Almost Nothing: So Continues the Night

Was halten Sie vom Tod der Wilma Montesi?

October 1977 •German

The life and death of the fictional star Wilma Montesi is reported in the form of a staged newsreel. Excerpts from films of various genres and eras are juxtaposed with "documentary material" about the star's public and private life. By stringing together clichés and cinematic quotations, a certain reporting and narrative style about the glamor and misery of show business is presented in a critical and ironic, but at the same time entertaining way.

D'où viennent les faux cheveux

October 1909 •English

On a market day in Kernascleden, two Breton women exchange their hair for a few coins. The hair becomes hairpieces. Last scene, an elegant Parisian removes her hat and exposes her generous wig skillfully coiffed.

Pulmonary Hydatid Cyst Operation

January 1899 •Spanish

Also known as The Operation of Dr. Alejandro Posadas. Filmed with early orthochromatic film in the Hospital de Clínicas de la Ciudad in Buenos Aires.

John Was Trying to Contact Aliens

January 2020 •English

John Shepherd spent 30 years trying to contact extraterrestrials by broadcasting music millions of miles into space. After giving up the search, he makes a different connection here on earth.

The Shawl

January 2020 •English

After years of long distance, a pair of big and beautiful boyfriends celebrate their reunion at a Stevie Nicks concert, where they share a brush with magic.

The Starr Sisters

September 2019 •English

Patte and Randa Starr are fun specialists. After growing up in an abusive household set above their father's candy store, they spent their lives fighting to find joy and freedom. Now in their 70s, these sisters do exactly as they please: they live together near the beach, they always have a movie on, and the candy drawer is fully stocked.

Novena

August 2013 •English

In 2012, Stephen Vaughan and Kay Ferreter are invited to address the congregation at St. Joseph's Redemptorists Church in Dundalk, Ireland for the Solemn Novena Festival. In a powerful speech, the pair describe their experiences being gay and lesbian in Ireland, feeling excluded by Catholic doctrine, and the importance of a more inclusive church.

Broads

October 1989 •German

The social democrats of the sixties and seventies worked on their grand plan to build a highway network in Germany that every German citizen could reach within five minutes of their home. The little film hangs around between and on the streets of this network - where the country discos, pedestrian zones, shopping centers, hospitals and roads home are behind noise barriers.

South

March 1990 •German

A lonesome car. The wind is whistling. A door of an undefined building opens—is it a holiday bungalow, a shed or a ruin? A woman is standing at the window. The heat of an idle day of holiday, perhaps. The South, a place of longing.

Bukit Orang Salah

October 2013 •English

At various points in its history, tiny St. John's Island was where Singapore's colonial founder Sir Stamford Raffles docked his ship upon arrival, a quarantine centre for immigrants and pilgrims returning from Mecca, a penal colony for political detainees and secret society leaders, and a sleepy holiday resort. Unlike its neighbouring islands, however, St. John's was never fully developed. It occupies an in-between space, the vestiges of its history scattered around the land. Its indeterminacy stands in sharp contrast to Singapore, where land use is meticulously planned to fulfil economic and social functions. In this film, St. John's Island - otherwise known as 'Bukit Orang Salah', a nickname coined by the people who were quarantined there - becomes a site of and for reflection, prompting questions about our history, heritage and identity.

How to Make a Sandwich

August 2020 •English

Based on the popular phone service, "How To Make a Sandwich" is a short film directed by Drake Sanderson that depicts the rise of media star, Peter Willard, and his acclaimed sandwich-making skills. From breads to meats to condiments, follow Peter as he teaches you how to make the perfect sandwich!

Displaced

January 2022 •Albanian

After Kosovo's independence the first internationally recognized sports federation was the one of Table Tennis. Two local Ping-Pong enthusiasts see this as a great opportunity and start self-financing the training sessions for young players.

The Elevator Manager of the Empire State Building

January 2010 •English

Sometimes it takes a loyal and dedicated man to manage an elevator.

Le Théâtre National Populaire

June 1956 •French

The T.N.P., the Théâtre National Populaire, an important experimental theater directed by Jean Vilar. Franju combines sequences from theatrical performances with documentary images, creating links and confrontations between theater and the real world.

Leonora Carrington or The Ironic Spell

February 1965 •Spanish

Cinema and painting establish a fluid dialogue and begins with introspection in the themes and forms of the plastic work of a woman tormented by the elongated specters, originating from her obsessions and nightmares.

The Beginner's Guide to Spinning in Loops

July 2022 •English

From June 2021 to June 2022, Justin "Jastun" Bland records whatever that is in front of him. He presents an abstract montage of collected videos varying from onscreen recordings to filming special, intimate & mundane in-real-life moments. This short captures our daily routines in life and how we choose to spontaneously record them.

Wealth of a Nation

January 1964 •English

"This film explores how freedom of speech — including dissent — is afforded to all Americans, and shows freedom of expression in art, music, dance, architecture, and science. The film also emphasizes the importance of the individual’s contribution to the whole of society and demonstrates how a productive and creative society is formed by the open and respectful exchange of ideas. The film was written, produced, and directed by William Greaves" (National Archives).

Alice Guy's Dream

November 2022 •French

This is a short film about Alice Guy-Blaché, the first female director of fiction in cinema history. Alice Guy was Léon Gaumont's secretary at the beginning of the last century and she was the first woman to ever direct actors in front of the camera. In 1895, the Lumière brothers introduced to the world the "Cinématographe", the first camera. Léon Gaumont decided to sell this revolutionary new device. Fascinated, Alice asked her boss for permission to use the camera to make her own films. Mr. Gaumont agreed only under the condition that she “would be able to keep up with her mail.” This short film is a poetic reverie that Alice Guy might have had in her time if only society at the time hadn't presented her with so many challenges.

Etugen

January 2023 •French

What is the purpose of our existence ? What is the soul ? Which are the power of mind, of conscience ? What is our link to nature ? Pondering these existential questions, this movie invites us to find out an universal wisdom, meeting shamans, healers, yogis, but also philosophers and doctors. From Mongolia plains to the Amazonian forest, it leads us far than we expected at first.

Tudo é Irrelevante. Hélio Jaguaribe

April 2017 •Portuguese