Documentary

Question Bridge

Question Bridge is an innovative transmedia project that facilitates a dialogue between Black men from diverse and contending backgrounds and creates a platform for them to represent and redefine Black male identity in America.

Chris Johnson originated the Question Bridge concept with a 1996 video installation he created for the Museum of Photographic Arts and the Malcolm X library in San Diego, California

Desktop Cinema

‘A loose chronological primer on desktop cinema aka "Screen Life" aka desktop documentary’ by Conor Bateman.

‘Drawing In The Future’ by Laura Houlberg was the winner of Bertha DocHouse's Creative Response to Self-Isolation Competition #6 2021, 'Back to the Future.'

The etymology of "contract" is "to draw several objects together, to draw in." 2020 broke every social contract we thought we had. Big Tech continues to insidiously draw us into a new contract that requires us to always be online. And in response to all the chaos, I contracted into myself. It made me feel weird at first, but maybe a little cool down is just what we all need.

Check out a time capsule of the screening & party for the film, hosted in a Google Sheet: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/195AiOPubMfHvEIfYSfAduLIV31YT_LCiSzm1NzFgRVA/edit#gid=1293633960

Also see these threads for other ideas of films that could be explored in Lockdown/ with limited means:

How My Family Dealt With the Coronavirus Outbreak - Junting Zhou

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‘The coronavirus outbreak didn’t decimate my family’s hometown, Guangzhou, China — at least not the way it did in Wuhan, the epidemic’s epicenter, more than 500 miles away.

But when I visited my parents from New York for Chinese New Year, we quarantined ourselves anyway, as the government advised. I documented our experience in the film above, shot entirely on my iPhone.’

Watch film above or follow links below to watch film via - New York Times article page or Junting Zhou’s website.

Anthropocene: The Human Epoch (2019) Dir. Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky

Some of you may remember the Edward Burtynsky photography exhibition we visited whilst in Berlin and 'Manufactured Landscapes' film. This is the third film in the trilogy.

‘A cinematic meditation on humanity’s massive reengineering of the planet, Anthropocene: The Human Epoch is feature documentary film, four years in the making, from the multiple-award winning team of Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky.

Third in a trilogy that includes Manufactured Landscapes (2006) and Watermark (2013), the film follows the research of an international body of scientists, the Anthropocene Working Group who, after nearly ten years of research, are arguing that the Holocene Epoch gave way to the Anthropocene Epoch in the mid-twentieth century because of profound and lasting human changes to the earth.

From concrete seawalls in China that now cover 60 percent of the mainland coast, to the biggest terrestrial machines ever built in Germany, to psychedelic potash mines in Russia’s Ural Mountains, to metal festivals in the closed city of Norilsk, to the devastated Great Barrier Reef in Australia and surreal lithium evaporation ponds in the Atacama desert, the film-makers have traversed the globe to document evidence and experience of human planetary domination.

At the intersection of art and science, Anthropocene: The Human Epoch witnesses a critical moment in geological history — bringing a provocative and unforgettable experience of our species’ breadth and impact. Narrated by Alicia Vikander.

Screening at Wateshed, Bristol, October 14th 2019 from 18:00

A panel after the showing on 14 October explores what climate change in the Anthropocene means for us and especially for cities in the week of Festival of the Future City.

This film is part of Festival of the Future City – an initiative of Festival of Ideas. Festival of the Future City takes place every two years in Bristol celebrating and debating the future of cities with talks, walks, debates, arts projects and new books. The 2019 Festival of the Future City includes classic utopian films about cities; cities in silent cinema; documentaries on New Towns, democracy, the housing crisis and the anthropocene in the series: Cities, Future Cities and Film. We are grateful to BFI for their support for this programme.’

Environments

ENVIRONMENTS - A photographic – video - art project exploring issues of identity, histories, space and time, on an overland journey from Birmingham to Beijing and Back on public transport. March 2006 - June 2008 (Revisited 2020)

See more about the project at: www.environments.org.uk

Environments has been exhibited in Birmingham and Bristol and published as a photography book. It was presented at 7th Aoteroa Digital Arts Network Symposium (2010) in Whanganui, New Zealand, whilst our Film 'Team Tibet' was screened in McLeod Ganj, Himachal Pradesh, India, its UK premier was at the Heart of England International Film festival, where it picked up the Festival Director’s Special Award.

This post here has some of the video shot, some of which has been shown at events listed above, others within music videos or on the travel blog.

One day I might finish a full edit.

