Through a series of vignettes from the ancient and war-torn Levant, WILD IS THE SPRING captures moments in the lives of diverse ethnic communities who struggle to survive when life descends into chaos.
In 1979, the Pacific Club was opened in the basement of La Défense - the business district of Paris. It was the first nightclub for Arabs from the suburbs; a parallel world of dance, sweat, young loves, and one-night utopias. Azedine, 17 years old at the time, tells us the forgotten story of this club and of this generation who dreamed of integrating into France but who soon came face to face with racism, the AIDS epidemic, and heroin.
Diantha Ebberly travels with her parents to the edge of the Sahara to meet her longtime betrothed, Herbert Medford, whom she has never seen. She is rescued from a swarm of beggars by an "Arab," then meets him again when she slips out at night in native dress. They fall in love, but Diantha is abducted by Sheik Amud, then returned safely home by the "Arab." The next morning Diantha discovers her fiancé and lover to be one and the same.
A 707 aircraft jetliner, en route from Athens to Rome and then to New York City, is hijacked by Lebanese terrorists, who demand that the pilot take them to Beirut. What the terrorists don't realize is that an elite team of commandos have been called in to eliminate all terrorists on the jetliner.
Lepa Brena goes to one of the islands of the Adriatic, on a working holiday, but due to the holidays and planning the next tour, false news that the notorious island Lepa Brena requested a special guest for the tour. The news will completely disrupt the thrill and to potential tour guests, tourists and members of the Sweet Sin and the whole island.
German ship captain Gottfried Hinrichs reluctantly retires to his Bavarian home, hoping to find comfort when his daughter Barbara moves back home, convenient now she has become a commercial pilot. So he dishes out the usual objections when she tells to have found her mate, while ma Lisbeth tries to shush. When the lovers turn up for Christmas Eve, a culture shock follows, for her dream prince is Palestinian unemployed would be-pilot Kamal Abu Khalil, and neither 'liberal' parent extends effective tolerance to Islamic in-potential laws. Ultimately Gottfried is worn down, but then the incompatible religious marriage norms seem to break up the couple itself. It gets even worse when his parents found out and fly in, while she feels neglected as Kemal starts an electronic muezzin Internet firm with a friend.
In love with Brazil and Maria, a soap opera heroin harassed by a corrupt contractor, Abdelinho suffers parallel ordeal in Morocco by pressure of Amr Taleb, a dogmatic, moralistic priest, enforcing religious purity on the community
Yarub’s door leads to surreal worlds inspired by Arab myths and legends in 11 short animated episodes.
Four darkly funny tales about Lebanon: Activists planning a protest descend into internal strife. Three sisters and their mother argue while an incompetent plumber destroys their flat. Depressed life coach Malek wants to die and seeks help from a «death coach». A stand-up comedian who jokes about a meteor strike that could put Lebanon out of its misery, is blamed when it appears to come true.
Documentary about red-bereted Jimmy Mirikitani, a feisty painter working and living on the street, near the World Trade Center, when 9/11 devastates the neighborhood. A nearby film editor, Linda Hattendorf, persuades elderly Jimmy to move in with her, while seeking a permanent home for him. The young woman delves into the California-born, Japan-raised artist's unique life which developed his resilient personality, and fuel his 2 main subjects, cats and internment camps. The editor films Jimmy's remarkable journey.
Le Beurre : Du bonheur en motte ?
History of Turkish Horror Cinema tries to take the first step in explaining how horror cinema started in Turkey, what prejudices it strives to break, and how film directors, producers and screenwriters see horror cinema.
Nenad Vižin's violent death was the catalyst for a unique phenomenon in the history of ex-Yugoslavia: 300 citizens of Rijeka signed a petition asking the police and the communist party to take responsibility. The petitioners were submitted to accusations and prosecutions. Although the events surrounding the death itself remain a mystery, it left its mark on a whole generation in Rijeka and is still a part of the social fabric of the city. This film depicts the mechanism of fear as an integral part of political systems and portrays the unique artistic rebellion that occurred in Rijeka in the 1980s as a reaction to fear and powerlessness.
The manager and employees of the long-standing rock nightclub Palach are followed in the last moments of the club's existence.
Das Geschäft mit den Träumen - Situation der deutschen Filmwirtschaft
Evgeny Nikitin’s passion has garnered both acclaim and controversy, fuelling a life devoted to the opera... and heavy-metal rock.
A family like any other, that lives, lives and works in a house that walks. This is the life of Charles, Zuleide, Gilberto, Cleide, Rogério, Claudio and Lobão, seven dwarf brothers, descendants of the mythical clown Pindoba, the smallest and funniest clown in the world. Together they form the circus Pindorama, a troupe that circulates through the northeastern hinterland, pouring out joy, laughs, giving us fraternity classes and winning the hearts of Brazil.
In 2008, we travel to Egypt to tell the story of heavy metal in a conservative Muslim country. We meet the kids in Cairo's tight knit underground music scene who are the film's main characters, including the sons of the country's foremost political dissidents and the Muslim World's first all-female metal band.
Showcases the life of kickboxer Benny "The Jet" Urquidez