Projects matching: ISO

Synopsis

The music never had to be explained. For childhood friends Yoshiki and Toshl, forming their band X in 1982 was a way of living through music. Soon they were selling out international stadiums by perfecting their own style of amps-to-11 glam rock dubbed “psychedelic violence crime of visual shock” (imagine Iron Maiden with a David Bowie spirit animal) and connecting with millions of fans. Their journey to play Madison Square Garden amidst a Beatlemania-shaped maelstrom is expertly captured by director Stephen Kijak and editors Mako Kamitsuna and John Maringouin, who dismantle the kitsch and dig into the cult of personality to reveal a story of misfortune and tragedy that has shadowed the band time and again. Just as it is for their fans, music becomes a lifeblood for X Japan, as they are forced to reinvent and regroup in order to survive. Cameos by artistic giants including Marilyn Manson and David Lynch mark some memorable moments in this roller-coaster musical experience. (Sundance Film Festival brochure) Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2016 - Sonic Strand

Synopsis

Take a journey across time to the birth of modern music, when the musical strands of a diverse nation were first combined, thereby sparking a cultural revolution that forever transformed the future of music and the world. The event will include clips of the film, an extended conversation with the creators including executive producers Robert Redford, T Bone Burnett and Jack White, and live performances featuring The Avett Brothers and other special music guests. Official Selection Sundance Film Festival 2016 - Special Events

Synopsis

In 1983, writer and theologian John Hull went blind. To help make sense of his loss, he began keeping an audio diary. Encompassing dreams, memory and imaginative life 'Notes on Blindness' creates an impression of his new world, immersing the audience in John’s experience of blindness. A feature-length version of Middleton and Spinney's 2014 Sundance-selected short 'Notes on Blindness'. Official Selection Sundance Film Festival 2016 - New Frontier - World premiere

Synopsis

Five sisters in 19th century England must cope with the pressures to marry while protecting themselves from a growing population of zombies. A fresh twist on Jane Austen's widely celebrated novel. A mysterious plague has fallen upon 19th century England, the land is overrun with the undead. Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is a master of martial arts and weaponry. Casting aside personal and social prejudices, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy must unite on the blood-soaked battlefield to rid the country of the zombie menace and discover their true love for one another.

Synopsis

A boy growing up in Dublin during the ’80s escapes his strained family life and tough new school by starting a band to win the heart of a beautiful and mysterious girl. Official Selection Sundance Film Festival 2016 - Premieres - World premiere

Synopsis

In the aftermath of the Korean War, ambitious young film director Shin Sang-ok and actress Choi Eun-hee enter into a glamorous romance. They rise to the top of the South Korean film industry and are drawn into the inner circle of dictatorial President Park. Their groundbreaking films become instant sensations. But their movie-world idyll is shattered after Shin has a scandalous affair with another actress and confronts the President over censorship, who retaliates by shutting down his studio. Unable to reconcile, Choi and Shin divorce. Then their lives take a bizarre turn. Choi is lured to Hong-Kong by the promise of work, but is bundled onto a boat and sedated. After a grueling sea voyage to North Korea she is welcomed ashore by whimsical dictator's son and movie-obsessive, Kim Jong-il, who imprisons her in his summerhouse. Sundance Film Festival 2016 - World premiere

Synopsis

Khalid is released from prison, he's told he needs a job and a place in the community, but fitting in isn't always that easy.

Synopsis

A moving documentary that explores contemporary Northern Ireland, through the lives of four men living in the aftermath of violent conflict; a story about reimagined identity of place and the fragility of masculinity. Contextualised by the country's past the film is firmly rooted in Northern Ireland today, as a population struggles to come to terms with the horrors and the sacrifices of its past and the men turn to face a future defined by their hopes, rather than regret. Filmed over a year with the men in and around their homes, the filmmakers focussed on the stories that took place long after the news cameras had left the story that was Northern Ireland. Thirty years of violence came to an end in a 1998 peace deal, and the door on almost relentless media interest also closed. But the lives of those affected indirectly or otherwise by the so-called ‘Troubles’ continued… In a society where masculinity has long been measured in violence and aggression, what happens to the identities of men when the Troubles end and the roles previously held are no longer accepted or needed?

Synopsis

Adopting the form of a video game trailer, 'Immunecraft' is an animation developed in collaboration with immunologist Dr Megan MacLeod and presents a fictional game which gives users agency over a real life cell culture to compete against opponent players, and explores the parallels between popular gameplay mechanics and some of the most important principles of the human immune system, including cell memory and autoimmunity. It understands itself as a piece of speculative design futures, commenting on the principles of multiplayer online gaming in the age of DNA building blocks, printable organic electronics and biohacking, thus raising questions about bioethics.

Synopsis

A film exploring what can be seen and what can not, how scientists imagine their work and how they describe it. The film is based on the work undertaken in Dr Serge Mostowy’s laboratory on septin assembly in cells, using a zebrafish model. Lab members describe the intricate sub-cellular septin dynamics and structure. Their explanatory drawings, and discussion between scientists and filmmaker about how they see the research, are incorporated into the animation.

Synopsis

This piece exposes the parallels of computer coding and genetic coding in humans and animals. Voiced by an anonymous group of ‘hybrid’ machines, from some point in the near future, these ‘narrators’ look at these creatures as inefficient machines and consider ways of editing and improving their code. The film draws upon the research and tools used by Dr Darren Logan in his investigation of genetically influenced behaviour.

Synopsis

An encounter in an unfamiliar environment challenges the identity of a volatile young man.