Better Off Dead?(2024)

An Uncountable Number of Threads(en)

Travel films have an established format with their own conventions, history and baggage. It is a medium that has all too often sought to control, define and dictate perceptions of ”other” places. Comprised of footage shot while travelling on group excursions across Russia in 2019, An Uncountable Number of Threads is an attempt to draw out the ethical restrictions of a travelogue, while questioning how (and why) to make one. At times there is an awkward tourist-gaze, aware of its outsider position. But as a self-reflexive work that considers its own creation, it ultimately unravels, as the artist rationalises themselves out of a particular way of working, inviting the viewer into their uncertainty.

Habouman's Promise(ko)

Fairfield Road(en)

Noah McManus is leaving his job with the Boston mayor's office for a dream gig in Washington, D.C. But in a single day, he finds out his new boss in Washington can no longer employ him and that his girlfriend has been cheating on him. Devastated, Noah travels to a quaint Cape Cod town and unexpectedly finds himself at home.

Embargo sur l'Iran(fr)

You Don't Know Jack(en)

Controversy and legal problems follow Dr. Jack Kevorkian as he advocates assisted suicide.

Désentubage cathodique(fr)

From falsehood to mystification to manipulation and false impartiality, the whole logic of disinformation and brutality is brought to light. When the king of the media and his politico-journalistic buffoons are sifted by a radical counter-audiovisual power, the discredit of the "elites" sanctioned by the referendum of May 29, 2005 is better understood. With this film, Zalea TV's team had decided to laugh about it and make them laugh, even if at bottom these discoveries were rather disturbing. By staging a series of very simple techniques of "self-defense", this film is an invitation to self-disengage permanently. The use of the TV-B Gone, an instrument whose sole function is to turn off the television, appears here as the ultimate resort to media criticism.

Scootmobiel(nl)

Frans Bromet follows scoot drivers of different ages about their lives. He talks to them about what has changed since they got a mobility scooter, about how their living space has increased, about the limitations of the vehicle and about what is and is no longer possible in private.

Eating Animals(en)

An examination of our dietary choices and the food we put in our bodies.

The Times of Harvey Milk(en)

Harvey Milk was an outspoken human rights activist and one of the first openly gay U.S. politicians elected to public office; even after his assassination in 1978, he continues to inspire disenfranchised people around the world.

Chevolution(en)

Examines the history and legacy of the photo Guerrillero Heroico taken by famous Cuban photographer Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez. This image has thrived for the decades since Che Guevara's death and has evolved into an iconic image, which represents a multitude of ideals. The documentary film explores the story of how the photo came to be, its adoption of multiple interpretations and meanings, as well as the commercialization of the image of Ernesto "Che" Guevara.

The Trial(pt)

The impeachment and removal from office of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff in 2016 was triggered by a corruption scandal involving, among others, her then vice-president Michel Temer. Director Maria Augusta Ramos follows the trial against Rousseff from the point of view of her defence team. This is a courtroom drama that unfolds slowly: the appearances of the various parties gradually turn the proceedings into something akin to theatre. Inside the courtroom, grand emotions are played to full effect whilst, on the other side of the doors, lobbyists and supporters pace the corridors. Meanwhile, outside, in front of Brasília’s modernist government buildings, demonstrators are chanting like a Greek chorus. Only the main character, Rousseff herself, remains professional and aloof.

Hard Border(en)

Belfast-born actor Stephen Rea explores the impact of Brexit and the uncertainty of the future of the Irish border in a short film written by Clare Dwyer Hogg.

Concerto For Other Hands(es)

David dreams of being a pianist like his father, José Luis, who believes it impossible due to his son's physical characteristics: short arms, hands with four fingers and limited hearing. Thanks to his tenacity, David shows him that he can play in his own way and together they begin a musical path that culminates with a new challenge for David: premiering the difficult concerto for piano and orchestra that his father composed for him.

Statues Also Die(fr)

Commissioned by the journal Présence Africaine, this short documentary examines how African art is devalued and alienated through colonial and museum contexts. Beginning with the question of why African works are confined to ethnographic displays while Greek or Egyptian art is celebrated, the film became a landmark of anti-colonial cinema and was banned in France for eight years.

1974, une partie de campagne(fr)

Following the 1974 French presidential campaign with Valéry Giscard d’Estaing.

Puppet Masters(pl)

Unfulfilled promises of politicians, victims of the system, backstage of election campaign.

Barbershops Uncut: East Coast(en)

A raw and uncensored look at what really goes down in urban barbershops.

You Can't Kill Meme(en)

A hybrid documentary feature film about the genesis of "memetic magick" and its application by the alt-right in the United States.

Blue Gold: World Water Wars(en)

Wars of the future will be fought over water as they are over oil today, as the source of human survival enters the global marketplace and political arena. Corporate giants, private investors, and corrupt governments vie for control of our dwindling supply, prompting protests, lawsuits, and revolutions from citizens fighting for the right to survive.

De Gaulle, the Last King of France(fr)

Charles de Gaulle, the first president (1958-1969) of the Vth Republic, France’s current system of government, left his mark on the country . He was statesman of action and has been compared to a monarch. This film depicts the general’s personality through the great events of his presidential term, at a time when the world was undergoing considerable changes.