Klaus Kinski has perhaps the most ferocious reputation of all screen actors: his volatility was documented to electrifying effect in Werner Herzog’s 1999 portrait My Best Fiend. This documentary provides further fascinating insight into the talent and the tantrums of the great man. Beset by hecklers, Kinski tries to deliver an epic monologue about the life of Christ (with whom he perhaps identifies a little too closely). The performance becomes a stand-off, as Kinski fights for control of the crowd and alters the words to bait his tormentors. Indispensable for Kinski fans, and a riveting introduction for newcomers, this is a unique document, which Variety called ‘a time capsule of societal ideals and personal demons.’
An Honest Liar tells the incredible story of the world-famous magician, escape artist, and world-renowned enemy of deception, James 'The Amazing' Randi. The film brings to life Randi's intricate investigations that publicly exposed psychics, faith healers, and con-artists with quasi-religious fervor. A master deceiver who came out of the closet at the age of 81, Randi created fictional characters, fake psychics, and even turned his partner of 25 years, Jose Alvarez, into a sham guru named Carlos.
Zakarya Diouf, winner of the San Francisco Foundation 2005 Community Leadership Awards (Helen Crocker Russell Award) - for his vision in unifying the African cultural arts community, for serving as a mentor and educator of young artists, and for his artistic contributions to the development of African-based performing arts.
"Elizabeth Murray: 4 Decades" tracks the artist's career and shows her moving forward fearlessly toward new shapes and concepts for her unique style of painting. Inspired by artists of the Abstract Expressionism movement such as Willem de Kooning and Philip Guston, Murray was privy to their technique and motive. Though she may share ideals with her artistic predecessors, Murray has created miraculously original work which she discusses with curator Robert Storr as they explore her MoMA retrospective.
Best known for her drawings of the ocean and the galaxies of the night sky, Vija Celmins has solidified herself as one of the most important artists of the postwar generation. Stepping back from painting in order to explore her photorealistic drawing style, Celmins creates spectacularly precise renderings of the natural world. In her forty year retrospective at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, Celmins recalls her beginnings in abstraction, her choices of subject matter after freeing herself of the New York School influence, and her later immersion in what must be termed her great master drawings.
Discover the extraordinary life and art of John Craxton in this captivating documentary feature. From early success with Lucian Freud to his vibrant years in Greece and Crete, Craxton’s bold, colorful paintings mirrored his passionate personal life and relationships with icons like Lee Miller and Margot Fonteyn. This film unveils how his artistic genius and unconventional lifestyle cemented his legacy as one of the most celebrated English artists of the 20th century.
Delacroix, d'orient et d'occident
"Dear Jinri" explores the daily concerns and thoughts of actress and singer Sulli, whose real name is Choi Jinri, where she talks about her childhood, career and more in this interview she gave in 2019.
The feature-length documentary Fakir portrays the success of fakirism in Brazil, Latin America and France. This circus art origin show is presented and analyzed through archives that reveals the success of these presentations with their pain resistance championships and the great public presence, including politicians and government officials. Fakir spans current footage from contemporary artists who keep this art alive in performances and shows.
Ed Ruscha made his very first art in his native Oklahoma, but soon became attracted to Los Angeles . Curator Margit Rowell has examined his extensive body of work and created a brilliant exhibition of his seldom seen drawings. Rowell visits Ruscha in his studio, looking at new paintings with the artist, discussing his progress over the decades and asking him to comment on the many milestones in his large retrospective exhibition at MoCA in Los Angeles.
A documentary that follows the life of photographer Daido Moriyama in the present, which has never been revealed before. Even though his charismatic presence has reigned over the world of photography since the late 60’s, his true persona had been hidden behind a veil of mystery, since he had refused any major appearances in front of any media in the past. Follow the charismatic photographer Daido Moriyama as he takes his first digital photos and observe his style of quick snapshots without looking in the finder. His stark and contrasting black and white images symbolize his fervent lifestyle.
A rare clip from 1994 warning of the dangers that lurk in America: homosexuals and Satanists.
Hidden deep in the south of France, practically untouched by the modern age, is a place known by many as 'the Zone'. In this space, the supernatural is an everyday reality of life. Magic is everywhere. It is reason. It is currency. It is unquestionable fact. Prepare yourself for a journey into life on the other side of the mirror.
Traces the life and mental illness of New York artist and photographer Ruth Litoff, and her sister's struggle to come to terms with her tragic suicide.
Belgrade in the 1990s seen through the eyes of Goran Čavajda 'Čavke', the late drummer of Serbian rock band "Electric Orgasm". Under dictatorship of Slobodan Milošević, his city became one of the worst places to live in Europe, while the country suffered highest inflation rate in its history, accompanied by mass poverty and political isolation. Documentary follows Čavke walking through the Belgrade streets where total chaos and decline of moral values rule. He finds his only shelter underground, where his friends - musicians and artists - live and work invisibly.
This shocking documentary reveals the plight of young Nigerians branded as witches.
At work on his Elegies and Windows series, Motherwell examines his place in the Abstract Expressionist movement, which he calls the first original American movement in the "mainstream," and its practitioners "the last romantics." He distinguishes between his large paintings and his intimate papier collée. Motherwell recollects the state of American art in the 1940s and the impact of European emigré painters on the younger generation of emerging artists. He discusses the significance of collage, or papier collée, as an artist's medium and explains how he first became involved with this process. Motherwell offers his interpretations of earlier directions in art and his response to the object oriented painting that emerged in America in the 1960s. A unique document of one of the founding members of the New York School. He died in 1991.
“Christo: Works in Progress” takes us around the world on a showcase of the artist’s grand environmental installations. With both critique and praise from members of the communities that have hosted Christo and his works, the film takes a deep look into the process and outcome of pieces such as Wrapped Coast, Running Fence, and Wrapped Walkways. While discussing his inspirations and motives, Christo states, “The work of art is not the fabric, steel poles and cable, the work of art is the hills and the ocean, the sky, the gates, the rocks, the people, the light- this is the work of art.” (Christo Vladimirov Javacheff) Though his work may appear to be visually distracting from the landscapes he creates in, Christo’s aim is to bring attention to the land itself and encourage people to take note of their surroundings.
In the hills of Los Angeles the reclusive, stylish and enigmatic 96-year-old Harumi Taniguchi spent decades painting, writing poetry and dancing in her home designed by architect Richard Neutra.
Admirers of Lawren Harris, founding member of the iconic Group of Seven, discuss his paintings and his place in the pantheon of Canadian artists.