Popular Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 272

The Earth is Our Home

1979

The Earth is Our Home

1979
This documentary about the early Indians of the Great Basin emphasizes the traditional culture of the last 5,000 years. The story unfolds through the words and skills of the older Piaute women of southeastern Oregon and northern Nevada. They tell us how they make cakes from berries, baskets from tulles, cord for nets…necessary daily tasks linked with an ancient heritage. The earth is ever present in the film, wildlife, rivers and marshes, sagebrush desert, all part of the story. The lifeways of the Northern Paiutes are followed through a seasonal cycle, from root-gathering in spring to building shelter in winter.
Living Without Water

2016

Living Without Water

2016
6
What's it like to live without running water? In Peru's sprawling capital, Lima, this is the everyday reality for 1.5 million children and adults, forced to pay up to a week's salary for just one day's water.
Namekas: Music in Lake Chambri

1979

Namekas: Music in Lake Chambri

1979
On the southern shores of Lake Chambri (Middle Sepik River) live 1500 Pondo-speaking villagers. The Chambris trade fish, mosquito nets and baskets for sago, pottery, and other goods. All elements of the natural world are associated with spirits which have individual personalities and powers, characterized in legend, art, and music. A constant dialog between man and spirits is carried on through various communicative media, including invocations, dreams, and music. As this film beautifully reveals, there is a wealth of musical tradition in Lake Chambri: carved wooden drums whose lively vibrations are said to shake loose ripened fruits for harvest; pairs of sacred bamboo flutes used in boys' initiations and concealed from women; orchestras of flutes identified with dogs or turkeys; flutes captured in warfare used with dance masks to invoke fish; and the panpipe with its melodies of mourning.
South Africa: Cradle of Killers

2017

South Africa: Cradle of Killers

2017
From strange chance encounters to aggressive territorial disputes, only South Africa's fittest - or luckiest - will survive to live another day.
The Danish Collector: Delacroix to Gauguin

2021

The Danish Collector: Delacroix to Gauguin

2021
Wilhelm Hansen was a visionary businessman who lived in Denmark in the 19th century. He was one of the few collectors to take an interest in Impressionist painters at a time when they were attacked and denigrated. The film takes us to Hansen's summer house on the outskirts of Copenhagen and takes us on a tour of the extraordinary exhibition at the Royal Academy in London dedicated to his collection.
Running For The Revolution

2020

Running For The Revolution

2020
Cuba’s greatest ever track athlete Alberto Juantorena shares his remarkable personal journey through a cauldron of sport and politics.
World War II: The War in the Desert

2001

World War II: The War in the Desert

2001
In the summer of 1942, Rommel's Afrika Korps swept across the Western Desert, sending the Allied forces into full retreat. Driven back deep into Egypt, Montgomery's 8th Army dug in along the El Alamein Line, prepared for battle. This factual film portrays the events leading up to and during, one of the greatest battles in the Second World War, the Battle of El Alamein.
The Last Village

2013

The Last Village

2013
In Gansu Province, the Minquin community struggles with the affects of desertification. Surrounded by the Tengri and Badanjilin deserts, the villages of the region are beginning to be engulfed underneath sand dunes. Many villagers decide to leave their homeland. However, several elders have chosen to stay. They prefer instead to remain close to their roots and try to fight against desertification by planting trees. Following the story of these peoples, we are immersed in one of the worldwide ecological battles of the 21st Century. Desertification is a problem that largely overwhelms the Chinese frontiers. But on a broader scale, many environmental specialists claim that one third of the earth's surfaces are threatened by this phenomenon. It is a story we should all heed.
Spring: The Return of Life

2014

Spring: The Return of Life

2014
10
A documentary about the most spectacular spring in the last fourty years. Five months of filming in the Iberian Peninsula, great forests, lakes, plains, saltworks, the awakening of the flora and especially of the fauna. We witness unique moments like the mating of the viperine water snake and the long journey into maturity of the natterjack toad.
Gustav Stickley: American Craftsman

2021

Gustav Stickley: American Craftsman

2021
The dramatic story of American furniture designer, architect and early lifestyle entrepreneur Gustav Stickley and his rise, fall and eventual resurrection as an icon and founder of the first true "American style".
Ellipsis

