Burden of Dreams

The Birth of Children of Paradise(de)

Documentary about the making of Marcel Carne's 1945 film Children of Paradise (France), interviewing the director, the actors and production designer, as well as other French directors.

Cesare Zavattini(it)

Documentary about Italian film screenwriter Cesare Zavattini

Forman vs. Forman(cs)

A moving account, in his own words, of the personal life and work of the brilliant Czech filmmaker Miloš Forman (1932-2018): his tragic childhood, his major contribution to the cultural movement known as the Czech New Wave, his exile in Paris, his troubled days in New York, his rise to stardom in Hollywood; a complete existence in the service of cinema.

Chishu Ryu and Shochiku’s Ofuna Studio(ja)

Documentary about the life and career of Japanese actor Chishu Ryu.

The Making of "Tampopo"(ja)

Documentary about the making of Juzo Itami's film "Tampopo" (1985).

Talking with Ozu(ja)

A tribute to the legendary Japanese film director featuring the reflections of filmmakers Lindsay Anderson, Claire Denis, Hou Hsiao-hsien, Aki Kaurismäki, Stanley Kwan, Paul Schrader, and Wim Wenders

Wings of Desire: The Angels Among Us(en)

This is a documentary about the making of "Wings of Desire" (1987). The director, writer, actors, composer and other contributors speak at length and in detail about how the award-winning film was devised, cast, filmed, scored and edited.

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.

The Wandering Company(en)

Documentary about Merchant Ivory Productions, including interviews with the principals of the film production company and actors which have appeared in their films.

Jean-Pierre Mocky, libre et sentimental(fr)

A journey into the mind of French actor and director Jean-Pierre Mocky (1929-2019), author of films both playful and profound, of an impressive richness.

Plotting 'Family Plot'(en)

Documentary about the making of Alfred Hitchcock's "Family Plot".

The Path to Vengeance: Making Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance(en)

A six-part documentary on the making of the film.

Making of 'Dreams'(ja)

This 150-minute documentary, directed by Nobuhiko Ôbayashi on the set of Akira Kurosawa's Dreams, features behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with cast and crew.

O Arco e a Lira(pt)

Evolutions: The Making of Phase IV(en)

A brand new documentary by Elijah Drenner featuring interviews with Jeffrey Bass, co-star Michael Murphy, screenwriter Mayo Simon, archivist Sean Savage and design historian/Saul Bass biographer Pat Kirkham.

The Wages of Sin(en)

Second part of a three-part documentary series on the making of Once Upon a Time in the West, Italian filmmaker Sergio Leone's masterpiece, released in 1968. (Preceded by An Opera of Violence; followed by Something to Do With Death.)

Something to Do with Death(en)

Third part of a three-part documentary series on the making of Once Upon a Time in the West, Italian filmmaker Sergio Leone's masterpiece, released in 1968. (Preceded by The Wages of Sin.)

Making 'Taxi Driver'(en)

A behind the scenes snapshot of the making of one of the greatest films ever made. Filled with trivia, interviews from cast and crew, and more.

Heidi's Alpine Dream(de)

An account of the life and work of the Swiss writer Johanna Spyri (1827-1901), the barely known artistic mother of Heidi, her brave alpine heroine, who was first introduced to the world between 1880 and 1881, in a novel published in two parts, and became definitely immortal thanks to an anime series, released in 1974, directed by the Japanese genius Isao Takahata.

Swamp Dialogues(en)

The Danube Delta in Romania - the 'Last European Sanctuary’ - is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While major efforts are made to protect biodiversity, the plight of local communities is largely overlooked. Social scientists claim that the traumatic nature of the swamp bears heavy on the villagers' lives. But is Nature really to blame? Swamp Dialogues is based on an extensive field-research in the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve. Through a careful ‘argument montage’ built entirely on cinematic language the film represents an anthropological analysis formulated in image and sound.

American Splendor(en)

An original mix of fiction and reality illuminates the life of comic book hero everyman Harvey Pekar.

Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe(en)

Directors Werner Herzog and Errol Morris make a bet which results in Herzog living up to his promise that he would eat his shoe if Errol Morris ever completed the film Gates of Heaven.

The Dark Glow of the Mountain(de)

Werner Herzog follows mountaineers Hans Kammerlander and Reinhold Messner during their expedition into climbing the Gasherbrum mountains, which has some of the most difficult peaks to be conquered, and they'll do it without the use of oxygen tanks. Herzog also takes some time to hear about their past experiences with other mountains, their personal tragedies and the reasons why they are so involved with such activity.

