Les couturiers de l'Église

March 25, 2017, Monza. The park has a stage ten times larger than the rock stars in San Siro. Hundreds of volunteers, civil protection, stalls. And then the people, a lot. All gathered waiting for Pope Francis. The relentless music, spread by the speakers, gives the impression of being in front of a déjà vu: the long wait for a concert, among the fans waiting for the arrival of the last pop star.

Ink, Blood and Spirit

Why would intelligent, successful people give up their careers, alienate their friends, and cause havoc in their families...to become Catholic? Donald Johnson travels around the country to get the story for himself.

Weg vom Fenster - Leben nach dem Burnout

Throughout the continent, discovery of a new generation of independent self learners who share a common passion for African culture and aesthetics and a strong ethic in opposition to the huge fast fashion industry.

Common sense says you can't make a living in America playing avant-garde improvisational jazz. But Ken Vandermark does it anyway. Among musicians, Vandermark's work ethic is almost mythic. The Chicago reed player has released over 100 albums with nearly 40 ensembles, spends over eight months per year on the road, and lives every other waking moment composing, arranging, performing—and trying to discipline his two hyperactive canines. Though Vandermark was the recipient of a 1999 MacArthur genius grant, he still spends most of his life in smoky clubs and low-budget recording studios, hoping people will plunk down hard-earned cash to hear his wholly non-commercial music. Following the artful cinéma vérité style of the internationally acclaimed Sheriff (Work Series #1), Musician (Work Series #2) forgoes all interviews and voice-overs. It is a fly-on-the-wall time capsule that expertly captures every subtle sound and texture of this most American of art forms.

In Natpwe, the feast of the spirits, co-directors Tiane Doan na Champassak and Jean Dubrel have produced an immersive, seemingly timeless document of an annual Burmese trance ritual that dates back to the eleventh century. Shot in Super 8 and 16mm in sooty black and white, the film conveys the astonishing sense of liberation of tens of thousands of bodies and minds — a mass expression of faith, but also a rapturous respite from societal intolerance.

Love and admiration in 16mm. The fusion a beauty that exists throughout three generations; my three Venus.

Into Great Silence (German: Die Große Stille) is a documentary film directed by Philip Gröning that was first released in 2005. It is an intimate portrayal of the everyday lives of Carthusian monks of the Grande Chartreuse, high in the French Alps (Chartreuse Mountains). The idea for the film was proposed to the monks in 1984, but the Carthusians said they wanted time to think about it. The Carthusians finally contacted Gröning 16 years later to say they were now willing to permit Gröning to shoot the movie, if he was still interested.

This is a video essay. It is a brief analysis of the connection between the individual and the self, the individual and the changing environment, and the individual and other individuals through three clips: Part 1: 1980 video of Andy Warhol eating a burger Part 2: Canva clips edits Part 3: Clip from Jacques Tati's "Parade", 1974

The mountains of Oaxaca harbor the remains of a ravaged and burnt shelter, once home to a psychoanalyst priest who used it to look after savage children, trying to re-integrate them into society. Through videotape diaries and interviews, the truth of what happened is shockingly revealed.

L'initiation

As children, British actor Paul Blackthorne and Australian photographer Mister Basquali both fell in love with America. Later they each fulfilled their dream to live here, but after two wars, a near economic collapse, and uncertainty about the country's direction, these two expats began to have doubts -- was America still the great place they once dreamed of? They drive across America to find out, interviewing random people about issues that affect and confront us all. From the ghetto to the gun show, the courthouse to the cattle yard, they are touched by the wisdom and insight of the people they meet. This American Journey is a cinematic postcard from the people to the people, teaching us that hearts can be healed at the most unexpected times and in the most unexpected places.

In the Brazilian countryside, the village of Monteiros hosts a unique event every year. When a person’s prayers are granted, they offer the village’s dogs a feast. Between religious celebration and popular belief, Lazarus’ Hunger powerfully documents a community coming together.

Pauline Horovitz has been filming her father since 2009. In this new chapter with hints of a bittersweet documentary comedy, the hero, a former doctor “programmed” to work, takes advantage of his retirement to become an actor. Following the first steps of this liberating new life, the daughter-filmmaker watches her “creature” escape her…

Holy Cowboys offers a fascinating, disconcerting look at Indian youth indoctrinated as bovine vigilantes. This observational documentary from Sundance Institute alumnus Varun Chopra goes deep into a world of bigotry and division, where a genuine love for animals and a naive sense of righteousness are weaponised.

Au cœur de Notre-Dame

This documentary is a brief insight into the life of The Catholic Worker Farm, London. The Farm aims to provide accommodation, food, English lessons, counselling and other services for 19 destitute (without access to public funds) female asylum seekers (who we call our ‘sisters’) and their children, at no charge. The documentary consists of interviews with volunteers and the women themselves and explains both the way of life at The Farm and the aims and inspirations of the global Catholic Worker Movement.

Shambhala: La Vita Segreta dell'Anima

A dense fog in the San Fernando Valley cancels a meeting of UFO hunters and causes an unexpected tragedy in the nearby mountains.