Projects in categories: Documentary

Synopsis

Hedi Jouini is the most popular musical star in Tunisian history, known as the “Frank Sinatra of Tunisia”. His songs continue to inspire revolutionaries and conservatives alike, striking at the heart of the post-colonial social and political upheaval of Tunisia and its continuing search for identity in the wake of the Arab Spring. But why did he keep his fame hidden from his family? What dark secrets did he keep from the nation that worshipped him? ‘The Man Behind the Microphone’ reveals the incredible story behind a man and his music, and o ers fascinating insight into Tunisia’s cultural evolution. The film builds a profound portrait of the godfather of Tunisian music – father to a nation yet not to his family.
Official Selection IDFA 2017 - European premiere

Synopsis

From BBC Earth Films, the studio that brought you 'Earth', comes the long awaited sequel, 'Earth: One Amazing Day', an astonishing journey revealing the awesome power of the natural world. Over the course of one single day, we track the sun from the highest mountains to the remotest islands, from exotic jungles to urban jungles.
Astounding breakthroughs in filmmaking technology bring you up close and personal with a cast of unforgettable characters; a baby zebra desperate to cross a swollen river, a penguin who heroically undertakes a death-defying daily commute to feed his family, a family of sperm whales who like to snooze vertically and a sloth on the hunt for love.
Told with humour, intimacy, emotion and a jaw-dropping sense of cinematic splendor, 'Earth: One Amazing Day' is the enchanting big screen family friendly adventure that spectacularly highlights how every day is filled with more unseen dramas and wonders than you can possibly imagine— until now!

Synopsis

When we started this journey several years ago, there was no expectation at all that Shirley would ever sing again. What initially attracted us to making the movie was Shirley’s deep commitment to English folk tradition, and her little-known involvement in arguably the most important field-recording trip of all time; back in 1959 with her then-lover, the iconic ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax. The film was going to be about the past, and about the 30 years she had spent living without the thing she loved most. It’s been an absolute privilege to be with Shirley on this long journey back to her singing again, and along the way, the film has evolved into something we never expected.
Official Selection Rotterdam International Film Festival 2018 - International premiere

Synopsis

One night Majella O'Donnell took her teenage son Philly to be shot in both legs. Majella, Philly and his shooters all live within an extraordinary community in Derry, Northern Ireland. The “Troubles” officially ended in 1998 but they are still at war. They do not accept the government or police.
All this happens within the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom.
How do you bring your son to be shot? What happens afterwards? How does family life continue? How does a community respond? When do wars really end? For five years Sinéad O’Shea has filmed this shocking but darkly humorous portrait of a post conflict society.
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - World premiere

Synopsis

Experimental artist and auteur Andrew Kotting creates a groundbreaking crossover between narrative film and contemporary art piece, based on the award-winning play by Hattie Naylor. The film is inspired by the true story of Ivan Mishukov, who walked out of his Moscow apartment at the age of four and spent two years living on the city streets where he was adopted by a pack of wild dogs. In the recession-ravaged city, Ivan’s human world was dominated by deprivation and violence; his only hope was to turn to feral dogs for company, protection and warmth. Kotting’s spellbinding and utterly original story of survival conjures the streets of Moscow in the 1990s through the eyes of a child, drawing on a range of innovative modes and techniques to produce a montage essay on the state of the world.
Official Selection Rotterdam International Film Festival 2018 - International premiere

Synopsis

From the earliest days of movie-making to the present day, through rare and unseen footage, we see the changing relationship the British have with their land. From images of local celebrations and festivals to agricultural practices through the seasons, village life and lost crafts.
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - World premiere

Synopsis

Across the water on the island, four individuals experience the end of life. Showing rarely seen and intensely private events, the film follows the progression of illness for each character and, for one, the last days and hours of life, the moment of death, and after death care. A lyrical, slow cinema description of the temporality and phenomena of dying, this film sensitively witnesses the transition away from personhood.
This is a palliative island, the Isle of Wight, an enigmatic landscape where all around rituals persist. Parallel to bedside vigils and the rhythm of breathing, we see rescue owls on the hospice ward, the rugged coastline, and the constant ferry arrivals. A choir rehearses Brahm’s 'German Requiem'. In the hospital pathology lab, microscopic close-ups of cancer show the interior of the bodies, our biology, our creatureliness. Death is presented as natural and everyday but also unspeakable and strange.
Official Selection Rotterdam International Film Festival 2018 - International premiere

Synopsis

Walking the liminal space between perception and memory the film charts the emotional recovery of a family as they come to terms with their father's suicide that left them in financial ruin seven years ago. As they piece together fragments of a broken past, questions of memory, identity and love must be faced before the family can embrace the future.
Combining family home video archive with intimate footage captured in the West Midlands over two years, director Lucy Cohen examines how tragedy struggles towards hope.
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - Documentary Competition - World premiere
BAFTA Nomination 2018 - Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer

Synopsis

A poetic study of the life and work of artist Margaret Benyon, pioneer in the artistic use of holography. Giving voice to the unsung legacy of a pioneering woman artist, 'A Blemished Code' is an impassioned meditation on the representation of female artists, the balancing of creative and domestic life, and the inherent tensions of being a woman working with new technology. The inner life of the subject is represented throughout by a brilliant musical score featuring sung script and compositions by Stevie Jones, Mai Mai, and Leigh Ferguson. (LFF brochure)
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - Experimenta Strand - World premiere

Synopsis

11 July 2013, 3AM. After months of training, under the cover of darkness six women begin their illegal ascent of the tallest building in Europe...
What spurred them on and what kept them going? Were they prepared to fail, or worse, to fall? Behind the climbers was a team of tacticians, climbing experts, supporters (and lawyers) who planned and rehearsed with them - but ultimately had to let them climb alone.
A story of courage, endurance and the power of teamwork.
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - Debate Strand - World premiere

Synopsis

The Slits who formed in London in 1976 were the world's first all girl punk band. Contemporaries of bands such as The Clash and The Sex Pistols, they were the pioneering godmothers of the musical movement know as "Punky Reggae".
This documentary tells the story of the band and the lives of the women involved, from the band's inception in 1976 to the bands end in 2010 at the death of lead vocalist Ari Up.
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2017 - World premiere
Official Selection Rotterdam International Film Festival 2018

Synopsis

A man seeks happiness and belonging in the company of the largest crowds he can find.
Official Selection International Film Festival Rotterdam 2018 - International premiere