A true story about a band made up of singers and musicians with a wide range of mental and physical disabilities. This documentary is an inspiring look at a special group and their dream to make music. Revealing their struggles and triumphs, as performers and people, dealing with severe challenges while on a journey to become true musicians and perform to large audiences. With passionate concert footage and intimate behind-the-scenes glimpses into the band member's lives, the film paints a heart-warming portrait of what people with disabilities can do when given a chance.
A Girl and A Gun shows the female perspective on an object whose history is deeply bound to men and masculinity. The classic Hollywood portrayals of pistol packin' mamas, tomboy sharp shooters, sexually twisted femme fatales, and high-heeled, cold-blooded assassins are caricatures. In truth, the typical woman who hangs out at rifle ranges and keeps ammo in her purse is the girl-next-door, the single mom, a hard working sister or aunt. Maybe she's a realist or has learned tough lessons from life; either way, she cares about her personal safety and may even find salvation, comfort or something satisfying in possessing a gun. In a word, she is empowered. Breaking through the caricatures, A Girl and a Gun reveals America's diverse and far-ranging female gun community. It depicts how this community is portrayed by the media and targeted by the gun industry; and shows, through personal stories, how guns change women's lives.
Produced by the National Film Board of Canada, this heartfelt documentary follows Hall of Fame jockey Ron Turcotte as he returns to the people and places that mark his life, providing a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse of this resilient and legendary jockey. Few jockeys have won America's Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. Only three have won in the last 65 years. Ron Turcotte is one of them. In 1973, this legendary rider from New Brunswick, Canada piloted Secretariat, the greatest racehorse of all time, to victory and acclaim in the sport's three most prestigious races. But a fall in 1978 left Turcotte a paraplegic and put an end to an illustrious 16-year career.
The enlightened and extra-terrestrial Brazilian genius-multi-instrumentalist flies to Asturias in 2008 to give a music workshop. His journey takes us on another: that of his career, the ostracism with which he would be punished, his perpetual crusade for the materialization of “the idea”, his unique inspiration and incredible sense of humour. All emitted through his words and those of the people that surround him. An authentic pioneer, a free and cosmic spirit.
This documentary by filmmaker Raymonde Provencher talk about childhoods in Uganda, where they were forced to kill against their will as soldiers in the Lord's Resistance Army. Now as adults, they're working as activists to help others through a support group for survivors of childhood slavery, never forgetting their own haunting experiences.
Coming to Light interweaves the story of Edward S. Curtis (1868-1952) life with the results of his work, and through it, we see the world he sought to preserve. Curtis was a driven, charismatic, obsessive artist, a pioneer photographer who set out in 1900 to document traditional Indian life.
Every 12 years over 70 million pilgrims gather at the meeting of India's holiest rivers, the Ganges and the Yamuna, for a spectacular spiritual festival: the Kumbh Mela. This documentary takes a voyage of discovery through this colorful event through the eyes of several Westerners and an ebullient young Hindu monk, Swami Krishnanand. Featuring encounters with some of India's most respected holy men and exclusive footage of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Acclaimed doctor James Orbinski, former head of Doctors Without Borders, returns to Africa to confront the harsh reality of conditions there and explores what it means to be a humanitarian.
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?
SHELTER ME is an entertaining and uplifting film series about shelter pets improving the lives of those who adopt them. Hosted by actress Katherine Heigl, SHELTER ME celebrates the human-animal bond with positive, uplifting stories about shelter pets and their new homes. Every year, 3-4 million dogs and cats are euthanized in America's shelters. SHELTER ME focuses on the success stories to bring more people into the shelters to give these incredible animals a second chance. The first film shows how shelter pets are helping our returning war veterans cope with PTSD. We go inside a women's prison, where inmates train shelter dogs to become service animals for people with disabilities. We also see the journey of two stray dogs, from the day they are picked up on the streets and brought to the shelter until the day they become a beloved family pet. SHELTER ME is about redemption, hope, helping others and making a difference. (Steven Latham)
In the midst of a deadly drug turf war in Cape Town, a gangster tries to secure the future of his young family amidst a community of dangerous rivals with the same goals.
This film tells the surprising story of how the Allegheny Observatory has been a world leader in the study of the stars since the 1860s. Self-educated, and often facing unrelenting hardships, the people associated with the Allegheny Observatory defied the odds to make enormous contributions to the founding of astrophysics and early aviation.
'6ft Hick: Notes From The Underground' is a behind-the-scenes music documentary that reveals the messy, all-too human face of the low-budget music scene in stark contrast to the perceived glamour of an internationally touring rock band.
Dr. Roger Payne explores the unique relationship between humans and whales, weaving together natural history and biography. A pioneer in whale song research, Payne has passionately promoted the protection of these majestic sea creatures for four decades and continues to do so by studying ocean pollution.
Up Heartbreak Hill chronicles the lives of three high school seniors living on the Navajo Nation and struggling to shape their identities as both Native American and modern American. They must decide whether to stay in their community - a place inextricably woven into the fiber of their beings - or leave in pursuit of educational and economic opportunities.