Culture Beat

A young surfer enters his first contest, hoping a win will earn him respect. But an encounter with a laid-back local forces him to rethink his values.

Fictional documentary about the life of human chameleon Leonard Zelig, a man who becomes a celebrity in the 1920s due to his ability to look and act like whoever is around him. Clever editing places Zelig in real newsreel footage of Woodrow Wilson, Babe Ruth, and others.

"This Is Spinal Tap" shines a light on the self-contained universe of a metal band struggling to get back on the charts, including everything from its complicated history of ups and downs, gold albums, name changes and undersold concert dates, along with the full host of requisite groupies, promoters, hangers-on and historians, sessions, release events and those special behind-the-scenes moments that keep it all real.

The next great psycho horror slasher has given a documentary crew exclusive access to his life as he plans his reign of terror over the sleepy town of Glen Echo, all the while deconstructing the conventions and archetypes of the horror genre for them.

A 30-year-old musician questions his resolve to marry his longtime girlfriend when he meets a free-spirited woman on his cross-country roadtrip.

Suzanne Stone wants to be a world-famous news anchor and she is willing to do anything to get what she wants. What she lacks in intelligence, she makes up for in cold determination and diabolical wiles. As she pursues her goal with relentless focus, she is forced to destroy anything and anyone that may stand in her way, regardless of the ultimate cost or means necessary.

Behind-the-scenes documentary of the making of 'Caddyshack'. Among the people interviewed: producer Jon Peters, writer/director Harold Ramis, and players Cindy Morgan, Scott Colomby, Ann Ryerson, Hamilton Mitchell, and Chevy Chase.

A mockumentary following the craziest rivalry in surfing history, and the events that follow a shark attack at an annual competition.

A mock-documentary about the worst amateur fighter ever.

A five hour and forty-five minute film set on board a BLAH Airlines flight - the boring, beige and dull antithesis of the innovative and stylish experience when flying Virgin America. The film, which will be screened on April 10 as part of the official DIFF Festival Line-Up, is a surrealistic and humorous work of cinema vérité that exposes the grim reality of commercial air travel - characterized by cramped seats, harsh lighting and a lack of entertainment and meal options.

In 1970, Mikey and William both portrayed football cannibal Smash-Mouth in the influential cult hit, End Zone 2. Now, 50 years later, only one can wear the mask.

A struggling filmmaker senses her peers are losing faith in her ability to succeed, so she decides to prove herself by finishing her last abandoned film and committing the perfect murder.

A faux-documentary that closely follows two maniacally violent people who rebel against the old traditions of their film studies club.

Kazakh journalist Borat Sagdiyev travels to America to make a documentary. As he zigzags across the nation, Borat meets real people in real situations with hysterical consequences. His backwards behavior generates strong reactions around him exposing prejudices and hypocrisies in American culture.

Amateur 'chefs' from around the country compete for a million dollar prize in the ultimate food fight.

A female recording artist encounters the misogyny and outdated business practices of male record label executives.

In the 1970s, Strange Fruit were it. They lived the rock lifestyle to the max, groupies, drugs, internal tension and an ex front man dead from an overdose. Even their demise was glamorous; when lightning struck the stage during an outdoor festival. Twenty years on, these former rock gods they have now sunk deep into obscurity when the idea of a reunion tour is lodged in the head of Tony, former keyboard player of the Fruits. Tony sets out to find his former bandmates with the help of former manager Karen to see if they can recapture the magic and give themselves a second chance.

The questionably unstable Darryl Donaldson goes on a quest to prove why he's Donnie Darko's #1 fan. While creating the production diaries for the film Donnie Darko, the crew also secretly produced this short satirical film that poked fun at the film, its fans, and the people behind it.

A one-off 90 minute special in which Keith Lemon pays tribute to the iconic Back To The Future films.

First-time director Dirk Shafer also penned this raucous "mockumentary," a blend of fact and fiction that re-creates his 1992 reign as Playgirl magazine's Centerfold of the Year. When Shafer chooses to keep the fact that he's gay a secret from the magazine's editors, he finds himself living the ultimate lie -- and incapable of giving female readers what they really want. Will he succumb to his lover's pressures to come out of the closet?