To the east of the Arabian desert, an ancient culture developed; and it attainted the sophistication of its civilized neighbours in Mesopotamia & Iran. The extreme aridity of the spot, combined with the strictness of religious prohibitions, discouraged archaeologists for a long period of time. Only recently, a group of French scientists initiated a large-span excavation. Their aim is to comprehend how this society succeeded to prosper, despite a natural environment so hostile to any conditions of life. The answer seems to be the refinement of a revolutionary, water management technique. Yet beyond such technical prowess, this documentary provides a unique look to discover a unique way of life; but also the pre-Islamic religious beliefs of this milieu.
La prohibition américaine, une aubaine française
A feature length documentary about love, passion, pigeons and what home means to people. Daniel-John Williams an unknown Teesside actor, explores the world of pigeons and producing his first feature film but he has no idea about either.
Did you know that the first cowboys were black? Using magnificent archives and testimonies from historians, Cécile Denjean restores justice to African-Americans in the story of the conquest of the West.
In the wake of one of the worst social experiments in the history of mankind, 'I'm not Black, I'm Coloured' is one of the first documentary films to look at the legacy of Apartheid from the viewpoint of the Cape Coloured. A people who in 1994, embraced the concept of Desmond Tutu's all encompassing 'rainbow nation', but soon thereafter realized that freedom, privilege, economic growth and equality would not include them. A people who for more than 350 years has been disregarded, ignored, belittled, and stripped of anything they can call their own enduring a complex psychological oppression and identity crisis unparalleled in South African history.
Found footage: California in the 1950's and 60's. A young Indian couple enjoys their personal American dream come true in their home somewhere in the suburbs of San Francisco. In great detail they pose with their newly achieved wealth in front of their Super-8 camera. Just like postcards, they would send these film rolls to their joint families back in India. Around the same time, an American missionary couple visits the city of Calcutta to shoot a Christian propaganda film. The drastic reality with poverty and famine in the streets of the Indian metropolis fits perfectly into their wicked plan: To promote the faith in Jesus by showing the misery that pagan believers are doomed to suffer from.
In World War II. African-American GIs liberate Germany from Nazi rule while racism prevailed in their own army and home country. Returning home they continue fighting for their own rights in the civil rights movement.
Witchcraft is older than recorded history and holds great truths and powers, from the natural world to the realms beyond. Witches were masters of a long forgotten world, a time when all things "paranormal and supernatural" were commonplace and its practitioners were revered in awe. It's time to put away the ideas borne of organized religious intolerance and learn the true reality of Witches, then and those that live among us today.
An in-depth look at the culture of Los Angeles in the ten years leading up to the 1992 uprising that erupted after the verdict of police officers cleared of beating Rodney King.
See how New Deal-era Redlining maps delineated risk areas for federally-backed mortgages and home-ownership programs, resulting in a wealth gap that continues to impact communities and Black families today.
A documentary on the late American entertainer Dean Reed, who became a huge star in East Germany after settling there in 1973.
“Shellmound” is the story of how one location was transformed from a sacred center of pre-historic cultures to a commercial mecca for modern people. What began as a Native American burial ground three thousand years ago, was transformed first into an amusement park, and later an industrial age paint factory. Now, the tainted ancient soil sits beneath the glittering lights of Banana Republic, Victoria’s Secret, and the AMC movie theaters. “Shellmound” examines the decisions made during the recent toxic cleanup, excavation, and construction of the Bay Street mall through the eyes of the city of Emeryville, the developer, the archaeologists, and the native Californians who worked on the site.
Learn about the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, on the one hundredth anniversary of the crime, and how the community of Tulsa is coming to terms with its past, present, and future.
Le Soliloque des muets
“Saigon on Wax" is a vibrant and engaging community documentary that pulls back the curtain on Saigon's burgeoning and often overlooked vinyl culture. Moving beyond the city's well-known culinary and shopping attractions, the film delves into a passionate community of collectors, musicians, DJs, and record store owners who are shaping a unique sonic landscape. The film incorporates rich archival photos and videos, breathing life into the history of vinyl in Saigon while also showcasing its dynamic present.
In 30 years of a deeply committed career and 50 roles, Denzel Washington, double-Oscar winner, placed the figure of the Black man in all its complexity at the heart of the American paradoxes: from Black activist, rebel soldier to gangster torn between violence and charity. Voted best actor of the 21st century by the New York Times a few months ago, Denzel Washington, 65, has risen to the top of American cinema. As an Actor, director and producer, he has shaken up a "color line" as immutable as it is subtle. Often identified with his characters, he reveals himself to be disconcerting and paradoxical. As if he were holding up a mirror to America in which all of its contradictions and failings were reflected. A documentary that chronicles the extraordinary career of the world-renowned African-American actor.
Home to the Mitterrand family since 1965, Latche was the former president's base for three decades. Family, friends, and world leaders gathered there for walks, hours of conversation, and some of the defining moments of the century. There, he was a different François Mitterrand, absorbed by the "spirit of the place," far from the trappings of the Republic. An intimate space, Latche was also a political territory open to the world, a powerful diplomatic asset serving the ambitions of its owner.
A documentary that traces the life and times of Bhagat Singh, a committed Marxist who most ably exemplified the spirit of revolutionary resistance against British imperialism in undivided India.
A moving meditation on guilt and reconciliation, Bloodlines explores the unwritten cost of war and genocide on future generations - of both victims and perpetrators. As Bettina Goering, grandniece of Nazi war criminal Herman Goering, searches for a way to come to terms with her heritage, she meets Ruth Rich, a painter and daughter of Holocaust survivors. At a time when seemingly irreconcilable divisions between groups are tearing the world apart, this deeply hopeful film is a beautiful testament to the power of dialogue and post-conflict reconciliation.
OBAIDA, a short film by Matthew Cassel, explores a Palestinian child’s experience of Israeli military arrest. Each year, some 700 Palestinian children undergo military detention in a system where ill-treatment is widespread and institutionalized. For these young detainees, few rights are guaranteed, even on paper. After release, the experience of detention continues to shape and mark former child prisoners’ path forward.