Silent Storytellers

Speakers for the Dead(en)

A film about small Ontario town's struggle to restore a desecrated African-Canadian cemetery and the resulting turmoil over it.

Facing East(en)

This story follows the history of the most over buried commercial cemetery in America. It comes full circle to present day and documents a non profit's efforts to take care of the abandoned and abused burial ground.

Over Jordan(en)

Educational film about the funeral process. Narrated by pastor Dr. S.A. Owen of Memphis, Tennessee.

Running Fields IV(en)

Twenty-four images of a camera running in the woods, a moonlight and a cemetery through improvised gestures, mechanical abstraction and saturated colors

Do Útero Ao Túmulo(pt)

Southern Comfort(en)

This moving documentary chronicles the last year in the life of Robert Eads, a trans man dying of ovarian cancer. We're introduced to several prominent figures in Robert's life -- most importantly, his life partner and caretaker Lola Cola, who is also trans. The two prepare to lead a panel at the annual Southern Comfort conference, a yearly event created for transgender individuals.

Dying Green(en)

A doctor's efforts to live a green life near the Appalachian Mountains lead to the development of a radical idea to use green burials to conserve one million acres of land and to create wildlife reserves.

A Haunting at Bachelor's Grove(en)

A looking at the famous cemetery

A Cemetery Special(en)

A documentary profiling cemeteries and cemetery-related businesses and events across the United States.

From Harling Point(en)

This documentary tells the story of a Chinese cemetery in BC that became a National Heritage site. For Chinese pioneers who died in Canada, Victoria's Chinese Cemetery at Harling Point was a temporary resting place until their bones could be returned home. (Traditional Chinese belief says that the soul of a person who dies in a foreign place wanders lost until their bones are returned home.) This film traces the rich history of the Vancouver Island cemetery from controversy and neglect to its revival as a historic site. Told by those closest to it, the story of Harling Point is a metaphor for Canada, a country still working on making a home for all who live within its borders.

Garden of Stars(de)

An enchanted cemetery in Berlin. Next to the Grimm Brothers' grave, stillborn babies and gay people rest in peace. This is the Garden of Stars.

Built on Graves(en)

This documentary deals with cases of grave recycling, cemetery abandonment, and the development of homes, stores, and businesses over the top of old cemeteries, in many cases leaving the bodies in the ground and paving over them.

7 Vidas(pt)

A community of cats lives in the Soledade Cemetery Park in Belém. "7 Vidas" follows these animals through a fictional letter written by one of them to his former owner. With real images of the cats among graves and trees, the film builds a sensitive narrative about abandonment, freedom and memory, revealing the poetry hidden in the coexistence between life and death.

The Night Watchman(es)

From dusk 'til dawn, El Velador accompanies Martin, the guardian angel whom, night after night, watches over the extravagant mausoleums of some of Mexico's most notorious Drug Lords. In the labyrinth of the cemetery, this film about violence without violence reminds us how, in the turmoil of Mexico's bloodiest conflict since the Revolution, ordinary life persists and quietly defies the dead.

Hearse Life(en)

A stylish exploration of funeral car history, sub-culture, and outrageous reactions.

Two American Families: 1991-2024(en)

It’s a central premise of the American dream: If you’re willing to work hard, you’ll be able to make a living and build a better life for your children. But what if working hard isn’t enough to get ahead — or even to ensure your family’s basic financial stability? Two American Families: 1991-2024, a special, two-hour documentary filmed over more than 30 years, is a portrait of perseverance from FRONTLINE, Bill Moyers, and filmmakers Tom Casciato and Kathleen Hughes that raises unsettling questions about the changing nature of the American economy and the impact on people struggling to make a living. This is the saga of two families in Milwaukee, Wisconsin — one Black, the Stanleys, and one white, the Neumanns — who have spent the past 34 years battling to keep from sliding into poverty, and who refuse to give up despite the economic challenges that their stories reveal.

The Rothschild Legacy(en)

The rags to immense riches story of the Rothschild family - from surviving the Jewish ghettos of WWII, to becoming one of the most powerful banking families in the world.

House of Life: A Jewish Cemetary in Prague(en)

A deep dive documentary into the history of the Old Jewish Cemetery of Prague.

Glimpses of California(en)

This Traveltalk series short looks at California, beginning with the diverse types of flowers found in the state. After a look at some popular Hollywood landmarks, we visit Glendale's Forest Lawn Memorial Park, a famous cemetery.

The End of the Road(es)

In Peru, Sergio García Locatelli visits both those places where human life is fragile and personal fate is uncertain and those where death reigns, places where everything is already lost, where appeal is not possible. A walk in search of the meaning of death that is actually a celebration of life and the living.