Carnival in Bissau(1980)

Waiting for the Carnival(pt)

A documentary film about the Brazilian town of Toritama, the self-proclaimed capital of jeans. The workers of the city’s self-managed small businesses only get one real break from their self-exploiting lives in the textile business: the annual Carnival.

Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools(en)

"PUSHOUT" is a feature length film confronting the criminalization and miseducation of African American girls that has led to their alarming high school dropout rate and increase into the juvenile justice system.

Grove Carnival(en)

A kaleidoscopic celebration of the 1980 Notting Hill Carnival. Arts Council of Great Britain.

La couleur du temps(fr)

Black Beverly Hills 2(en)

Nicknamed "The Black Beverly Hills," View Park, Baldwin Hills, and Ladera Heights, are unarguably the three most wealthiest black neighborhoods in the world. Residences from the neighborhoods tell stories of their personal upbringings, past and present history of their neighborhoods, and their own views and opinions of the changing demographics.

Hull Fair(en)

The ornate pavilions of cinematographs, boxing booths and menageries at Hull Fair.

Jack Johnson Paying a Visit to Manchester Docks(en)

The legendary world heavyweight boxing champion, John Arthur 'Jack' Johnson, visits Manchester.

Dave Chappelle's Block Party(en)

The American comedian/actor delivers a story about the alternative Hip Hop scene. A small town Ohio mans moves to Brooklyn, New York, to throw an unprecedented block party.

Carnival: Looking for Paulo 'Miller'(pt)

A 2008 short made in accompaniment with Our Beloved Month of August, documenting Gomes's and his crew's hapless search, during 2007's carnival, for one of Arganil's most storied and elusive characters (who does, in fact, ultimately appear as an interviewee/player in the finished film). Paulo "Miller" is known for taking a dangerous jump into the Alva from a bridge each year during carnival, but what this film is about is, in keeping with the free-roving feature, much less the subject himself than Gomes and co.'s inability to pin him down; not only does he not do his famous jump during this year's carnival, but an ostensible technical/audio failure (as with the feature, it's very difficult to say how much of this film is "fact," how much invented) during Gomes's initial on-camera meeting with Paulo "Miller" leads to five minutes of lip-readers attempting to decipher their conversation.

The Other Side of the Atlantic(pt)

The Other Side of the Atlantic is a documentary that builts a bridge in the ocean that separates Brazil and Africa. The film tackles the cultural exchanges, the imaginary created through the mirroring, the prejudice and dreams built in both sides of the atlantic through the life stories of the students of african countries in transit through Brazil.

Steel 'n' Skin(en)

Peter Blackman, founder of Steel 'n' Skin, talks about this pan-African group, which takes African culture to British schools. The film follows the group during a ten day workshop in Liverpool.

Carna(nl)

Although it was actually an impersonal commissioned film, the director's style is clearly recognizable. Once again he manages to make something that is normal very strange: the dancing people in costumes are filmed in such a way that they look bizarre and absurd. Jan de Bont's camerawork shows a series of color images of dancing people, edited to the rhythm of the music. Halfway through the film, a lonely clown can be seen among the dancing crowd, accompanied by sad music. This clown is played by Ditvoorst himself.

Ijó Dudu: Memórias da Dança Negra na Bahia(pt)

Mete gol, gana(es)

Jonathan and Romario are two Afro-Ecuadorian children from the Chota Valley, one of the poorest regions of Ecuador. Their fate can be one of two: to become world-class footballers like Ulises de la Cruz, Chucho Benitez and Antonio Valencia, or farmers like Darwin. This documentary reveals the lack of opportunities, discrimination, and economic and social segregation that black communities face in Ecuador.

Sunshine in Soho(en)

1950s Soho beats with far more energy than its 21st century counterpart in this vivid time capsule.

The Other Side of Carnival(en)

The Other Side of Carnival (2010) is a 45-minute award-winning documentary that explores Carnival's social and economic impact on Trinidad & Tobago. With more than 60 interviews from professors, medical staff, police officers, government officials, students, tourists, every day locals and more, The Other Side of Carnival is able to highlight that while Carnival is an exciting occasion, it is a festival that creates turmoil, which is not widely visible...or is it just simply ignored? Known as "The Greatest Show on Earth", this documentary captures the roots of Carnival and how far some go to keep the original idea alive, and how others attempt to integrate change. Consummating over two years of research and interviews and with the coordination of a multi-national crew (Trinidad & Tobago, US and UK), The Other Side of Carnival does not pass judgment on Carnival in Trinidad & Tobago, but aims to bring an awareness of the type of influence that Carnival has on the population.

Panomundo Part 1: The Evolution of the Steelpan(en)

Slavery may have been the catalyst, but culture and passion formed this sound in Trinidad & Tobago. The steelpan can take the claim of being the only acoustic instrument invented in the 20th century. However, this sound not only moves people today, but it paralleled the island’s history of colonization and the demand for independence. The first section of this two-part film highlights the precursors of the steelpan and the creation of the instrument until it gained international recognition in Britain in 1951. Interviews from steelpan legends, such as Ellie Mannette, Sterling Betancourt, Cliff Alexis and Ray Holman, are included.

Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story(en)

Boogie Man is a comprehensive look at political strategist, racist, and former Republican National Convention Committee chairman, Lee Atwater, who reinvigorated the Republican Party’s Southern Strategy to increase political support among white voters in the South by appealing to racism against African Americans. He mentored Karl Rove and George W. Bush and played a key role in the elections of Reagan and George H.W. Bush.

Nina - Botando o Bloco a Rua(pt)

Wattstax(en)

A documentary film about the Afro-American Woodstock concert held in Los Angeles seven years after the Watts riots. Director Mel Stuart mixes footage from the concert with footage of the living conditions in the current-day Watts neighborhood.