear to be very interesting people: a Native American boxer on his way to his birthplace in Montana, a bar owner who was a bank robber in a former 'career', a 99 year old woman who is still running a busy hotel, and, of course, a pedigree cowboy. The spectator of this film listens to their personal stories, watches the beautiful scenery, and is treated to famous feature film fragments in which the Greyhound bus plays a part. Seven states and two time zones later, he is back in his cinema seat.
Here, where even monsters are political, the topography has its own memory. It has the mythological blues. Meanwhile, old gods are upset with us, and I am upset with my father.
People looking at the Mona Lisa in the Louvre – or are they just looking at themselves?
SEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director to financier to star actor, the two players provide us with a unique look behind the curtain at the world's biggest and most glamourous film festival, shining a light on the bitter-sweet relationship filmmakers have with Cannes and the film business. Featuring insights from directors Martin Scorsese, 'Bernando Bertolucci' and Roman Polanski; actors Ryan Gosling and Jessica Chastain and a host of film distribution luminaries.
JB Smoove and Martin Starr host a celebration of 20 years of "Spider-Man" movies, from the Sam Raimi trilogy to Marc Webb's movies and the trio from Jon Watts.
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.
The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.
This special explores the return of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker to the screen, as well as Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen to their classic roles. Director Deborah Chow leads the cast and crew as they create new heroes and villains that live alongside new incarnations of beloved Star Wars characters, and an epic story that dramatically bridges the saga films.
The film follows adventurer Jeff Johnson as he retraces the epic 1968 journey of his heroes Yvon Chouinard and Doug Tompkins to Patagonia.
Those who knew iconic funnyman John Candy best share his story, in their own words, through never-before-seen archival footage, imagery, and interviews.
After the high-profile killing of Damilola Taylor, Cornelius' family move out of London. But when they discover their new town is run by racists, Cornelius takes a drastic step to survive.
Filmed over nearly five years in twenty-five countries on five continents, and shot on seventy-millimetre film, Samsara transports us to the varied worlds of sacred grounds, disaster zones, industrial complexes, and natural wonders.
Al Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."
Documentarian Ross McElwee originally set out to make a travelogue of sorts tracing General William T. Sherman's infamous scorched-earth march through the Confederacy in the latter stages of the Civil War. Instead, haunted by a recent breakup with a girlfriend, McElwee ends up documenting his progress -- or lack thereof -- in starting a new relationship. His journey then becomes one of self-reflection and self-discovery rather than a historical/sociological exploration.
Stars of "The Walking Dead," Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira, walk down memory lane and visit iconic locations where pivotal moments between their characters, Rick and Michonne, were filmed.
A look behind the lens of Christopher Nolan's space epic.
An atmospheric essay, which is an alternative version of Count Dracula, a film directed by Jess Franco in 1970; a ghostly narration between fiction and reality.
A purely observational non-fiction film that takes viewers into the ethically murky world of end-of-life decision making in a public hospital.
Vulgar, taunting texts blow up the phones of a teen and her boyfriend. Who's sending them — and why? This twisty documentary reveals the shocking answer.
Amber Heard and Nicole Kidman discuss their characters Mera and Atlanna.
The film goes behind the scenes of the 1999 sci-fi movie The Matrix.
In the Realms of the Unreal is a documentary about the reclusive Chicago-based artist Henry Darger. Henry Darger was so reclusive that when he died his neighbors were surprised to find a 15,145-page manuscript along with hundreds of paintings depicting The Story of the Vivian Girls, in What is Known as the Realms of the Unreal, of the Glodeco-Angelinnian War Storm, Cased by the Child Slave Rebellion.
A glimpse into the raw and simple power of nature through encounters with farm animals: the eponymous Gunda, a mother pig; two cows, and a one-legged chicken.