Popular Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 224

The Final Migration

2012

The Final Migration

2012
In this documentary, we follow the twenty-three families strong nomadic Guoshan tribe, a sub-group of Yaos. They follow a thousand year old tradition of selecting a new temporary home every two or three generations, usually distancing themselves from their previous temp-home by several hundreds of miles. Provided now with a substantial piece of land for them to build their own permanent village and farm their own land, the tribe's leader as well as thirty members decide to precede the tribe's move. Although they have a strong sense of community they are used to operating individually for their survival. In this instance, as they learn to become farmers, it has been decided between them to operate under a collective scheme, just as in the early days of China's communist revolution.
The Big Family

2013

The Big Family

2013
Zhou Zhi, the patriarch of the family, rules strictly following the handed-down 'hereditary tradition': listening to no one. In the face of new economic challenges, he decides and acts totally arbitrarily. Unable to adapt himself to "modern times", not the least because of his stubbornness, he runs into heavy debt putting the family in great financial difficulty. Turning to his daughters and sons-in-law for support, he receives a cold welcome. Around the almost larger-than-life patriarchal figure of Zhou Zhi, this film vividly portrays the difficulties of an ordinary Chinese family, with its members having to change their lifestyle in the face of economic difficulties and a shifting culture.
Piano Dream

2013

Piano Dream

2013
Yin Hong and her husband were born in the 50's. The Cultural Revolution dramatically impacted their youth; there was no place for any artistic expression. Yet they loved music and they have a gifted son, Lu Nan, who today is 15 year's old. "Piano Dream" is a story about parents investing everything they have for their only child's success. It is a dream journey binding two generations. The film brings attention to a woman's choice and fate, probing the impact of her dream on her son's maturation and their relationship. It shows the son's bitterness to a point where one asks oneself if the mother's dream is not becoming her son's nightmare. Filmed over a period of nearly three years, this documentary keeps faithful to real life, but maintains a poetic feel.
Of Mothers and Daughters

2012

Of Mothers and Daughters

2012
There are more than 2,500 pensioners living in a large private retirement home located in a suburb of Canton (Guangzhou), China. As we discover the daily lives of these people, the film focuses on the lives of two elderly ladies: Ms. Kuang and Ms Xie. The documentary reveals how today's urban China can be reflected by the story of these two women, who find themselves away from their families, in a retirement home. Here, in the wake of serious health considerations, they have to build new relationships, define a new rhythm to their daily life and invent new ways to be with others.
Hard Old Rock

2013

Hard Old Rock

2013
As a young man, Zheng was a wild boy: he’d rather spend his time gambling and dancing than studying. But his exuberant way of life came to an end when, during the Cultural Revolution, he was charged with counter-revolutionary behavior and sent to prison. Now, he lives in the boarding house of Shuanglin Town, and is a silent witness to the last chapter of his own, lonely Life. Unyielding to his neighbors, to his society, to its History, as well as to the omnipresent Chinese system, he realizes that he is even almost independent of himself. This intimate and respectful portrait of a striking 83-year-old Chinese citizen offers us an inside view into the way China treats its Seniors and gives us the opportunity to better understand China’s contemporary History.
Flavor And Affinity

2012

Flavor And Affinity

2012
The Jin Cheng restaurant in China's Chao region has a reputation for excellence due to its "Chao" specialties. To guarantee the authenticity of "Chao" flavors, the supplying of fish, shellfish and tofu, among others, must come from the original source…where the skills of this ethnic group are still applied in accordance with the ancestral rules and where the quality and freshness of the products is indisputable. Nothing can be properly done if the traditions are not respected. A fascinating documentary on Chinese culture, traditional skills and ethnic belonging.
porridge pulleys and Pi: two mathematical journeys

2004

porridge pulleys and Pi: two mathematical journeys

2004
A portrait of two very different mathematicians, porridge pulleys and Pi features Fields medalist Vaughan Jones, one of the world's foremost knot theorists and an avid windsurfer, and Hendrik lenstra, a number theorist with a passion for Homer and all things classical. Porridge pulleys and Pi poses the question: how do we get first-rate research mathematicians? Hendrik lenstra and Vaughan Jones have had an extraordinary impact on mathematics; this charming documentary gives the viewer a taste of their personalities, mathematical and otherwise. A whirlwind tour of knots, geonomics, cryptography, music, Homer, elliptic curves, art, and windsurfing, the video contains sections on the history of Pi, and a suprising discovery involving a cocoa tin and an Escher print.
World's Fair Waffle

2013

World's Fair Waffle

2013
In 1964, Mariepaul Vermersch and her parents, Maurice and Rose, arrived at the World's Fair site in Queens and set up a booth serving the popular street food from their home in Brussels, Belgium's capital. They wanted to call them Brussels Waffles, but Rose discovered that Americans didn't know where Brussels was. They began calling them Bel-Gems or Belgian Waffles. They were unlike almost every other waffle served in the United States until then: These were light and fluffy but thick; crispy on the outside and sweet; topped with powdered sugar and/or whipped cream and fresh strawberries. For 55 years, only one place in the United States still serves "authentic" Belgian waffles exactly as that treat, Maurice's Belgian Waffles at the New York State Fair.
He Wouldn't Turn Me Loose - The Sexual Abuse Case of 96-Year-Old Miss Mary

