Carnets 88

At the peak of Perestroika, in 1987, in the village of Gorki, where Lenin spent his last years, after a long construction, the last and most grandiose museum of the Leader was opened. Soon after the opening, the ideology changed, and the flow of pilgrims gradually dried up. Despite this, the museum still works and the management is looking for ways to attract visitors. Faithful to the Lenin keepers of the museum as they can resist the onset of commercialization. The film tells about the modern life of this amazing museum-reserve and its employees.

25 years after the pro wrestler shocked the world when elected Governor of Minnesota, it's high time to explore the people, values and experiences that shaped him.

Documentary film about Tony Halme, masculinity and populism. The film follows how Tony Halme created a mythical, highly masculine freestyle wrestling character, The Viking, who gained fame both in the ring and in the public eye and eventually became captivated by it. With his brash speeches, Halme fired the starting shot for the rise of the Finns Party. The voice of a forgotten section of the population, a protest against the ruling elite, were the building blocks of Halme's popularity. Halme's great popularity has served as a good example of a populist figure, admired within the deep ranks of the nation, who comes from outside the political elite and changes the direction of politics. Also, despite - or perhaps because of - his openly racist statements, he was part of changing the political climate in Finland to a more acrimonious one.

What does the world's richest man, dedicated chaos agent, and Donald Trump's new best buddy want out of politics? To shape the world? Or is it bigger than that?

A Trump supporter and election denier joins Georgia’s election board to expose fraud but, through conversations with a ChatGPT assistant and firsthand experience, he discovers the system’s surprising integrity — and realizes large-scale voter fraud is far harder than he believed.

Between 1968 and 1970, J M Goodger, a lecturer at the University of Salford, made a film record of the living conditions in the slums of Ordsall, Salford, which were then in the process of being demolished. Under the title 'The Changing face of Salford', the film was in two parts: 'Life in the slums' and 'Bloody slums'.

In a fascinating geopolitical drama, Danish filmmaker Mik-Meyer closely follows Ravalomanana as he attempts to return from exile in South Africa to Madagascar, under the threat of arrest and bodily harm.

When a young woman is shot by an undocumented immigrant on Pier 14 in San Francisco, the incident ignites a political and media furor that culminates in Donald Trump’s election as President of the United States. In the eye of this storm, two public defenders fight to reveal the truth.

This documentary focuses mostly on the 1930’s to 1950’s – arguably the most important period in modern American history. These decades included the Great Depression, the peak of labor militancy in 1937 (probably the closest the US has come to a popular revolution since 1787), the rise of the “guest worker” phenomenon, the counter-attack against labor unions, the creation of the military industrial complex, the rise of the FBI, the foundations of the civil rights movement, and the purging of radicals from organized labor and public life.

The film showcases the voices of past and present Hougang residents, alongside commentary by historians, public intellectuals, politicians, and volunteers. Charting Hougang’s history from the mid-eighteenth century, the film features personal recollections of growing up in Hougang, residents’ sentiments towards state-led redevelopment and relocation, and the political journey of the community in the context of the Workers’ Party having won the Hougang Parliamentary seat a little over 30 years ago.

The New Tango (El Nuevo Tango) was not shown in Argentina for a long time as it deals with the ascent of Argentinean president Hector Campora in May 1973, and features Cuban and Chilean presidents, Osvaldo Dorticos and Salvador Allende. A million people gathered on the Plaza de Mayo to acclaim the new President. One of Cámpora's first presidential actions was a granting of amnesty to political prisoners who where jailed during the dictatorship. On 28 May Argentina restored diplomatic relations with Cuba, which then received Argentine aid - such as food and industrial products - to break the United States embargo against Cuba.

Buenos Aires is a complex, chaotic city. It has European style and a Latin American heart. It has oscillated between dictatorship and democracy for over a century, and its citizens have faced brutal oppression and economic disaster. Throughout all this, successive generations of activists and artists have taken to the streets of this city to express themselves through art. This has given the walls a powerful and symbolic role: they have become the city’s voice. This tradition of expression in public space, of art and activism interweaving, has made the streets of Buenos Aires into a riot of colour and communication, giving the world a lesson in how to make resistance beautiful.

When artist Janet Biehl fell in love with radical American philosopher Murray Bookchin in the 1980s whilst editing his ground-breaking opus “The Ecology of Freedom”, she could never have imagined that it would one day take her halfway across the globe. Now, over 40 years later, Janet travels from America to the Middle East to witness something remarkable - how Murray’s ideas have ignited a female-led revolution in North-East Syria, where society is being rebuilt in the wake of victory over ISIS. Janet meets the women who are turning her late partner’s political theories into a modern reality, creating a grassroots communal democracy. Janet draws what she sees, and her illustrations capture the humanity of ordinary people in their struggle to self-govern. Now, at this critical moment for Syria and with this revolutionary project under renewed threat, "Threads of a Revolution" reveals a possible way forward for those prepared to fight for a new way to live.

In South Korea, 2002, the Democratic Party put the presidential nomination to a plebiscite for the first time. Amongst numerous candidates, the one who brought about the most unexpected result was a fringe candidate named Roh Moo-hyun.

Filmmaker Steve York explores the controversial 2004 Ukrainian presidential election, during which candidate Viktor Yushchenko suffered a near-fatal poisoning and his unpopular opponent, Viktor Yanukovych, was declared the winner. In the aftermath, more than a million people -- including the ailing Yushchenko -- took to the streets of Kiev, protesting the results that contradicted exit polls showing Yushchenko with an impressive lead.

Documentary about the Lyon sex workers who occupied the church of St. Nizier on June 3, 1975.

Les Glucksmann, une histoire de famille

This documentary film follows farmers and activists fighting together to stop the Indiana Enterprise Center, a mega-sized industrial park planned west of South Bend, Indiana

The meteoric path of Emmanuel Macron made him pass in three years of almost anonymity to the presidency of the Republic. Yet, even though the media have followed him every day during his campaign, no one really knows him. Politics has spoken, progressive, social and liberal at the same time, but man remains an enigma. Behind the official story-telling, what is the true personality of the one who is going to lead France? What are its strengths, its weaknesses? Thanks to unpublished images and exclusive testimonials, including that of his wife Brigitte, this film tells the pivotal moments of the new President's career and reveals the deep motivations that animate him. Investigation of a meteor become President.

Deputy General Secretary at the Elysée to candidate for the presidency of the Republic, the novice in politics went from the shadows to the light in a very short time. For 200 days, our cameras followed him behind the scenes of his campaign and his exceptional ascent. For eight months we were the only ones allowed to follow the candidate Emmanuel Macron with our camera behind the scenes of this exceptional campaign. From the announcement of his candidature until his election on May 7, we propose you an exclusive documentary allowing you to live from inside the campaign of Emmanuel Macron in the manner of a political thriller.