Each one of the 15 lighthouses around the island of Puerto Rico tells the story of the lighthouse keepers, wives or daughters that lived in them. Additional testimonies by architects, historians, biologists and fishermen take us on a trip of beauty, hope, perseverance around them, as we witness the magnificence of its structures and its magical surroundings. Some lighthouses are active, some have been restored, others have been abandoned but all have a unique story to tell.
Commissioned to make a propaganda film about the 1936 Olympic Games in Germany, director Leni Riefenstahl created a celebration of the human form. This first half of her two-part film opens with a renowned introduction that compares modern Olympians to classical Greek heroes, then goes on to provide thrilling in-the-moment coverage of some of the games' most celebrated moments, including African-American athlete Jesse Owens winning a then-unprecedented four gold medals.
Commissioned to make a propaganda film about the 1936 Olympic Games in Germany, director Leni Riefenstahl created a celebration of the human form. Where the two-part epic's first half, Festival of the Nations, focused on the international aspects of the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin, part two, The Festival of Beauty, concentrates on individual athletes such as equestrians, gymnasts, and swimmers, climaxing with American Glenn Morris' performance in the decathalon and the games' majestic closing ceremonies.
Shut Up and Sing is a documentary about the country band from Texas called the Dixie Chicks and how one tiny comment against President Bush dropped their number one hit off the charts and caused fans to hate them, destroy their CD’s, and protest at their concerts. A film about freedom of speech gone out of control and the three girls lives that were forever changed by a small anti-Bush comment
After 40 years of protection, Grey wolves were recently de-listed federally from endangered species act and their fate was handed over to state legislatures. What ensued was a 'push to hunt' in wolf country across the United States. Filmmaker Julia Huffman travels to Minnesota and into wolf country to pursue the deep and intrinsic value of brother wolf and our forgotten promise to him.
A Zen priest in San Francisco and cookbook author use Zen Buddhism and cooking to relate to everyday life.
Contrasts traditional and modern village life, as changes occur with better transport and as country estates are sold off for housing.
"The Apology" explores the lives of former "comfort women," the more than 200,000 girls forced into sexual slavery during World War II. Today, they fight for reconciliation and justice as they struggle to make peace with the past.
In this documentary by Coline Serreau, known for her feature film Why Not?, a selection of Frenchwomen in characteristically no-win situations discuss what they are experiencing and answer, if only by implication, the question: "What do women want?"
The remarkable, forgotten story behind David Bowie’s biggest-ever hit record – and how an unlikely journey, deep into the Australian outback, led to its unprecedented success.
"This feature documentary is considered to be the forerunner of the NFB's Challenge for Change Program. The film offers in inside look at 3 weeks in the life of the Bailey family. Trouble with the police, begging for stale bread, and the birth of another child are just some of the issues they face. Through it all, the father tries to explain his family's predicament. Although filmed in Montreal, the film offers an anatomy of poverty as it occurs throughout North America." - NFB
Women workers stand up to the toxic flower industry in Colombia.
Welcome to Africville gives voice to what may have been marginalized members of an Afro-Canadian community in 1969. It's intention is to be a catalyst to thought and reflection about the lives and struggles of people from that community whose stories still go untold. It is the fictional account of a family. We listen to the stories of three generations of women and their friend Julius on the day their community is to be destroyed by the municipal government of Halifax. This story is a portrait of four individuals coping with universal uncertainties and insecurities.
A Way Out is a documentary about breaking the cycle of poverty in Canadian's oldest and largest "ghetto," Regent Park. In addition to talking about what it is like to grow up poor in North America, it explores the reasons behind one person finding a way out of poverty and others remaining. As a former resident of a low-income community, Christene Browne went back to find out what had happened to some of her old friends. Formal and impromptu interviews are conducted and the community is revealed through footage and stills.
Isla chatarra describes the phenomenon of the ubiquity of automobiles in Puerto Rico. The island measures slightly less than 9,000 square kilometers, but has 25,000 kilometers of paved road, one of the highest proportions in the planet. Puerto Rico is one of the countries with the largest number of vehicles per kilometer (of road) and third in the world in number of cars per 1,000 inhabitants. The film was produced with the idea to raise consciousness and create a dialogue about the ongoing situation of our dependence on cars. It also shows the dangerous circumstances of an island that is slowly being covered by scrap metal.
The lives of three generations of women who suffered political persecution during the military dictatorship in Brazil.
Investigating slavery in Canada through the story of Marie-Josèphe Angélique, a Black slave accused of burning Montreal in 1734. After an epic trial, this untameable slave is tortured and sentenced to death. But was she really guilty of this crime or was she the victim of a bigger conspiracy? Why this voluntary amnesia about this unknown page of Canadian history?