A Kind of Childhood

Wonders of the Monsoon

October 2014 •English

The wildlife and cultures of southern Asia have been shaped by one of the greatest phenomena on Earth: the mighty monsoon winds that sweep across this vast region, turning drought into deluge. All life – human and animal – is dominated by this rampaging weather system. From the northern shores of Australia to the highest peaks of the Himalayas and the wind-blown deserts of northern India to the lush equatorial forests of Borneo, this series makes an exhilarating journey through the lands of the monsoon. Along the way, it offers a taste of the variety and colour of the different regions’ most extraordinary wildlife and cultures and the way they cope with the tumultuous weather. This is the story of a relationship between humans and nature that has grown across thousands of years – all living in the shadow of the monsoon.

Postcard (Or, from afar, you are a mirage)

March 2024 •Spanish

"The palm trees on the reverse are a delusion; so is the pink sand". This line, taken from a poem by Margaret Atwood, lights the path traced in "Postcard". As the years go by, landscapes transform, take on new meanings, and hold onto joys that will never be regained. The sea and the beach, once stages of happy summers, romances, and encounters, will turn into concentration camps or centers of detention and torture. This occurs across different times and places. In this piece, I embark on a journey through some of my works that explore the relationship between testimony, spaces, and time, engaging in dialogue with the beautiful film directed by Alejandro Segovia in 1972.

My Mother

September 2005 •French

Having suffered incest from her father from the age of eight to the age of twelve, at forty-five, Beatrice filmed, with two cameras, a long meeting with her mother to try, with the viewer, to understand their story.

H.A.G.S. (Have a Good Summer)

April 2021 •English

A portrait of growing up told through filmmaker Sean Wang's middle school yearbook. Go Hornets.

All this Roughness

September 2020 •Spanish

An unnamed passer-by is forced to trace a circular route inside an abandoned tram station, facing loss and time. The broken walls act as a channel, transmitting fragmentary, blurred and analogical memories. 

Welcome Home Freckles

March 2025 •Korean

After four years away, Huiju returns home to South Korea. Exchanges with her loved ones are awkward and clumsy. Huiju turns once again to her familiar rituals: pruning the trees, preparing a sauce, tying a braid.

Bay of Blood

August 2023 •English

March 25th 1971, a horrific 'Genocide' was unleashed on the unarmed civilians of East Pakistan. This was done by their own Pakistani Army. An estimated 3 million people were killed, 10 million people were displaced to India as refugees and 400,000 women and girls were raped by the Pakistani soldiers. But Pakistan was not alone in perpetrating this violence. The then-American president and the National Security Advisor were supporting the Pakistani dictator. The cold war triggered this geopolitical escalation. Finally, India pressurized by the 10 million refugees within its borders, went to war with Pakistan. and joining forces with the local rebels, the Mukti Bahini, helped liberate Bangladesh. Cradled in the blood of innocents, a new nation was born in the closing days of 1971. "Bay of Blood", brings this 50-odd-year-old story to life.

Norte

July 2020 •Spanish

Joanna Lumley Meets Will.I.Am

March 2014 •English

Joanna Lumley is on a mission to get to know the elusive, slightly eccentric front man of the Black Eyed Peas, will.i.am. She travels to Los Angeles to spend time with The Voice judge, music performer, producer, and social entrepreneur in his home town.

The children trapped in Bangladesh's brothel village

May 2016 •English

Daulatdia is an entire village in Bangladesh dedicated to prostitution. Every day, 1,600 trafficked, enslaved and abandoned women and girls sell themselves for £2 a time. In the midst of the trade live 300 children, many born in the village. Some will be groomed to be the future of the business like their mothers and grandmothers. With education programmes and support provided by Save The Children, a few may find their way out.

Loyal to My Image

April 1992 •English

Through one woman's experience as an adopted person and also as a mother who relinquished her child in 1971, this documentary highlights the many complex issues associated with adoption.

The World According to Tippi

January 1997 •French

Tippi is no ordinary child. She believes that she has the gift of talking to animals and that they are like brothers to her. 'I speak to them with my mind, or through my eyes, my heart or my soul, and I see that they understand and answer me.' Tippi is the daughter of French filmmakers and wildlife photographers, Alain Degre and Sylvie Robert, who have captured her on film with some of Africa's most beautiful and dangerous animals. Tippi shares her thoughts and wisdom on Africa, its people and the animals she has come to know and love. Often her wisdom is beyond her years, and her innocence and obvious rapport with the animals is both fascinating and charming.

The Fearless Freaks

May 2005 •English

Equal parts punk and psychedelia, the Flaming Lips emerged from Oklahoma City as one of the most bracing bands of the late 1980s. The Fearless Freaks documents their rise from Butthole Surfers-imitating noisemakers to grand poobahs of orchestral pop masterpieces. Filmmaker Bradley Beesely had the good fortune of living in the same neighborhood as lead Lip Wayne Coyne, who quickly enlisted his buddy to document his band's many concerts and assorted exploits. The early footage is a riot, with tragic hair styles on proud display as the boys attempt to cover up their lack of natural talent with sheer volume. During one show, they even have a friend bring a motorcycle on stage, which is then miked for sound and revved throughout the performance, clearing the club with toxic levels of carbon monoxide. Great punk rock stuff. Interspersed among the live bits are interviews with the band's family and friends, revealing the often tragic circumstances of their childhoods and early career.

The Devil's Miner

November 2005 •English

'The Devil's Miner' tells the story of 14-year-old Basilio who worships the devil for protection while working in a Bolivian silver mine to support his family.

Out of Fashion

September 2015 •English

A documentary following an Estonian fashion designer Reet Aus on a global tour to explore the origin process and the environmental footprints of today's fast paced fashion industry. On the road the mission takes an unexpected turn towards trying to introduce her "upcycling" inspired product line to some of the major fashion retailers to increase awareness of the massive resource waste built into the current product lifecycle.

What You’ll Remember

July 2021 •English

Homelessness in the United States takes many forms. For Elizabeth Herrera, David Lima and their four children, housing instability has meant moving between unsafe apartments, motels, relatives’ couches, shelters, the streets and their car. After 15 years of this uncertainty, the family moved into their first stable housing — an apartment in the San Francisco Bay Area — in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Bangla Surf Girls

April 2021 •Bengali

Three working-class teenage girls in a port city in Bangladesh escape daily hardships and stifling family lives by riding waves on their surfboards and grabbing hold of the fleeting and thrilling sense of freedom that brings.

Um Crime Entre Nós

May 2020 •Portuguese

Red Dog

March 2019 •English

Country songwriter Luke Dick spent his toddler years living in the Red Dog, the rowdiest and most popular strip club in Oklahoma City. Now 30 years later, Luke has a toddler and a newborn of his own. As he began asking his mom questions about his own childhood, she turned out to be more hilariously forthcoming than he ever imagined.

Those, revealed on the walls, in a touch

February 2025 •Malayalam

A short documentary on a grandson returning home to visit his aging grandmother who was crying to see him on the phone.