1903, cinematography by Frank Ormiston-Smith
Social & External
Huw Stephens presents an exciting selection of short films from emerging artists and film-makers from across the UK. Topics are fresh, varied and thought-provoking, including a behind-the-scenes look at a zoo closing for the night, an honest account of farming the land, and a powerful love letter from a son to a mother who has cancer. Expect to be moved and challenged by these short dramas, observations and dance, made by a new generation of storytellers. Yew; Echdo; King of the Pit; Two B or Not Two B; Lucky House; Everything Is Fine; The Jacket; Cages; It's Always Been; Mary Lost Her Battle; Between the Dog and the Wolf; From His Perspective
Tattooed hands gently glide over a rock face, probing it with the tips of the fingers. Three women, arms raised to a high boulder, appear to be in prayer. Hidden in a cave, two others stare at their bloody palms. Touching Rocks depicts bouldering as a pagan ritual.
A glimpse into the life of the grass snake.
At the crossroads of Black literary consciousness and political struggle, the ideas of Claude McKay, Jamaican poet and novelist, laid the foundations for major literary movements, including Négritude. Proudly wandering, both bohemian and politically committed, a chameleon with a magnetic personality, he traveled across the globe: New York’s literary scene, Parisian aristocracy, Communist intelligentsia in Russia, and Black diasporas in the port of Marseille. Using archival materials and texts read in voice-over by Gaël Faye and Manon Azem, the film traces McKay’s journey as he crosses paths with major figures of his time, from George Bernard Shaw to W.E.B. Du Bois, Trotski, and many others.
In a nation where books burn and films rot, "No Let Them Die" explores the vibrant yet fragile living archives of Nigeria - preserved through oral traditions, rituals, and everyday practices - when institutional systems fail.
Documentary from Barbara Bialowąs.
Shot by Methodist missionaries, this is an incredibly charming record of small-town life in an unidentified location in China. We see a bustling wharf town with canal-side dwellings, distinctive school buildings, and a hospital where newly graduated nurses pose for a group portrait. The relaxed smiles of Chinese and Europeans are captured in intimate close-ups, suggesting a tight-knit community.
This documentary describes the unfortunate legacy of the lone house on the prairie, an example of a dwelling entirely unsuited for the harsh winter or summer. We meet some builders and homeowners experimenting with more energy-efficient designs, such as the dome, the underground house and a ranch with wind, solar energy and methane gas from animal waste.
Herdsman Fabiano will be a father soon. He owns fifty goats and eight cows and is trying his best to produce the alpine cheese that his hippie parents made a name for themselves with in the '70s, in an isolated valley of Ticino. But nothing is going the way it should. He's in debt, and feels guilty for a fatal accident which occurred the previous year, which haunts him. How can he and his girlfriend build a life together under such difficult circumstances?
Mick Glasheen, an architect and pioneer of early cinema and experimental film, created work that was heavily influenced by media theorists. His video Teleologic Telecast from Spaceship Earth: On Board with Buckminster Fuller, 1970, is a re-mixed recording of a Buckminster Fuller’s lecture given at UNSW, presenting Fuller’s ideas on science, metaphysics and the universe, merged with just as radical techniques of moving image production, creating a multi-layered expression of image, voice, and sound.
A homeless couple looks for a way to get ahead, working and making an effort, while trying to overcome their past.
The story of how the Satanic Panic of the 1980s was ignited by "Michelle Remembers", a memoir by psychiatrist and his patient. The book relied on recovered-memory therapy to uncover Michelle's abduction by baby-stealing Satanists.
A humorous look at various circus and other acrobatic feats. One of the "Pete Smith Specialties" produced and narrated by "A Smith named Pete."
A short documentary film that explains why ancestral languages are dying and promotes their preservation.
After a "diplomatic mission" into a neighboring town Kell returns to his town to see that his not so bright team of idiots have screwed up everything.
Documentary film.
A renewed and truthful vision of how Spanish America was born and prospered, an epic story developed over more than three hundred years, that of those who bequeathed to humanity an immense architectural, sculptural, pictorial, literary and musical heritage.
Advertising short for Chevrolet combining live action and animation. The film relates the story of Gilbert Willoughby, who, exasperated by his stubborn boxspring mattress, imprudently wishes for the disappearance of springs. Coily, the animated spring sprite, grants his wish, and Gilbert is bedeviled by once-familar appliances that no longer function. Apologizing to Coily, Gilbert acknowledges the contribution of springs to daily life, especially in the Chevrolet.
The epic life story of Alice Guy-Blaché (1873–1968), a French screenwriter, director and producer, true pioneer of cinema, the first person who made a narrative fiction film; author of hundreds of movies, but banished from history books. Ignored and forgotten. At last remembered.
