Uncle Tommy Goes Back

Bill Reid

January 1979 •English

Follows Haida artist Bill Reid, from British Columbia. A jeweller and wood carver, he works on a traditional Haida totem pole. We watch the gradual transformation of a bare cedar trunk into a richly carved pole to stand on the shores of the town of Skidegate, in the Queen Charlotte Islands of B.C.

Haida Modern

October 2019 •English

In the 50 years since he carved his first totem pole, Robert Davidson has come to be regarded as one of the world’s foremost modern artists. Charles Wilkinson (Haida Gwaii: On the Edge of the World) brings his trademark inquisitiveness and craftsmanship to this revealing portrait of an unassuming living legend. Weaving together engaging interviews with the artist, his offspring, and a host of admirers, Haida Modern extols the sweeping impact of both Davidson’s artwork and the legions it’s inspired.

Marius Barbeau et l'art totémique

January 1959 •French

Ethnologist Marius Barbeau introduces us to indigenous mythology. Masks, dances, songs, and totems are used to give the audience a highly suggestive representation of the "biblical" history (Mr. Barbeau's word) of Indigenous tribes.

This Was the Time

January 1970 •English

When Masset, a Haida village in Haida Gwaii (formerly known as the Queen Charlotte Islands), held a potlatch, it seemed as if the past grandeur of the people had returned. This is a colourful recreation of Indigenous life that faded more than two generations ago when the great totems were toppled by the missionaries and the costly potlatch was forbidden by law. The film shows how one village lived again the old glory, with singing, dancing, feasting, and the raising of a towering totem as a lasting reminder of what once was.

Totem: Return and Renewal

January 2007 •English

In this follow-up to his 2003 film, Totem: the Return of the G'psgolox Pole, filmmaker Gil Cardinal documents the events of the final journey of the G'psgolox Pole as it returns home to Kitamaat and the Haisla people, from where it went missing in 1929.

An Artisan's Legacy: Tsunekazu Nishioka

February 2012 •Japanese

In-depth look at the twilight years, spent training apprentices, of temple builder Nishioka Tsunekazu, who was called the "devil" as he devoted his life to temple architecture. His insistence on the gargantuan timescale of linking life to the next millennium emerges from people who knew him. Remarkable as well for showing the unknown backstage of temple architecture. Nishioka, known as "the last temple carpenter," handled the major Showa-era repairs of Horyuji temple, and in 1990 was at the scene of the reconstruction work for Yakushi temple.

Now Is the Time

September 2019 •English

When internationally renowned Haida carver Robert Davidson was only 22 years old, he carved the first new totem pole on British Columbia’s Haida Gwaii in almost a century. On the 50th anniversary of the pole’s raising, Haida filmmaker Christopher Auchter steps easily through history to revisit that day in August 1969, when the entire village of Old Massett gathered to celebrate the event that would signal the rebirth of the Haida spirit.

Canadian Carnival

November 1955 •English

Carnival time in Quebec, Canada, is also time for racing with sled-dogs, horse-drawn sleighs, hockey, curling the carving of ice-statues, obstacle races by youngsters, fireworks, and also the selection of a Carnival Queen.

Dos Antigos aos Filhos do Amanhã

May 2018 •Portuguese

Ch’l’eintailleu

September 2014 •English

Prelude to a portrait of Jean-Pierre Facquier, ch’l’eintailleu (wood carver) in the Saint-Leu district of Amiens: a free mind self-removed from social determinism, who gives new life to wood through constant dialogue, both with nature and his alter ego, the puppet Lafleur..

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey

October 2007 •English

When a broken hearted boy loses the treasured wooden nativity set that links him to his dead father, his worried mother persuades a lonely ill-tempered woodcarver to create a replacement, and to allow her son to watch him work on it.

Jasper in a Jam

October 1946 •English

In this entertaining Puppetoon animated short film, a young boy, Jasper, gets trapped inside a pawnshop at midnight. All the musical instruments come to life and play jazz. A whooping wooden Indian chief self-animates as well, and goes on the warpath.

Marlowe Drive

April 2018 •French

Marlowe Drive is an experimental film that explores the field of video games as a context for making a documentary. A director, Adam Kesher, from David Lynch's film Mulholland Drive, lands in another fictional Los Angeles.

The Market Place

December 1962 •Finnish

A Silver Bear winning documentary following the daily bustle of working class merchants in Finland of the early 1960s.

Bouwspelement

January 1962 •Dutch

A Golden Bear winning documentary showing Impressions of building in the Netherlands.

Don't Throw Stones

August 2014 •English

Stephen Cummings is one of Australia's most revered rock 'n' roll icons. Rising to fame as frontman of ‘70s legends The Sports, he has spent more than 30 years at the forefront of the local music scene, forging a reputation both as one of Australian rock's greatest lyrical storytellers and also one of its most incendiary critics. Based on his scathing tell-all memoir Will It Be Funny Tomorrow, Billy?, Don't Throw Stones tells Cummings' story in his own words – as well as the words of those he has so gleefully skewered. Featuring interviews with Michael Gudinski, Steve Kilbey, Joe Camilleri and many more, Don't Throw Stones is a revealing portrait of three decades of rock-world gossip, larger-than-life personalities and good, old-fashioned artistic beef.

The Land

April 1942 •English

Documentary showing the poor state that American agriculture had fallen into during the Great Depression.

Silk

November 2013 •English

100% Silk is an independent record label and taste-maker in the expanding and evolving world of electronic dance music. In June of 2012, four core acts from the label, LA Vampires, Ital, Magic Touch and Maria Minerva, embarked a lengthy group tour through the UK, Europe, and beyond. SILK is an expressionistic documentary that chronicles the performances, cultural environments, and global scenes through which the trip traveled. The motivating philosophies and emotions of the artists involved are visually articulated with seven fully staged dance sequences conceived and choreographed by Mecca Vazie Andrews and the Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Company. SILK is a music documentary, live concert experience, essayistic travelogue and above all, dance film.

7

December 2019 •Russian

The film was conceived as a story about the history of the Gogol Center Theater and the case of Kirill Serebrennikov. But the circumstances were different. This is a film about a film that could not be made.

Catwalk: From Glada Hudik to New York

January 2020 •Swedish

Emma wants to become a fashion model and asks Pär Johansson and the Glada Hudik-theatre for help. An unattainable dream for most, especially if you have a disability. Together with a group of unusual models they begin a bewildering journey.