2021

Ellipsis

2021
The narrator collides with animal-shaped shooting targets in the woods. She sets out to unravel a breathtaking and fascinating cultural-historical tangle of animal and human rights: the power of a gaze, the objects of exhibition, and the secondary power of being under scrutiny.
Not Done: Women Remaking America

2020

Not Done: Women Remaking America

2020
7
"Not Done: Women Remaking America" chronicles the seismic eruption of women's organizing from the 2016 election through today, and the intersectional fight for equality that has now gone mainstream. Like the movement it documents, this story is told collectively: through the firsthand experiences and narratives of frontline activists, writers, celebrities, artists, and politicians who are remaking culture, policy, and most radically, our notions about gender. Premiering against the backdrop of an unprecedented pandemic and widespread social upheaval, "Not Done" shines a light on the next generation of feminists who are unafraid to take on complex problems and are leading the way to true equality.
El Cacao: The Challenge of Fair Trade

2015

El Cacao: The Challenge of Fair Trade

2015
EL CACAO exposes the dark side of chocolate production in Latin America by examining the economics of Fair Trade from the point of view of the indigenous farmers as they attempt to sustain their community through the growth, harvest, and trade of cacao beans in the global market. This 20-minute documentary film highlights the life of an indigenous Ngabe farmer in Panama and his unconditional devotion to this so-called "superfood." The film threads together the themes of neoliberal ideology, human rights, and the economics of the chocolate industry. While the demand for chocolate in developed nations continues to raise, the farmers in developing countries, like Panama, are rarely awarded the economic incentive promised to them. The film utilizes cinema verite techniques with candid interviews. Most of the film hinges on intimate shots in personal working and living space within a small Ngabe community in the Bocas del Toro region of Panama.
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.
Every Mother's Son

2004

Every Mother's Son

2004
Anthony Baez died during a football game when an officer put him in an illegal chokehold. Amadou Diallo was unarmed when he was shot at 41 times by police in his doorway. Gary (Gidone) Busch was pepper-sprayed and shot to death while holding a small hammer, though witnesses said he posed no threat. Their stories are tragic and the courage shown by the mothers heroic. As one witness says, "As long a there's a mother, we'll continue to fight."
1917: The Real Story

2020

1917: The Real Story

2020
6.6
'1917: The Real Story' documents the true story behind the international blockbuster film '1917' - providing an insight into the real-life characters, and what became of them.
Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei

2002

Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei

2002
The greatest athletes in the world today are neither the Olympic champions nor the stars of professional sports, but the "Marathon Monks" of Japan's sacred Mount Hiei. Over a seven year training period, these "running Buddha" figuratively circle the globe on foot. During one incredible 100-day stretch, they cover 52.5 miles daily - twice the length of an Olympic marathon. The prize they seek is not a pot of gold, but enlightenment in the here and now. This documentary program is about one of these amazing men - Tanno Kakudo and the magic mountain where he trains. It is the philosophy of Tendai Buddhism, which inspires him in his quest for the supreme. The viewer will learn about the monk's death-defying fast, his vegetarian training diet, his handmade straw running shoes, and other feats of endurance such as the mummifying fire ceremony. Based on the book "Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei" by John Stevens, published by Shambala Press.
Arrows of Fire

2010

Arrows of Fire

2010
A father, his adult son, and two mates head off on a journey to discover the grittiest, most beautiful bush the country has to offer. Yet what they find is something they were not prepared for, confronting their own mortality. Arrows of Fire is more than just a chronicle of a picturesque ride in the Australian Outback. It takes four men on a journey into their physical and mental limits on their quest for life through adventure.
Last Days of Chinatown

2017

Last Days of Chinatown

2017
Detroit's Cass Corridor, one of the roughest areas in the city for the past 100 years, is experiencing a complete overhaul, as long-awaited development finally sweeps the area. Long known as a center of drugs and prostitution, and also once home to a thriving Chinese enclave, it’s now peppered with boutique shops, new bars and restaurants and the just-debuted Little Caesars Arena. This feature from noted Detroit artist Nicole Macdonald mixes a personal, journalistic and historic approach as it looks at who and what remains in the Corridor. We hear how residents survived, and how they sometimes didn't, as gentrification redefines the space.
The Women's Olamal: The Organisation of a Maasai Fertility Ceremony

1985

The Women's Olamal: The Organisation of a Maasai Fertility Ceremony

1985
5
A documentary investigating the events leading up to a fertility ceremony of the Maasai women in Loita, Kenya.