Popular Documentary Movies on Kanopy - Page 28

Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché

2018

Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché

2018
7.2
The epic life story of Alice Guy-Blaché (1873–1968), a French screenwriter, director and producer, true pioneer of cinema, the first person who made a narrative fiction film; author of hundreds of movies, but banished from history books. Ignored and forgotten. At last remembered.
Dear Santa

2020

Dear Santa

2020
5.2
An elixir to our current state, "Dear Santa" takes us on the fanciful and poignant journey of a little known program called Operation Santa. For more than 100 years, human elves have been helping Santa respond to the thousands of letters children write and mail to him. This gripping documentary crisscrosses the country, following the most emotional letters as the elves work hard to make sure each child’s Christmas dreams come true.
In Search of the Last Action Heroes

2019

In Search of the Last Action Heroes

2019
7
The most comprehensive retrospective of the '80s action film genre ever made.
Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk

2025

Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk

2025
6.9
An Iranian filmmaker participates in a series of video calls with a young Palestinian photojournalist who describes her life confined in Gaza during the current regional conflict.
Showrunners: The Art of Running a TV Show

2014

Showrunners: The Art of Running a TV Show

2014
6.4
“Showrunners” is the first ever feature length documentary film to explore the fascinating world of US television showrunners and the creative forces aligned around them. These are the people responsible for creating, writing and overseeing every element of production on one of the United State’s biggest exports – television drama and comedy series. Often described as the most complex job in the entertainment business, a showrunner is the chief writer / producer on a TV series and, in most instances, the show’s creator. Battling daily between art and commerce, showrunners manage every aspect of a TV show’s development and production: creative, financial and logistical.
Venus

2016

Venus

2016
5.3
During casting sessions, young women from Copenhagen talk candidly about their sexual experiences. Initially, the two female directors wanted to make a film as a way of better understanding their own sexual desires and frustrations. In response to a casting call, more than a hundred ordinary young women turned up and talked straight into the camera about their erotic fantasies. As shooting progressed, the filmmakers realized that these intimate casting sessions should in fact be the final film.
Tadao Ando

1988

Tadao Ando

1988
Tadao Ando, a self-taught architect, proposes an international architecture that he believes can only be conceived by someone Japanese. His architecture mixes Piranesian drama with contemplative spaces in urban complexes, residences and chapels. This film presents the formative years of his impressive career before he embarked on projects in Europe and the United States.
Madame

2019

Madame

2019
5.9
The intimate journey of Caroline, a flamboyant grandmother, and Stéphane, her filmmaker grandson, exploring the development and transmission of gender identity.
Ordinary People

2002

Ordinary People

2002
8.5
Far right and anti-immigration politics have been on the rise worldwide. In Australia, as in many other western countries, as Ordinary People was filming, a new political force began drawing on the discontent of those who felt excluded from the promised benefits of globalisation. This revealing documentary follows One Nation candidate Colene Hughes over two years and two elections as her idealistic fervour slowly turns to disillusionment. Initially for Colene and her supporters, One Nation seems to offer true democracy and a way of knocking the country back into shape. But when Colene starts to question the control of party leaders, the gloves come off and, at the party’s annual general meeting, the two forces collide.
Bastards of Utopia

2010

Bastards of Utopia

2010
7
Three Croatian activists struggle to change the world. As children, they lived through the violent collapse of Yugoslavia. But now, amid the aftershocks of socialism's failure, they fight in their own way for a new leftism. In the middle of the struggle, a skeptical American is won over by their cause and even goes to jail with them. The activists, whether clashing with police or squatting in an old factory, risk everything to live their politics. But as the setbacks mount, will they give up the fight? The film, shot during years of fieldwork with a Croatian anarchist collective, applies EnMasseFilm's unique blend of observation, direct participation and critical reflection to this misunderstood political movement. Its portrayal of activism is both empathetic and unflinching -- an engaged, elegant meditation on the struggle to re-imagine leftist politics and the power of a country's youth.
The Last Laugh

