Projects in categories: Documentary

Synopsis

In isolation on Iceland’s Snæfellsnes Peninsula, Nigerian-born modular synthesis artist Colloboh transforms glacial and oceanic recordings into sonic compositions - uncovering a dialogue between ice and sea that reshapes his understanding of consciousness, ecological collapse, and humanity’s place within both. As his process unfolds, Colloboh transforms these sounds into layered sonic works that blur the boundaries between observation and communion. The film culminates in a haunting gesture: he plays the completed composition back to the landscape itself, completing a dialogue between artist and environment. A meditation on impermanence, consciousness, and the fragile bond between humanity and the natural world.

Synopsis

At the crossroads of art, activism, and the ocean lies the extraordinary story of Paolo Fanciuli, a humble Italian fisherman with a revolutionary vision. Known as Paolo the Fisherman, he has waged a quiet but fierce war against illegal bottom trawling - one of the most destructive fishing practices threatening marine ecosystems. Driven by years of witnessing the ocean's decline, Paolo devised a radical and poetic solution: the creation of an underwater museum—a surreal seabed installation of massive marble sculptures. These works of art serve a dual purpose: they physically block trawling nets from destroying the seafloor, and they symbolically stand as monuments to resistance and hope. HOUSE OF FISH is a conservation documentary that blends Paolo’s intimate, personal journey with a natural history perspective on the fragility of our oceans... a cinematic ode to the sea and to those who dare to protect it through creativity and courage. By spotlighting Paolo’s efforts and the power of artistic activism, the film aims to awaken a deep emotional connection to our oceans - and inspire urgent action to save them.

Synopsis

This archival documentary traces the rise and fall of Richard Nixon and the death of the American dream, from the presidential primaries of 1968 through the Watergate break-in of June 1972 and Nixon’s resignation two years later, killing trust in the political process and the American presidency in the wake of the Vietnam War. Narrated by Harry Shearer (THIS IS SPINAL TAP), the film tells the untold story of the Watergate burglars, based on director Shane O’Sullivan’s book on the subject, and explores representations of the Nixon years in popular culture, using the music, commercials, and cinema of the era to evoke the fevered political landscape and the culture wars between Nixon’s silent majority and the radical anti-war left. How MEDIUM COOL, LION’S LOVE and SHAMPOO reflect on the political events of 1968; and how paranoid thrillers like THE CONVERSATION, TAXI DRIVER and ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN can be read in the context of the Watergate break-in and investigation which followed.

Synopsis

1985 was a difficult year for me. My mother had died, an attempted love affair went badly wrong, I hadn't made a film for five years. I bought a video camera and went to Cuba for three weeks. Music and memory play important parts. I first heard this particular music in Louis Malle's LES AMANTS (1958) when I was a teenager.

Synopsis

A filmmaker investigates who tried f*cking up her friends' lives a decade ago. It's 2015 in the quiet suburbs of London, and some anonymous loser attempts to frame a group of teens for smoking weed at school. Luckily, one of the group has now become a promising emerging documentary director ( me :D ), and will stop at nothing to find answers in this short comedy-drama-tragedy documentary, The Following People DO NOT Smoke Weed. Executive produced by Julie Cohen (RBG), Tim Wardle (3 Identical Strangers) and Susan Simnett (Brides), this is a coming-of-age fable that brings to life the skewed priorities, conspiracies and dubious confrontations with power that define our youth...

Synopsis

It is said that Penrhos cottage was built in one night. According to Welsh folklore, if you could build a house overnight on common land, with smoke rising from the chimney by dawn, the place would be yours to keep. 200 years later in rural Pembrokeshire, the house stands still in time. Beneath its thatched roof lived Rachel and Maria, two sisters who spent their days crafting a life that defied societal rules written for women. Quietly radical, the pair were celebrated by the whole community. A fairytale documentary told through the eyes of the children who once visited. Recounting memories of Penrhos and the legacy of its last owners, the past flickers back to life.

Synopsis

An intimate observation of Rainbow Mbuangi, a key player for Merseyside Blind Football Club. The film embeds itself within Mbuangi's daily life, documenting the structured routines, intensive training, and social world that orbit his athletic pursuits. Through a rigorous focus on sound - both the necessities of his off-field navigational aids and the specialized, rattling 'soundball' used in the game - the documentary explores the complex relationship between dependence and autonomy. On the pitch, where he is fully reliant on auditory cues, Mbuangi challenges conventional notions of athletic space and visual interpretation.

Synopsis

Looking back over his career, Oscar-winning animator Bob Godfrey describes his start in Animation and the losses he felt as one era ended and his excitement as a new one dawned. This hand-drawn comic documentary is narrated by Bob himself from an interview recorded at the great man's studio.

Synopsis

Every day, thousands of dairy calves are separated from their mothers at birth. A DAIRY STORY follows Wilma and David Finlay as they risk everything to find a way to keep dairy cows and their calves together. Filmed over two years, we see Wilma and David’s determination to reinvent dairy farming; challenging industry norms by putting nature and animal welfare first. Their path wasn’t easy. They faced criticism and ridicule from their intensive dairy neighbours and almost went bankrupt proving it could work. When Wilma receives a terminal cancer diagnosis, their mission to encourage wider industry adoption of their cow-with-calf system takes on new urgency. This documentary addresses themes of connection and mortality, and topics of animal sentience, the environment and system change. Following calves from birth to weaning, we see the herd's profound capacity for maternal care. A DAIRY STORY shows how changing a farming system changes everything; from the lives of the animals to the wellbeing of the farmers, and perhaps even the future of dairy farming itself. Official Selection IndieCork 2025 - World premiere Official Selection Central Scotland Documentary Festival 2025 - UK premiere

Synopsis

Through the psychoanalytic and introspective voiceover of a young post-pandemic Chinese migrant in Europe, the film interweaves her private memories of intimacy with public narratives of resistance. As her reflections unfold, she and her community navigate secrecy, repression, survival, looming precarity, and displacement, all while confronting the personal cost of existing in a world that demands their silence.

Synopsis

Finding beauty in the ordinary, Liverpool takes centre stage in this year-in-the-life documentary portrait. ​ Communities and voices are observed from a fresh perspective as the city navigates through an eventful year. Mirroring the ebb and flow of the River Mersey, LIVERPOOL STORY is an intimate document of daily life, observing the city and its people over the passing seasons.

Synopsis

Mike and Emlyn, best friends and UFO investigators, cruise along the roads of South Wales in a multi-coloured van. They interview individuals who have encountered the unexplainable; from shimmering orbs, to huge spacecraft, to cascading beams of light. Their mission is to document these sightings, investigating what they could mean and where these phenomena come from. Armed with curiosity and a camcorder, Mike and Emlyn create a safe space for ordinary people to share their extraordinary experiences. But while they look to the heavens for answers, they remain unaware that what they’re searching for may be closer than they think. Official Selection Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2025 Official Selection DOC NYC 2025