Telescopic chronophotography of the 1882 transit of Venus as observed from Lick Observatory.
Social & External
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.
The first American space station Skylab is found in pieces scattered in Western Australia. Putting these pieces back together and re-tracing the Skylab program back to its very conception reveals the cornerstone of human space exploration.
For a long time, in France, comedy was the preserve of men. Female roles were mostly secondary and corresponded to stereotypes such as the pretty doll, the funny but unattractive woman, or the troublesome, even cantankerous wife
The story of Tasmanian-born actor Errol Flynn whose short & flamboyant life, full of scandals, adventures, loves and excess was largely played out in front of the camera - either making movies or filling the newsreels and gossip magazines. Tragically he was dead from the effects of drugs and alcohol by the time he was only 50 & the myths live on. But there is another side of Flynn that is less well known - his ambitions to be a serious writer and newspaper correspondent, his documentary films and his interest in the Spanish Civil War and Castro's Cuba
Documentarian Jeffrey Morgan set out to the track one woman's search for the truth about her great-great-aunt's 1908 murder. But his film quickly became a fascinating study of racism, revenge and family secrets. In the process of uncovering information about her ancestor's violent death at the hands of an African-American suspect, the woman learns that her family tree might have also produced a few murderers.
Explore the life of Flannery O’Connor whose provocative fiction was unlike anything published before. Featuring never-before-seen archival footage, newly discovered journals, and interviews with Mary Karr, Tommy Lee Jones, Hilton Als, and more.
Working men and women leave through the main gate of the Lumière factory in Lyon, France. Filmed on 22 March 1895, it is often referred to as the first real motion picture ever made, although Louis Le Prince's 1888 Roundhay Garden Scene pre-dated it by seven years. Three separate versions of this film exist, which differ from one another in numerous ways. The first version features a carriage drawn by one horse, while in the second version the carriage is drawn by two horses, and there is no carriage at all in the third version. The clothing style is also different between the three versions, demonstrating the different seasons in which each was filmed. This film was made in the 35 mm format with an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and at a speed of 16 frames per second. At that rate, the 17 meters of film length provided a duration of 46 seconds, holding a total of 800 frames.
A documentary by Donna Zaccaro about the political trailblazer, Geralidine Ferraro. Featuring interviews with Bill and Hillary Clinton, George and Barbara Bush, Walter Mondale, and Geraldine Ferraro herself, among others, this is a heartwarming and engrossing portrait of the first woman who was nominated for vice president, whose legacy still reverberates today.
In the 1920s, former coal miner Harry Hoxsey claimed to have an herbal cure for cancer. Although scoffed at and ultimately banned by the medical establishment, by the 1950s, Hoxsey's formula had been used to treat thousands of patients, who testified to its efficacy. Was Hoxsey's recipe the work of a snake-oil charlatan or a legitimate treatment? Ken Ausubel directs this keen look into the forces that shape the policies of organized medicine.
A Documentary film exploring the history and evolution of vinyl records. Featuring Interviews with the experts, musicians and fans alike, 'Stuck in the groove' takes you on a journey of vinyl-mania, music and nostalgia.
A documentary covering the harrowing tragedy of the SS Morro Castle.
John and Yoko in the presidential suite at the Hilton Amsterdam, which they had decorated with hand-drawn signs above their bed reading "Bed Peace." They invited the global press into their room to discuss peace for 12 hours every day.
Migrating by sea from Holland as an eight-year-old, Dirk de Bruyn went on to be a doyen of Australian experimental cinema. But as this intimate film reveals, his work is suffused with the trauma of migration, and the struggle to recognise himself as a ‘new Australian'. In conversation with documentarian Steven McIntyre, Dirk guides us through more than 40 years of his filmmaking: the early years exploring technique and technology, a subsequent phase of unflinching self-examination brought on by upheaval and overseas travel, and more recent projects where he attempts a fusion of personal, cultural, and historical identity. What emerges is an inspiring, rugged, and at times poignant portrait of an artist committed to self-expression and self-discovery through the medium of film.
A historical perspective to understand Neoliberalism and to understand why this ideology today so profoundly influences the choices of our governments and our lives.
President John F. Kennedy's 1963 assassination in Dallas has sparked decades of questions and controversy. The "lost" JFK recordings made available for this documentary -- including local TV and radio reports -- shed new light on the tragedy. The rarely seen material has been organized to capture the drama as it unfolded, including the shocked reactions of Dallas citizens, many of whom were caught up directly in the sweep of events.
