The Mirror and the Window(2021)

The Perfect Circle(it)

Earth to earth, water to water. The body weight of a newborn child is up to 85 percent water, but in adulthood, the ratio can be cut into half. In a way, people dry up as they grow older. In Claudia Tosi’s documentary, people drink water, watch the rain and wait for their death. The Perfect Circle depicts a man and a woman, Ivano and Meris, who spend their final days at a hospice in the hills of Reggio Emilia, Northern Italy. Their illnesses are in the terminal stage and they know that death is only a matter of time. But the ever-nearing end may fleetingly be forgotten, like when they close their eyes and get lost in the music – until the bodies being carried out next door once again remind them of the inevitable. Death also becomes a part of life for the patients’ loved ones, who want to spend the last available moments with the soon to be departed.

Your Parents Will Come Back(es)

In 1983 a group of 154 children aged 3 and 17 years old traveled alone from Europe to Montevideo. They were children of political exiles from Uruguay, who were unable to come back to their own country; they sent their kids to know their relatives and home country. That human sign, charged with a political message, took part in children’s identity development. Nowadays, six of them still remember that day, when a crowd received them singing all together “your parents will come back”.

Passing Time(fr)

Lou Colpé has been filming her grandparents since she was 15. In the process of this intense relationship, she notices some disconcerting signs in her grandmother: Alzheimer’s is slowing her down. A new film begins, a tougher one: the story of a couple that must face a tremendous challenge. Struggling against the tide of oblivion, the task of filmmaking becomes the ultimate act of resistance. Trying to retain the last images of her grandparents, an intimate conversation begins and echoes through the songs that play on the radio, conjuring lost stories and memories.

Reila(nl)

Long Way(en)

The director of the film travels to India to find the woman she met six years before with whom she bonded spiritually. Equipped with only a rosary given by the woman and a picture, she searches but doesn’t know the woman’s name nor where she is from, this often leads to her being ridiculed by the locals.

Dief!(en)

This documentary short is a portrait of Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party and 13th prime minister of Canada, John George Diefenbaker (1895-1979). Diefenbaker's political career spanned 6 decades. When he died in 1979, his state funeral and final train trip west became more a celebration of life than a victory for death.

Voices That Heal(es)

Herlinda Augustin is a Shipibo healer who lives with her family in Peruvian Amazonia. Will she and other healers be able to maintain their ancient tradition despite Western encroachment?

Sicko(en)

A documentary about the corrupt health care system in The United States who's main goal is to make profit even if it means losing people’s lives. "The more people you deny health insurance the more money we make" is the business model for health care providers in America.

Alaska, au pays des glaciers(fr)

Bibis of 14(ca)

Through a film letter, Lara communicates with her great-grandfather Paco, whom she barely knew. She explains to him what has happened since he died.

Going Alone(de)

Every year, five to ten percent of all deceased Berliners are buried by the authorities because no relatives are found. Most of them are put into the ground by mortician Bernd Simon going alone. But sometimes companions do turn up and say goodbye in their very own way. An observational documentary about an undertaker who actually wanted to become an entertainer, a bizarre city portrait and a mirror of how we deal with death, mourning and commemoration.

The Grass Dwellers(es)

Juan Méndez Bernal leaves his house on the 9th of april of 1936 to fight in the imminent Spanish Civil War. 83 years later, his body is still one of the Grass Dwellers. The only thing that he leaves from those years on the front is a collection of 28 letters in his own writing.

Bridgend(en)

Since 2007, dozens of young people have been found hanged in Bridgend, a town in southern Wales. Many of them knew one another-they were friends, neighbors, and family. The striking similarities between their deaths have confounded authorities and struck fear into the hearts of parents. Headlines splashed across the UK earned Bridgend its infamous nickname: ""Death Town."

My Flesh and Blood(en)

My Flesh and Blood is a 2003 documentary film by Jonathan Karsh chronicling a year in the life of the Tom family. The Tom family is notable as the mother, Susan, adopted eleven children, most of whom had serious disabilities or diseases. The film itself is notable for handling the sensitive subject matter in an unsentimental way that is more uplifting than one might expect.

Roberto Rossellini: Il mestiere di uomo(en)

Documentary about the life and works of Italian filmmaker Roberto Rossellini.

Dearly Departed(en)

Hollywood is a hot spot for celebrities, and tour guide Scott Michaels (E!'s "20 Most Horrifying Hollywood Murders," FindADeath.com) knows their, well, haunts. DEARLY DEPARTED is an all-access tour of the "backlots" of L.A. - locations where the most infamous murders, suicides and bizarre crimes involving A-listers have taken place. The Viper Room, the site where "The Black Dahlia" was discovered, and dozens more legendary spots are explored in this funny and equally shocking ride into L.A.'s seedy underground.

Back with the gang(es)

Tatiana faces an economic crisis that has forced her to be temporarily away from her kids, her "gang", as she calls them. By writing out her feelings and covering her wall with pictures of the kids, Tatiana opens her heart from the loneliness of a rented room in Bogotá. While she attempts with determination to let her kids know that, despite the circumstances, she is still there for them.

Becoming Who I Was(ko)

Angdu is no ordinary boy. Indeed, in a past life he was a venerated Buddhist master. His village already treats him like a saint as a result. The village doctor, who has taken the boy under his wing, prepares him to be able to pass on his wisdom. Alas, Tibet, Angdu’s former homeland and the centre of his faith, lies far away from his current home in the highlands of Northern India. On top of that, the conflict between China and Tibet makes the prospect of a trip there even more daunting. Undeterred by these harsh facts, the duo set off for their destination on foot, accompanied by questions of friendship and the nature of life. With its narrative approach steeped in a serene sense of concentration, this documentary film, composed over a period of eight years, stands as a fundamental experience in its own right.

The Way Home(ar)

When filmmaker Wael Kadlo picks up his mother from the airport in Beirut, it seems like a rather warm family visit. But Kadlo, who was born in Damascus in 1980, has some questions he needs to ask her.

I’ve Never Been in a Fight(en)

Have you ever been in a fight? Even thrown a punch? Because Andrew never has. His mom raised him as a pacifist, and she would like to keep it that way. But deep down, Andrew has a question: how much can he know about himself if he’s never been punched in the face? More importantly: how much can he know about his mom, the woman that has sacrificed so much for him, if he’s never fought for anything?