The Ozu Diaries(2025)

A Train Arrives at the Station(en)

“This film was a gift to me. I make no claims for it, nor do I offer any apologies. It comes from work on The Thoughts That Once We Had. There was one shot we had to cut whose loss I particularly regretted. It was a shot of a train pulling into Tokyo Station from Ozu’s The Only Son (1936). So I decided to make a film around this shot, an anthology of train arrivals. It comprises 26 scenes or shots from movies, 1904-2015. It has a simple serial structure: each black & white sequence in the first half rhymes with a color sequence in the second half. Thus the first shot and the final shot show trains arriving at stations in Japan from a low camera height. In the first shot (The Only Son), the train moves toward the right; in the last shot, it moves toward the left. A bullet train has replaced a steam locomotive. So after all these years, I’ve made another structural film, although that was not my original intention.”

I Lived, But...(ja)

An extremely lovely tribute to Ozu, on the 20th anniversary of his death. It uses a combination of footage from vintage films and new material (both interviews and Ozu-related locations) shot by Ozu's long-time camera-man (who came out of retirement to work on this). Surprisingly (or perhaps not), it focuses less on Ozu's accomplishments as a film-maker than on his impact on the lives of the people he worked with..

North Bergen, North Bergen(en)

Footage shot in and around North Bergen, New Jersey presented in a minimalist series of fixed camera angles and long-takes accompanied by the ambient noise of city streets.

2 of One(en)

Two versions of the One music video with an intro and outro by Lars, released on VHS in the US, and the smaller 8" LaserDisc in Japan.

Frozen Out(zh)

An immigrant artist in Iowa retreats to frozen prairies, forests, and swamps, trying to find a meaningful story and escape from the anxieties of dislocation. Delivered as a film-letter to the protagonist’s little sister in rural China, the film considers his self-exile as well as mental health struggles that were too shameful to address back home.

Adios(de)

Helena from the Wedding: Cast Interviews(en)

On-set interviews with the cast of Helena from the Wedding (2010).

Heimgesucht(de)

Drogenproblem Alkohol(de)

A typical group of young people get together at the weekend. Drinking is part of it because, according to them, alcohol is a social drug. But Rudolf knows better, because he is an alcoholic. He has been trying unsuccessfully to overcome his addiction for years. He observes young people as they deal with alcohol.

Die physiologische Wirkung von Drogen(de)

Most drugs exert their effects by changing the balance between excitatory and inhibitory signals at certain synapses. This is shown specifically using the examples of amphetamine, cocaine, LSD and heroin, while alcohol and sleeping pills serve as examples of a different mechanism of action.

Frühraucher(de)

Jean, a schoolboy who started smoking at the age of 8, talks about his addiction. Jean's smoking career is an example of how addiction develops. In a futile attempt to give up smoking again at the age of 18, Jean comes to the frustrating realization that the addiction has him in its grip.

Chornobyl. Epilogue(uk)

The film is dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the accident at the Chornobyl NPP.

The Sleeper. The Lost Caravaggio(it)

A painting hanging in a house in Madrid is causing a stir as it is thought to be a lost work by the great Italian Baroque painter Caravaggio.

Top of the Pops, 1964 to 1975 - Big Hits(en)

No Maps on My Taps(en)

The remarkable spirit of tap dancers and their history provides a joyous backdrop for intimate portraits of hoofers Sandman Sims, Chuck Green, and Bunny Briggs.

The Once and Future Griffith Observatory(en)

Documentary about the Griffith Observatory, shown at their Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon Theater

Who Loves the Earth(de)

A DEFA documentary celebrating the 10th World Festival of Youth and Students, held in East Berlin in the summer of 1973. Blending reportage with staged elements, it presents the festival as a showcase of international solidarity, culture, and socialist ideals.

The Last Waltz(ru)

This film is about Oleg Karavaichuk, eccentric musical genius and famous St. Petersburg composer, who takes his final stroll through Komarovo, a bay-side summer community just outside St. Petersburg where he spent his whole life and wrote most of his works. His final piece, “The Komarovo Waltz”, unveiled here for the very first time, was written as a tribute to the place. The film is the reclusive composer’s eulogy to the community. It also serves as Karavoichuk’s farewell to audience as well as his last address and reminder of things that are truly important – love for your fellow man and virgin nature.

RiverBlue(en)

RiverBlue chronicles an unprecedented around-the-world river adventure, led by renowned paddler and conservationist, Mark Angelo, who ends up uncovering and documenting the dark side of the global fashion industry.

Led Zeppelin - 1970 to 1972(en)

Compilation of footage from various amateur and TV sources, in wildly varying quality. More one for completists. One of a series.