British Paramount News No.251

The Ponzán Network

October 2022 •Spanish

During the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) and the Second World War (1939-1945), around three thousand people managed to elude their pursuers, and probably also avoided being killed, thanks to the heroic and very efficient efforts of the Ponzán Team, a brave group of people — mountain guides, forgers, safe house keepers and many others —, led by Francisco Ponzán Vidal, who managed to save their lives, both on one side and the other of the border between Spain and France.

Breaking the Cycle

June 2024 •Thai

A group of young politicians campaigning against an authoritarian constitution speak up, spark hope and ignite a once-in-a-generation movement in this energetic exploration of the recent elections in Thailand.

The Antifascists

March 2017 •Swedish

A low-intensity war is being fought on the streets of Europe and the aim is on fascism. This critically acclaimed documentary takes us behind the masks of the militants called antifascists. In 2013 a group of armed nazis attacks a peaceful demonstration in Stockholm where several people are injured. In Greece the neo-nazi party Golden Dawn becomes the third largest in the election and in Malmö the activist Showan Shattak and his friends are attacked by a group of nazis with knives and he ends up in a coma. In this portrait of the antifascists in Greece and Sweden we get to meet key figures that explain their view on their radical politics but also to question the level their own violence and militancy.

Duet

October 2022 •Turkish

Mısra and Defne are close friends and duet partners who met each other through synchronized swimming. After failing to qualify for the 2016 Olympics, they set a shared goal, the 2020 Olympics. Not too long after, their esteemed coach Natalie is fired by the federation with no explanation. What follows is an emotional devastation and disruption of scheduled practices, which in turn leads to a decline in their performances. Political tremors in Turkey and the global pandemic lead the duet to make a decision on whether to keep the fight or to find new paths in life.

Venedig und das Ghetto

May 2017 •German

People Unite!

March 2022 •English

In the face of AAPI violence, an intergenerational coalition of Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, People of Color organizers come together to organize a march across historic Washington Heights and Harlem, as a continuation of the historic and radical Black and Asian solidarity tradition.

Triumph of the Will

March 1935 •German

A showcase of German chancellor and Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler at the 1934 Nuremberg Rally.

Tupac Amaru, algo está cambiando: something is changing

April 2012 •Spanish

Stand Together!

July 1977 •English

'Stand together!', a film on the "mass day of solidarity" on 11 July 1977, was made in 1977 for the Grunwick Strike Committee by the Newsreel Collective, of which Chris Thomas was a member, and members of the Association of Cinematograph, Television and Allied Technicians (ACTT) and the Transport and General Workers' Union.

Gumball 3000: 6 Days in May

May 2005 •English

Some of the most amazing cars ever built race across Spain and head south into Africa in the 6th Annual Gumball 3000 Rally. This film captures the 2004 race, which featured Ferrari Enzos, Hummers, Caterhams, Aston Martins and other rare autos driven by an eccentric mix of skateboard pros, supermodels, Saudi royals and billionaires. The thrills abound as racers evade the law to be the first to cross the finish line at the Cannes Film Festival.

The Evolution of Rallying

March 2002 •English

50 Years of Rallying Five decades of rallying, from the early endurance and regularity tests of well-to-do but slightly bored aristocrats in the mid-fifties, via the first sprints on cordoned-off Scandinavian gravel roads with stars like Tom Trana or Erik Carlsson, to monstrous long distance races and today’s high-tech events in the dust. This movie tells it all over 90 gripping minutes, compiled largely from the archives of Austria’s legendary rally filmmaker, Helmut Deimel. The milestones of this spectacular journey through time are the groundbreaking cars, the great personalities, magnificent places, and the most wonderful moments of the sport. Using special features, Deimel spotlights the dynamism, the magic, the uniqueness of rallying. Interviews with the most important drivers and team bosses add colour and authenticity to the story – from enthusiasts’ intrepid adventures to the merciless sprints of today’s professionals. The movie was conceived and directed by Helmut Deimel.

