"Graffiti In The Capital Of China"
A documentary about graffiti artists in the capital of China.
Social & External
The people behind it
For this work Alÿs purchased a gun in Mexico City then walked through the city streets with the weapon in his hand. After eleven minutes he was arrested by the police. The following day he repeated the action, this time in cooperation with the police. By presenting a record of this dramatic action alongside footage of its reenactment, Alÿs blurs the boundaries between documentation and fiction. Questioning the concept of authenticity, this work demonstrates “how media can distort and dramatize the immediate reality of a moment,” the artist has said. Gallery label from Francis Alÿs: A Story of Deception, May 8–August 1, 2011.
What happens when man's reason is used as a weapon to slice through the accumulated detritus of ignorant and benighted ages and into the glorious new world of Enlightenment? The old is cleared away and the space is created for the new, but at what cost? Does reason itself have sufficient capacity to create a comprehensive world for man to exist as man, or does he become something else?
Arts documentary, first broadcast before Ai Weiwei's arrest by the Chinese authorities in April 2011, and his subsequent release after being detained for 11 weeks. Architect, photographer, curator and blogger, Ai Weiwei is China's most famous and politically outspoken contemporary artist. Alan Yentob explores the story of Ai Weiwei's life and art, and reveals how this most courageous and determined of artists continues to fight for artistic freedom of expression while living under the restrictive shadows of authoritarian rule.
LENIN’S PAWN is a hybrid documentary with dark humor following actor Sergiu Voloc, a modern-day Don Quixote whose lonely fight against Lenin monuments across Moldova turns into an absurd confrontation with a system that rebuilds them overnight.
50 years ago, assemblyman George Michaels cast a single vote on New York's abortion bill that changed the course of American history but destroyed his political career in the process.
A look at the man behind the legend, capturing the real Andy Warhol, as an artist and as a person, as he travels through China, from Hong Kong's glitter to the mystique of Peking's Forbidden City. Set in the Far East, the story begins with the opening of the most elegant jet set watering hole in Asia, Hong Kong's “I Club,” whose owner, a young Chinese millionaire, decided to try an experiment: to transplant the most advanced, far-out Western culture to the Far East in a multimillion-dollar club that offers everything from restaurants and bars, to a health club and even an art gallery. Warhol is invited to attend the opening as a guest of honor showing his “Celebrity Portraits.” The result of this cultural experiment was varied. Emotions from the “I Club” and Warhol's work ranged from outrage to indifference to wonder.
A mix of fiction and documentary, "Evita Capitana" takes place in the final of the 1951 Argentina's soccer championship, where Banfield faced the then imposing Racing Club. An important political figure sides with Banfield, representing the humble and needed, but power thinks otherwise.
Directors Jonathan Alter, John Block and Steve McCarthy bring New York columnists Jimmy Breslin and Pete Hamill’s courageous writing to life, celebrating the acclaimed journalists and the city they loved.
In the second film, the author tells about the struggle of blacks for the right to feel equal with all US citizens. Commentary of the mayor of Cairo, one of the cities in the American South, about the suppression of the rebels, about the most brutal methods of fighting African American protesters. Jesse Jackson's speech. Jesse Jackson's commentary on the Black Rights Organization. Comments by female residents of Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, on the degree of mental development of whites and blacks. A story about the Ku Klux Klan, about Robert Shelton - the head of the Ku Klux Klan. Speech by American singer and dramatic actor Paul Robson, his commentary. Shots of the Olympics, victories in the competition of black athletes. About reprisals against Negro organizations. The widow of the American writer Ernest Hemingway Mary and the American scientist Henry Winston speak out about support for African Americans and the fight against racism.
Life and art of Carlos Cruz-Diez.
A short film which has its emphasis on back street walls with peeling posters and the constant pedestrian traffic in the foreground. It has a static camera positioned in front of the walls; experimental editing techniques, no dialogue-just background music, and quick edits of blackness throughout.
This film will tell the story of a tour of France undertaken by two children of "controlled origin"—as Mouss and Hakim wryly put it. For us, the reference to the century-old schoolbook Le Tour de la France par deux enfants by Augustine Fouillée is far more than a mere nod; published in the wake of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, this reader was a fiercely patriotic manual designed to shape the education and morals of young French children. Written under the pseudonym "G. Bruno," the book recounted the journey of two children, André and Julien Volden, who—following the Prussian annexation of Alsace-Lorraine and the death of their father—set out to find their uncle across France’s beautiful provinces. The book was steeped in nationalism and a martial spirit, instilling the values of the Third Republic—equality and citizenship—with a heavy hand, ensuring that no one dared to stand out from the crowd.
La Badil (No Other Choice), was filmed undercover in the Moroccan controlled territories of Western Sahara, on the eve of the second anniversary of the 2010 uprisings at Gdeim Izik that heralded the start of the Arab Spring. It sheds new light on the decades long conflict and the Sahrawi people's struggle for self-determination.
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
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.
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."
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
A documentary on legendary movie-poster artist Drew Struzan.
This raucous journey into the heart of democracy captures an unusual rite of passage: 1,100 teenage boys from across Texas coming together to build a representative government from the ground up.
Fueled by a raging libido, Wild Turkey, and superhuman doses of drugs, Thompson was a true "free lance, " goring sacred cows with impunity, hilarity, and a steel-eyed conviction for writing wrongs. Focusing on the good doctor's heyday, 1965 to 1975, the film includes clips of never-before-seen (nor heard) home movies, audiotapes, and passages from unpublished manuscripts.
Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity
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.
An inside look at one of the most anticipated movie sequels ever with James Cameron and cast.
A comedic, brutally honest documentary following self-destructive TV writer Dan Harmon as he takes his live podcast on a national tour.
Using the book 'Fragments', which collects Marilyn Monroe's poems, notes and letters, and with participation from the Arthur Miller and Truman Capote estates who have contributed more material, each of the actresses will embody the legend at various stages in her life.
Tony Silver and Henry Chalfant's PBS documentary tracks the rise and fall of subway graffiti in New York in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Unravel the case of Utah therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, whose child abuse arrest with parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke exposed a twisted tale of manipulation.
An intimately raw and magical journey through the life, mind, and heart of iconic artist Frida Kahlo. Told through her own words for the very first time — drawn from her diary, revealing letters, essays, and print interviews — and brought vividly to life by lyrical animation inspired by her unforgettable artwork.
Banksy is a graffiti artist with a global reputation whose work can be seen on walls from post-hurricane New Orleans to the separation barrier on the Palestinian West Bank. Fiercely guarding his anonymity to avoid prosecution, Banksy has so far resisted all attempts to be captured on film. Exit Through the Gift Shop tells the incredible true story of how an eccentric French shop keeper turned documentary maker attempted to locate and befriend Banksy, only to have the artist turn the camera back on its owner.
A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.
A road trip across five countries to explore the social and political movements as well as the mainstream media's misperception of South America while interviewing seven of its elected presidents.
