A collection of stories about and images of our world, offering an immersion to the core of what it means to be human. Through these stories full of love and happiness, as well as hatred and violence, it brings us face to face with the Other, making us reflect on our lives. From stories of everyday experiences to accounts of the most unbelievable lives, these poignant encounters share a rare sincerity and underline who we are – our darker side, but also what is most noble in us, and what is universal. Our Earth is shown at its most sublime through never-before-seen aerial images accompanied by soaring music, resulting in an ode to the beauty of the world, providing a moment to draw breath and for introspection. This film is a politically engaged work which allows us to embrace the human condition and to reflect on the meaning of our existence.
Algeria from above is the first documentary made entirely from the sky on Algeria. Through the eye of the famous Yann Arthus-Bertrand this documentary vividly depicts this great country, and its vibrant cultural and natural treasures. From North to South and from West to East, it shows us the entirety of Algeria, lives in the large hectic coastal cities, Atlas mountains, oases of the Sahara or gentle hills of the Sahel. With a rich past that seems to have crossed all civilizations, and a territory where all natural environments amalgamate, Algeria appears here in all its diversity and its unity.
Rocky is a discreet man. He is happy but exists in anyone's eyes. One evening in returning home, he discovered an owl "Grand Duke "on his couch that fixed intently. He understands that he must act. The next day arrived his office, he takes an owl costume without that nobody pays any attention. Until the day he encounters a panda ...
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is a country with a very strong social cohesion and the unprecedented admiration of the people for their leader, which is absolutely unique and incomprehensible especially from a Western point of view. The native Korean director Sung-Hyung Cho tries to understand this by accompanying several Koreans from different backgrounds in their daily lives. The film shows the country and its people in a way, as it is rarely done in Western media, non-judgmental and respectful towards the people.
Trek Nation is a documentary film directed by Scott Colthorp examining the positive impact that Star Trek and creator Gene Roddenberry may have had on people's lives as seen through the eyes of his son, Eugene Roddenberry, Jr. ("Rod"). It includes interviews with castmembers and crew from all five Star Trek shows, as well as various fans and celebrities who were markedly influenced by the show while growing up. Rod Roddenberry also visits Skywalker Ranch to interview George Lucas on the influence that Star Trek had on him. Lucas shares how he had gone to Star Trek conventions prior to creating Star Wars.
With his directorial debut actor Chen Jianbin walks in the footsteps of A Touch of Sin, No Man’s Land, and Black Coal, Thin Ice and offers a hard-edged mainland noir where kindness and cruelty, madness and reason, greed and humanity all struggle for dominance and the fool might not be who you think . The hook here is Chen’s amazing performance as the simple, slightly crude Latioazi, a goat farmer who has a son in jail. When a young mentally handicapped man follows him home one day and enters his life, it sets off a blaze and a chain of events follows, which bares China’s class divide raw. His random act of reluctant kindness invites a parade of strangers and grifters all intent on draining Latioazi of what little he has.
After his loved ones betray him, a man in his 30s goes to a lakeside cabin to hide from the world. But instead of finding peace, he has to deal with a kooky neighbour, a missing drowned man, a crook on the lam, a stripper who hides out with him, and the cop who’s madly in love with her and looking for her with murderous ardour.
Dr. Henry Jekyll experiments with scientific means of revealing the hidden, dark side of man and releases a murderer from within himself.
Today, against a backdrop of sharply increasing demand, growth in the world population and the growing impact of an unsettled climate, water has become one of the most precious natural resources of our planet.
Joe Cross took viewers on his journey from overweight and sick to healthy and fit via a 60-day juice fast in the award-winning Fat Sick and Nearly Dead. With Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead 2, he looks at keeping healthy habits long-term.
Law was a chauffeur for the rural tycoon Luk, and he was jailed for killing a major land owner in a car accident. It was rumored that Luk was behind the land owner’s death, which gave Luk a competitive edge in the native apartment development deal. When Law gets out of prison five years later, the world has changed. Luk’s corporation has grown more powerful, while Luk’s right-hand man Keung has his own agenda to pursue. But things take a surprising turn. With the help of Law’s prison mate and computer whiz Joe, Law drugs Sean and his brothers in the drinks, then modify their mobile phones for wiretapping, Joe gets acquainted with the materialistic single mom Eva, who turns out to have a dark history with both Law and Keung. Through the eavesdropping, Law realizes Keung’s ultimate plan, which may change Hong Kong’s land development forever.
The lives of a macho butcher, his wife, a lonely waitress, a sadist and a flophouse manager intersect in Recife, Brazil.
After three British agents are assigned to assassinate a mysterious German spy during World War I, two of them become ambivalent when their duty to the mission conflicts with their consciences.
After losing her father to cancer, a teenage girl reluctantly joins her new step-cousin at a summer camp for Mormon girls.
Antoine de Maximy disappeared in the Carpathian Mountains during the filming of J'irai dormir chez vous (2005) after a car accident . His editor, Agnès, tries to find him thanks to the pictures of his trip.
