Picturing the Presidents

JFK

December 1991 •English

Follows the investigation into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy led by New Orleans district attorney Jim Garrison.

Cartoon College

April 2012 •English

Every fall, The Center for Cartoon Studies invites 20 aspiring cartoonists to White River Junction, Vermont for a no-holds-barred education in comics. Those who complete the two-year program earn a Master of Fine Arts degree and are ready to face the hardship of a career in one of the world's most drudgery-inducing art forms. This is their story.

Putin's Journey

January 2025 •English

Russian leader Vladimir Putin has established himself as the most impactful world leader of this millennium. To mark his 25th anniversary of being in power, this two-hour CBC News original documentary looks back at his life, from the Cold War to the ongoing war in Ukraine, and examines key turning points in his career to reveal his evolution from an unknown KGB agent to the all-powerful president of the Russian federation. The documentary features dozens of former insiders, political leaders, exiled activists and liberated prisoners - many who have personally met and negotiated with Putin, or been victims of Kremlin policies that have crushed dissent and led to the devastating war in Ukraine. Putin's Journey will take us up to the present day, as the Russian leader confronts a new American president, each bent on curbing the power of the other.

Emmanuel Macron: Behind the Rise

May 2017 •French

Deputy General Secretary at the Elysée to candidate for the presidency of the Republic, the novice in politics went from the shadows to the light in a very short time. For 200 days, our cameras followed him behind the scenes of his campaign and his exceptional ascent. For eight months we were the only ones allowed to follow the candidate Emmanuel Macron with our camera behind the scenes of this exceptional campaign. From the announcement of his candidature until his election on May 7, we propose you an exclusive documentary allowing you to live from inside the campaign of Emmanuel Macron in the manner of a political thriller.

Paco Roca: dibujando la vida

October 2023 •Spanish

A portrait of Spanish comic book author Paco Plaza.

Miss Hokusai

May 2015 •Japanese

A daughter is constantly overshadowed by her famous father, but she is determined to make her own mark in the world.

Soft Self-Portrait of Salvador Dali

December 1969 •English

A documentary about surrealist artist Salvador Dali, narrated by Orson Welles.

Schtonk!

March 1992 •German

Schtonk! is a farce of the actual events of 1983, when Germany's Stern magazine published, with great fanfare, 60 volumes of the alleged diaries of Adolf Hitler – which two weeks later turned out to be entirely fake. Fritz Knobel (based on real-life forger Konrad Kujau) supports himself by faking and selling Nazi memorabilia. When Knobel writes and sells a volume of Hitler's (nonexistent) diaries, he thinks it's just another job. When sleazy journalist Hermann Willié learns of the diaries, however, he quickly realizes their potential value... and Knobel is quickly in over his head. As the pressure builds and Knobel is forced to deliver more and more volumes of the fake diaries, he finds himself acting increasingly like the man whose life he is rewriting. The film is a romping and hilarious satire, poking fun not only at the events and characters involved in the hoax (who are only thinly disguised in the film), but at the discomfort Germany has with its difficult past.

Mistr třeboňský

December 1950 •Czech

Documentary film about Gothic painting and its representatives.

La Danse et Degas

January 2004 •French

Counterfeit Culture

January 2013 •English

Documentary - COUNTERFEIT CULTURE is a one-hour documentary that explores the dangerous and sometimes deadly world of fake products. An industry that once dealt in imitation designer handbags and shoes has exploded into a global epidemic of counterfeit pharmaceuticals, foods, toys, electronic goods, car parts and microchips. COUNTERFEIT CULTURE challenges consumers to take a deeper look at what appears to be harmless knock-offs at bargain prices. - Ann-Marie MacDonald, Tim Phillips, Todd Gilmore

Aleš I.

December 1950 •Czech

The first part of the documentary about the work of the Czech painter Mikoláš Alš called "The Song of Life", which focuses on the part of his work that draws its themes from life in the village.

Selma

December 2014 •English

"Selma," as in Alabama, the place where segregation in the South was at its worst, leading to a march that ended in violence, forcing a famous statement by President Lyndon B. Johnson that ultimately led to the signing of the Voting Rights Act.

Evita

December 1996 •English

The hit musical based on the life of Evita Duarte, an Argentinian actress who eventually became the wife of Argentinian president Juan Perón, and the most beloved and hated woman in Argentina.

Brigitte macron, un roman français

January 2018 •French

La Ve République vue d'ailleurs : Du général de Gaulle à Emmanuel Macron

October 2018 •French

Billy Connolly: Portrait of a Lifetime

June 2017 •English

Celebrating Billy Connolly's 75th birthday and 50 years in the business, three Scottish artists - John Byrne, Jack Vettriano and Rachel MacLean - each create a new portrait of the Big Yin. As he sits with each artist, Billy talks about his remarkable life and career which has taken him from musician and pioneering stand-up to Hollywood star and national treasure.

W.

October 2008 •English

The story of the eventful life of George W. Bush—his struggles and triumphs, how he found both his wife and his faith—and the critical days leading up to his decision to invade Iraq.

The Great Museum

April 2014 •English

This feature documentary portrays one of the most important museums in the world, the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien. It presents a unique look behind the scenes of this fascinating institution and encounters a number of charismatic protagonists and their working fields unfolding the museum’s special world – as an art institution as well a vehicle for state representation.

Max Ernst: Journey into the Subconscious

January 1964 •English

The inner world of the great painter Max Ernst is the subject of this film. One of the principal founders of Surrealism, Max Ernst explores the nature of materials and the emotional significance of shapes to combine with his collages and netherworld canvases. The director and Ernst together use the film creatively as a medium to explain the artist's own development.