2014
KILLING TIMECriminal & Law African-American Studies Death & Dying 2014
Neither advocating for the death penalty nor against it, Killing Time is a devastating investigation into the futility of taking a life - both a murder and a state sanctioned execution. It is an honest look at the private, logistical and business-as-usual aspects of capital punishment in today's America.
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THE ART OF OBSERVING LIFE: conversations with documentary filmmakersCinema Studies 2014 Directed by Women
In the wonderful Art of Observing Life, renowned documentarian Marina Goldovskaya delivers a master class in cinema verité and an appreciation of the filmmakers who transformed the Documentary. Composed of intimate conversations with Robert Drew and Richard Leacock (Primary), Allan King (A Married Couple), Albert Maysles (Grey Gardens), Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker (The War Room), Lionel Rogosin (On The Bowery) & others.
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AMERICAN ARABIslamic Studies American Studies Middle Eastern Studies Religion & Spirituality Kartemquin Films 2014 Immigration
A provocative look at the complexities of Arab identity in post 9/11 America, American Arab interweaves filmmaker Usama Alshaibi's own story, and that of his family, as well as other Arab Americans to thoughtfully explore the values, passions, hopes and perceptions of his community, from inside and out.
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MANAKAMANAAsian Studies Cinema Studies Anthropology Cultural Studies 2014 Sensory Ethnography Lab Directed by Women
Produced by the directors of Sweetgrass and Leviathan, Manakamana is an exhilarating, one-of-a-kind documentary experience. Filmed entirely inside the narrow confines of a cable car, high above a jungle in Nepal, that transports villagers to an ancient mountaintop temple, it is an acute ethnographic investigation into culture, religion, technology and modernity.
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OFF THE REZNative American Studies Women's Studies Family Relations Children & Young Adult 2014
An unforgettable story about a young Native American woman and her family and their determined pursuit of the American Dream, Off The Rez is an award-winning documentary that follows one of the country's top high school basketball prospects, 16-year-old Shoni Schimmel, who leaves the reservation in order to play in a competitive, nationally-recognized basketball league.
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PRISON TERMINAL: the last days of private jack hallShort Films 2014 Academy Award Winners & Nominees Psychology & Psychiatry Health Death & Dying Criminal & Law American Studies Aging / Gerontology African-American Studies
2014 Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Short Subject, Prison Terminal is an extraordinary chronicle of death and dignity behind bars, an incredibly moving story of a terminally ill prisoner's final days and the hospice volunteers (prisoners themselves) who care for him. Issues surrounding America's aging prison population and the profound impact hospice programs can have on the lives of the incarcerated are explored in this remarkable film.
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KARAMA HAS NO WALLSMiddle Eastern Studies Political Science World History Media Studies Peace & Conflict Short Films 2014 Academy Award Winners & Nominees The Arab Spring Directed by Women
2014 Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Short Subject, Karama Has No Walls is a gripping, eye-witness account of a tragic day that changed the course of the revolution in Yemen; when pro-government snipers opened fired on a peaceful gathering of protesters, sparking national outrage and ultimately leading to the end of 33 years of autocratic rule.
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CELLULOID MANArt History Cinema Studies Asian Studies 2014
An enthralling journey through the history of Indian cinema, Celluloid Man is a portrait of P.K Nair, the legendary founder-director of the National Film Archive of India. Featuring extensive interviews and film clips, this is a gorgeous cinematic tribute to 'India's Henry Langlois' and to the importance of preservation.
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SUITCASE OF LOVE AND SHAMEAmerican Studies Human Sexuality Media Studies Anthropology Psychology & Psychiatry Sociology Women's Studies 2014 Directed by Women
A forbidden love story played out in a decade that would soon spawn the sexual revolution, Suitcase of Love and Shame reconstructs a mesmerizing and erotic narrative from 60 hours of reel-to-reel audiotape discovered in a suitcase purchased on eBay. A fascinating, one-of-a-kind documentary, it addresses issues of morality, sexism, privacy vs. exhibitionism, and the impact of technology in yesterday's America as well as today's.
