Babylon

Where are the African Gods?

March 2018 •English

A moving recording of the late writer and renowned jazz singer Abbey Lincoln is captured in this new film from Brooklyn-born director Rodney Passé, who has previously worked with powerhouse music video director Khalil Joseph. Reading from her own works, Lincoln’s voice sets the tone for a film that explores the African American experience through fathers and their sons.

Reality Winner

March 2021 •English

A state of secrets and a ruthless hunt for whistleblowers – this is the story of 25-year-old Reality Winner who disclosed a document about Russian election interference to the media and became the number one leak target of the Trump administration.

The Panafrican Festival in Algiers

January 1969 •Arabic

Festival panafricain d'Alger is a documentary by William Klein of the music and dance festival held 40 years ago in the streets and in venues all across Algiers. Klein follows the preparations, the rehearsals, the concerts… He blends images of interviews made to writers and advocates of the freedom movements with stock images, thus allowing him to touch on such matters as colonialism, neocolonialism, colonial exploitation, the struggles and battles of the revolutionary movements for Independence.

Served Like a Girl

November 2017 •English

Five women veterans who have endured unimaginable trauma in service create a shared sisterhood to help the rising number of stranded homeless women veterans by entering a competition that unexpectedly catalyzes moving events in their own lives.

The Way Home

January 2018 •Arabic

When filmmaker Wael Kadlo picks up his mother from the airport in Beirut, it seems like a rather warm family visit. But Kadlo, who was born in Damascus in 1980, has some questions he needs to ask her.

A Documentary on the Making of 'Gore Vidal's Caligula'

January 1981 •English

A Documentary on the Making of 'Gore Vidal's Caligula'

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, l’homme qui avançait à contre-courant

January 2017 •French

Boys on Film 23: Dangerous to Know

July 2023 •English

Boys on Film presents ten encounters from across the globe, where the dangerous allure of a risky attraction yields emotional results — proving that the age-old adage of taking the plunge is as relevant — and sexy — as ever before. The 10 short films are: My Uncle's Friend [O Amigo do Meu Tio] (2021); Budapest, Closed City [Budapest, zárt város] (2021); Eden (2020); Chaperone (2022); Break Me [Knus meg] (2018); By His Will [שעשני כרצונו] (2021); Red Ants Bite (2019); Jim (2022); Hornbeam (2022); Too Rough (2022).

What Difference Does It Make?

February 2014 •English

A documentary that explores the challenges that a life in music can bring.

What Is to Be Done? A Journey from Prague to Ceský Krumlov, or How I Formed a New Government

August 1996 •Czech

Quite a few years have passed since November 1989. Czechoslovakia has been divided up and, in the Czech Republic, Václav Klaus’s right-wing government is in power. Karel Vachek follows on from his film New Hyperion, thus continuing his series of comprehensive film documentaries in which he maps out Czech society and its real and imagined elites in his own unique way.

Escape from the World's Most Dangerous Place

April 2012 •English

Successful model Samira Hashi makes an emotional return to Somalia, one of the most dangerous places in the world and the place she was born. Civil war broke out in 1991, 10 days after Samira's birth, but two years later her family managed to flee the country and she grew up in the UK.Now, as Samira and the war both turn 21, she's going back for the first time to visit the people and places she left behind. The contrast with her safe and glamorous life in London could not be starker as she experiences firsthand the war's effect on a generation of young people growing up in conflict.

Caligula with Mary Beard

July 2013 •English

What is true and what is false in the hideous stories spread about the controversial figure of the Roman emperor Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (12-41), nicknamed Caligula? Professor Mary Beard explains what is accurate and what is mythical in the historical accounts that portray him as an unbalanced despot. Was he a sadistic tyrant, as Roman historians have told, or perhaps the truth about him was manipulated because of political interests?

Rainier the Mountain

January 1999 •English

In this retrospective tribute, acclaimed filmmaker Jean Walkinshaw hails the 100th anniversary of Mount Rainier National Park in Washington by talking to those who know it best: the scientists, naturalists, mountain climbers and artists whose lives have been touched by the peak's far-reaching shadow. The result is a harmonious blend of archival material and high-definition footage celebrating an icon of the Pacific Northwest.

Peter Lorre: The Master of Menace

November 1996 •English

Documentary overview of Peter Lorre's ascension to fame as a master purveyor of silky but disquieting peril.

The Choice - The Risks of Web Democracy

June 2018 •Italian

Italy’s biggest political party, the Five Star Movement, promotes direct democracy through internet voting. Five Star Movement uses a digital platform named Rousseau, that allows Movement’s members to vote online and express their opinion on various issues. But who governs this data?

Billy Wilder: The Human Comedy

February 1998 •English

A profile of writer-director Billy Wilder

Trekkies

October 1997 •English

Denise Crosby takes a first look at the huge fans of "Star Trek" from around America and how the series has affected and shaped their lives.

Ouaga, the Capital of Cinema

April 2000 •French

Between 1983 and 1987, Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso and the home city of FESPACO, one of the most important Pan-African film festivals in the world, was the scene of an exciting cinema utopia. With the support of the young president Thomas Sankara, the festival became a symbol of the cultural renaissance of a whole continent. The assassination of Sankara stifled the hopes of millions of young Africans, but the dynamism of FESPACO and African cinema did not stop.

Harley-Davidson: The Spirit of America

January 2005 •English

Hop on a Harley for this tour of the nation's highways and byways with other motorcycle enthusiasts by your side. This documentary examines the cult of Harley-Davidson and its followers, who traverse America free and unencumbered on their beloved "hogs." Viewers will make a side trip to South Dakota for the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally; celebrate Harley's 100th anniversary in Wisconsin; join the 9/11 Patriot Ride and the Love Ride; and more.

The Fog of War

October 2003 •English

Using archival footage, cabinet conversation recordings, and an interview of the 85-year-old Robert McNamara, The Fog of War depicts his life, from working as a WWII whiz-kid military officer, to being the Ford Motor Company's president, to managing the Vietnam War as defense secretary for presidents Kennedy and Johnson.