This is Gaston Rebuffat's fourth film, in which, with several close friends, he discovers the sublime landscapes of the Alps. “Mont-Blanc is beautiful. I climbed it several times depending on the time, the color of the sky and the shape of the cornices and ridges. Because of the weather and also because of this feeling of altitude, Mont-Blanc provides great pleasure. For the guide, Mont Blanc is his garden, but the garden becomes more beautiful when shown to a friend. Personally, I really like the bivouacs; only there one penetrates a little the mystery of the altitude. That's why I immediately accepted when Tazieff expressed the desire to spend the night at the top of Mont Blanc in an igloo. The film won the Grand Prix at the Trento Film Festival in 1961.
When a black teenager is shot and killed attending a bonfire party in Jay, Florida, the town's racist past becomes its present and leads to the uncovering of a shockingly similar murder in 1922 that changed the community forever.
In 1928, the city of Curitiba went through a rare snowstorm. To this day, it is the harshest snowstorm to ever take place in the city. Everything was recorded by Alberto Botelho in this short documentary.
A seductive housewife draws an insurance salesman into a plot of adultery and crime to collect on her husband's life insurance.
The last remaining production of Le Prince's LPCC Type-16 (16-lens camera) is part of a gelatine film shot in 32 images/second, and pictures a man walking around a corner. Le Prince, who was in Leeds (UK) at that time, sent these images to his wife in New York City in a letter dated 18 August 1887.
Chronophotographic short film, possibly species Protophormia terraenovae, c. 1904-1905.
Hyde Park Corner (also known as Leisurely Pedestrians, Open Topped Buses and Hansom Cabs with Trotting Horses) depicts life at Hyde Park Corner in London. It is claimed to be the first film set in London, as well as the first to be filmed on celluloid. It is currently considered a partially lost film, with only 6 possible film frames preserved as part of the Jonathan Silent Film Collection.
In the midst of trying to legitimize his business dealings in 1979 New York and Italy, aging mafia don, Michael Corleone seeks forgiveness for his sins while taking a young protege under his wing.
A burger-loving hit man, his philosophical partner, a drug-addled gangster's moll and a washed-up boxer converge in this sprawling, comedic crime caper. Their adventures unfurl in three stories that ingeniously trip back and forth in time.
Tom Ripley is a talented mimic, moocher, forger and all-around criminal improviser; but there's more to Tom Ripley than even he can guess.
Pierrot escapes his boring society and travels from Paris to the Mediterranean Sea with Marianne, a girl chased by hit-men from Algeria. They lead an unorthodox life, always on the run.
Billy is released after five years in prison. In the next moment, he kidnaps teenage student Layla and visits his parents with her, pretending she is his girlfriend and they will soon marry.
The story of J. Robert Oppenheimer's role in the development of the atomic bomb during World War II.
Combat has taken its toll on Rambo, but he's finally begun to find inner peace in a monastery. When Rambo's friend and mentor Col. Trautman asks for his help on a top secret mission to Afghanistan, Rambo declines but must reconsider when Trautman is captured.
Professor Barbenfouillis and five of his colleagues from the Academy of Astronomy travel to the Moon aboard a rocket propelled by a giant cannon. Once on the lunar surface, the bold explorers face the many perils hidden in the caves of the mysterious planet.
After being shot in a toy store, a serial killer transfers his soul into a Good Guy doll. A mother then gifts it to her 6-year old son Andy, which unleashes terror upon the city.
Ethan and team take on their most impossible mission yet—eradicating 'The Syndicate', an International and highly-skilled rogue organization committed to destroying the IMF.
The staff of a Korean War field hospital use humor and hijinks to keep their sanity in the face of the horror of war.
Researchers on the undersea lab Aquatica have genetically altered the brains of captive sharks to develop a cure for Alzheimer's disease. But there's an unexpected side effect: the sharks got smarter, faster, and more dangerous. After a big storm damages their remote research facility, they must fight for their lives.
A snobbish phonetics professor agrees to a wager that he can take a flower girl and make her presentable in high society.
A police detective falls in love with the woman whose murder he's investigating.
Ashitaka, a prince of the disappearing Emishi people, is cursed by a demonized boar god and must journey to the west to find a cure. Along the way, he encounters San, a young human woman fighting to protect the forest, and Lady Eboshi, who is trying to destroy it. Ashitaka must find a way to bring balance to this conflict.
Lester Burnham, a depressed suburban father in a mid-life crisis, decides to turn his hectic life around after developing an infatuation with his daughter's attractive friend.
