Backdrop fallback

Life May Be

Life May Be

Share

Life May Be

"An Epistolary Love Affair"

2014

1h 42m

5.6(5 votes)

Documentary

Overview

An epistolary feature film: a cinematic discourse between a British director Mark Cousins, and an Iranian actress and director Mania Akbari which extends the concept of "essay film" with startling confrontations in the arenas of cultural issues, gender politics and differing artistic sensibilities. A unique journey into the minds of two exceptional filmmakers which becomes a love affair on film.

Links & Resources

Social & External

Production Companies

Hibrow Productions

The people behind it

Cast & crew

2 featured cast members

Starring

Mania Akbari

Mania Akbari

Self

Mark Cousins

Mark Cousins

Self

Creative team

Directed by: Mark Cousins
Mania Akbari
Written by: Mark Cousins
Mania Akbari

Similar Movies

It Would Have Been Simple

It Would Have Been Simple

They thought life would be simple. All material problems would be overcome. Every morning it would be good to have breakfast together, the table laid. It would be the beginning of a long day at work. The daily ritual of a house inhabited by a mother and the two-year-old daughter. The automatism of the gestures of material life and its suspension in small events.

The $50 Million Art Swindle

The $50 Million Art Swindle

The remarkable true story of Michael Cohen, a charlatan art dealer who swindled over $50 million from the art establishment before going on the run.

Ultimate Christian Wrestling

Why would two New York-based filmmakers dedicate five years of their lives to following three white, Jesus-loving, spandex-clad men from the Bible Belt, particularly when the world of documentary filmmaking has generated its fair share of films concerning sensationalistic religious expression and contact sports in recent years? Because it's not about wrestling, and it's not about Jesus. Against a bizarre and entertaining backdrop, and through a motley cast of characters, we are reminded of what connects us all, lest we forget what it means to be human.

Mohawk Girls

Mohawk Girls

For three teenage girls growing up in Kahnawake — and indeed, all teenagers on the reserve — life can be quite confusing. If they want to move away to pursue new experiences — perhaps in nearby Montreal — they risk losing credibility, or worse yet, their rights as Mohawk women. Of course, if they stay, their opportunities in the tiny community are limited. With insight, humour and heart, director Tracey Deer (who left Kahnawake to attend school and pursue filmmaking) returns to her community to follow these Mohawk girls and tell their stories. Her deeply emotional documentary reveals the complex hope, heartache and promise of growing up Indigenous in the 21st century.

Thunfisch - Der bedrohte Jäger

Tuna are among the top predators in the oceans. But the hunter is also the hunted: many species are overfished. Can we use the riches of the oceans without destroying them?

Le Cinéma de grand-père

Le Cinéma de grand-père

Remarkable life story of Henri Diamant-Berger, a director and screenwriter whose devotion to cinema led him to collaborate with some of the greatest actors and filmmakers of his time.

Diana: The Woman Inside

Diana: The Woman Inside

Diana The Woman Inside highlights Diana as a woman and mother, rather than just a tragic icon.

Persecution Blues: the Battle for the Tote!

Persecution Blues: the Battle for the Tote!

In 2010, the iconic Tote Hotel – last bastion of Melbourne’s vibrant music counterculture – was forced to close by unfair laws. Filmed over 7 years, “Persecution Blues” depicts the struggle of more than 20,000 fans – and the bands who inspire them – to preserve their history and protect their future, and puts the audience on the front line of an epic-scale culture war.

The World According to Monsanto

The World According to Monsanto

Monsanto is the world leader in genetically modified organisms (GMOs), as well as one of the most controversial corporations in industrial history. This century-old empire has created some of the most toxic products ever sold, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and the herbicide Agent Orange. Based on a painstaking investigation, The World According to Monsanto puts together the pieces of the company’s history, calling on hitherto unpublished documents and numerous first-hand accounts.

Cocaine Prison

Cocaine Prison

From inside Bolivia's craziest prison a cocaine worker, a drug mule and his little sister reveal the countries relationship with cocaine.

notes to eternity

notes to eternity

Renowned critics of Israeli policies – Noam Chomsky, Norman Finkelstein, Sara Roy and Robert Fisk – provide personal substance and historical perspective to their arguments in this impressive film by New Zealander Sarah Cordery.

Shakespeare and Victor Hugo's Intimacies

Shakespeare and Victor Hugo's Intimacies

Documentary about a lodging house, owned by Rosa Carbajal, at the corner of Shakespare and Víctor Hugo streets.

Nan Goldin: I Remember Your Face

Nan Goldin: I Remember Your Face

Documentary portrait of the New York photographer Nan Goldin.

Anthem

Anthem

When twenty-six-year-olds Shainee Gabel and Kristin Hahn quit their Hollywood jobs, packed up a borrowed car and hit the road, it was with the deeply felt conviction that somewhere, shrouded in the din of talk shows and tabloid headlines, they'd discover the real America, alive and well in all of its regions and demographics.

Muffins for Granny

Muffins for Granny

Muffins for Granny is a remarkably layered, emotionally complex story of personal and cultural survival. McLaren tells the story of her own grandmother by combining precious home movie fragments with the stories of seven elders dramatically affected by their experiences in residential school. McLaren uses animation with a painterly visual approach to move the audience between the darkness of memory and the reality that these charismatic survivors live in today.

The Empty Center

The Empty Center

Steyerl’s film traces the impact of an influx of transnational companies on the city dwellers of Berlin in post-reunification Germany. The effect of the changing economy and politics on the city and its inhabitants is echoed through their physical relocation to its outer edges. In 1990, squatters proclaim a socialist republic on the death strip. Eight years later, the new headquarters of Mercedes Benz are built in the same location. The film makes use of slow super-impositions to uncover a journey across changing architectural and cultural boundaries. "The Empty Centre" tries to give a voice and a history to those who continue to be marginalised by the simultaneous dismantling and reconstruction of the borders which they are trying to cross.

