Discovering Cinema: Learning to Talk

Straight to VHS

March 2021 •Spanish

Act of Violence Upon a Young Journalist is a film shot in 1988 and released on VHS in 1989; a mysterious cult work of Uruguayan cinema surrounded by strange theories about Manuel Lamas, its unknown creator. Until now.

Drama, Tanz und Beine

January 2007 •German

Uncensored Women

December 2022 •Spanish

The story of a group of actresses who, in the Spain of the seventies, and in the midst of the democratic Transition, decided to appear nude in the films of that time of radical political change, defying the rigid and deeply rooted social rules.

Inside the Keystone Project

November 2010 •English

Documentary short regarding the preservation and restoration of the worldwide remains of the Keystone films.

The First Look

April 2024 •Spanish

In Spain, a poor country ruined by the recent Civil War (1936-39), and in the midst of Franco's dictatorship, a film school was created in Madrid in 1947, which became, almost unintentionally, a space of freedom and pure experimentation until its closure in 1976.

A Life for Movies: Lotte Eisner

February 2021 •German

Born in Berlin in 1896, Lotte Eisner became famous for her passionate involvement in the world of both German and French cinema. In 1936, together with Henri Langlois, she founded the Cinémathèque Française with the goal of saving from destruction films, costumes, sets, posters, and other treasures of the 7th Art. A Jew exiled in Paris, she became a pillar of the capital's cultural scene, where she promoted German cinema.

In Search of Tomorrow

February 2022 •English

A nostalgic journey through ’80s Sci-Fi-films, exploring their impact and relevance today, told by the artists who made them and by those who were inspired to turn their visions into reality.

At the Coliseum Deluxe

November 2019 •English

A feature length documentary about Australian popular entertainment across 150 years; of Skating and Dancing, Vaudeville and Moving Pictures.

Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy

June 2023 •English

This is not a documentary about the making of Midnight Cowboy. It is about a humane and groundbreaking masterpiece and the flawed but gifted people who made it. It is about a troubled era of cultural ferment, social and political change, about broken dreams and strivers, then and now. It is about an era that made a movie and a movie that made an era.

His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th

April 2010 •English

A retrospective documentary about the groundbreaking horror series, Friday the 13th, featuring interviews with cast and crew from the twelve films spanning 3 decades.

Silent Echoes

July 2011 •English

Four visual essays by Silent Echoes author John Bengtson identifying Buster Keaton's shooting locations for his many short films produced between 1920-1923, many in the streets surrounding his former Hollywood studio, the same studio where, a few years earlier, Charlie Chaplin had made his brilliant series of Mutual shorts. Written by Anonymous

Three Ages: Tour of Filming Locations

November 2010 •English

This visual essay by John Bengtson, author of Silent Echoes: Discovering Early Hollywood Through the Films of Buster Keaton, reveals the locations where Keaton's 1923 comedy feature Three Ages was filmed in Hollywood, USC, and Los Angeles.

Sherlock Jr.: Tour of Filming Locations

November 2010 •English

This visual essay by John Bengtson, author of Silent Echoes: Discovering Early Hollywood Through the Films of Buster Keaton, reveals the locations where Keaton's 1924 comedy feature Sherlock Jr. was filmed in Hollywood and Orange County.

1 Parlor, 5 Bedroom and 6 Baths

January 2005 •English

A documentary about Buster Keaton's "Italian" villa in Beverly Hills.

VHS Revolution

August 2017 •French

Using testimonies by pioneers and witnesses of the times, delve into the feverish visual culture the media generated – with far-fetched examples of canine television games, seduction manuals, aerobics class while holding a baby, among others.

Disclosure

June 2020 •English

An investigation of how Hollywood's fabled stories have deeply influenced how Americans feel about transgender people, and how transgender people have been taught to feel about themselves.

Zombiemania

January 2008 •English

The evolution of the zombie from its roots in Haitian voodoo to its coveted role as the world's most popular monster: from being a clumsy corpse to becoming a cannibal killer and the main agent of every infectious pandemic, the zombie has come a long way in seventy years. A look at the rising tide of zombie culture examining why something so dead has so much life in viewers' nightmares and at the box office.

The Pervert's Guide to Cinema

October 2006 •English

A hilarious introduction, using as examples some of the best films ever made, to some of Slovenian philosopher and psychoanalyst Slavoj Žižek's most exciting ideas on personal subjectivity, fantasy and reality, desire and sexuality.

Cinecittà, de Mussolini à la Dolce Vita

May 2021 •French

Cinecitta is today known as the center of the Italian film industry. But there is a dark past. The film city was solemnly inaugurated in 1937 by Mussolini. Here, propaganda films would be produced to strengthen the dictator's position.

Never Surrender: A Galaxy Quest Documentary

November 2019 •English

A feature-length documentary about the film Galaxy Quest and its legacy, celebrating its milestone 20th anniversary.