What does beauty look like? In this award-winning short, Kenyan filmmaker Ng’endo Mukii combines animation, performance, and experimental techniques to create a visually arresting and psychologically penetrating exploration of the insidious impact of Western beauty standards and media-created ideals on African women’s perceptions of themselves. From hair-straightening to skin-lightening, YELLOW FEVER unpacks the cultural and historical forces that have long made Black women uncomfortable, literally, in their own skin.
For years, people have been making home movies, many times using pop culture properties that they may not own, but love. In recent years, these types of projects have come to be known as "fanfilms". Backyard Blockbusters looks at the history and influence of the fanfilm genre, as well as the copyright and fair use problems these films create, featuring highlights from and interviews with the creators of many popular films.
Adventure climber Leo Houlding and film maker Alastair Lee are back with another sumptuous production of truly epic proportions. This time Leo (UK) and fellow climbers Sean Leary (USA) and Jason Pickles (Salford) head deep into the Amazon in an attempt to make the first ascent of the east face of the remote tepuy; Cerro Autana.
From the streets of Bristol to the caverns of London and beyond, BanksyDoc finds the truths and explores the impact that the world’s most famous graffiti artist has had on the art world, on the expression of protest and satire, and on the perception of what you can do with a spray can and a stencil. Furthermore, this documentary explores the highly active art collector's world and how the celebrity factor shockingly influences value.
One million Dutchmen (out of 16 million) play soccer. Almost two million fish at least once a year. Fishing might be the most remarkable sport in the world. The documentary V.I.S.S.E.N (FISHING) dives into the world of Dutch fish and fishermen. Above and under water, on the IJ, at the coast, on the North Sea, in the cities, in the polder and on and by lakes and rivers. The film is a personal, filmic search for the “primordial fisher” in mankind and a portrait of the Netherlands by and on the water. V.I.S.S.E.N is also about what moves the fishermen. Who are the people that fish? Is fishing a hobby, a sport, an escape or a primordial instinct one cannot repress? What goes through your mind when you fish, when you catch something, or when you do not catch anything. And: what's it like for the fish, getting hooked?
When the Tuscan city of Pisa commissioned David Chipperfield to create a master plan that would bring new vitality to this historic spot on the Arno, an exhibition of selected works produced by him in the last 25 years was also invited. "David Chipperfield: Form Matters" documents the architect as he leads the way through his models, drawings and photographs, explaining his designs in the process. Chipperfield's vast array of international work spans over Europe, China, Japan, the United States and Mexico and as he guides us through his career Chipperfield offers a detailed accounts of his creative direction at every stop.
The Beach Boys are America's most successful band. With 56 U.S. Top 100 hits, 36 Top Ten Hits, and 4 Number One singles, their impression on American pop culture is rivaled only by the band that considered them to be their sole competition, The Beatles. To mark the group’s 50th anniversary, Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston, and David Marks gathered in 2012 for an emotional reunion to record their first album of new material in 20 years, to kick off a worldwide tour, and to reflect on their remarkable history.
The Church, regarded as a bastion against evil, is afflicted by people perpetrating, aiding and abetting evil within its sanctuaries, parking lots and administrative offices. Individuals carrying out evil agendas are called Clergy Killers, a provocative term that is almost as shocking as the immoral and often illegal acts that Clergy Killers commit against pastors of congregations.
In Solar Revolution, world-renowned German biophysicist Dieter Broers makes a compelling case, pointing to a wealth of scientific evidence that shows a remarkable correlation between increases in solar activity and advances in our creative, mental, and spiritual abilities. We are in the midst of a dramatic rise in solar disturbances, which have the capability of disrupting the Earth's geomagnetic field and, as a result, our global ecology. Broers, however, sees this not as an impending apocalypse but as the dawn of a new era. Drawing on research from a variety of disciplines, he shows how erupting solar activity carries the potential to boost our brain capacity and expand our minds in ways we never imagined possible. Humankind is going through an evolutionary leap, says Broers, and the process has already begun.
Questions of race, identity and heritage are explored through the lives of young American women growing up as adoptees from China. These four distinct individuals reflect on their experiences as members of transracial families.
The Sisters of Compassion have lived in the remote village of Jerusalem / Hiruharama on the Whanganui River in New Zealand for 120 years. Today, only three nuns remain - their legacy on the river is coming to an end. This is a complex world of powerful dualities; Maori & Christian spirituality, parties & prayers, pig hunting and perfume appreciation... Over the course of a year, the film follows the journey of Sister Margaret Mary, the newest Sister to Jerusalem, who is a regular volunteer at the local school. Through an intimate, observational gaze, the film is captivated by the spellbinding personalities of the local kids, whose humour and unique philosophies transcend the harsher realities of life. Throughout all seasons, the Sisters’ daily practice of compassion engages with the traditions of local Maori. Together they must learn to navigate lifeʼs heartbreak and joy.
The year is 1986. Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW) is about to burst onto the scene as the first ever all-female wrestling show on television. By 1989, the GLOW girls were an international phenomenon, attracting over seven million viewers worldwide, touring the nation and making big bank for the show's producers. One year later, GLOW was gone. GLOW: THE STORY OF THE GORGEOUS LADIES OF WRESTLING chronicles the rise and fall of this hit television show through the stories of those who lived it. For some, the show was a brief foray into acting and a short-lived adventure. For others, their time in GLOW would impact and influence their lives for years to follow. For all of the women, working on GLOW was a unique and exciting experience that will bond them forever.
Aiming to be an in-depth study of hooliganism (both in act and in what it is to be one), director Donal MacIntyre, a former undercover journalist who was once under assignment as a hooligan himself, asks why hooliganism came to be and also why, of all sports, it’s so closely associated with football (http://moviefarm.co.uk).
In 1966 Bob Dylan began his first electric world tour. It was a landmark moment, both for Dylan and for the history of rock music, and it bitterly divided his audience.
Since the invention of cinema, the standard format for recording moving images has been film. Over the past two decades, a new form of digital filmmaking has emerged, creating a groundbreaking evolution in the medium. Keanu Reeves explores the development of cinema and the impact of digital filmmaking via in-depth interviews with Hollywood masters, such as James Cameron, David Fincher, David Lynch, Christopher Nolan, Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, Steven Soderbergh, and many more.
Wall Street is being occupied. Europe is collapsing in on itself. Around the world, people are consumed by fear and anger, and one question is on everyone's lips: Is the financial crisis over, or are we headed towards economic disaster? documentary that chronicles the global financial collapse. Told in an entertaining and easy to follow style, the film tells the story of how the world came to be in such a state, from the seeds sown after WW2, to the current troubles facing us today, and to the possible future that may await us all. Also asks influential members of the finance and investment communities for their predictions on the world's financial future.
About the fear of public speaking and chronicles several characters as they prepare for the World Championships of Public Speaking. One leaves behind a job and his wife and 6 kids on his quest to be the best. Another spends 6 weeks writing and rewriting his speech only to write it once more 72 hours before the contest. For another, it is a fight for life that gives her the strength to speak and tell her story while she still has time. They all want to share with the world their very personal stories of triumph over adversity. But only one will be named the World's Best Speaker.