To B or to B Flat - the composer Boudewijn Buckinx(2019)

A Bright Nowhere: Journeying Into Improvisation(en)

An important audio-visual record of a landmark series of four concerts staged in London in 2022 when more than 30 musicians joined improviser, percussionist and animateur Eddie Prévost to mark his 80th birthday. The film takes a close look at improvisers who create music in the moment, free from the authority of a composer, score or conductor. Ranging from profound delicacy to subversive atonality, the “awkward wealth” of this music raises vital questions about artistic freedom, individual responsibility and what it means for people to make music together in the 21st Century. Featuring performances by John Butcher, Sue Lynch, Ute Kanngiesser, Marjolaine Charbin, Nathan Moore, Seymour Wright, Veryan Weston, Alan Wilkinson, John Tilbury and Eddie Prévost amongst others. Plus readings by musician and author David Toop. The film includes the last ever concert by AMM, the pioneering improvising group co-founded by Eddie Prévost in the mid-1960s.

Vincent Lindon - Cœur sanglant(fr)

For three years, Vincent Lindon recorded himself on his iPhone to document his insecurities, fears and fits of rage as if in a diary. Thierry Demaizière and Alban Teurlai use these unique recordings to paint an unusual portrait of the actor, who openly addresses personal questions about his profession, his age and his emotions.

VIET≈NAM ≈ HANOISE(en)

Hanoise is a portrait of the little known, but very rich, experimental music scene from Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. It showcases a diverse array of the city's musical mavericks and avant-garde explorers, merging the sounds of the city and the experimentations of a young community braving the local cultural prohibitions.

The Rebellious Olivia de Havilland(fr)

The legendary British-American actress Olivia de Havilland (1916-2020), who conquered Hollywood in the thirties, challenged the film industry when, in 1943, she took on the all-powerful producer Jack Warner in court, forever changing the ruthless working conditions that restricted the essential rights and freedom of artists.

Nice Girls Don't Stay for Breakfast(en)

In the late 1990s, iconic photographer Bruce Weber barely managed to convince legendary actor Robert Mitchum (1917-97) to let himself be filmed simply hanging out with friends, telling anecdotes from his life and recording jazz standards.

OHM+: The Early Gurus Of Electronic Music : 1948–1980(en)

Over two hours of rare performances, interviews, animations, and experimental video. Milton Babbit’s discussion of the difficulties of working with archaic synthesizers in the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center in the 1950s and ’60s is a firm reminder of just how foreign electronic sounds were to even the academic community only 40 years ago. Likewise, Paul Lansky’s private lesson with theremin inventor Leon Theremin is an example of how non-user friendly electronic musical instruments could be, even to people who should have the best sense of how to approach them.

Who's Afraid of Kathy Acker?(en)

Documentary tracing the extreme life of outlaw writer, performance artist and punk icon, Kathy Acker. Through animation, archival footage, interviews and dramatic reenactments, director Barbara Caspar explores Acker's colorful history, from her well-heeled upbringing to her role as the scribe of society's fringe.

Jacques Villeret, drôlement tragique(fr)

All About Yves Montand(fr)

Yves Montand would have been 100-years-old in 2021. A journey through the 20th century by the son of an Italian immigrant who reached the peak of his art and popularity. The song, the cinema, the commitments, a film all in archives.

Semjon Byčkov(cs)

Little Richard: I Am Everything(en)

The story of the black, gay origins of rock n' roll. It explodes the whitewashed canon of American pop music to reveal the innovator – the originator – Richard Penniman. Through a wealth of archive and performance that brings us into Richard's complicated inner world, the film unspools the icon's life story with all its switchbacks and contradictions.

Paco Roca: dibujando la vida(es)

A portrait of Spanish comic book author Paco Plaza.

James Ensor: Demons Teasing Me(en)

This film explains what James Ensor (1860-1949) meant for the development of art and makes palpable where he got his inspiration from.

Barbra Streisand: Becoming an Icon 1942–1984(fr)

Barbra Streisand grew up in working class Brooklyn, dreaming of escape from her tough childhood. A stellar student, she resisted the pressure to go to college as her sights were firmly set on Broadway. She was determined to become an actress and landed her first role aged 16, but it was two years later, when she started to sing, that her career took off. Subverting stereotypes and breaking glass ceilings, this programme looks at her rise to stardom and the remarkable achievements of her early career.

Stanisław Lem: Autor Solaris(pl)

An account of the life and work of the Polish writer Stanisław Lem (1921-2006), a key figure in science fiction literature involved in mysteries and paradoxes that need to be enlightened.

Ritratti: Luigi Meneghello(it)

Marco Paolini interviews Luigi Meneghello about growing up under fascism, his involvement with the Italian resistance movement, his later self-exile, acclaimed literary work and its relationship with dialect.

Madonna: Truth or Dare(en)

From the rains of Japan, through threats of arrest for 'public indecency' in Canada, and a birthday tribute to her father in Detroit, this documentary follows Madonna on her 1990 'Blond Ambition' concert tour. Filmed in black and white, with the concert pieces in glittering MTV color, it is an intimate look at the work of the icon, from a prayer circle before each performance to bed games with the dance troupe afterwards.

At the End of Nothing at All(fr)

Every morning, Marcel confides in his tape recorder. It is from his reflections on life that this film takes us into the wake of his story.

The Pretenders: Chrissie Hynde or Rock Life(fr)

A journey through the artistic life of the British-American rock band The Pretenders, formed in 1978, and a portrait of its leader, the charismatic singer and songwriter Chrissie Hynde.

War Photographer(en)

Documentary about war photographer James Nachtwey, considered by many the greatest war photographer ever.