2012

He Wouldn't Turn Me Loose - The Sexual Abuse Case of 96-Year-Old Miss Mary

2012
This video presents the real-life case of 96-year-old Miss Mary, who was financially exploited and later, sexually assaulted by her grandson. Miss Mary had been living with her grandson and his wife for five years during which financial abuse took place. After the attack and hospitalization, she was placed in a nursing home under the name "Jane Doe" for safety reasons. However, she retained her strength of character, and fully participated in the subsequent trial and prosecution of her grandson.
Antietam: A Documentary Film

2000

Antietam: A Documentary Film

2000
Re-enactments illustrate the details of the three principle stages of the battle of Antietam, fought November 17th, 1862. Also features animated tactical maps, dramatic readings of personal papers, and expert narrative commentary.
Urban Rez

2013

Urban Rez

2013
Urban Rez explores the controversial legacy and modern day effects of the federal government’s assimilation policies that relocated American Indians from reservations to urban areas in order to end the Indian Reservation system. Firsthand experiences richly illustrate the Voluntary Relocation Program, which constituted the greatest upheaval of the American Indian population during the 20th century and how different generations from different tribes perceived their new urban landscape.
Warrior

2013

Warrior

2013
A young boy and his friends spend a week of nightly escapism before a big illegal party in a forest.
Coniston

2012

Coniston

2012
In 1928, following the murder of a white dingo trapper, central Australia would witness the last known massacre of its Indigenous people. With over one hundred killed during a series of punitive expeditions, those who survived fled far and wide from the massacre sites. Denied a voice at the official inquiry and dislocated from their lands, the survivors passed down the story of this bloody episode to their children and grandchildren.
Racing the Rez

2012

Racing the Rez

2012
Racing the Rez reveals the transformative potential of cross-country running at the team level. The story follows two rival high school teams focusing on five teens growing up on the Navajo and Hopi reservations — two distinct cultures but both richly steeped in the legacy of running as a powerful cultural tradition and a sport. Unfolding over two years of careful, patient observation, this documentary offers a rare view into the surprising complexity and diversity of contemporary reservation life, from the point of view of the young runners.
In the Image

2014

In the Image

2014
In the Image explores the daily lives of Palestinian women living in the occupied West Bank. The film portrays their stories in a novel and eye-opening manner; through video footage captured by the women themselves.
Returning Souls

2012

Returning Souls

2012
In the historically most famous ancestral house of the matrilineal Amis tribe in Taiwan, the carved pillars tell legends, such as the great flood, the glowing girl, the descending shaman sent by the Mother Sun, and the father-killing headhunting event. After a strong typhoon toppled the house 40 years ago, the pillars were moved to the Institute of Ethnology Museum. Recently young villagers, with assistance from female shamans, pushed the descendants and village representatives to communicate with ancestors in the pillars. They eventually brought the ancestral souls rather than the pillars back and began reconstructing the house.
Consumerism & the Limits to Imagination

2014

Consumerism & the Limits to Imagination

2014
Consumer capitalism dominates our economy, our politics, and our culture, even though a growing body of research suggests it may be well past its sell-by date. In this illustrated presentation based on his latest critically acclaimed book, media scholar Justin Lewis makes a compelling case that consumer capitalism can no longer deliver on its promise of enhancing quality of life, and argues that changing direction will require changing our media system and our cultural environment. After showing how consumer capitalism has become economically and environmentally unsustainable, Lewis explores how our cultural and information industries make it difficult to envision other forms of human progress by limiting critical thinking and keeping us locked in a cycle of consumption. And he argues that change will only be possible if we take culture seriously and transform the very way we organize our media and communications systems.
I Was Born in Mexico, But...

2013

I Was Born in Mexico, But...

2013
A poetic short featuring the voice of an undocumented young Latina woman who was brought to the U.S. as a child. The film introduces viewers to a personal voice on the immigration debate: DACA, the Dream Act, and other immigration reform, speaking about what it's like to grow up and face an uncertain future as a young undocumented person in America.
Perfect Compost: a Master Class with Peter Proctor

2012

Perfect Compost: a Master Class with Peter Proctor

2012
Peter Proctor is New Zealand's father of biodynamic agriculture. Peter has been gardening and making compost for over 65 years. "Biodymanics makes organics work." Compost is the fundamental element in all gardening & farming. This master class takes you through the biodynamic compost making process from gathering and assembling your materials to creating the perfect compost heap. Rudolf Steiner believed biodynamic compoast was the foundation of humanity and the vital link between the cosmos and the earth. In Perfect Compost, Peter Proctor walks you through every step to building perfect compost.
In Search of Clarity: The Architecture of Gwathmey Siegel

1995

In Search of Clarity: The Architecture of Gwathmey Siegel

1995
Charles Gwathmey has held steadfast to the spirit of modernism in his architecture from the day he successfully built his parents' home in 1967 based on the theories of Le Corbusier and American individualism. Avoiding the nostalgia of fashionable postmodernism throughout the eighties, Gwathmey partnered with Robert Siegel, and their firm continues to create innovative houses, corporate, institutional and university buildings across America. This documentary ranges from the deMenil villa on the dunes of Easthampton to their Guggenheim Museum addition. We hear from such leading architects as Philip Johnson and Peter Eisenman, and from filmmaker Steven Spielberg, who describes how a journey through a Gwathmey Siegel house creates the same sense of drama as a well-made movie.