Benny Carter: Symphony in Riffs

Burt Lancaster narrates this overview of the incredible career of jazz saxophonist Benny Carter, one of the chief architects of the Big Band sound. COMMENTARY BY QUINCY JONES, DIZZY GILLESPIE, ELLA FITZGERALD, LENA HORNE AND MORE

Alain Jean-Marie, impressions cubaines

On the occasion of his 80th birthday, an intimate documentary follows the illustrious pianist and great French jazz musician, Alain Jean-Marie from Guadeloupe, on a recent trip to Cuba. He talks about his career, his adolescence, and his youth in Guadeloupe, where he was rocked and deeply influenced by Cuban music. Director Bertrand Fèvre followed this now essential artist in Havana, to be discovered or rediscovered through a film set to jazz.

Always for Pleasure

A musical portrait of New Orleans' street celebrations and unique cultural gumbo in 1977: second-line parades, Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest. Features live music from Professor Longhair, the Wild Tchoupitoulas, the Neville Brothers and more. This glorious, soul-satisfying film is among Blank's special masterworks. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 1999.

Sun Ra: A Joyful Noise

Robert Mugge filmed jazz great Sun Ra on location in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. between 1978 and 1980. The resulting 60-minute film includes multiple public and private performances, poetry readings, a band rehearsal, interviews, and extensive improvisations. Transferred to HD from the original 16mm film and lovingly restored for the best possible viewing experience.

Unisono

When young musicians come together to play classical music, they send out a strong signal to our today’s world. The film follows talented young Swiss musicians as they work, search for inspiration, but also expose their thought how to play nowadays the “old” Classical music.

Non Stop Travels with Michel Petrucciani

Carlos

This lively and intimately-crafted documentary immerses the audience in rock icon Carlos Santana's life and musical trajectory. Filmmaker Rudy Valdez bolsters this personal narrative with pulsating, never-before-seen footage — guided by Santana himself, in his own words.

Chasing Trane

An account of the life of the brilliant jazz musician John Coltrane (1926-67), a gifted saxophonist, an extraordinarily talented thinker whose original, avant-garde work has impacted and influenced people all over the world. A story about music's ability to entertain, inspire and transform.

Hollywood Hotel

After losing a coveted role in an upcoming film to another actress, screen queen Mona Marshall (Lola Lane) protests by refusing to appear at her current movie's premiere. Her agent discovers struggling actress Virginia Stanton (Rosemary Lane) -- an exact match for Mona -- and sends her to the premiere instead, with young musician Ronnie Bowers (Dick Powell). After various mishaps, including a case of mistaken identity, Ronnie and Virginia struggle to find success in Hollywood.

The Jazz Singer

A young Jewish man is torn between tradition and individuality when his old-fashioned family objects to his career as a jazz singer.

Ray Charles: Live At Montreux 1997

The unforgettable Ray Charles swings and sings with the best of them in this finger-snapping live performance at the 1997 Montreux Jazz Festival. The legend shows off his prodigious talents and wows the audience with such tunes as "I Don't Know," "Georgia on My Mind," "Mississippi Mud," "Busted," "You Made Me Love You," "Angelina," "Song for You," "Do It to Me Slow," "Shadows of My Mind," "People Will Say We're in Love" and more.

Buy One, Get One Free

A man named Reilly gets a cat named Flinch to impress a female cat lover named Sofie and threatens the cat that if there is a scratch on anything while he's away, he will send him to the violin factory. It won't be easy when Sophie leaves Flinch a feline playmate named Fix that only wants to party.

The Wes Montgomery Quartet - BBC "Jazz 625" + 5

On March 25, 1965, guitarist Wes Montgomery conducted his quartet at the BBC studios in London to perform on the television show Jazz 625. Already known by the jazz community as an innovative guitarist, Montgomery was at the top of his form and, seemingly effortlessly, recorded one of the best jazz performances ever captured in the film. Tracks featured in order: West Coast Blues (Theme), Yesterdays, Full House, 'Round Midnight, Twisted Blues, Jingles, West Coast Blues (Theme) [Recorded live at BBC Studios in London on March 25, 1965 for their TV & radio broadcast], Four On Six, Full House, Here's That Rainy Day, Twisted Blues, West Coast Blues (Theme) [Recorded live at ABC Studios in London on May 7, 1965 for their TV broadcast].

