Documentary Movies

Territorio

Alexandra Cuesta cites eternal wanderer Henri Michaux as one of the inspirations for her first feature. It’s curious, then, that the opening sequence of Territorio (the first film Cuesta shot in her native Ecuador) shows us a boat heading for the shore. It is very likely that, to Cuesta, the image of water hides the same connotation than it does to the author of “The Sea of Breasts”: returning home, being sheltered in the mother’s womb. Without detouring from the formal approaches of her previous work, Cuesta traces a journey that crosses the country from north to south, drawing a human cartography in which the aim is to achieve an impossible balance between the foreign traveler’s gaze and the earnest familiarity of those who return home temporarily.

Tödliches Erbe

Musician

Common sense says you can't make a living in America playing avant-garde improvisational jazz. But Ken Vandermark does it anyway. Among musicians, Vandermark's work ethic is almost mythic. The Chicago reed player has released over 100 albums with nearly 40 ensembles, spends over eight months per year on the road, and lives every other waking moment composing, arranging, performing—and trying to discipline his two hyperactive canines. Though Vandermark was the recipient of a 1999 MacArthur genius grant, he still spends most of his life in smoky clubs and low-budget recording studios, hoping people will plunk down hard-earned cash to hear his wholly non-commercial music. Following the artful cinéma vérité style of the internationally acclaimed Sheriff (Work Series #1), Musician (Work Series #2) forgoes all interviews and voice-overs. It is a fly-on-the-wall time capsule that expertly captures every subtle sound and texture of this most American of art forms.

Ester

A narrative about "the days when the Jews found rest from their enemies and the month that was transformed from pain to joy, from mourning to a feast day." A parable about the courage to arrive in another country and a funny mound of joy about luck in misfortune. Narrated by György Konrád and performed by immigrants from Central and South-Eastern Europe.

Time Bomb Y2K

As the clock counted down to the the 21st century, the world faced a potential technological disaster: a bug that could cause computers to misinterpret the year 2000 as 1900. Crafted entirely from archival footage and featuring first-hand accounts from computer experts, survivalists, scholars, militia groups, conservative Christians, and pop icons, Time Bomb Y2K is a prescient and often humorous tale about the power and vulnerabilities of technology.

Hammerbrook Blues

Louis Fried goes in search of traces in the Hamburg district of Hammerbrook. An area in whose appearance war and Nazi rule are inscribed to this day. Between wasteland and reconstruction, memorials and urban planning, he encounters his own family history.

Sem Pena

There is no place in the world where the prison population grows as fast as in Brazil, a country that have the fourth largest population of inmates in globe. Sentence on Trial dives deep into the hellish everyday life of the Brazilian prisons to expose how moroseness, prejudice and the culture of fear amplify violence and the social abyss of the country.

Children of God

A documentary which follows a group of siblings who eke out their existence from the offerings and other goods found in the sacred Bagmati River.

Magpie Milestones

Through ten years of stellar service to the game's most passionately supported club, Gavin Brown, Mick McGuane, Gavin Crosisca and Alan Richardson have won special places in the hearts and memories of all Magpies fans. The brilliant presentation features highlights of their careers and special moments from the testimonial dinner honoring their service to the Mighty Magpies.

The Thin Blue Line

An unorthodox investigation into the wrongful conviction of Randall Dale Adams for the 1976 murder of Dallas police officer Robert Wood. Using stylized reenactments and interviews with key figures, conflicting testimonies and evidence are presented to argue that Adams was framed by a corrupt justice system, ultimately leading to his exoneration.

Novelda-Japón

The film follows, in the style of a camera diary, the adventures of a young man in pursuit of his dream: to travel to Japan. A moving testimony to human solidarity and dreams.

Moje století

Caustiques

The term caustic designates optically the envelope of light rays undergoing reflection or refraction on a curved and shiny surface.

The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years

The Beatles stormed through Europe's music scene in 1963, and, in 1964, they conquered America. Their groundbreaking world tours changed global youth culture forever and, arguably, invented mass entertainment as we know it today. All the while, the group were composing and recording a series of extraordinarily successful singles and albums. However the relentless pressure of such unprecedented fame, that in 1966 became uncontrollable turmoil, led to the decision to stop touring. In the ensuing years The Beatles were then free to focus on a series of albums that changed the face of recorded music.

Fretail

Fretail is an observational film that tells the story of The Fretail Store, a first of its kind retail store in a mall where everything is free. Started by Mike Karl, a man who himself was once homeless, the store is so popular, it creates a rift between Karl and the mall owners that may ultimately prove devastating.

The Cut

Thomas Hitzlsperger – Katar, warum nur?

Avignon 92

Ancient Sunshine

A reflection on anarchism and labor, ANCIENT SUNSHINE marks a path through the struggles of climate activism and coal extractions in the American West.

Lone wolf

The docudrama Lone Wolf follows the life and combat experiences of RAF fighter pilot Josef František. Director Ondřej Veverka presents the story of a pilot who made his name whilst serving with the RAF’s 303rd Polish Fighter Squadron during the Battle of Britain. The film portrays Josef František not only as a flying ace with eighteen aerial victories during the Battle of Britain, but also as a man plagued by inner doubts yet possessing exceptional courage.