Alexa Boulton: Cinema

The surprising and entertaining life of renowned film critic and social commentator Roger Ebert (1942-2013): his early days as a freewheeling bachelor and Pulitzer Prize winner, his famously contentious partnership with Gene Siskel, his life-altering marriage, and his brave and transcendent battle with cancer.

Cinecitta is today known as the center of the Italian film industry. But there is a dark past. The film city was solemnly inaugurated in 1937 by Mussolini. Here, propaganda films would be produced to strengthen the dictator's position.

A patient camera glides over the everyday objects: still lives on the wall, flowers in the vase, a swaying drop light. The sun enters the cosy home where Noëlla sits smoking at her laptop, playing Solitaire. The situation is hopeless. She’s going to lose against the computer once again. All the while her son-in-law, Pierre, is organising everything she needs, pragmatic and friendly: breakfast, the (last) doctor’s visit – and then the transfer.

In 1970, Dennis Hopper shot 'The Last Movie' in Chinchero (Peru), an enigmatic Western about the possibility of an indigenous rebellion against a Hollywood film crew. 44 years later, two filmmakers arrive at Chinchero with the intention to make a new film with the villagers about Hopper’s legacy.

A 64 year old cardboard collecting grandmother and a Brazilian bodybuilder reveal the identity of Macau through the pointillist minutiae of their life experience, emotional strength, and driving passions.

A 25-year-old former cult member seeks out his family in a closed world of neon crosses, deadly alcoholism, and abuse.

HECKLER is a comedic feature documentary exploring the increasingly critical world we live in. After starring in a film that was critically bashed, Jamie Kennedy takes on hecklers and critics and ask some interesting questions of people such as George Lucas, Bill Maher, Mike Ditka, Rob Zombie, Howie Mandel and many more. This fast moving, hilarious documentary pulls no punches as you see an uncensored look at just how nasty and mean the fight is between those in the spotlight and those in the dark.

Shot entirely from an apartment window during the first month of New York City’s “Shelter in Place” directive, this film is a winding conversation about the fears, anxieties, and hopes of the residents of Claremont Avenue, in Manhattan.

Die Schaltgetriebenen

A fragmented collection of independent closed cinemas, in London during lockdown, captured on Super 8mm film.

Hollywood is perhaps the most elusive animal. "We Want the Airwaves" follows three first time TV makers who set out on the ultimate adventure: to change television as we know it. The trio creates, films and pitches their advocacy docuseries masterpiece, "Manifesto!" all over the world, with the goal of giving a broadcast voice to a generation.

Nai Nai follows the story of a Chinese immigrant grandmother, Chu-Ming Wu. Known as “Nai Nai,” Chu-Ming has always been a woman of control. But her grasp of reality and the control of her own mind is slipping away. Told through the lens of her grandson, the film focuses on the joyful, heartbreaking and intimate moments in the last chapters of her life.

South Bend is in the midst of its most dramatic shift since the collapse of Studebaker in 1963. Today, it is at a turning point and still trying to find its footing. We held conversations with people around South Bend to capture how residents were experiencing its changes, embracing its new life, and confronting its enduring problems - thinking about it all as the mayor ran for president.

Brazil is going through a political crisis which even representatives of our institutions reproduce speeches that seek to criminalize social movements by framing them as terrorists. The short "Teto Pra Quem" seeks to question the brutality of common sense fueled by the conservative wave by opposing it to the reality of thousands of families and their struggles in the pursuit of one of their most basic human rights: living under a roof.

More than two decades after the shooting at Columbine, an entire generation has grown up under the threat of gun violence. This film examines the epidemic of school shootings and their lasting impact through the eyes of survivors.

A compilation of a filmmaker's discard footage, subtly narrating his point of view of the year 2020.

A trans Vietnamese woman's deadname being repeated over and over again.

Mother India is home to many castes, tribes and religions and one common factor that brings this diverse country all together is Jewelry. Come explore the deep history and culture of the jewelry of India dating back more than 5000 years. As we explore the history we also take you into Bangalore, India and talk to local Jewelry Stores and Jewelry Artisans as they share their stories and their family history of their involvement in jewelry going far back into their family ancestry.

A Documentary film exploring the history and evolution of vinyl records. Featuring Interviews with the experts, musicians and fans alike, 'Stuck in the groove' takes you on a journey of vinyl-mania, music and nostalgia.

A short documentary film about the director's relationship with his deceased grandfather.