Das Auge Afrikas: Der Filmpionier Hans Schomburgk

In 1898, barely 18 years old, the German Hans Schomburgk, a native of Hamburg, set foot on the black continent for the first time. In 1912, he was admitted to the Royal Geographical Society in London and convinced a production company to finance his first film expedition to Africa. Two years later, the apprentice director achieved immense success with the documentary "Hiking and trails in Africa". Tested by the two world conflicts - the Allies confiscated his reels during the Great War, just like the Nazis, in 1940 - Hans Schomburgk managed to bounce back by setting out again to film the endangered wildlife of Kruger Park or the ancient traditions of the San, until to his farewell to Africa in 1956.

Tardor Calenta

How to Be an Ex-Prime Minister

Michael Cockerell tells the story of how prime ministers have coped with life after Number Ten, after Tony Blair became the youngest member of the ex-PMs' club for a hundred years. The film reveals who left office bankrupt, who did TV commercials for Cheshire cheese, who had his own chat show and who has never had a single happy day since leaving Number Ten. Cockerell, who met the eight PMs prior to Blair, looks at what Tony planned do next and just how many millions he could make from being an ex-PM.

United We Stand - Musicians in Time of War

A documentary about the relation between music and war.

The Peony Pavilion

A young aristocrat is seduced by a young man who appeared to her in a dream one spring afternoon. Captive of this impossible love, the young girl is dying of melancholy. But the constancy of her love is stronger than death; she wins the pity of the judge of the underworld, manages to find her lover and come back to life. The opera "The Peony Pavilion" was composed in 1598 by the poet Tang Xianzu (1550-1617), one of the greatest playwrights of the Ming period. Of all the forms of Chinese opera that have followed one another since the 12th century, the kunqu is the one that best preserves the image of a classical art highly appreciated in educated circles for its musical, literary and gestural refinement.

Candy

Chaityabhumi

A documentary film that explores the history and cultural politics of how people commemorate december 6th at Chaityabhumi and its relevance in contemporary India.

eadem cutis: the same skin

"I just want to be seen as who I am today!" John shares his thoughts on identity, body and gender and gives a very personal insight into his life–and an intimate proximity to his body.

(L)os Visitantes

Bon vent Claude Goretta

Claude Goretta directed “L'invitation” in 1973. For filmmaker Lionel Baier, born in 1975, it is like a “travelling companion”, to adapt Serge Daney’s expression. He feels it is definitive proof that a Swiss can be deeply Chekhovian. The young filmmaker goes to Geneva to ask his elder how he achieved the whoosh of water effect in the film, why attention to detail matters so much, and how to film great actors such as François Simon. This encounter with Claude Goretta – but also with Isabelle Huppert, Nathalie Baye, Michel Robin and Frédérique Meininger – leads one of the greatest of Swiss filmmakers to open up about his work.

La nuit de l'ours

In a city of disconcerting nature, homeless animals are looking for shelter for the night. They take refuge in the Bear's house, creating an ephemeral community that will dissolve with the first rays of sun. A tale of exclusion as recounted by crossed destinies out of sync.

Il nostro Papa

Uncle Jack: Manhattan Project and Beyond

The Manhattan Project was an enormous undertaking that required the efforts of many of the world's most brilliant intellectuals. Hundreds of physicists, mathematicians, and engineers were needed to design, build, and test the world's first atomic weapon and the Unites States government did everything in its power to lure these individuals to the Manhattan Project. Documentary to include: Interviews with Scientists conducted by the World War II Foundation Interviews with World War II Historians Interviews with WWII veterans Interviews with those who worked with John Gray in the world of Atomic Energy Interviews with authors who have written extensively about the Manhattan Project Interviews with people from the world of academia. This film is personal: One of those assigned to the project was my uncle John Edmund Gray, a University of Rhode Island graduate with a brilliant mind. —Tim Gray

Giorgio Ambrosoli - Il prezzo del coraggio

The docudrama recounts the five years (from 1974 to 1979) in which lawyer Giorgio Ambrosoli investigated the workings of a corrupt and lethal system, seen through the eyes of Finance Police Marshal Silvio Novembre and reconstructed by mixing fictional scenes, archive footage, and valuable testimonies.

Mysteries of The Holy Arks

The Ark of the Covenant and Noah's Ark are two very different Bible stories with one burning question.

Clyde-Built

A short documentary about shipbuilding on the Clyde.

Festival in Rhythm

After a series of successful concerts at the Araneta Coliseum in May 1960, American pop singer Neil Sedaka was contracted by LVN Pictures to appear in a musical featurette called “Festival in Rhythm.” The film was shown as an added attraction to “Dahlia” which was released in July. “Festival in Rhythm,” originally shot in color, was a compilation of musical numbers featuring LVN stars and singing and dancing talents leading up to Neil Sedaka. The only surviving print is a black and white workprint from the color original. Since black-and-white positive film stock was not full-color sensitive, warm colors (like skin tones) print dark, hence the dark complexion of the actors in the film.

Timepiece

A round-the-world, round-the-clock picture of the activities of the RAF in the mid-1960s.

Life Almost Wonderful

The Liliev brothers share a surname but don’t seem to have anything else in common, not even a father. They got it from their mother Lily, who is no longer alive. The eldest brother, Alexander, is a hairdresser who likes wearing makeup and taking part in hairdressing contests. The middle brother, Bozhidar, has chosen to live as a monk but finds it difficult to adhere to his vows. The youngest – James - is a macho type of guy who wants to be a TV star and is planning to marry his girlfriend.

Afraid of Sunlight

A documentary about the making of Afraid of Sunlight, the eigth album by Marillion.