Yökahvila Walkers

Kitchen Dialogue

April 2025 •English

A generational trauma through the lens of an Asian American teenager through food and poetry.

Elis Island Tales

July 1980 •French

"Ellis Island Tales" - From 1892 to 1924, nearly 16 million emigrants from Europe passed through Ellis Island, a small block of land where a transit center was built, near the New York Statue of Liberty. "Ellis Island Tales, Stories of Wandering and Hope" - the book is composed of three major parts. Georges Perec and Robert Bober visited Ellis Island and with the help of texts and documents, restored what everyday life was about what some called "the island of tears".

Deadlock

November 2024 •Arabic

Overlooking the sea, two young men contemplate what is beyond the horizon as their friends and family leave for the allure of a new life.

Not My Job

December 2015 •Russian

The documentary follows the life of Farroukh, a young Tajik immigrant who lives in Moscow outskirts with his family and does odd jobs in dreams of becoming an actor.

A Portrait of Us

March 2022 •Korean

A short documentary that follows Korean grandparents as they share their modern-day reckoning of their immigration story and grandparenthood.

Visions of Europe

May 2004 •English

Twenty-five films from twenty-five European countries by twenty-five European directors.

Sometime, Somewhere

August 2024 •Spanish

Sometime, Somewhere sheds light on the challenges faced by Latino communities in Charlottesville, Virginia against the backdrop of immigration driven by factors like climate change, poverty, and drug-related violence.

My Life Inside

January 2007 •Spanish

Rosa is a Mexican woman who, at the age of 17, migrated illegally to Austin, Texas. Some years later, she was jailed under suspicion of murder and then taken to trial. This film demonstrates how the judicial process, the verdict, the separation from her family, and the helplessness of being imprisoned in a foreign country make Rosa’s story an example of the hard life of Mexican migrants in the United States.

The Empathizer

Invalid date •English

Standup comedian Fred Le hears the stories of a diverse range of young overseas-born Vietnamese who made their way back to the land that their parents left following the end of the Vietnam War. The Empathizer explores identity and the impact of trauma among Việt Kiều who grew up a generation removed from tragic events of the past.

All of Me

November 2014 •Spanish

"Take my love" is a documentary film about "Las Patronas", a group of women who daily cook, pack and throw food to the migrants riding the "Beast" train.

Meuthen's Party

April 2017 •English

MEUTHEN'S PARTY unmasks the rise of the provincial politician Dr. Jörg Meuthen who doesn't shy away from spreading racist sentiments with a smile on his face.

Volunteer

January 2020 •German

A film about the unprecedented Swiss grassroots movement of regular citizens who rise to aid thousands of refugees stranded at the European borders. In rich and safe Switzerland people from all backgrounds leave their regular life behind to support people in need. There is a Swiss farmer and his wife who keep cows in the Swiss Alps, a former commander of the Swiss Army, an elder rich lady residing at the lakeside, and a successful comedian and entertainer. These unexperienced volunteers take on an adventure that will change their lives forever.

Taken - Children of the State

September 2022 •Dutch

On June 12, 2019, the Committee to Investigate Violence in Youth Care presented its final report. The conclusions were startling. Kim Feenstra set out to find out what progress has been made within the Youth Care system since then and ended up in a circle of grief and pain dominated by money, power and powerlessness. In her search, Kim Feenstra spoke to many people involved. The stories can be described as downright shocking. In many cases Youth Care appears to act as a revenue model that is exploiting parents and children. The complex system has only one entrance, but the exit is obstructed by all stakeholders who want to maintain their revenue model. The people who really matter, the parents and children, encounter a power block of inhuman proportions. A system dominated by money, power and powerlessness.

Children of Islam

August 2006 •English

Three boys and three girls. All born in the Middle East now living in Sweden. All with different views of Islam, integration, the World and Sweden. Some follow Sharia. Others fight Islamic roles. One is a hip hopper. The other thinks music is a sin. One thinks that the woman must obey her husband. One fights for women’s liberation. One girl is a boxer. The other is an ordinary worker. Some are closely followed by the Security Police. Children of Islam is a documentary about religion, culture, conflicts and looking for an identity in a changing Sweden.

Okinawa/Santos

November 2020 •Japanese

During World War II, many Japanese immigrants in Santos, Brazil, were forced to move to another place. Matsubayashi draws attention to the fact that 60% of the immigrants were from Okinawa. Based on testimonies from interviewees, this film reveals the hidden historical relationship between Okinawa and Brazil.

Mama Rosa

August 2019 •Croatian

Rosa is from Croatia and lives in Switzerland, with her husband who depends on her care. She takes care of everything. Her children have grown up and want to leave home. Rosa stays behind alone.

Valldaura: A Quarantine Cabin

July 2022 •Spanish

A group of young architects, confined to a forest in Barcelona during the COVID crisis, explore the problems generated by the ambition of wanting to be completely self-sufficient.

Enemy Alien

October 2022 •English

A poetic retelling of the experiences of Joseph Murakami, a fourteen-year-old boy from Darwin, who is summarily rounded up and interned by his government on the basis of his ethnicity, leaving wounds unhealed to this day.

Der grosse Kanton

May 2013 •German

Is the solution to Switzerland's future to integrate Germany into the confederation? After all, like Michael Ringier, CEO of the Ringier media group, says, blithely ignoring all minorities, we're very close in culture and language. Oskar Freysinger takes out his guitar and sings his answer. Politicians from French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino think expanding will help the country survive. The former German foreign minister thinks the two countries' traditions are too different. The banker Oswald Grübel is worried about Germany's debts, although he'd be prepared to take over its assets. With serious interviews interspersed with gags (boat people on Lake Constance, the last Habsburger as a peasant), Giaccobbo gathers off-the-cuff reactions which reveal a lot about the different mentalities. The movie laughs at preconceived notions, redefines neutrality and reflects on what designates a nation. Switzerland, which loves to teach the world a lesson, will soon helvetize the planet, oder?

Une identité dans la diversité

September 2016 •French