A man is convinced that a young girl is the reincarnation of his own daughter Audrey Rose, who died in a fiery car accident, along with his wife, two minutes before the girl was born.
The film is based on interviews with 2,000 women from 50 countries, and covers the status of women all over the world. The topics covered include forced marriages, sexual assault, female genital mutilation, acid attacks, motherhood, sexuality, menstruation, education and the professional success of women.
A rebellious young woman with cerebral palsy leaves India to study in New York. On her journey of self-discovery, she unexpectedly falls in love.
When Antoine returns to the island of Noirmoutier, secrets kept in the past resurfaces and threatens to change his family’s present.
At a dusty crossroads in the desert city of Niamey, Niger, a crippled beggar is sitting in his wheelchair. He is Philippe Koudjina, who was once a successful photographer. In 1960s during the euphoria that followed independence, young people danced the twist and rock ‘n’ roll. Koudjina took snapshots and made a good living. Now, his negatives are decaying in a rusty cabinet. These snapshots now have artistic value. In Paris and New York, large sums are paid for photography like this. There is hope for Koudjina as two French connoisseurs are now trying to launch his work on the art circuit.
A traumatic injury and disability, the filmmaker is also the subject, trying to find his way out of a coma like state. Searching for answers, he begins to interview strangers also experiencing extreme life circumstances.
THE QUEST: Everest is a journey to deeper understand and climb the most iconic mountain in the world, Mt. Everest, and to reveal its amazing history and culture. From experiencing Everest like never before to witnessing unique stories about one of the most remarkable places on earth, THE QUEST: Everest is a one-of-a-kind cinematic tribute to the human spirit of adventure that lives inside us all.
Smartphones, computers, gaming consoles or digital tablets are now givens in our daily lives. The electronic intrusion is causing controversy and collective hysteria. Are we damaging our brains with all these screens? How will unprecedented exposure to screens impact humanity? To find out, the filmmakers examine how science has been applied to distinguish between truth and falsehoods, and explore the suspected side-effects of screen exposure. The documentary travels through the US and Europe to meet and speak to researchers who are leaders in this field.
Through a montage of compelling videos posted on the Internet by young gays, bis, lesbians or transsexuals, «Out» makes us experience from within the groundbreaking moment of their coming out – after which their intimate and social life shall be forever changed.
What happens to families in the absence of sons? What happens to land in the absence of farmers? What happens to villages in the absence of men? Sent Away Boys weaves together stories of individual ambitions and family biographies from Punjab (India) to chronicle the gradual transformation of agrarian landscape and patriarchal traditions through ongoing transnational migration. As the promise of a secure future in agriculture grows increasingly uncertain for young men across the region, escaping India to join the low-wage labor in countries like Canada and USA becomes their sole aspiration. In rural Punjab, being a successful man now entails leaving their village, traveling abroad, and sending money home. Through interviews with men preparing to undertake often risky journeys and women awaiting the return of their sons, brothers and husbands, Sent Away Boys shows how young men's decisions to emigrate implicate families and communities across North India.
A documentary about Göran Schildt and his relationship with the Mediterranean.
What if we changed viewpoints? "Bullying, our lives after" highlights the suffering of adults who were once bullied pupils. Ten, twenty or thirty years later, trauma is still present. Following Nathalie, Laurine and Samuel, this movie shows the long-term implications of bullying, pointing out a real failure of the educational institution and a major public health issue.
Ivory Coast, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Senegal – when it comes to love and sex, these African countries are caught between tradition and modernity.
A theatrical documentary about Hrytsko Chubai, a genius of Ukrainian poetry, a connoisseur of literature, art and music and the brightest representative of Lviv underground culture of late 60s early 70s.
A blend of drama and documentary, this film follows several people caught up in the turmoil of the modern world. The drama centres on a woman who has burned out and who holds up her own despair – and her attempts to rebuild her life – as a mirror to the rest of us. With a blend of gravity and humour, Sylvie Groulx's film shows the absurdity of a society dedicated to the cult of speed at all costs.
Young police officers are supposed to enforce the law and suppress their personal opinions. After their training, protected by bullet proof vests, shields and a gun, they are sent out on the streets. This documentary accompanies students at a German police academy over the course of their first year. A remote location in Saxony-Anhalt. Real-life simulations and practice at the shooting range are the preparation for the second phase of their training - going out on the streets and facing the real world. It's their first year at the academy and on the beat, and these young men and women are often confronted with realities that take them to their limits. This documantary takes an uncensored look at the German police for the very first time.
"Bagong Buhay" is a short experimental film that dispels the common belief that packing up and moving to a new place will magically improve one's quality of life. The film challenges this presumption by portraying two contrasting ways of life through objects and locations, encouraging viewers to think critically about the complexities of what makes a better life. In the Philippines, it's believed that relocating to a new area will bring about positive changes in one's existence. True satisfaction is a complex and multifaceted notion, and "Bagong Buhay" encourages us to ponder that relocating to a new place is not a surefire way to attain it.