The White Caravan

October 2022 •Italian

The neon sign ‘Circus’ illuminates the wide street of Naples’ suburbs: four circus families were abandoned by the institutions, and now they’re awaiting the pandemic will disappear, like a magic show. The circus has stopped, but their lives go on.

Carceller, the Man Who Died Twice

October 2021 •Spanish

The life story of Vicente Miguel Carceller (1890-1940), a Spanish editor committed to freedom who, through his weekly magazine La Traca, connected with the common people while maintaining a dangerous pulse with the powerful.

Let It Bring Hope: Bohemians v Palestine

May 2024 •English

A documentary on the historic first-ever visit of a Palestinian National team to Europe, following the Palestinian women's team as they arrive in Ireland to a heroes' welcome and play a solidarity friendly against Bohemian FC on May 15th, 2024. The sold-out match marked the 76th anniversary of the Nakba and highlighted the ongoing genocide and human rights violations happening every day in occupied Palestine. It was one of the most emotional and important games ever held at Dalymount Park in its long and storied history since 1901, and the event raised over €100,000 for three Palestinian humanitarian organizations.

We Weren't Given Anything for Free

January 2014 •Italian

Annita Malavasi was just 22 when the Germans occupied Italy, their former allies, in 1943. As a partisan in the Italian resistance named “Laila”, she moved throughout the Apennines with and between fighting units, delivering information, transporting weapons, and taking part in battles. She spent over a year in the Apennines, fighting against the German occupation. At the same time, she had to assert herself against the men of the mountain villages. By the end of the war, Laila had risen among the ranks to become one of the few female commanders in the Italian resistance. This film chronicles the story of a lifelong struggle for emancipation that began with the battle for Italy’s liberation from fascism. Laila and her two comrades, Gina “Sonia” Moncigoli and Pierina “Iva” Bonilauri talk about their time in the Resistenza and what it meant to them and many other women.

Celuloide colectivo: el cine en guerra

October 2009 •Spanish

July, 1936. The terrible Spanish Civil War begins. When the streets are taken by the working class, the social revolution begins as well. The public shows are socialized, a model of production and exhibition of films, never seen before in the history of cinema, is created, where the workers are the owners and managers of the industry, through the unions.

To My Son in Spain: Finnish Canadians in the Spanish Civil War

May 2009 •English

This documentary features the story of Jules Paivio, the last living Canadian volunteer of the infamous Mackenzie-Papineau Battallion of the “International Brigades”. When Jules left from his home near Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), Ontario, his father, a famous Finnish poet, wrote a lasting lament: “To My Son In Spain”. In 1936-37, 1700 Canadians volunteered to fight with the Spanish people against a fascist coup d’etat led by elements of the Spanish Army. Backed by Musselini and Hitler, the fascists were bent on overthrowing Spain’s democratically elected socialist government and replacing it with military and church rule. It could be argued this conflict marked the true beginning of what would become World War II.

We Were Here

September 2011 •English

A reflective look at the arrival and impact of AIDS in San Francisco and how individuals rose to the occasion during the first years of the crisis.

Mourning in Lod

May 2023 •Hebrew

MOURNING IN LOD, takes a microcosmic look at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through Musa, Yigal, and Randa — three people whose fates become inextricably linked in a vicious cycle of violence. Lod/Lydd is a “mixed” city inhabited by Arabs and Jews who live side by side in a strained coexistence. In May 2021, two of these three people lost their lives and and one regained hers — thanks to an unlikely organ transplant. The outpouring of love, anger, forgiveness and sorrow that follows in their wake is a ray of light that offsets a collective state of mourning with no end in sight.

A War in Hollywood

October 2009 •Spanish

The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) caused a great impression on the lives of most of the American artists of that era, so many movies were made in Hollywood about it. The final defeat of the Spanish Republic left an open wound in the hearts of those who sympathized with its cause. The eventful life of screenwriter Alvah Bessie (1904-1985), one of the Hollywood Ten, serves to analyze this sadness, the tragedy of Spain and its consequences.