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All Tomorrow's Parties (2009)

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‘A kaleidoscopic journey into the parallel musical universe of cult music festival All Tomorrow's Parties.’ IMDB

‘All Tomorrow's Parties is a 2009 documentary film directed by All Tomorrow's People and Jonathan Caouette covering the history of the long running All Tomorrow's Parties music festival. Described as a "post-punk DIY bricolage", the film was created using footage generated by the fans and musicians attending the events themselves, on a multitude of formats including Super8, camcorder and mobile phone. All Tomorrow's People is a name representing the contributions of these attendees.

The film features music and performances from Belle And Sebastian, Grizzly Bear, Sonic Youth, Battles, Boards of Canada, Portishead, Daniel Johnston, Grinderman, Lightning Bolt, David Cross, Animal Collective, The Boredoms, Les Savy Fav, Mogwai, Octopus Project, Slint, Dirty Three, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, the Gossip, GZA, Roscoe Mitchell, Seasick Steve, Iggy and the Stooges, A Hawk and a Hacksaw, Fuck Buttons, Micah P Hinson, Two Gallants, The Mars Volta, Akron/Family, Jah Shaka, Saul Williams, Shellac, Patti Smith and John Cooper Clarke. ‘ Wiki

a documentary about the All Tomorrow's Parties festival held yearly in England. features interviews and performances by Animal Collective, Grinderman, Battles, Belle and Sebastian, Dirty Three, comedian David Cross, and more

I for India - Sandhya Suri (2005)

‘The myth of return. In 1966, Yash and Sheel Suri leave India for a temporary stay in England while he burnishes his resume as a doctor. He buys projectors, tape recorders, and movie cameras, and sends one set to India beginning a 40-year exchange of tapes and Super 8 movies between his family in India and his household near Manchester. We watch their three daughters grow and we hear increasingly plaintive calls from Yash's parents and sister to return home. In 1982, it's back to India where Yash sets up a practice. A return to England, one daughter's marriage, another's move to Australia, and the third's film project complete the 40-year story. Yash still loves his homeland.’ IMDB

Director: Sandhya Suri

A chronicle of immigration, from the Sixties to the present day, as seen through the eyes of one Asian family and their 40 years worth of Super 8mm home movies.
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A Woman's Epic Journey to Climb 7 Mountains—Shot on a Phone | Short Film Showcase

‘National Geographic Emerging Explorer and Adventurer of the Year Wasfia Nazreen doesn't just climb for the thrill; she climbs for a cause. The first Bangladeshi to scale the Seven Summits, Wasfia has made it her purpose to brave these climbs for the sake of something larger - for the women of Bangladesh. Lyrical and poetic, this short documentary, shot entirely on an iPhone 6S, is a reflective character portrait that takes us from the depths of Wasfia's struggles to the highest peaks on the planet, as we explore what it means to pursue the unknown.’
Read more about Emerging Explorer Wasfia Nazreen
About Short Film Showcase: A curated collection of the most captivating documentary shorts from filmmakers around the world. Know of a great short film that should be part of our Showcase? Email sfs@natgeo.com to submit a video for consideration. See more from National Geographic's Short Film Showcase at http://documentary.com

ANALOGUE PEOPLE IN A DIGITAL AGE - short documentary

As the analogue age draws to a close, eight men sit in an Irish bar and battle to remain relevant in the digital world; the TV in the corner a harbinger of this technological future.

It is the day of the analogue to digital switchover of television transmission. Conversations about life, death and quantum physics mix with pints to create a surreal document of the switchover day and of people caught between two worlds.

Taking inspiration from that little piece of information that is lost in the transfer from analogue to digital, the film examines who and what is lost in the relentless rush forward.

This film was made as part of the Irish Film Board/Bord Scannán na hÉireann Reality Bites short documentary scheme 2013.

CREDIT LIST Director: Keith Walsh Producer: Jill Beardsworth Camera: Keith Walsh Sound: Jill Beardsworth Editor: Keith Walsh Dubbing Mixer: Killian Fitzgerald, Avatar Post Production Online: Cillian Duffy Colourist: Eugene McCrystal Post production supervisor: Ciara Walsh Editing Advisor: John Murphy Graphic Artist: Marco von Knobloch Transport: Neil Felton Promo Stills: Ceiteach Breathnach Stills Assistant: John E. Maher Stills Transport: Shane O’Malley Irish Film Board Production Executive - Emma Scott Shorts Co-ordinator - Jill McGregor Solicitor: Brian Gormley at Philip Lees solicitors Insurance: Media Insurance Equipment Hire: Camera Kit

The Front Written & Performed by Conor Walsh Courtesy of Conor Walsh

Intermittent Haiku Written and performed by Tim Story & Hans Joachim Roedilius From the Album ‘Inlandish’ Courtesy of Groenland Records

Red Haired Mary Written by Sean McCarthy Performed by Foster and Allen Courtesy of Asdee music Ltd. & CMR Records Ltd.

