Because We Must

Les vendredis d'Apostrophes

November 2015 •French

Hours and historical meetings, Pierre Assouline has composed an anthology of the best extracts presented in the form of a primer, which he had commented on by a surprised Bernard Pivot.

What Price Art? By Tracey Emin

March 2006 •English

Why is it that art by male artists always sells for more than that of female artists? Is it subject matter? Is it machismo? Or is it plain old sexism? In this film, Tracey Emin crosses the country on a quest to find out. She meets artists such as Dame Maggi Hambling and Rachel Whiteread; curators such as Norman Rosenthal and gatekeepers such as Oliver Baker from Sotherby's? Have things changed? Or is it society that needs to change before the art market can follow?

Constable: A Country Rebel

September 2014 •English

The Haywain by John Constable is such a comfortingly familiar image of rural Britain that it is difficult to believe it was ever regarded as a revolutionary painting, but in this film, made in conjunction with a landmark exhibition at the V&A, Alastair Sooke discovers that Constable was painting in a way that was completely new and groundbreaking at the time. Through experimentation and innovation, he managed to make a sublime art from humble things and, though he struggled in his own country during his lifetime, his genius was surprisingly widely admired in France.

The Science of Sleep

June 2006 •French

A man entranced by his dreams and imagination is lovestruck with a French woman and feels he can show her his world.

Konrad Mägi

November 2019 •English

A documentary made for Konrad Mägi exhibition "The Light of the North" in Torino, Musei Reali (2019-2020), about Mägi's life and his legacy.

Botticelli

September 2015 •German

Renaissance artist Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510) is both a cultural icon and a lasting source of artistic inspiration. His famous female figures, like Venus and Primavera, have become part of our shared visual memory and influence artists worldwide. Berlin director and art historian Grit Lederer explores Botticelli’s life and work, focusing on the Gemäldegalerie’s impressive collection. The film examines how his iconic paintings continue to inspire art and advertising today. Experts reveal what makes his style unique and why his work was forgotten for centuries after his death. Contemporary artists such as French artist Orlan and American Michael Joaquin Grey present works inspired by Botticelli. The documentary traces Botticelli’s enduring impact from Florence through Paris and New York to Berlin.

The Art of the Steal

September 2013 •English

Crunch Calhoun, a third-rate motorcycle daredevil and part-time art thief, teams up with his snaky brother to steal one of the most valuable books in the world. But it's not just about the book for Crunch — he's keen to rewrite some chapters of his own past as well.

Sola

June 2025 •Portuguese

Van Gogh: Of Wheat Fields and Clouded Skies

April 2018 •Italian

A new look at Van Gogh, through the legacy of the largest private collector of artworks by the Dutch painter: Helene Kröller-Müller (1869-1939), who, in the early 20th Century, ended up buying nearly 300 of his works, paintings and drawings included.

Al Tudi Tuhak

May 1999 •English

The film, Al Tudi Tuhak, is a creation story inspired by the art and mythology of the Northwest coast people. The story involves the creator, or "The Great Father" as he whittles the world into existence. Each of his wood shavings became fish, trees, birds,... even the sun and moon.

Dirty Dancing

August 1987 •English

Expecting the usual tedium that accompanies a summer in the Catskills with her family, 17-year-old Frances 'Baby' Houseman is surprised to find herself stepping into the shoes of a professional hoofer—and unexpectedly falling in love.

Plagio

June 2024 •Spanish

A couple breaks into a house to steal a valuable painting. Things will not turn out the way they were planned.

Kurara: The Dazzling Life of Hokusai's Daughter

April 2017 •Japanese

Oei, later known as Katsushika Oi, was born the third daughter of Edo’s talented painter Katsushika Hokusai and his second wife Koto. Although Oei became the wife of a town painter for a time, her love of the paintbrush more than her husband spelt disaster and she comes back home to Hokusai from the family she had married into. This is how Oei starts to help her father out in his painting of the “insurmountable high wall”. Meanwhile, Oei can only talk to the painter Ikeda Zenjiro, who is her father’s student, about her pain and worries. Zenjiro has taken Edo by storm as Keisai Eisen, the master of ukiyo-e portraying beautiful women. He visits regularly because he admires Hokusai and secretly likes Oei although their relationship is like childhood friends. Oei respects her father whose paintings fascinated her and continues to work as a painter who supports him behind the scenes. When Hokusai’s masterpiece Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji was completed, she was also by his side.

Destricted

September 2006 •English

A compilation of erotic films intended to illuminate the points where art meets sexuality.

The Perfect Guy

August 2017 •English

An illustrator can't find the perfect guy, so she draws her own.

O Real

January 2015 •Portuguese

Sound! Euphonium the Movie – Welcome to the Kitauji High School Concert Band

April 2016 •Japanese

After swearing off music due to an incident at the middle school regional brass band competition, euphonist Kumiko Oumae enters high school, hoping for a fresh start. As fate would have it, she ends up surrounded by people with an interest in the brass band. Kumiko finds the motivation she needs to make music once more with the help of her bandmates, some old friends, some new. However, in the band itself, chaos reigns supreme. Despite their intention to qualify for the national band competition, as they currently are, just competing in the local festival will be a challenge—unless new band advisor Noboru Taki does something about it.

Francis Bacon in His Own Words

January 2009 •English

A collection of BBC archive material about painter Francis Bacon, including a previously unseen interview recorded in 1965.

Binge

January 2018 •Spanish

A short story about the pressure women face from a very early age.

David Hockney: Time Reclaimed

July 2017 •German

He is a major figure in the pop art movement; one of the most popular and influential artists of his generation. The motifs and colors of his canvasses have been widely reproduced, and are now part of the 20th century art pantheon, changing the way we view the world. Hockney is typically seen as an artist who loves life, a good time, glamour and sex. The highly personal and emotional side of his work is often overlooked, much like the intensity and individuality he has shown in each of his successive periods and styles. Through images, anecdotes, and detailed pictorial analysis, this documentary highlights how the renowned painter defies classification and remains mysterious in many ways: an intense, profound, and infinitely passionate artist.