Urmila - Für die Freiheit(2016)

Toad People(en)

Toad People introduces audiences to the stories of people like Steve Clegg who make up a community-led movement to save this threatened species. In different parts of the province, people from all ages and walks of life come together to do whatever it takes to help toads survive. They stop road traffic, collect toads in buckets and carry them across the road, build toad tunnels. In the Kootenays, Debbie Pitaoulis is fighting to protect the toad habitat from logging. The film follows these individuals’ passion for the natural world, their fighting spirit, perseverance but also their struggles, demonstrating that people do not need to be environmental activists or scientists to take action, they just need to be citizens who care.

Echoes 'Cross the Tracks(en)

A powerful documentary starring Morgan Freeman about the genesis of The Blues in the South and the music spreading around the world. Morgan Freeman shares his story of his experience of growing up in Clarksdale, Mississippi and his love for the Blues.

The Salt of the Earth(fr)

During the last forty years, the photographer Sebastião Salgado has been travelling through the continents, in the footsteps of an ever-changing humanity. He has witnessed the major events of our recent history: international conflicts, starvations and exodus… He is now embarking on the discovery of pristine territories, of the wild fauna and flora, of grandiose landscapes: a huge photographic project which is a tribute to the planet's beauty. Salgado's life and work are revealed to us by his son, Juliano, who went with him during his last journeys, and by Wim Wenders, a photographer himself.

One Wedding and a Revolution(en)

This short film reveals the inspiration, motivation and political challenges at San Francisco City Hall during the frantic days leading up to the first government-sanctioned same-sex marriage.

Agassizhorn: Mountain of Shame(de)

In the Bernese Alps, the Agassizhorn peak memorialises Louis Agassiz – a controversial 19th-century scientist, who not only named the mountain after himself, but who claimed he had discovered the Ice Age and went on to become one of the century's most virulent, most influential racists.

Climbing Everest with a Mountain on My Back: The Sherpa's Story(en)

Every year, over a thousand climbers try to reach the summit of Mount Everest, with the annual record for successful attempts currently standing at 633. But of that number, nearly half were Sherpas - the mountain's unsung heroes. Yet the Sherpa community has remained secretive about their nation, culture and experiences living in the shadow of the world's highest mountain. Now, for the first time, they open the door into their world. Without the expertise of the Sherpas, only the hardiest and most skilful climbers would succeed. Every day they risk their lives for the safety of others, yet they seek neither glory nor reward, preferring to stay in the background. Following the stories of four such Sherpas - Phurba, Ngima, Ngima Tenji and Gelu - this film reveals the reality of their daily lives, not just up the mountain, but with their families after they return home.

Behind the Mist(es)

A well-known filmmaker follows a famous mountain climber to Nepal, documenting the journey. Conversations about their lives lead to philosophical reflections, as the mountain challenges their motives. As days go by, the higher altitude and the depletion of oxygen will raise their debate to interior and transcendental territories, putting at stake their trajectories and their egos when facing the mountain and its millenary depth.

Who's Afraid of Nathan Law?(en)

Revolutionary at 21. Lawmaker at 23. Most Wanted at 26. With intimate access to the leaders of Hong Kong’s Umbrella Revolution, Who is Afraid of Nathan Law? chronicles one of the world’s most famous dissidents in his fight for democracy against a superpower.

The Shadow of Hate: A History of Intolerance in America(en)

The film expresses the history of oppression, discrimination, violence and hate in America. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short.

Trio For One(fr)

Daulagiri (8167m), Naga Parbat (8125m) and Broad Peak (8051m) are among the 14 peaks in the world. Jean-Christophe Lafaille has set himself the goal of reaching these 3 peaks in the space of two months. This film takes us on a surprising journey that begins in Nepal and ends in Pakistan, while exploring the soul of this committed mountaineer… Ed Viesturs and Katia Lafaille accompanied Lafaille on his adventure.

Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches(en)

Acclaimed actors draw from five of Douglass’ legendary speeches, to represent a different moment in the tumultuous history of 19th century America as well as a different stage of Douglass’ long and celebrated life, while famed scholars provide context for the speeches, and remind us that Frederick Douglass’ words about racial injustice still resonate deeply today.

Los Negros(es)

Seville, Spain, 14th century. A group of black slaves brought from Africa form the Hermandad de los Negros, a Holy Week brotherhood that has survived over the centuries, despite the opposition of the powerful; still active, it is one of the oldest institutions in Europe.

La montagne est verte(fr)

The Wildest Dream(en)

Uses astonishing visuals to tell the intersecting stories of George Mallory, the first man to attempt a summit of Mount Everest, and Conrad Anker, the mountaineer who finds Mallory's frozen remains 75 years later.

Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North(en)

A descendant of the largest slave-trading family in U.S. history, filmmaker Katrina Browne explores the contemporary legacy of slavery by traveling with fellow descendents from Rhode Island to Ghana and Cuba, retracing the Triangle Trade route. Along the way, Browne and her companions meet with similarly interested travelers and discover the considerable importance slavery once had for Northern commerce.

A Life Among Elephants(en)

60 years ago, almost nothing was known of elephants in the wild. But then one young Scottish biologist changed that forever. In 1965 Iain Douglas-Hamilton arrived in Tanzania to live alongside African elephants. Later joined by his wife Oria and daughters Saba and Dudu, elephants became central to their lives with matriarch Boadicea and gentle young mother Virgo cherished like human relatives. But this garden Eden was short-lived as an ivory poaching epidemic swept across Africa forcing Iain to switch from pioneering scientist to maverick conservationist. He became a lone crusader against the international Ivory trade which was finally banned in 1989. Now back in the field and revealing even more about the fascinating world of elephants, Iain’s work continues alongside a new generation of Kenyan conservationists. This inspiring documentary combines stunning wildlife imagery with the story of a remarkable life showing how sometimes you have to stand alone to protect what you love.

Průzkumníci(cs)

The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson(en)

Describing herself as a 'street queen,' Johnson was a legendary fixture in New York City’s gay ghetto and a tireless voice for LGBT pride since the days of Stonewall, who along with fellow trans icon Sylvia Rivera, founded Street Transvestites Action Revolutionaries (S.T.A.R.), a trans activist group based in the heart of NYC’s Greenwich Village. Her death in 1992 was declared a suicide by the NYPD, but friends never accepted that version of events. Structured as a whodunit, with activist Victoria Cruz cast as detective and audience surrogate, The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson celebrates the lasting political legacy of Johnson, while seeking to finally solve the mystery of her unexplained death.

The Undamaged(en)

The Balkans cradles Europe's last wild rivers and supports abundant wildlife and healthy, intact ecosystems. These rivers are "The Undamaged" – clean, pristine, and undammed. With over 2,700 small and large hydro power plants planned or under construction in the Balkans, corruption and greed are destroying the last free-flowing rivers of Europe. Follow the Balkan Rivers Tour, a rowdy crew of whitewater kayakers, filmers, photographers and friends who decided to stand up for the rivers, travelling from Slovenia to Albania for 36 days, kayaking 23 rivers in 6 countries to protest the dams and show the world the secret wild rivers of the Balkans. The film honours everyday people and local activists who are fighting to defend rivers and aims to spread the word of the plight of these rivers, showing a new style of nature conservation that is fun, energetic and effective.

Grenada: Confronting the Past(en)

In the eighteenth century, the family of BBC World News anchor and correspondent, Laura Trevelyan, were absentee slave owners on the island of Grenada, profiting for years from the sale of sugar harvested from five different sugar cane plantations. When slavery was abolished in 1834, the UK government paid compensation to slave owners, but the enslaved received nothing. In the wake of the racial reckoning in America following the death of George Floyd, Grenada's national commission on reparations for slavery has begun to meet and debate what reparations means. In this film, Laura she travels to Grenada to try and learn more about the legacy of slavery on Grenada and her family's involvement in the slave trade.