End of an Era(1962)

Berlin: Symphony of a Great City(de)

A day in the city of Berlin, which experienced an industrial boom in the 1920s, and still provides an insight into the living and working conditions at that time. Germany had just recovered a little from the worst consequences of the First World War, the great economic crisis was still a few years away and Hitler was not yet an issue at the time.

Faces Places(fr)

Director Agnès Varda and photographer/muralist JR journey through rural France and form an unlikely friendship.

The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat(fr)

A group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.

Mikado(es)

Once upon a Line(en)

Model husbands prove that size isn't everything as they get steamed up over Lilliput locomotives.

Forest for the Trees(en)

Award-winning war photographer Rita Leistner goes back to her roots as a tree planter in the wilderness of British Columbia, offering an inside take on the grueling, sometimes fun and always life-changing experience of restoring Canada’s forests. Leistner, who has photographed some of the world’s most dangerous places, credits the challenge of tree-planting for her physical and mental endurance. In Forest for the Trees, her first feature film, she revisits her past to share the lessons she learned. The film introduces us to everyday life on the “cut-block” and the brave souls who fight through rough terrains and work endless hours to bring our forests to life. The rugged BC landscape comes to life magically in Leistner’s photography, while the quirky characters and nuggets of wisdom shared around the campfire tell a sincere story of community.

Flight of the Century(en)

The story of the most famous train in the world

The Freight Train(en)

EB Films presents a documentary on the life of the freight train in America.

Rolling the Freight(en)

Film on the movement of material from the Chicago and Northwestern System.

Last of the Giants(en)

A Union Pacific production outlining the Big Boy locomotive and the history of the last great steam engine to rule the rails

Learning to Steam(en)

Arfon spent a week on the Great Central Railway finding out everything a trainee footplate member needs to know. Starting at the bottom, just as a real trainee would have done on BR, Arfon first becomes a cleaner then gradually progresses up the ladder with ex-Fireman Ray Martin teaching him the art of firing. Ex-BR Driver Bill Gwilt then takes over to explain how to oil and prepare the loco followed by how to drive. Arfon then takes the controls of Clun Castle in charge of a seven coach “express” running from Loughborough Central to Rothley. If you have ever wondered how a steam engine works or how they are maintained or driven, this best selling video is for you.

Night Mail(en)

This documentary short examines the special train on which mail is sorted, dropped and collected on the run, and delivered in Scotland on the overnight run from Euston, London to Glasgow.

Last Train Home(zh)

A family embarks on an annual tormenting journey along with 130 million other peasant workers to reunite with their distant family, and to revive their love and dignity as China soars as the world's next super power.

The Travel Game(en)

A light and somewhat satirical look at the problems and pleasures of Continental holiday travel. A passenger on the Hook Continental Express from Liverpool St. imagines the possible destinations of his fellow passengers.

Freightliner and Merry Go Round(en)

A British Transport Film, in German!

Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks(zh)

A detailed look at the gradual decline of Shenyang’s industrial Tiexi district, an area that was once a vibrant example of China’s socialist economy. But industry is changing, and the factories of Tiexi are closing. Director Wang Bing introduces us to some of the workers affected by the closures, and to their families.

The Beast(es)

Each year, hundreds of Central American migrants try to cross the northern border of Mexico on the freight train known as the Beast. That trip is usually the most dangerous journey of their lives. On the road many lost their dreams, their body parts and even their lives. Crossing Mexico is their biggest challenge, here are victims of discrimination, violence and even murder. This film portrays the suffering of those people who travel in search of a better life.

Big Easy Express(en)

Indie folk heroes Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Tennessee’s Old Crow Medicine Show, and Britain’s acclaimed Mumford & Sons, climbed aboard a beautiful vintage train in California, setting out for New Orleans, Louisiana on a “tour of dreams”. The resulting film from this journey is nothing short of magical. Part road movie and part concert film, BIG EASY EXPRESS bears witness to the birth of a new musical era. With poignancy and beauty, Malloy documents these incredible musicians as they ride the rails and wow the crowds, from Oakland… to New Orleans.

Silvicola(en)

The human impact on forests is explored through breathtaking vistas and poignant vignettes set in Canada's Pacific Northwest. Those who rely on this precious resource highlight the tensions and dilemmas between commodification and conservation.

Who Bombed Judi Bari?(en)

Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney were falsely arrested for car-bombing themselves on May 24, 1990 while on an Earth First! musical organizing tour for Redwood Summer. They sued the FBI for violations of the First Amendment, claiming the FBI knew they were innocent but arrested them to try to silence them. Having survived the bomb but now stricken by cancer, Judi Bari, a leader of the movement to save California's old growth redwoods, gives her on-camera, deathbed testimony about the attempt on her life and her colorful organizing history with the radical environmental movement Earth First.