Commissioned to make a propaganda film about the 1936 Olympic Games in Germany, director Leni Riefenstahl created a celebration of the human form. This first half of her two-part film opens with a renowned introduction that compares modern Olympians to classical Greek heroes, then goes on to provide thrilling in-the-moment coverage of some of the games' most celebrated moments, including African-American athlete Jesse Owens winning a then-unprecedented four gold medals.
Arguing that advertising not only sells things, but also ideas about the world, media scholar Sut Jhally offers a blistering analysis of commercial culture's inability to let go of reactionary gender representations. Jhally's starting point is the breakthrough work of the late sociologist Erving Goffman, whose 1959 book The Presentation of the Self in Everyday Life prefigured the growing field of performance studies. Jhally applies Goffman's analysis of the body in print advertising to hundreds of print ads today, uncovering an astonishing pattern of regressive and destructive gender codes. By looking beyond advertising as a medium that simply sells products, and beyond analyses of gender that tend to focus on either biology or objectification, The Codes of Gender offers important insights into the social construction of masculinity and femininity, the relationship between gender and power, and the everyday performance of cultural norms.
The documentary observes two matriarchs - Tiina Jantson governs the beauty contest empire in Estonia; Anne Eenpanu leads the activities of "Home Daughters" - a girls' corps of Estonian Defence League. The film's main characters and their activities are very different. Whereas Anne's pedagogical approach is almost totally based on the love for fatherland then Tiina spends her days in the glitter of show business. However, there are some similiarities in their lives. The documentary studies the values, gender roles and moral norms in Estonia at the beginning of 21st century.
A heartwarming exploration of a community art project by photographer Tawfik Elgazzar providing free portraits for locals and passers-by in Sydney, Australia's Inner West. The film explores the nature of individuality, cultural diversity and the positive joy for the photographer of seeing his subjects smile.
The American Royalty docuseries showcases an in-depth perspective of the Miss America Pageant. Experience the hundred year history, influence, controversy, and evolution of this iconic institution.
Exclusive two-disc film documenting the British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa in the summer of 1997. The unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to the team shows the preparations, the training, the fun, the team selection, the 'earthy' language, the bonding, the awesome task of playing and some shocking footage of injuries. Despite securing the series with wins in the first two tests, the Lions remained motivated by the prospect of a 3-0 whitewash, a feat never achieved against the Springboks throughout the century.
Devastation of a Welsh-speaking community: Capel Celyn village and farms of the Tryweryn Valley disappear beneath the waters of a reservoir so Liverpool’s thirst may be slaked.
This is the story of how a prince became a king, a revealing portrait of our new monarch across the seven decades he spent as heir to the throne. It’s a journey from cradle to crown told almost solely in his own words, from film and television recordings to private home movies and featuring a wealth of material, some of which has never been seen before. As well as drawing on home movies from the Royal Collection, the film-makers were given exclusive access to sequences featuring the prince, shot for the landmark 1969 film Royal Family, including private unseen moments.
In a countryside town bordering on a magical land, a young man makes a promise to his beloved that he'll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm. His journey takes him into a world beyond his wildest dreams and reveals his true identity.
Les Couturiers de l'Église
Davide is a thirty-year-old who lives in a town in the Sicilian hinterland. He doesn't know what free time is. He wakes up at dawn to open his bar and begins the hard work. He experiences body care as a cult: protein shakes, gym, supplements, pole dancing lessons and treatments from Alessandra, his beautician girlfriend. Davide has always wanted to please and be admired. From model to Mister Sicily, today his dream comes true on the stage of a nightclub where he works as a stripper and lets himself be desired by others. A documentary focused on obsession with beauty and the cult of the body without neglecting the equally current issue of the construction of identity starting from our body and the gaze of others.
Feisty, fiercely independent and firmly rooted in place, 90 year-old Mabel Robinson broke barriers back in the 40s when she became the first woman in Hubbards, Nova Scotia, to launch her own business—a hairdressing salon where she still provides shampoo-n-sets over 70 years later. Weaving animation and archival imagery with intimate and laugh out loud moments in the salon, the film celebrates the power of friendship, doing what you love and staying active. With no desire to retire anytime soon, Mabel gives voice to a generation who are not front and center of cinema or the pop hairstyles of the day, and subtly shifts the lens on our perception of beauty and the elderly.
Located in the United Kingdom, the Principality of Wales, home to 2.5 million people, is filled with rolling mountains, and green valleys. Because of its culture and language, it is unique within the UK. Much of the economy is based on small independent farms, but also includes coal and slate mining. Its many castles - including Caernarfon and Conwy - comprise its most famous built landmarks. Another landmark is the Menai suspension bridge - spanning the Menai Straits - the longest such structure in the UK. As Wales is a largely coastal jurisdiction, the Welsh have taken advantage of water opportunities, whether it be for fishing, or for recreation at one of the many coastal resorts, such as the most famous, Llandudno. There are also mountain resorts, such as Betws-y-Coed. Mount Snowdon, the highest peak in Wales, offers great hiking and climbing opportunities.
Master baker, owner of Duffryn Bakery, Onllwyn, turns his hand to film-making and captures community events in glorious colour.
A timeless landscape steeped in history that is little changed today, but was surely made to be filmed!
A proof by example of the existence of beauty within Seattle.
On a blustery January day bishops arrive for the opening of the new Knutsford Test School.
The true story of the massacre of a small Czech village by the Nazis is retold as if it happened in Wales.
In 1991, the Manic Street Preachers planned to sell 16 million copies of their debut and split up. Many years, many hits and one big mystery later, this colourful band and its fans appear in a unique documentary that tells their full story.
Iconic Welsh rock musician Mike Peters' rise to fame, battle with cancer and inspiring return, featuring one-of-a-kind performances from other legendary musicians.