Projects in categories: Documentary

Synopsis

Funny and bizarre, this is the heart-warming tale of an unlikely family striving to achieve spiritual fulfilment in the murky waters of the 21st century.   In a quiet corner of England a former rabbi is living a remarkable life based on the ancient patriarchy of the Old Testament. Six years ago, God told the rabbi that he was to become a Hebrew King, and like a good patriarch, take multiple wives. Now he raises horses, runs four second-hand furniture shops in Brighton and Hove and lives with seven women who, while not legally his spouses, believe their union is sanctioned by God. Each seeks a different sort of spiritual fulfilment: from Chava, widowed after 25 years of marriage and the oldest of the wives, to Tracy, who has been banished from the house for resisting Philip’s patriarchal role. As the film progresses, the filmmaker gets extraordinary close to the family but reserves judgement, preferring to present them with all their foibles, strengths and contradictions.

Synopsis

Inspired by the work of Edgar Degas the film captures Scottish Ballet Corps stretching, chatting, improvising and preparing in the wings. We are presented with a palpable sense of not just what it looks like, but what it feels like to inhabit a dancer's body.

Synopsis

In the mid 1970s, a revolution was ignited on the streets of London and New York - almost overnight it shattered the status quo and would have a lasting impact on future generations of youth culture. It redefined popular music and fashion, threatened the establishment, and legitimised an independent, do-it-yourself attitude. With a star-studded cast of historic and modern figures in popular culture, this feature-length film takes a highly original look at the Punk movement. Combining recent interviews with rare and famous archival performances, a chronological narrative emerges, allowing this incredible story to tell itself.

Synopsis

Homosexuality is one of Africa's last great taboos. In South Africa, homophobia is being 'expressed' through targeted rape of black lesbians. Four extraordinary women expose harrowing experiences and the struggles of African lesbians. Rape for Who I am is their courageous refusal to become victims of their sexuality.

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Sentinel is a contemporary depiction of Fritz Todt's Second World War concrete structures that remain important historical statements and still transcend architectural fashions.

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Singing from the Heart is a documentary programme that takes a look at the history and men that make up one of the world's most famous male voice choirs. Formed in 1883 in a hometown pub in the Rhondda Valleys, South Wales, the voices of Treorchy Male Choir have performed in front of kings, queens, presidents and prime ministers. Now, for the first time you too can enjoy a private audience with the voices of the valleys in this hour-long documentary.

Synopsis

Selected for Cannes 2005, festival favourite Kim Longinotto's latest work (co-directed with Florence Ayisi) is a totally fascinating - often hilarious - look at the work of one small courthouse in south-west Cameroon. The two women at the heart of the documentary wouldn't be out of place in an Alexander McCall Smith bestseller. As the State Counsel and Court President, they dispense wisdom, wisecracks and justice in fair measure. The victims of crime - an abused child, a woman daring to accuse a man of rape, and another trying to end a brutal marriage in a society where divorce is taboo - are handled with fierce compassion. You'll feel like cheering when justice is served. (Sydney Film Festival)

Synopsis

In Tarzan of Bounds Green, Eric Bromberger remembers the day he watched Johnny Weissmuller dive at his local pool, in a special one-off performance. Today, the pool is a garden centre. Who, among those buying their pot plants and compost, would imagine that Tarzan had been here?

Synopsis

A feature documentary in which Vicki, a single mother struggling with addiction, and her young son move from a homeless shelter into a council house, which brings different problems. The story shifts to the relationship between Vicki and the film-maker, neither of whom will give up their quest for a happy ending without a fight.

Synopsis

The Brittany Job is a documentary feature about two 'toshers' decorating a house in France. Deliberately twisting the makeover show format, the film explores their ambivalent and often comic relationship, unusual painting techniques, the creative process, and above all, colour.

Synopsis

A fireman turned film-maker makes three features in five years, premieres twice at Cannes. This feature documentary give the inside story to the problems he faced and his desire to achieve critical and commercial success.

Synopsis

The story of English medieval King Richard III from cradle to death, seen from a psychodynamic and mythological perspective.