Documentary

  • Stephen Ives – Ken Burns – The West (1996)

    1991-2000DocumentaryStephen IvesUSA

    Since its premiere on PBS in September 1996, The West has rightfully assumed its place as a milestone event in television history, and remains the single most ambitious and authoritative audio-visual history of the American West. Spanning centuries but focusing primarily on the period of 1800 to 1915, when America was virtually redefined by westward expansion, this outstanding 12.5-hour film is itself a triumphant effort to redefine Americans’ collective understanding of the West and its impact on national identity. Directed by Stephen Ives and executive produced by Ken Burns (The Civil War, Baseball, Jazz), the film follows the theory adopted by previous Ken Burns productions–namely, that “history is biography”–and unfolds through a wealth of personal anecdote and intimate documentation.Read More »

  • Thunska Pansittivorakul & Harit Srikhao – Homogeneous, Empty Time (2017)

    2011-2020DocumentaryHarit SrikhaoThailandThunska Pansittivorakul

    Quote:
    This documentary film explores the spread of nationalism according to the concept of “Homogeneous, Empty Time” by Walter Benjamin, a German Jewish philosopher and cultural critic. The theory as referenced in the book Imagined Communities by Benedict Anderson stated that nationalistic ideologies originated from emptiness within an area where people have homogenous consciousness. This film, therefore, explores people in a variety of communities in Thailand, such as high school students, religious people, nationalistic right-wingers, military cadets, and people in the Southern border, in an attempt to find what foundation the Thai nation is formed upon.Read More »

  • Cameron Jamie – Kranky Klaus (2003)

    2001-2010Cameron JamieDocumentaryExperimentalUSA

    Quote:
    Recording of the annual Christmas folklore street ritual Krampus in Austria, in which people dressed up as hairy monsters scare the wits out of the population. The accompanying metal soundtrack by The Melvins provides a curious American perspective.Read More »

  • Ken Burns – The Civil War (1990)

    1981-1990DocumentaryKen BurnsUSA

    This highly acclaimed mini series traces the course of the U.S. Civil War from the abolitionist movement through all the major battles to the death of President Lincoln and the beginnings of Reconstruction. The story is mostly told in the words of the participants themselves, through their diaries, letters, and Visuals are usually still photographs and illustrations of the time, and the soundtrack is likewise made up of war-era tunes played on period instruments. Several modern-day historians offer periodic comment and insight on the war’s causes and events.Read More »

  • Werner Fritsch – Das sind die Gewitter in der Natur AKA These are the Thunderstorms in Nature (1988)

    1981-1990DocumentaryGermanyWerner Fritsch

    Quote
    Das sind die Gewitter in der Natur is a fragment of a long gone time. A time that should not be forgotten. Following Wenzel Heindl, a former farmhand who was 80 years old at the time of the shooting. Hobbles through the ruins of his past and is given all the time he needs to tell stories from his life, dominated by war and poverty. It is a very personal film for Werner Fritsch because the paths of the two crossed on the farm of Werner’s parents and Wenzel was an important figure for him in his childhood. As Fritsch himself writes, he heard all kinds of stories from Wenzel and thus learned from him not only how to speak but especially how to tell. A craft that shaped Werner’s life as a writer and filmmaker. It’s not surprising that Werner Fritsch created such an impactful film already 20 years before he began his magnum opus Faust Sonnengesang series.Read More »

  • Franz-Josef Spieker – Süden im Schatten aka South in the Shade (1962)

    DocumentaryFranz-Josef SpiekerGermanyShort Film

    Part of DVD release Die “Oberhausener” – Provokation der Wirklichkeit (Provoking Reality)
    Edition Filmmuseum 69

    Oberhausen Manifesto 1962:
    28.2.1962

    The collapse of conventional German film has finally removed the economic basis for a mentality that we reject. This gives the new kind of film the chance to come to life.
    German short films by young filmmakers, directors and producers have in recent years received a large number of prizes at international festivals and gained the recognition of international critics. These works and their successes show that the future of German film lies with those who have proven that they speak a new film language.Read More »

  • Chris Smith – American Movie (1999)

    1991-2000Chris SmithCultDocumentaryUSA

    Quote:
    On the northwest side of Milwaukee, Mark Borchardt dreams the American dream: for him, it’s making movies. Using relatives, local theater talent, slacker friends, his Mastercard, and $3,000 from his Uncle Bill, Mark strives over three years to finish “Covan,” a short horror film. His own personal demons (alcohol, gambling, a dysfunctional family) plague him, but he desperately wants to overcome self-doubt and avoid failure. In moments of reflection, Mark sees his story as quintessentially American, and its the nature and nuance of his dream that this film explores.Read More »

  • Jamie Johnson – The One Percent (2006)

    2001-2010DocumentaryJamie JohnsonUSA

    Quote:
    In this hard-hitting but humorous documentary, director Jamie Johnson takes the exploration of wealth that he began in Born Rich one step further. The One Percent, refers to the tiny percentage of Americans who control nearly half the wealth of the U.S. Johnson’s thesis is that this wealth in the hands of so few people is a danger to our very way of life. Johnson captures his story through personal interviews with Robert Reich, Adnan Khashoggi, Bill Gates Sr., and Steve Forbes, during which both Johnson’s and his subjects’ knowledge and humor shine. And he’s not afraid to butt heads with Milton Friedman, the economist who coined the term “the trickledown effect.” Read More »

  • Qiu Jiongjiong – Gu Nainai AKA Madame (2010)

    2001-2010ChinaDocumentaryQiu Jiongjiong

    Synopsis
    The Chinese documentary movement continues to evolve, reaching new levels of awareness of issues complicating its mission to objectively capture the reality of its society. Among these issues is that of performance in its subjects; this is especially critical given that an increasing number of documentaries are personal portraits that delve into subjective experiences. Perhaps the most memorable instance of the past year is Qiu Jiongjiong’s stark black-and-white series of interviews with transsexual cabaret singer Madame Bi Langda. Madame Bi’s recollections of past experiences explicitly touch on how she performs her way through life, whether interacting with friends, lovers or her audience. More than a document of the increasingly complicated gender identity politics in China, it’s also a poignant testimony of a life dedicated to articulating the aesthetics of living.Read More »

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