The Naked Dance is the first documentary about America's legendary legal red-light district that thrived in New Orleans from 1898 until World War I. Storyville got its name when Alderman Sidney Story attempted to clear up the New Orleans waterfront by restricting prostitution to a specific neighborhood. To his chagrin, the area was dubbed "Storyville," and it was so known until the U.S. Navy closed it for good in 1917.
The 1992 suicide of a young Iranian refugee in a small Canadian town prompted filmmaker Masoud Raouf to examine his own past as a political prisoner in Iran who helped fight for democracy, only to be persecuted by the ayatollah's regime. Raouf's documentary features historical footage and interviews with veterans of the 1979 revolution, who watched with dismay as their homeland traded a despot for a religious dictatorship.
Documentary - FIGHT TO LIVE follows the pursuit of emerging cures for terminal diseases as told through the stories of patients, patient advocates and the companies who stake their future on the discovery of new treatments. - Saoirse Ronan, Tom Holland, George MacKay
Documentary - Richer than Frank Lucas. More powerful than the Mafia. He was the biggest drug dealer in America. In 1973 he jumped bail and disappeared with 15 million dollars. He has never been seen again. -
What began as a Black 47 performance, shot at Connolly's pub in New York City's most vibrant hub, Times Square, on that locale's biggest day of the year, New Year's Eve, turned into something much more. Using early footage of "the best live band on the planet," interviews with band members and the audience, and the riotous performance itself, Black 47 at Connolly's weaves together a history of the band's beginnings, and by extension, a rich underlay of Irish-American history and the Diaspora.
Bad Seed is the tale of a tiny little seed that some see as good and others believe is evil. Cannabis and hemp can drastically improve the quality of life of people suffering from a wide range of symptoms and illnesses yet people are denied relief due to marijuana's bad reputation. Is cannabis a bad seed? Or have it's extraordinary health benefits been unjustly suppressed by government, law enforcement and corporate manipulation? Following the story of a medical marijuana user and activist, filmmaker Shayne Metcalfe delves into the history of cannabis prohibition in Canada, the United States and Mexico over the past century. Incorporating the perspectives of law enforcement, doctors, lawyers, activists, commercial growers, medical patients, historians and entrepreneurs, Bad Seed tells the fascinating story of how one of nature's gifts came to be vilified and provides an intriguing look at the rapidly changing marijuana landscape.
Documentary - Presenting the newest film from the family that made surf-film history, (Bruce Brown, Endless Summer, Dana Brown, Step into Liquid) Wes Brown and T.J. Barrack take us on-location to the beautiful waters of Peru where surfing is a way of life and surfers are worshiped as National Heroes. Including an enchanted visit to Machu Picchu, this surf odyssey fuses unique cultural aspects and electrifying surf footage. - Randy Bonds, Jesse Colombo, Magoo De La Rosa
In an isolated, high-plains community, a brilliant mathematics professor disappears from the local college without a trace. Three months later his body is discovered tied to a tree and burned beyond recognition in the remote hills south of campus. Iconoclastic author Poe Ballantine searches for clues related to the case while reflecting on his own life of wanderlust.
From the early race to build gliders to the D-Day invasion at Normandy and Nazi Germany's final surrender, "Silent Wings - The American Glider Pilots of WWII" narrated by Hal Holbrook, reveals the critical role gliders played in World War II offensives. Through rare archival footage and photographs, the film places the audience right at the center of the action in the dangerous world of the American glider pilot. During WWII, 6000 young Americans volunteered to fly large unarmed cargo gliders into battle. For these glider pilots every mission was do-or-die. It was their task to repeatedly risk their lives landing the men and tools of war deep within enemy-held territory, often in complete darkness. Thousands of lives were saved and battles won because of their efforts. In fact, one pilot interviewed said - the 'G' in their emblem didn't stand for glider; it stood for 'guts.' Features include: - Virtual walk-through tour of the Silent Wings Museum in Lubbock, Texas
Mark Twain's America interweaves the life and times of Mark Twain with the lives of current day enthusiasts who revel in the inventions and way of life of the 19th century. Utilizing archival stereo-optic photos, powerful images from the past seemingly come alive in a larger-than-life presentation. Archival photos representative of Twain and what he saw and experienced in his time are juxtaposed against scenes of actual present day recreations of that era.
The Yellow Brick Road and Beyond tells the complete history of “The Wizard of Oz”, highlighting some of the earliest stage and screen adaptations, such as the 1925 silent version and the even earlier, “His Majesty, The Scarecrow of Oz”.
There was a time, as recently as the 1980s, when storefronts, murals, banners, barn signs, billboards and even street signs were all hand-lettered with brush and paint. Today, the proliferation of computer-designed, die-cut vinyl lettering and inkjet printers has ushered a creeping sameness into our landscape. Fortunately, there is a growing trend to seek out traditional sign painters and a renaissance in the trade. SIGN PAINTERS is a history of the craft and features the stories of more than two dozen sign painters working in cities throughout the United States.
This documentary delves into the escalating conflict between mountain bikers, with their hunger to ride and the federal land managers charged with protecting the public lands that belong to us all. Is there any room for mountain bikers in the American landscape?
OCCUPY LOVE captures the heart of the movement of movements that is sweeping the planet in response to today's economic and environmental crises. 'Philosopher-filmmaker' Velcrow Ripper travels to history-making hot spots, asking the question, 'How can crisis create a love story?' Scenes include the Egyptian revolution in Tahrir Square, Spain's Indignado movement, Occupy Wall Street NYC, The Maple Spring in Quebec, and indigenous activists at the Alberta Tar Sands. The film explores the aspects of this arising that take the form of what Martin Luther King Jr. called 'Love in action.' Woven throughout is a deep exploration on the meaning and importance of 'public love' - the love of humanity, the love of the planet.
“WHISKY: the Islay edition” yearns for a chesterfield and a glass of whisky as it transports the viewer to a sanctum of the Scottish gold. It doesn’t just inform us about whisky, it evokes the finesses of the liquor, the art of tasting, the craft of distillation, the history of the distilleries and the richness of the isle of Islay itself. The documentary takes us to a small Scottish island called Islay. It is the home of 8 world famous whisky distilleries. The complete process of making whisky is divided in 8 parts. The 8 distilleries represent each a part of this process, in order of appearance: Ardbeg, Kilchoman, Bowmore, Bunnahabhain, Caol Ila, Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Bruichladdich.
Explorer Edward Salisbury takes an expedition across the Pacific Ocean to such exotic locales as Fiji, Samoa, Papua New Guinea and the New Hebrides Islands, and record the lives of the various natives they encounter there.
Enjoy the ultimate in British Superbike action! This is the high octane, all action, nail-biting wheel to wheel story of the 2011 British Superbike season with explosive action sequences and exclusive behind-the-scenes material!