The Meaning of Vanlife

Cyber Hell: Exposing an Internet Horror

May 2022 •Korean

Anonymous and exploitative, a network of online chat rooms ran rampant with sex crimes. The hunt to take down its operators required guts and tenacity.

Israel's Reel Extremism

August 2024 •English

An examination of Israel and its society after many months of war, seen initially through the prism of viral social media posts - and exclusive interviews with the soldiers behind them. These posts, some shared millions of times, show soldiers humiliating bound Palestinians, ransacking their homes, joking as they detonate schools and whole districts, and laughing as they launch high explosive ordnance into densely-packed areas. The award-winning team behind this Basement Films production traveled to Israel to interview some of these soldiers, who proudly defended themselves and their videos, some expressing callous disregard for Palestinians in Gaza. Through additional interviews with Israeli radical groups, politicians, and media figures, the film reveals Israeli Jewish society in the aftermath of October 7th, gripped by a vengeance and hate that puts into question any possibility for peace.

The Hermits

May 2019 •Spanish

In the midst of the chaos of México City, a group of eight bachelor millennials who call themselves ´The Hermits´, open the doors to their tiny apartments in the historic Ermita Building, in the yet-to-be gentrified neighborhood of Tacubaya, and share their life experiences in a time when precarity changes the way in which we love, feel and relate to each other. As we explore the homes of these eight neighbors, we also witness their personalities intersect in a Whatsapp chat, a virtual space that functions as a supporting system that helps them face the adversities that living alone in this city brings.

LIFT

September 2023 •English

Lift shines a spotlight on the invisible story of homelessness in America through the eyes of a group of young homeless and home-insecure ballet dancers in New York City and the mentor that inspires them.

Australia

January 2009 •Romanian

How do seven young people, former street children from Romania, get to see the Pacific Ocean? On 1 December 2008, a Romanian national team participates for the first time in the Homeless World Cup in Melbourne, Australia. The film follows the team from the formation of the squad to the end of the championship. The young people are from Timisoara and Arad, runaway children who now live in abandoned houses or who have managed to get a job and live in rented accommodation after going through orphanages or prisons. After taking a beating from many teams, the young Romanians manage to beat the USA. They are happy. They are all thinking of never going "home" again. It's warm and nice here, the people are nice. "In case I stay, I kissed you all!" says one of them cautiously. But after taking pictures of themselves on the beach with the ocean behind them and beautiful girls by their side, the seven return to Romania and get on with their lives.

Fake Famous

February 2021 •English

Explores the meaning of fame and influence in the digital age through an innovative social experiment. Following three Los Angeles-based people with relatively small followings, the film explores the attempts made to turn them into famous influencers by purchasing fake followers and bots to “engage” with their social media accounts.

Seattle is Dying

March 2019 •English

KOMO Anchor Eric Johnson takes an in-depth look at the impact the drug and homelessness problem is having on our city and possible solutions in "Seattle is Dying," a news documentary that aired on KOMO-TV in March, 2019.

Ruurdt

September 2024 •Dutch

In 2023, there were an estimated 30.6 thousand homeless people. This number continues to rise at an alarming rate. One of them is the headstrong Ruurdt. He has difficulty getting help and cannot adapt well to our society. He is now also in danger of losing the houseboat that was assigned to him. 'Ruurdt' is an intimate portrait of a man on the fringes of our society.

The Opener

March 2024 •English

THE OPENER is a feel-good, underdog music doc about a street performer who wrote 30 songs in 30 days to process his grief and isolation during the pandemic, and found that his music spoke to millions. When it reached the ears of one of his heroes, Grammy-winner Jason Mraz, he was invited on his very first tour and given a chance to prove himself on the big stage.

The Social Dilemma

January 2020 •English

This documentary-drama hybrid explores the dangerous human impact of social networking, with tech experts sounding the alarm on their own creations.

HIPERTEXTO

May 2022 •Portuguese

Streetwise

December 1984 •English

This documentary about teenagers living on the streets in Seattle began as a magazine article. The film follows nine teenagers who discuss how they live by panhandling, prostitution, and petty theft.

COMPLEXion

March 2023 •English

"COMPLEXion is a documentary that aims to unpack the hegemony of skin color globally and challenge the archaic notions that exist surrounding it. Our mission is to defy toxic beauty standards through raw human stories."

How To Go Viral

January 2019 •English

Richard Clay, art historian and expert on semiotics and iconoclasm and the interplay between new technology and shifts in meaning, compares and contrasts cultural symbols from across the centuries, unpicking iconic images, music, and other cultural outputs to explain where ‘stickiness’ comes from.

Dark Days

August 2000 •English

A cinematic portrait of the homeless population who live permanently in the underground tunnels of New York City.

Embrace Kids

September 2022 •English

Explores the world of body image through the eyes of children and covers topics including diversity, social media, photoshopping, the influence of media and positive role models.

49 Up

October 2006 •English

49 Up is the seventh film in a series of landmark documentaries that began 42 years ago when UK-based Granada's World in Action team, inspired by the Jesuit maxim "Give me the child until he is seven and I will give you the man," interviewed a diverse group of seven-year-old children from all over England, asking them about their lives and their dreams for the future. Michael Apted, a researcher for the original film, has returned to interview the "children" every seven years since, at ages 14, 21, 28, 35, 42 and now again at age 49.In this latest chapter, more life-changing decisions are revealed, more shocking announcements made and more of the original group take part than ever before, speaking out on a variety of subjects including love, marriage, career, class and prejudice.

The Street

February 1996 •English

Every day, on the streets of Canada's cities, we pass them on our way to work or school. Bums, beggars, winos, bag people we call them. But who is the person at the end of that outstretched arm? What is life on the street really like? Is there a way off the street? For six years, director Daniel Cross followed the lives of three homeless men who spent much of their time in and around a Montreal subway station. Filmed in a cinema verité style, the film is unique: it humanizes the homeless, breaking down the barrier between us and them, neither moralizing nor offering easy answers. This is a gritty, compelling look at life on the streets that moves beyond the media stereotypes to show both the humanity of the homeless and the street-toughened aspects of their existence.

BELLINGEN: The Promised Land

April 2021 •English

By the 1970s the global counter-culture movement had well and truly reached Australia, seeing young, educated hippies from well-to-do families moving to the Bellingen region to live an alternate lifestyle. Back then, Bellingen was a rundown, quiet country town with business in decline. Then, new ideas, new ways of living and a new status quo began to take control. What some called an influx of hippies, others called an invasion on the conservative lifestyle of farmers, causing a clash of ideals. Compiling countless hours of 8mm footage and historical photos, retired journo Peter Geddes and filmmaker Peter Gailley paint the historical landscape of how modern Bellingen came to be, following the cultural movement that eventually became the backbone of Bellingen’s identity.

GameStop: The Wall Street Hijack

April 2021 •English

A group of young, risk-embracing day traders used social media to organize a massive stock buy-up. Jordan Belfort provides details about the story, exploring how it shook the world's markets.