2016

The Last Laugh

2016
6.9
Feature documentary about humor and the Holocaust, examining whether it is ever acceptable to use humor in connection with a tragedy of that scale, and the implications for other seemingly off-limits topics in a society that prizes free speech.
Brave Miss World

2013

Brave Miss World

2013
5.5
Linor Abargil, an Israeli beauty queen, was raped two months before being crowned Miss World in 1998. Ten years later, she’s ready to talk about it – and to encourage others to speak out.
On Broadway

2019

On Broadway

2019
8.7
An all-star cast tells the inside story of the Broadway theater, and how it came back from the brink thanks to innovative work, a new attention to inclusion and a sometimes uneasy balance between art and commerce. Legends of the stage and screen—including Helen Mirren, Christine Baranski, August Wilson, James Corden, Alec Baldwin, John Lithgow, Viola Davis, Hugh Jackman and Ian McKellen—take us behind the scenes of Broadway's most groundbreaking and beloved shows, from A Chorus Line to Hamilton. Iconic performances by Lin Manuel Miranda, Patti LuPone, Bernadette Peters, James Earl Jones and Mandy Patinkin lead the way on a hurly burly ride through Times Square, once again the main street of American show business in this documentary directed by Academy-Award nominee Oren Jacoby.
Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead

2015

Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead

2015
6.6
A look at the history of the American comedy publication and production company, National Lampoon, from its beginning in the 1970s to 2010, featuring rare and never before seen footage, this is the mind boggling story of The National Lampoon from its subversive and electrifying beginnings, to rebirth as an unlikely Hollywood heavyweight, and beyond. A humour empire like no other, the impact of the magazines irreverent, often shocking, sensibility was nothing short of seismic: this is an institution whose (drunk stoned brilliant) alumni left their fingerprints all over popular culture. Both insanely great and breathtakingly innovative, The National Lampoon created the foundation of modern comic sensibility by setting the bar in comedy impossibly high.
Shine a Light

2008

Shine a Light

2008
6.8
Martin Scorsese’s electrifying concert documentary captures The Rolling Stones live at New York’s Beacon Theatre during their A Bigger Bang tour. Filmed over two nights in 2006 with an all-star team of cinematographers, the film combines dynamic performances with archival footage and rare glimpses behind the scenes, offering a vibrant portrait of the band’s enduring energy and legacy.
Sneakerheadz

2015

Sneakerheadz

2015
6.1
To Rock or Stock? That is the question. Sneakerheads will do almost anything to get their hands on a unique pair of kicks, going to such extreme lengths as hiding in trash cans to score a pair of Retro Jordan 11s to camping for days in sub zero temperatures for the latest Nike Foamposites. How did sneakers become as prized as collectable art? From the shores of Cali to the congested streets of Tokyo, Sneakerheadz examines the cultural influence of sneaker collecting around the world and delves into a subculture whose proud members don’t just want to admire art, they want to wear it.
Neon

2015

Neon

2015
7.1
A film celebrating the beauty and romance, the art and science of neon: visually stunning, one of the most environmentally friendly forms of lighting ever made, and endangered – LED is slowly but surely taking its place around the globe. Vivid, beautiful and insightful, Neon is the story of this noble element that has so profoundly coloured the modern world.
Sergei/Sir Gay

2017

Sergei/Sir Gay

2017
4.7
As a teenager, Sergei Eisenstein signed his drawings with "Sir Gay". Mark Rappaport sees clear signs of his sexual preferences throughout the Russian’s film oeuvre. Numerous asides illustrate how Hollywood productions likewise frequently played with nods and winks and typical motifs from gay culture.
Fame High

2012

Fame High

2012
6.6
Everyone dreams of fame. From the nail-biting freshman auditions to the spectacular year-end performances, Fame High captures the in-class and at-home drama, competition, heartbreak, and triumph during one school year at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, also known as Fame High.
ParaSense: The Naked Experiments

2022

ParaSense: The Naked Experiments

2022
Investigators, Ross Allison (ghost hunter) and Chad Goodwin (scientist) come together to see if they can prove physical touch from a ghostly presence.