Daniel Craig candidly reflects on his 15 year adventure as James Bond. Including never-before-seen archival footage from Casino Royale to the upcoming 25th film No Time To Die, Craig shares his personal memories in conversation with 007 producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
The earliest surviving motion-picture film, and believed to be one of the very first moving images ever created, was shot by Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince using the LPCCP Type-1 MkII single-lens camera. It was taken on paper-based photographic film in the garden of Oakwood Grange, the Whitley family house in Roundhay, Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire (UK), on 14 October 1888. The film shows Adolphe Le Prince (Le Prince’s son), Mrs. Sarah Whitley (Le Prince’s mother-in-law), Joseph Whitley, and Miss Harriet Hartley walking around in circles, laughing to themselves, and staying within the area framed by the camera. Roundhay Garden Scene is often associated with a recording speed of around 12 frames per second and runs for about 2 to 3 seconds.
In 1972, a seemingly typical shoestring budget pornographic film was made in a Florida hotel: "Deep Throat," starring Linda Lovelace. This film would surpass the wildest expectation of everyone involved to become one of the most successful independent films of all time. It caught the public imagination which met the spirit of the times, even as the self-appointed guardians of public morality struggled to suppress it, and created, for a brief moment, a possible future where sexuality in film had a bold artistic potential. This film covers the story of the making of this controversial film, its stunning success, its hysterical opposition along with its dark side of mob influence and allegations of the on set mistreatment of the film's star.
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
In 2019, Nepalese mountain climber Nirmal “Nims” Purja set out to do the unthinkable by climbing the world’s fourteen highest summits in less than seven months. (The previous record was eight years). He called the effort “Project Possible 14/7” and saw it as a way to inspire others to strive for greater heights in any pursuit. The film follows his team as they seek to defy naysayers and push the limits of human endurance.
The history of cinematic sound, told by legendary sound designers and visionary filmmakers.
The film follows adventurer Jeff Johnson as he retraces the epic 1968 journey of his heroes Yvon Chouinard and Doug Tompkins to Patagonia.
SEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director to financier to star actor, the two players provide us with a unique look behind the curtain at the world's biggest and most glamourous film festival, shining a light on the bitter-sweet relationship filmmakers have with Cannes and the film business. Featuring insights from directors Martin Scorsese, 'Bernando Bertolucci' and Roman Polanski; actors Ryan Gosling and Jessica Chastain and a host of film distribution luminaries.
Supersonic charts the meteoric rise of Oasis from the council estates of Manchester to some of the biggest concerts of all time in just three short years. This palpable, raw and moving film shines a light on one of the most genre and generation-defining British bands that has ever existed and features candid new interviews with Noel and Liam Gallagher, their mother, and members of the band and road crew.
A documentary chronicling Queen and Lambert's incredible journey since they first shared the stage together on "American Idol" in 2009.
Brilliant, long in-the-works story of the life and art of the world's greatest comedian and the cinema's first genius, Charlie Chaplin. Produced, written and directed by renowned film critic Richard Schickel.
While investigating the furtive world of illegal doping in sports, director Bryan Fogel connects with renegade Russian scientist Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov—a pillar of his country’s “anti-doping” program. Over dozens of Skype calls, urine samples, and badly administered hormone injections, Fogel and Rodchenkov grow closer despite shocking allegations that place Rodchenkov at the center of Russia’s state-sponsored Olympic doping program.
A backstage and on-stage look at Justin Bieber during his rise to super stardom.
After years in the limelight, Selena Gomez achieves unimaginable stardom. But just as she reaches a new peak, an unexpected turn pulls her into darkness. This uniquely raw and intimate documentary spans her six-year journey into a new light.
A documentary about the life and films of director John Ford.
Filmed over 14 months with unprecedented access into the inner circle of the man and the sport, this is the first official and fully authorised film of one of the most celebrated figures in football. For the first time ever, the world gets vividly candid and un-paralleled, behind-closed-doors access to the footballer, father, family-man and friend in this moving & fascinating documentary. Through in-depth conversations, state of the art football footage and never before seen archival footage, the film gives an astonishing insight into the sporting and personal life of triple Ballon D'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo at the peak of his career. From the makers of ‘Senna’ and ‘Amy’, Ronaldo takes audiences on an intimate and revealing journey of what it’s like to live as an iconic athlete in the eye of the storm.
Experience the iconic rock band's legacy in the first major documentary to tell their story. Directed with the era’s avant-garde spirit by Todd Haynes, this kaleidoscopic oral history combines exclusive interviews with dazzling archival footage.
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.