The Occult: Mysteries Of The Supernatural

Land Without Bread(es)

An exploration —manipulated and staged— of life in Las Hurdes, in the province of Cáceres, in Extremadura, Spain, as it was in 1932. Insalubrity, misery and lack of opportunities provoke the emigration of young people and the solitude of those who remain in the desolation of one of the poorest and least developed Spanish regions at that time. (Silent short, voiced in 1937 and 1996.)

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.

Dick Ho: Asian Male Porn Star(en)

This documentary about the 70s porn legend attempts to verify his existence as there are practically no Asian male porn stars in the history of American adult cinema. A controversial mystery akin to Bigfoot and alien abduction, Dick Ho was so well endowed that rumors arose of a conspiracy within the porn industry to eliminate any knowledge of his existence. Includes alleged film footage and testimonials from porn veterans.

Design(en)

This film was made by Bass' company as a presentation to AT&T executives. It would have extended to be shown to the public, but a number of his ideas in the film were not ultimately adopted, like his phone booth designs, and men's and women's uniforms. But a great many of the design were adopted—including, most memorably, the telephone vans and hardhat designs of the 1970s. Bass designed down to the details, showcasing in this film a myriad of ideas, like Yellow Pages book designs, cufflinks for executives, and flags. (AT&T Archives)

In the Name of Satan(en)

Yes, here he is, the best preacher in the world, here to warn the country about the dangers of Satanism in America. Plenty of interviews with "victims of ritual abuse" recounting "true experiences" of their lives being destroyed by secret Satanic cults.

Un Camino de Dos(es)

Sprængning af Træer i Dyrehaven(da)

A group of military men uses explosives to de-root trees.

L'île de Pâques(fr)

The first Easter Island documentary, filmed in 1935 when the Belgian naval ship Mercator came to collect Drs. Henri Lavacherry and Alfred Métraux, who had arrived six months before to carry out archaeological and ethnological work. The film, directed with melodramatic gusto and featuring a full orchestral score by Maurice Jaubert (who also did the narration), shows islanders, the monuments, and a public dance. A theme of decay and decadence characterizes the film, the motif portrayed gruesomely by extensive close-ups of the inhabitants of the leper colony there at the time. The film suited a romantic image of a mysterious lost civilization, the survivors eking out a pitiful existence on a barren rock. (Grant McCall)

EMIC(en)

An Interstellar x Google Play collaboration. Building off the themes of Interstellar, this short film weaves submissions from people around the world into a story celebrating the human experience on Earth. Directed by David Brodie and creative directed by Angus Wall, the film will serve as a time capsule that shows future generations what life on Earth was like, should we leave this planet.

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.)

Jaba(hu)

Zoli earns his livelihood abroad by skinning chinchillas in a Danish fur factory. The film begins with the story of Zoli's return to the periphery, to the small Hungarian village of Jaba. Zoli's family, settled Romas, struggle to earn their living by hiring themselves out as day-laborers. For Zoli, Jaba has no work and no prospects, so he kills time and waits. Standstill. "Jaba" tells the story of survival in one of Europe's poorest regions.

Megalópolis(es)

Exploration of the territory in a delirious time-space journey through the largest Megalopolis in America.

Filamento(es)

The odyssey of the Mayice designers, who had to face to bring an impossible-to-manufacture piece to the Rossana Orlandi gallery, in Milan, in time to be exhibited at the Salone.

The Face of a City(fa)

The stories of four Iranian families who emigrate to Canada and the city they leave behind. As departure time approaches, social spaces become places of memory, fading into the distance.

Oasis(es)

2020, in global confinement in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, in CDMX women decide to give birth in their own home. The film is an intimate witness of life, which, despite everything, prevails.

Which Is Scary(en)

A set of seven portraits consisting of personal accounts from the lives of gays and lesbians. The narration includes stories about coming out, bashing, cross-dressing and AIDS.

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.)

Bolaño, Up Close and Personal(es)

Generously included as a bonus DVD alongside the 502-page Bolaño salvaje, a book of essays about and reminiscences on the Chilean novelist/poet published by the Barcelona-based Editorial Candy. Bolaño cercano [a difficult to translate title approximating something like Bolaño, Up Close and Personal], which offers up a sympathetic portrait of Bolaño as a loving family man and tireless reader and writer and teases with ever so brief glimpses of his personal library and countless spiral notebooks filled with rough drafts of his novels and poetry and even comic book-like drawings and illustrations.

The Ugly Little Boy(en)

Edyth Fellows is a nurse recruited for an research project with a time travel device that can snatch any being from any time and bring it to the present. The first such test brings an Neanderthal child to the project and Fellows is responsible for his care for the interim. As she manages this task, Fellows is increasingly revolted at how the scientists dismiss him as little more than an animal, especially when his real intelligence shows. This growing moral dilemma comes to a head when Fellows realizes what they plan to do with him and she cannot stand by and let it happen.

Spirits and Rocks: An Azorean Myth(pt)

From the ocean, a volcanic island rises into steamy mist. The black rock of the earth stands in sharp contrast to the billowing vapor that hovers and drifts above the surface. A narrator describes how the island’s first inhabitants sought to explain the violent eruption by attributing the devastation to the wrath of angry gods. With breathtaking black-and-white cinematography, this poetic exploration considers the human relationship to this volatile land, where residents live alongside the looming threat of eruption with reverence, fear, and awe. A collection of scenes where dark and light miraculously coexist illuminates both the physical and spiritual landscapes of this extraordinary place, where life endures the perils of the natural world.