Santana Live at Montreux 2011

For decades, Carlos Santana has been thrilling audiences around the world with his timeless blend of rock, blues, Latin music, and jazz. In 2011, the legendary guitarist performed on one of the world’s most prestigious stages: the Montreux Jazz Festival. A performance of rare intensity, filmed in high definition.

The Little Match Girl

The Hans Christian Andersen classic is given present-day relevance and an upbeat ending in this story of Angela, a homeless child who sells matchsticks to survive.

Ezra Collective Ground Control

Ezra Collective has already shaken up the British jazz scene- Now the quintet has arrived on the continent, taking Paris' Ground Control by storm with the exuberance of their second album Where I'm Meant To Be.

Reminiscence

Aurora, daughter of retired Jazz composer Hugo, is informed that his father’s Alzheimer’s disease has worsened significantly. She will use their memories together and the music they composed in order to try to get him to recognize her one last time before he moves permanently abroad to continue fighting his disease.

The Road Home

Exiled from his native South Africa, South African jazz legend Hugh Masekela is pulled between two worlds. In the late 1980s, the Anti-Apartheid Movement, led by his mentor and fierce Anti-Apartheid advocate Archbishop Trevor Huddleston, launches a boycott against Hugh’s friend Paul Simon over his township music-inspired album 'Graceland', accusing Simon of violating the United Nations’ Cultural Boycott. Miriam ‘Mama Africa’ Makeba joins forces with Masekela — who sees music as a powerful weapon in the struggle — to create the Graceland band, a supergroup designed to bring South Africa’s voice to the world.

Pat Metheny Group: We Live Here

Led by Pat Metheny--virtuoso guitarist, composer and producer--the eight member Pat Metheny Group perform their jazz fusion stylings live in Japan. Nominated for 23 Grammys in his career, Metheny and his group continue to push the envelope of jazz, leaving true believers in their wake. Tracks: Have You Heard, And Then I Knew, Here to Stay, First Circle, Scrap Metal, Farmer's Trust, Episode D'Azur, Third Wind, This Is Not America, Antonia, To the End of the World, Minuano (Six-Eight), Stranger in Town. 110 minutes.

Samo Lives

A vibrant portrait of Jean-Michel Basquiat, the NYC artist who revolutionized 1980s art. From street graffiti to gallery stardom, his bold Neo-expressionist works left an indelible mark on the art world and beyond.

John Candy: I Like Me

Those who knew iconic funnyman John Candy best share his story, in their own words, through never-before-seen archival footage, imagery, and interviews.

Looking for Richard

Al Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."

Lionel Messi: Destiny

Behind-the-scenes documentary about how Lionel Messi succeeded in lifting the World Cup – the only trophy to have eluded him in an incredible career.

Daft Punk Unchained

Daft Punk Unchained is the first film about the pop culture phenomenon that is Daft Punk, the duo with 12 million albums sold worldwide and seven Grammy Awards. Throughout their career Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo have always resisted compromise and the established codes of show business. They have remained determined to maintain control of every link in the chain of their creative process. In the era of globalisation and social networks, they rarely speak in public and neither do they show their faces on TV. This documentary explores this unprecedented cultural revolution revealing a duo of artists on a permanent quest for creativity, independence and freedom.

I Am Heath Ledger

The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.

Biggie & Tupac

In 1997, rap superstars Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace (aka Biggie Smalls, The Notorious B.I.G.) were gunned down in separate incidents, the apparent victims of hip hop's infamous east-west rivalry. Nick Broomfield's film introduces Russell Poole, an ex-cop with damning evidence that suggests the LAPD deliberately fumbled the case to conceal connections between the police, LA gangs and Death Row Records, the label run by feared rap mogul Marion "Suge" Knight.

Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition

With unprecedented access to the official archives and intimate recollections from the band, both current and past, Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition invites fans to experience one of the most iconic journeys in music history. Spanning five decades, this electrifying documentary charts the band’s rise from the pubs of East London to the world’s biggest stadiums. Featuring exclusive interviews with band members and contributors such as Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich and Chuck D, as well as all-new animated sequences of the band's legendary mascot, Eddie, the film offers a rare and intimate look at Iron Maiden’s uncompromising vision and unwavering connection with their truly global army of fans.

In the Realms of the Unreal

In the Realms of the Unreal is a documentary about the reclusive Chicago-based artist Henry Darger. Henry Darger was so reclusive that when he died his neighbors were surprised to find a 15,145-page manuscript along with hundreds of paintings depicting The Story of the Vivian Girls, in What is Known as the Realms of the Unreal, of the Glodeco-Angelinnian War Storm, Cased by the Child Slave Rebellion.

Above Majestic

A look at the origins, history and conspiracies behind the "Majestic 12", a clandestine group of military and corporate figureheads charged with reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology.

The Class of ‘92

A detailing of the rise to prominence and global sporting superstardom of six supremely talented young Manchester United football players (David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Phil and Gary Neville). The film covers the period 1992-1999, culminating in Manchester United's European Cup triumph.

Whitney

Examines the life and career of singer Whitney Houston. Features never-before-seen archival footage, exclusive recordings, rare performances and interviews with the people who knew her best.

Muscle Shoals

In a tiny Alabama town with the curious name of Muscle Shoals, something miraculous sprang from the mud of the Tennessee River. A group of unassuming, yet incredibly talented, locals came together and spawned some of the greatest music of all time: “Mustang Sally,” “I Never Loved a Man,” “Wild Horses,” and many more. During the most incendiary periods of racial hostility, white folks and black folks came together to create music that would last for generations and gave birth to the incomparable “Muscle Shoals sound.”

Night Will Fall

When Allied forces liberated the Nazi concentration camps in 1944-45, their terrible discoveries were recorded by army and newsreel cameramen, revealing for the first time the full horror of what had happened. Making use of British, Soviet and American footage, the Ministry of Information’s Sidney Bernstein (later founder of Granada Television) aimed to create a documentary that would provide lasting, undeniable evidence of the Nazis’ unspeakable crimes. He commissioned a wealth of British talent, including editor Stewart McAllister, writer and future cabinet minister Richard Crossman – and, as treatment advisor, his friend Alfred Hitchcock. Yet, despite initial support from the British and US Governments, the film was shelved, and only now, 70 years on, has it been restored and completed by Imperial War Museums under its original title "German Concentration Camps Factual Survey".

Harmontown

A comedic, brutally honest documentary following self-destructive TV writer Dan Harmon as he takes his live podcast on a national tour.

A Plastic Ocean

A documentary focused on plastic pollution in the world's oceans.

Tricked: The Documentary

This character-driven film considers the evolving sex trafficking landscape as seen by the main players: the exploited, the pimps, the johns that fuel the business, and the cops who fight to stop it.

The Captains

The Captains is a feature-length documentary film written and directed by William Shatner. The film follows Shatner as he interviews the other actors who have portrayed starship captains in the Star Trek franchise.

Hitchcock/Truffaut

Filmmakers discuss the legacy of Alfred Hitchcock and the book “Hitchcock/Truffaut” (“Le cinéma selon Hitchcock”), written by François Truffaut and published in 1966.

Chris Brown: Welcome to My Life

This compelling Documentary moves beyond the spotlight and past the attention-grabbing headlines to give pop superstar Chris Brown a chance to tell his own story. New interviews with the international phenomenon reveal long-awaited answers about his passion for making music, his tumultuous and much publicized relationships, and the pitfalls of coming of age in the public eye. Also included is new concert footage, behind-the-scenes access, and special interviews from Usher, Jennifer Lopez, DJ Khaled, Mike Tyson, Jamie Foxx and others.

The Last Waltz

Martin Scorsese's documentary intertwines footage from The Band's incredible farewell tour with probing backstage interviews and featured performances by Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, and other rock legends.