A Short Essay on Men(2019)

Endless bullying - Daan's story(nl)

This moving documentary tells the story of Daan, a cheerful and talented boy who left life at the age of sixteen after a school career in which he was systematically excluded. Former classmates organize a reunion to investigate how things got to this point. They discover that many other students also felt unsafe in the classroom. Meanwhile, Daan's sister Julia, who, like Daan, loves theater, is working on her self-confidence. And Daan's group of friends, where he could finally be himself, looks back on the time they spent with him.

De Profundis(pt)

At the end of the 80's, the city of Itacuruba, in the backlands of Pernambuco, was transferred to another locality due to the construction of a hydroelectric plant. In the new region, the city began to register many suicides, reaching a rate ten times greater than the national average. Through memories of the lost city, villagers reveal that the root of a people is like the root of a tree: essential to life.

back home(en)

In 1999, 11-year-old Nisha Platzer lost her older brother, Josh, to suicide. Twenty years later, her search for a specialized medical treatment leads her to the door of someone who was once exceptionally close to Josh. And so it is that she finally has the chance to truly know her brother through his chosen family. Captured over five years in which synchronicities continually manifested, Platzer’s documentation of these encounters gently asserts that both grieving and healing are meant to be communal experiences.

Mon fils, 41 ans pour toujours(fr)

The Mechanics of Fluids(fr)

In 2018, a user called AnathematicAnarchist published a suicide note in an online forum for incels – a subculture of heterosexual men whose self-pity, misogyny and fantasies of violence dominate the internet in many places and trigger offline actions in some. Did he really take his own life? Is America responsible for his death, as he claims in his text? A search for clues in the darkest corners of the net, an essay about pain and loneliness in the age of algorithms.

Here One Day(en)

When filmmaker Kathy Leichter moved back into her childhood home after her mother's suicide, she discovered a hidden box of audiotapes. Sixteen years passed before she had the courage to delve into this trove, unearthing details that her mother had recorded about every aspect of her life from the challenges of her marriage to a State Senator, to her son’s estrangement, to her struggles with bipolar disorder. HERE ONE DAY is a visually arresting, emotionally candid film about a woman coping with mental illness, her relationships with her family, and the ripple effects of her suicide on those she loved.

KIM(hu)

The Death of Nekojiru(ja)

A documentary on the suicide of manga author Chiyomi Hashiguchi, commonly known as Nekojiru.

The Bridge(en)

The Bridge is a controversial documentary that shows people jumping to their death from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco - the world's most popular suicide destination. Interviews with the victims' loved ones describe their lives and mental health.

The City Where Children Disappear(da)

Documentary film by the Danish TV channel DR about sexual abuse and suicide in Tasiilaq, Southeastern Greenland.

Ekai(es)

A short documentary depicting the story of young transgender boy Ekai Lersundi, who took his own life in 2018 after struggling with the bureaucracy surrounding hormone replacement therapy assignment.

I Have To Say I Love You(pt)

A documentary about resilience and the fight against suicide among trans people, the film portrays the characters’ relationships with their bodies, life and all that is sacred. It dives into the hearts of Aretha, Yago, Deniell and Ariel in an attempt to promote inner healing.

Stories of Strength and Hope: Preventing Youth Suicide(en)

An up-to-date look at Youth Suicide with an examination of the warning signs, statistics and causes, along with possible ways teachers and parents can use to help their child overcome this important social issue. Also includes a look at the media and its handling of the social issue through the Netflix series "13 Reasons Why" and the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, "Dear Evan Hansen."

Benny and Stockholm House of Culture(sv)

A portrait of Benny Fredriksson who for 16 years was CEO of Kulturhuset / Stadsteatern. He also had a background as an actor and director. In connection with a media hunt he resigned and later took his own life.

I Am a Man: Black Masculinity in America(en)

Award-winning filmmaker Byron Hurt explores what it means to be a Black man in America. Traveling to more than fifteen cities and towns across the country, Hurt gathers reflections on Black masculinity from men and women of a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds and a host of leading scholars and cultural critics. What results is an engaging and honest dialogue about race, gender, and identity in America. Features bell hooks, Michael Eric Dyson, John Henrick Clarke, Kevin Powell, Andrew Young, Dr. Alvin Poussaint, MC Hammer, Jackson Katz, and many others.

Faces of Death(en)

A collection of death scenes, ranging from TV-material to home-made super-8 movies. The common factor is death by some means.

The Weird World of LSD(en)

The 60s equivalent of Reefer Madness and all those other 30s drug exploitation flicks. Apparently, dropping acid leads to stripteases, cat fights, promiscuous sex, playing with kittens, and being convinced your dinner is much larger than it actually is. This is all illustrated in a series of silent sketches accompanied by a droll narrator who seems positively doped out of his mind.

Robin's Wish(en)

The final word in the story of what really happened to Robin Williams at the end of his life, focusing on his fight against a deadly neurodegenerative disorder known as Lewy body dementia.

Stress(de)

"The trauma of 9/11, the ideology of violent retribution, military service as a patriotic family tradition, the “unfairness” of today’s warfare – in their voice-overs, five young Afghanistan war veterans first establish familiar foundations. Joe, Torrie, Mike, James and Justin from Pittsburgh are slow to show us their faces. Physically unharmed but full of inner pain they have become the misunderstood upon their return. Their violent experiences speak a language that the people at home don’t understand.

Paul Merson: Football, Gambling & Me(en)

Former footballer Paul Merson sets out to understand why his life has been so blighted by gambling and asks if enough is being done to prevent others following in his footsteps.