Watermarks - Three Letters from China(2014)

A Long Way Home(en)

A Long Way Home takes us on a fascinating journey into both the grim days of recent Chinese history and the dazzling cultural scene in present-day China. The film centers around five of the most significant representatives of contemporary Chinese counterculture: the visual artists the Gao Brothers, the choreographer and dancer Wen Hui, the animation artist Pi San and the poet Ye Fu. With bravery and subversive wit, they each shed light on the social problems in their country. In doing so, the film poses universal questions that ultimately concern us all: which values determine our cultural identity and in what kind of world do we want to live.

Made in Hong Kong(en)

The film Made in Hong Kong allows glimpses on a Hong Kong shortly before the 1997 handover to China. But rather than focusing on the expected hysteria Luc Schaedler’s documentary debut works towards complexity by allowing six diverse residents to talk about their relationship to the colonial city. Their life stories beautifully mix with the images of the author. Made in Hong Kong is a very personal portrait of a city in transition and we learn about Hong Kong’s ambiguities and its political and social problems, as well as the uncertainties regarding the time after 1997.

64: Part 2(ja)

1989: 64th and last year of the Showa era. A girl is kidnapped and killed. The unsolved case is called Case 64 ('rokuyon'). 2002: Yoshinobu Mikami, who was the detective in charge of the Case 64, moves as a Public Relations Officer in the Police Affairs Department. His relation with the reporters is conflicted and his own daughter is missing. The statute of limitations for the Case 64 will expire in one year. Then a kidnapping case, similar to the Case 64, takes place. The rift between the criminal investigation department and police administration department deepens. Mikami challenges the case as a public relations secretary.

Señor Jazz, the Film by Carlos Inzillo(es)

Documentary about the life and work of Carlos Inzillo, a cultural reference for jazz in Argentina, creator and coordinator of a series of jazz concerts that have been held every Tuesday in the City of Buenos Aires since 1984.

East of Main Street: Asians Aloud(en)

In celebration of Asian Heritage Month, HBO presents a collection of perspectives from a diverse group of Asian Americans.

FILM(en)

A boy walks through an abandoned building and films the interior. Suddenly his camera disappears.

The Legend of Hillbilly John(en)

A roaming hillbilly, on a quest to defy the Devil, encounters several supernatural characters and does battle with his silver-stringed guitar.

Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon(hi)

The story of a girl in a small North Indian town who is an obsessive fan of top Hindi movie star Madhuri Dixit, and dreams of moving to Mumbai to become a film heroine herself.

Titãs - A Vida Até Parece Uma Festa(pt)

Brazilian documentary that tells the story of Titãs, the most famous rock band in the country. The film was directed by one of the members, Branco Mello, using images recorded from the early 80's until the present day.

Sangrando(pt)

My Dream Is Yours(en)

Conceited singer Garry Mitchell refuses to renew his radio contract, so agent Doug Blake decides to find a new personality to replace him. In New York, he finds Martha Gibson, a single mother with a great voice. He arranges for her to move to Hollywood, but then has a problem trying to sell her to the show's sponsor. Doug tries every trick he can think of to make Martha a star, and as the two work more closely, he falls in love with her. Complicating matters further, Martha meets and becomes attracted to Garry.

Rot ist die Liebe(de)

Poet Hermann Lons is turning 40. On his birthday, his childhood love, Rosemarie, unexpectedly to visit her cousin (who just happens to be Hermann's wife). Rosemarie and Hermann walk through the Luneburger Heide every day and it isn't long before their old love flares up again. Hermann is rather annoyed about that and asks the woman to leave. His decision, however, brings him no joy. Luckily, he's able to deal with his grief by writing poetry, which brings him some success. But now his life is one big, melancholy drama, punctuated by too much alcohol. When Hermann eventually learns that Rosemarie has gotten engaged to Hermann's hunting buddy, Prince Niko, he realizes he wants to ask his wife for a divorce and chase after his former lover. Luckily(?), Rosemarie puts the brakes on the whole thing saying it's too late for them.

Two Degrees of Murder(af)

An Afrikaans film. Two women, two murders. One homicide reflects the ultimate act of self-centredness, the other the greatest selfless act of them all.

Cholay(en)

Thakur, a passionate filmmaker, had one dream: to create that could capture the spice, drama, and humor of Indian life. Inspired by the classic Indian dish Cholay. After his audition he finally found his casts Veeru,Basanti,Jay and Gabbar.

Don't Go to School Tomorrow(es)

Fed up with the bullying from their classmates, Jorge and Emilio plan a shooting at their school.

A Message to the Stars(en)

For more than 50 years, we’ve been unsuccessfully searching for any evidence of intelligent extraterrestrial life. But, the discovery of thousands of exoplanets has meant the hope of finding them is higher than ever. If any messages could eventually be decoded and answered in any far, far away star, it could radically transform our consciousness as species and our place in the universe. A message from the stars changes life on Earth… forever.

No Ordinary Life(en)

In a field dominated by men, five pioneering camerawomen Mary Rogers, Cynde Strand, Jane Evans, Maria Fleet and Margaret Moth went to the frontlines of wars, revolutions and disasters to bring us the truth. As colorful as accomplished, these brave photojournalists made their mark by capturing some of the most iconic images from Tiananmen Square, to conflicts in Sarajevo, Iraq, Somalia and the Arab Spring uprising. But the world doesn’t know it was these women behind the camera. In the midst of unfolding chaos, the pictures they took for CNN both shocked and informed the world. This feature documentary by director Heather O’Neill tells their remarkable story.