News footage courtesy of RTÉ Libraries and Archives

Extract from the poem ADONAÏS by Percy Bysshe Shelley

Walsall Winter 1994

A film from Walsall / Wednesbury , by Richard Edkins, Huw Marriot, Steve Bailey and Toby Pilbean.

Including footage from Bescot Stadium, Walsall V Peterborough, Lights at arboretum, Market, Parks, Pubs, Park Inn, Highgate Mild, Bus stops, Washeteria, breakfast, dog in pram, Masjid, Santa, busker, Sister Dora, pigeons,

day in the life, everyday

This was recorded as a project whilst studying at Sandwell college and Salford University,

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The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz

The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz

 

  • When Thu 19 Nov 2015
  • Time 10:30
  • Where Curzon Community Cinema, 46-48 Old Church Road, Clevedon, N. Somerset, BS216NN

This saddening and eye-opening documentary is a portrait of Aaron Swartz – a brilliantly gifted thinker and internet information freedom activist who challenged the power of corporate interests and the state before ending his life at the age of 26 after being charged with fraud for downloading millions of journal articles from a subscription-only online service. Unapologetically partial, the film combines home movie footage of Swartz in his youth with interviews with his friends and family, and experts such as World Wide Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee who question the motives of the prosecutors and a pursuit of Swartz that many feel was unwarranted or at best grossly disproportionate.

 

Director: Brian Knappenberger

Year2014

Country of productionUSA

GenreCrime, Documentary - General

LanguageEnglish

Film duration105 mins

HE NAMED ME MALALA

This film looks an amazing portrait of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai and her fight for education for all girls worldwide

http://www.henamedmemalalamovie.com/

HE NAMED ME MALALA is an intimate portrait of Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai, who was targeted by the Taliban and severely wounded by a gunshot when returning home on her school bus in Pakistan’s Swat Valley. The then 15-year-old was singled out, along with her father, for advocating for girls’ education, and the attack on her sparked an outcry from supporters around the world. She miraculously survived and is now a leading campaigner for girls’ education globally as co-founder of the Malala Fund.

Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth, Waiting for Superman) shows us how Malala, her father Zia and her family are committed to fighting for education for all girls worldwide. The film gives us an inside glimpse into this extraordinary young girl’s life – from her close relationship with her father who inspired her love for education, to her impassioned speeches at the UN, to her everyday life with her parents and brothers.

"One child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world."
– Malala
 

The film is currently showing at Cineworld in Hengrove, Bristol.

https://film.list.co.uk/cinema/42877-cineworld-bristol/

go?: Thursday 19/11/2015 14:30
 

One Giant Leap

This album released in 2002 still holds relevant to our society today. Watch Part 2 here: http://youtu.be/5RBjdyfgQVM 1 Giant Leap is the self-titled debut album by UK duo Jamie Catto and Duncan Bridgeman under the name 1 Giant Leap.
This album released in 2002 still holds relevant to our society today. Watch Part 1 here : http://youtu.be/l9fnoOtigzE 1 Giant Leap is the self-titled debut album by UK duo Jamie Catto and Duncan Bridgeman under the name 1 Giant Leap.

A Boy and His Dog - Dir. Jonna McIver (2014)

https://www.haatchiandlittleb.com - Explore this incredible, heartwarming bond even further in their new book, Haatchi and Little B - in stores July 8! Last year we made this film as part of our documentary filmmaking course at the University of Hertfordshire. We managed to find this special family and document an incredible few months of their lives.

This film won Screentest: The National Student Film Festival 2014, to watch other films from the competition see playlist below.

Lift (2001) Dir. Mark Isaacs

Dir: Marc Isaacs / UK / 2001 Filmmaker Marc Isaacs sets himself up in a London tower block lift. The residents come to trust him and reveal the things that matter to them creating a humorous and moving portrait of a vertical community.

In this video, below, from a talk at Birmingham City University, there's an excellent discussion about the debates in Documentary Film especially regarding 'Truth', 'Reality', intervention.

Marc Isaacs talks about his approach to making documentaries and shows clips from some of his films at a Creative Networks event at Birmingham City University on 25 April 2013.