The Thought Of Art

The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness(ja)

Follows the behind-the-scenes work of Studio Ghibli, focusing on the notable figures Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki.

Boiled Angels: The Trial of Mike Diana(en)

Florida, 1994. Artist Mike Diana is convicted on an obscenity charge in the wake of an undercover police officer purchasing his limited edition zine Boiled Angel. Here is the very unusual story of what led to this First Amendment debacle happening for the first time in the United States.

Frida Kahlo & Tina Modotti(en)

An unconventional portrait of painter Frida Kahlo and photographer Tina Modotti. Simple in style but complex in its analysis, it explores the divergent themes and styles of two contemporary and radical women artists working in the upheaval of the aftermath of the Mexican Revolution.

I'm Too Sad to Tell You(en)

This short film is part of a mixed media artwork of the same name, which also included postcards of Ader crying, sent to friends of his, with the title of the work as a caption. The film was initially ten minutes long, and included Ader rubbing his eyes to produce the tears, but was cut down to three and a half minutes. This shorter version captures Ader at his most anguished. His face is framed closely. There is no introduction or conclusion, no reason given and no relief from the anguish that is presented.

Thunder Over Mexico(en)

As was common in Diaz's Mexico, a young hacienda worker finds his betrothed imprisoned and his life threatened by his master for confronting a hacienda guest for raping the girl. This film is the first of several attempts to make a feature-length motion picture out of the 200,000-plus feet of film shot by Sergei Eisenstein, on photographic expedition in Mexico during 1931-32 for Upton Sinclair and a cadre of private American producer-investors. Silent with music and English intertitles.

Ashes and Snow(en)

Ashes and Snow, a film by Gregory Colbert, uses both still and movie cameras to explore extraordinary interactions between humans and animals. The 60-minute feature is a poetic narrative rather than a documentary. It aims to lift the natural and artificial barriers between humans and other species, dissolving the distance that exists between them.

Tales of the American(en)

Seemayer Studios presents a new documentary about the American Hotel in downtown Los Angeles and the Arts District that surrounds it. Since 1979, the American Hotel has been the beating heart of a rich community of artists who began moving into the deserted factory buildings between Alameda and the Los Angeles River.

Your War (I'm One of You): 20 Years of Joan of Arc(en)

Your War (I'm One Of You) chronicles the life and career of Chicago's Tim Kinsella, frontman of ever-shifting band Joan of Arc and '90's pioneers Cap'n Jazz. With appearances from Tim's friends, family, and admirers, we learn what has made his legacy so unique and enduring for more than 20 years.

The Mundo King(en)

Artist Rolf Schulz's pursuit to make his dreams come true through his endless toil to complete the majestic Mundo King Castle on a hill in the Dominican Republic

Chavela(es)

Inspired by an exclusive interview and performance footage of Chavela Vargas shot in 1991 and guided by her unique voice, the film weaves an arresting portrait of a woman who dared to dress, speak, sing, and dream her unique life into being.

In the Golden Age of Chinese Craftsmanship(zh)

The essence of progress in civilization has always been handiwork. In traditional Chinese civilization, the emperor was supreme. Vested with the authority to enjoy the best of handiwork, all crafts used for residence, clothing, food, and travel were the most refined and splendid.

Religulous(en)

Commentator-comic Bill Maher plays devil's advocate with religion as he talks to believers about their faith. Traveling around the world, Maher examines the tenets of Christianity, Judaism and Islam and raises questions about homosexuality, proof of Christ's existence, Jewish Sabbath laws, violent Muslim extremists.

Beatrice Wood: Mama of Dada(en)

Up until the end of her life, Beatrice Wood continued to influence younger artists with her definitive, free-wheeling ways. She was central to the American Dada movement and was the last surviving member of this group. In this program she recalls her friends Man Ray, Picabia and others, and her ex-husband Marcel Duchamp. She died in 1999 at 105 years of age.

The Curious World of Hieronymus Bosch(en)

Exhibition on Screen's latest release celebrates the life and masterpieces of Hieronymus Bosch brought together from around the world to his hometown in the Netherlands as a one-off exhibition. With exclusive access to the gallery and the show, this stunning film explores this mysterious, curious, medieval painter who continues to inspire today's creative geniuses. Over 420,000 people flocked to the exhibition to marvel at Bosch's bizarre creations but now, audiences can enjoy a front row seat at Bosch's extraordinary homecoming from the comfort of their own home anywhere in the world. Expert insights from curators and leading cultural critics explore the inspiration behind Bosch's strange and unsettling works. Close-up views of the curiosities allow viewers to appreciate the detail of his paintings like never before. Bosch's legendary altarpieces, which have long been divided among museums, were brought back together for the exhibition and feature in the film.

Gray Matters(en)

Gray Matters explores the long, fascinating life and complicated career of architect and designer Eileen Gray, whose uncompromising vision defined and defied the practice of modernism in decoration, design and architecture. Making a reputation with her traditional lacquer work in the first decade of the 20th century, she became a critically acclaimed and sought after designer and decorator in the next before reinventing herself as an architect, a field in which she laboured largely in obscurity. Apart from the accolades that greeted her first building –persistently and perversely credited to her mentor–her pioneering work was done quietly, privately and to her own specifications. But she lived long enough (98) to be re-discovered and acclaimed. Today, with her work commanding extraordinary prices and attention, her legacy, like its creator, remains elusive, contested and compelling.

Oaxaca - Zwischen Rebellion und Utopie(en)

Through the Repellent Fence: A Land Art Film(en)

The film follows Postcommodity, an interdisciplinary arts collective comprised of Raven Chacon, Cristóbal Martinez and Kade L. Twist, who put land art in a tribal context. The group bring together a community to construct the Repellent Fence, a two-mile long ephemeral monument “stitching” together the US and Mexico.

There Are No Fakes(en)

Norval Morrisseau was the first Indigenous Canadian artist to be taken seriously in the art world. By the turn of this century his work commanded tens of thousands of dollars. So when Barenaked Ladies keyboardist Kevin Hearn learned his prized painting was a forgery, he sued. But as Jamie Kastner's doc reveals, there was a cottage industry in fake Morrisseaus, an industry that flourished unchecked for years, feeding on greed, exploitation, racism and contempt.

Forever and Forever(en)

New Canons presents Forever and Forever, a new site-specific video installation by artist Tommy Malekoff. The multi-channel work features footage the artist shot in the Everglades region of Southern Florida over the past two years. Focusing on an inhospitable terrain teeming with development, agriculture and tourism, Forever and Forever sidesteps the familiar, moralizing narrative of ecological decay, illuminating instead a more nuanced dynamic between man and nature. While at times ominous and visually foreboding, the work underscores this fraught duality in a frenetic and fragile exchange, capable of extreme beauty and decimation.

Marion ou la métamorphose(fr)

Marion is an artist with FSH, an incurable muscular myopathy. She guides us on the path she has taken to no longer identify with her illness.