Visions Cinema: Film as a Way of Life: Hong Kong Cinema - A Report by Tony Rayns(en)

Examines the early 1980s Hong Kong filmmaking community. Tony Rayns interviews some of the new generation of filmmakers and figures from the wider film culture.

Imagine… Pet Shop Boys: Then and Now(en)

Featuring exclusive access to their recent tour and their new album, this documentary reveals the fascinating world of Pet Shop Boys, Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe.

Making of The Return of Godzilla(ja)

Behind the scenes documentary for Toho's "The Return of Godzilla" from 1984.

JFK: Seven Days That Made a President(en)

'JFK: Seven Days That Made a President' investigates the seven key days in JFK's life that helped shape his character and have come to define him.

Mein Sommer '88 - Wie die Stars die DDR rockten(de)

Superstar concerts in East Berlin? A year before the fall of the Berlin Wall, this was an almost unthinkable scenario for many East German rock and pop fans. But suddenly, within just a few months, the top stars were all over the place.

Manufactured Landscapes(en)

MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES is the striking new documentary on the world and work of renowned artist Edward Burtynsky. Internationally acclaimed for his large-scale photographs of “manufactured landscapes”—quarries, recycling yards, factories, mines and dams—Burtynsky creates stunningly beautiful art from civilization’s materials and debris.

Kaniela. The Danny Kaleikini Story(en)

Kaniela: The Danny Kaleikini Story, is a biographical documentary based on the life of the man known as Hawaii’s Ambassador of Aloha, as told in his own words. Born into a large family with limited resources, Kaleikini learned the value of hard work by selling newspapers, shining shoes and singing on street corners at a young age to help support his family. He developed his singing and entertaining skills during his family’s weekend backyard parties. Kaleikini began working in Hawaii’s tourism industry in the 1950’s and after learning lessons from other local entertainers, blossomed into a beloved and globally known entertainer with over 30 years of performing in Hawaii, Las Vegas and Japan.

Letters from the Battlefield(en)

Jacqueline Lundquist's father, Donald C. Lundquist, served in Vietnam in 1967-68. While there, he wrote hundreds of letters and recorded many hours of audio tapes that he sent to his wife and daughter. A mere months after returned from the war, he died. Jacqueline was barely 5 years old. Her mother gave her the letters and audio tapes in her teens, but she didn't read them until the summer of 1997 when she was 7 months pregnant with her son, Sam. She was 34. That set her on a journey of getting to know her dad and retracing his footsteps in Vietnam. She ultimately befriended a North Vietnamese soldier who had fought opposite her father. His family had also kept all the letters he had written back to his wife and daughter. This is their contrasting yet similar story.

An Obese World(fr)

As obesity progresses inexorably, Sylvie Gilman and Thierry de Lestrade investigate the causes of this planetary plague and reveal the fight waged in certain countries to stem it.

This Is My Body(fr)

Jérôme was sexually abused as a child by a priest. In a deeply personal film, he tries to search for clues in his memories and come to terms with the complicity of his former social environment.

The Elephant Queen(en)

Join Athena, the majestic matriarch, as she leads her elephant herd across an unforgiving African landscape.

All In - Der Arena Stunt(de)

Jane Birkin et nous(fr)

Jane Birkin has forged a unique bond with France and the French. Between the small Englishwoman, muse of Gainsbourg, then of Doillon or Chéreau, and her adopted country, love at first sight was immediate and lasted for more than fifty years. This documentary goes back, through the prism of this unique bond, to the life and career of a peculiar artist in the French musical and cinematographic landscape. The intimate portrait of a freedom-loving woman.

Joe Swash: Teens in Care(en)

Over the years, Joe Swash’s magnetic personality has endeared him to millions of TV viewers, but now he is delving into something more serious, and more personal. This documentary follows Joe as he explores the stories of teens in care over the age of 16, the largest-growing cohort in both child protection and care.

Die Wartburg – Macht, Religion, Revolution(de)

Elmore Leonard: "But Don't Try to Write"(en)

Elmore Leonard, author of more than 40 novels, is renowned in the literary community. From his westerns and early novels of crime based in Detroit and South Florida, right through his complex and virtually plotless later work, Elmore Leonard dissected an America whose founding sins have continued to haunt it all the days. Leonard’s depiction of America is as real as Twain’s Hannibal, Faulkner’s Mississippi and Steinbeck’s Monterey. The new documentary ELMORE LEONARD: “But don’t try to write” explores the prolific author’s legacy and his influence on generations of writers. The documentary features exclusive images and previously unseen home movie footage, family photographs, and in-depth interviews with both literary experts and those who knew him well, including colleagues, family, and childhood friends.

Prehistoric Worlds(en)

Five times, Earth has faced apocalyptic events that swept nearly all life from the face of the planet. What did these prehistoric creatures look like? What catastrophes caused their disappearance? And how did our distant ancestors survive and give rise to the world we know today?

The Black Dog(es)

Since Rosa was little, people used to say around town that her grandfather was a black dog. The legend, belonging to the Valley of Oaxaca, spoke of a man who had the ability to turn into a black dog and roam the streets at night. Through images of the town, interviews with the brothers and animated interventions, the documentary tells the story of the myth and its importance in the collective memory.