Doctors, Liars, and Women: AIDS Activists Say No to Cosmo

Doctors, Liars, and Women: AIDS Activists Say No to Cosmo

Outraged by the controversial January, 1988 article in Cosmopolitan magazine, the women in the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power, (Act Up, New York), organized the first AIDS demonstration focused on women. Doctors, Liars and Women:AIDS Activists Say No To Cosmo not only documents the efforts of the Women's Committee to organize this protest, it also serves as a how-to-guide for direct action.

DiAna's Hair Ego: AIDS Info Up Front

DiAna's Hair Ego: AIDS Info Up Front

A documentary film about AIDS and one unconventional woman's efforts to educate her small, Southern community. DiAna DiAna is a local hairdresser who transformed her beauty parlor into a center for AIDS and safe sex information.

(In)Visible Women

Women who are HIV-positive discuss how they "came out" about their infection and became politically active.

History and Memory: For Akiko and Takashige

History and Memory: For Akiko and Takashige

This film is a poetic composition of recorded history and non-recorded memory. Filmmaker Rea Tajiri’s family was among the 120,000 Japanese and Japanese Americans who were imprisoned in internment camps after the attack on Pearl Harbor. And like so many who were in the camps, Tajiri’s family wrapped their memories of that experience in a shroud of silence and forgetting. This film raises questions about collective history – questions that prompt Tajiri to daringly re-imagine and re-create what has been stolen and what has been lost.

Recommended Movies

Love, Marilyn

Love, Marilyn

Using the book 'Fragments', which collects Marilyn Monroe's poems, notes and letters, and with participation from the Arthur Miller and Truman Capote estates who have contributed more material, each of the actresses will embody the legend at various stages in her life.

Naqoyqatsi

Naqoyqatsi

A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.

Avatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20

An inside look at one of the most anticipated movie sequels ever with James Cameron and cast.

Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi's Return

Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi's Return

This special explores the return of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker to the screen, as well as Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen to their classic roles. Director Deborah Chow leads the cast and crew as they create new heroes and villains that live alongside new incarnations of beloved Star Wars characters, and an epic story that dramatically bridges the saga films.

Sidney

Sidney

This revealing documentary honors the legendary Sidney Poitier—iconic actor, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. Featuring interviews with Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Halle Berry, and more.

I Am Ali

I Am Ali

Unprecedented access to Muhammad Ali's personal archive of "audio journals" as well as interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends are used to tell the legend's life story.

Katy Perry: Part of Me

Katy Perry: Part of Me

Giving fans unprecedented access to the real life of the music sensation, Katy Perry: Part of Me exposes the hard work, dedication and phenomenal talent of a girl who remained true to herself and her vision in order to achieve her dreams. Featuring rare behind-the-scenes interviews, personal moments between Katy and her friends, and all-access footage of rehearsals, choreography, Katy’s signature style and more, Katy Perry: Part of Me reveals the singer’s unwavering belief that if you can be yourself, then you can be anything.

Girl Rising

Girl Rising

Nine filmmakers each profile a young girl from a different part of the world to weave a global tapestry of youth in the 21st century.

Seduced and Abandoned

Seduced and Abandoned

SEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director to financier to star actor, the two players provide us with a unique look behind the curtain at the world's biggest and most glamourous film festival, shining a light on the bitter-sweet relationship filmmakers have with Cannes and the film business. Featuring insights from directors Martin Scorsese, 'Bernando Bertolucci' and Roman Polanski; actors Ryan Gosling and Jessica Chastain and a host of film distribution luminaries.

180° South

180° South

The film follows adventurer Jeff Johnson as he retraces the epic 1968 journey of his heroes Yvon Chouinard and Doug Tompkins to Patagonia.

Embrace the Panda: Making Turning Red

Embrace the Panda: Making Turning Red

A feature length documentary about the all-women team at the helm of Pixar's original feature, Turning Red. With unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to Director Domee Shi and her core leadership crew, this story shines a light on the powerful professional and personal journeys that brought this incredibly comical, utterly relatable, and deeply heartfelt story to the screen.

Justin Bieber's Believe

Justin Bieber's Believe

A backstage and on-stage look at Justin Bieber during his rise to super stardom.

The War Room

The War Room

A behind-the-scenes documentary about the Clinton for President campaign, focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos.

The Walking Dead: The Return

The Walking Dead: The Return

Stars of "The Walking Dead," Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira, walk down memory lane and visit iconic locations where pivotal moments between their characters, Rick and Michonne, were filmed.

John Candy: I Like Me

John Candy: I Like Me

Those who knew iconic funnyman John Candy best share his story, in their own words, through never-before-seen archival footage, imagery, and interviews.

The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story

The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story

A documentary chronicling Queen and Lambert's incredible journey since they first shared the stage together on "American Idol" in 2009.

Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D)

Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D)

Captured during Billie Eilish's sold-out world tour, a concert experience from one of the most celebrated and successful artists of her generation, presented in immersive 3D.

I Am Heath Ledger

I Am Heath Ledger

The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.

Vampir Cuadecuc

Vampir Cuadecuc

An atmospheric essay, which is an alternative version of Count Dracula, a film directed by Jess Franco in 1970; a ghostly narration between fiction and reality.

Jodorowsky's Dune

Jodorowsky's Dune

In 1974, Chilean-French director Alejandro Jodorowsky embarked on the quixotic project of adapting Frank Herbert's influential novel Dune (1969) for the big screen. After investing two years, and millions of dollars, the gigantic project ended in failure; but the artists Jodorowsky brought together to carry it out continued to work together, and ended up laying the foundations for modern science fiction cinema.