An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn(en)

Lulu Danger's unsatisfying marriage takes a turn for the worse when a mysterious man from her past comes to town to perform an event called "An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn: For One Magical Night Only."

Daisy Kenyon(en)

Daisy Kenyon is a Manhattan commercial artist having an affair with an arrogant and overbearing but successful lawyer and family man named Dan O'Mara. Daisy meets a single man, a war veteran named Peter Lapham, and after a brief and hesitant courtship decides to marry him, although she is still in love with Dan.

Monster: The Josef Fritzl Story(en)

Interviews with family members, doctors, and victims of 73-year-old Josef Fritzl, who held his daughter captive in a basement for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.

Désiré(fr)

Sacha Guitry exchanges his usual top hat for a uniform in Désiré, playing a cavalier valet embroiled in an awkward flirtation with his new employer (played by the actor-director's real-life wife, Jacqueline Delubac), who is involved with a stuffy politician. A carefree class farce filled with memorable supporting characters, Désiré blurs the distinction between upstairs and downstairs.

Underfire: The Untold Story of Pfc. Tony Vaccaro(en)

The remarkable story of WWII infantryman and photographer Tony Vaccaro, who created one of the most comprehensive, haunting and intimate photographic records of the war using a smuggled $47 camera while developing the negatives in his helmet at night.

The Neighbors' Window(en)

The story of a middle-aged woman with small children whose life is shaken up when two free-spirited twenty-somethings move in across the street.

Z for Zachariah(en)

In the wake of a nuclear war, a young woman survives on her own, fearing she may actually be the proverbial last woman on earth, until she discovers the most astonishing sight of her life: another human being. A distraught scientist, he’s nearly been driven mad by radiation exposure and his desperate search for others. A fragile, imperative strand of trust connects them. But when a stranger enters the valley, their precarious bond begins to unravel.

In a Valley of Violence(en)

The story of a drifter named Paul who arrives in a small town seeking revenge on the thugs who murdered his friend. Sisters Mary Anne and Ellen, who run the town's hotel, help Paul in his quest for vengeance.

A Hard Day's Night(en)

Capturing John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr in their electrifying element, 'A Hard Day's Night' is a wildly irreverent journey through this pastiche of a day in the life of The Beatles during 1964. The band have to use all their guile and wit to avoid the pursuing fans and press to reach their scheduled television performance, in spite of Paul's troublemaking grandfather and Ringo's arrest.

Shadow of a Doubt(en)

Just when Charlotte ‘Charlie’ Newton, is feeling especially frustrated by the lack of excitement in her small town in California, she receives wonderful news: Her uncle and namesake, Charlie Oakley, is coming to visit. However, as secrets about him come to the fore, Charlotte’s admiration turns into suspicion.

Zelig(en)

Fictional documentary about the life of human chameleon Leonard Zelig, a man who becomes a celebrity in the 1920s due to his ability to look and act like whoever is around him. Clever editing places Zelig in real newsreel footage of Woodrow Wilson, Babe Ruth, and others.

Coffee and Cigarettes(en)

Coffee And Cigarettes is a collection of eleven films from cult director Jim Jarmusch. Each film hosts star studded cast of extremely unique individuals who all share the common activities of conversing while drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes.

The Love Witch(en)

A modern-day witch uses spells and magic to get men to fall in love with her, with deadly consequences.

Fantastic Planet(fr)

On the planet Ygam, the Draags, extremely technologically and spiritually advanced blue humanoids, consider the tiny Oms, human beings descendants of Terra's inhabitants, as ignorant animals. Those who live in slavery are treated as simple pets and used to entertain Draag children; those who live hidden in the hostile wilderness of the planet are periodically hunted and ruthlessly slaughtered as if they were vermin.

Almost Famous(en)

In 1973, 15-year-old William Miller's unabashed love of music and aspiration to become a rock journalist lands him an assignment from Rolling Stone magazine to interview and tour with the up-and-coming band, Stillwater.

Sunset Boulevard(en)

A hack screenwriter writes a screenplay for a former silent film star who has faded into Hollywood obscurity.

Children of Men(en)

In 2027, in a chaotic world in which humans can no longer procreate, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea, where her child's birth may help scientists save the future of humankind.