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FINDING HILLYWOODAfrican Studies Cinema Studies Peace & Conflict 2014 Directed by Women
A stirring documentary about the very beginning of Rwanda's film industry, Finding Hillywood looks at the people - the filmmakers, festival organizers, and audience - that are part of this blossoming film community and shows how it has become a beacon of hope and healing for a country still grappling with its past.
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YUMENAsian Studies Anthropology Performing Arts Cinema Studies 2014 Sensory Ethnography Lab
A collaboration between two Chinese artists, Xu Ruotao and Huang Xiang, and acclaimed American filmmaker J.P. Sniadecki, Yumen is a documentary-fiction hybrid that tells the story of a ghost town, a once-thriving oil-rich community in China's western Gansu province, through a series of wandering characters and inventive vignettes. Produced with the support of SEL
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TARR BELA: I USED TO BE A FILMMAKER
An illuminating and extremely rare documentary profile of one of the great filmmakers of our time, Bela Tarr. Filmed during the production of The Turin Horse, his final film, Tarr Bela: I Used To Be A Filmmaker features clips, behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with longtime collaborators such as Mihaly Vig, Erika Bok and Tarr's wife and co-director Agnes Hranitzky.
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YOUR DAY IS MY NIGHTAsian-American Studies Asian Studies American Studies Urban Studies Women's Studies New York City 2014 Directed by Women Immigration
Blending autobiographical monologues, intimate conversations, and staged performances, Lynne Sachs' Your Day Is My Night documents the lives of Chinese immigrants sharing a "shift-bed" apartment in the heart of New York City's Chinatown, offering a deeply felt portrait of the Asian-American immigrant experience.
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COUSIN JULESCinema Studies Anthropology Europe 2014
A lost masterpiece, now exquisitely restored, Dominique Benicheti's Cousin Jules is a beautiful, immersive documentary portrait of a farmer living with his wife in the French countryside. One of the earliest documentaries to be shot in CinemaScope with stereo sound, it is a record of a time and a way of life that has long ago vanished.
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MUSEUM HOURS (narrative)
Acclaimed filmmaker Jem Cohen's new feature, Museum Hours, is a mesmerizing tale of two adrift strangers who find refuge in Vienna's grand Kunsthistorisches Art Museum. A chance meeting sparks a deepening connection that draws them through the halls of the museum and the streets of the city. The exquisitely photographed Museum Hours is an ode to the bonds of friendship, an exploration of an unseen Vienna, and the power of art to both mirror and alter our lives.
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CENTRO HISTORICO (narrative)
With contributions from four master filmmakers—Aki Kaurismäki, Pedro Costa,Victor Erice and Manoel de Oliveira—Centro Historico is a remarkable omnibus film using the historic city of Guimarães in Northern Portugal, the European CulturalCapital of 2012, as inspiration.
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VIOLA (narrative)Narrative Films 2014 Spanish Language Cinema Studies
A dazzling and delightful mystery about love and its follies from filmmaker Matías Piñeiro - named one of "20 Directors to Watch" by The New York Times - VIOLA follows a young woman who joins a small Shakespeare theater company in Buenos Aires and becomes entangled in a seductive roundelay of romantic dalliances, intrigue and revelation.
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IN THE SHADOW OF THE SUNAfrican Studies Health Anthropology 2014
Like many instances of discrimination faced by people with disabilities around the world, the troubling escalation of violence against people with Albinism in Tanzania has been fueled by societal prejudices, lack of education and deep-rooted superstition. In The Shadow of the Sun follows the efforts of two individuals who are risking their lives to combat this virulent prejudice.
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TIME ZERO: the last year of polaroid filmPhotography Media Studies Art History 2014 Business
An in-depth chronicle of the birth, death and resurrection of Polaroid instant film, Time Zero is an illuminating documentary that looks at the impact this iconic American product has had photographers, families and popular culture over the decades - as well as the recent efforts to save it from obsolescence.
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PEOPLE'S PARKAnthropology Asian Studies Cinema Studies Cultural Studies 2014 Sensory Ethnography Lab Directed by Women
Produced at Harvard's groundbreaking Sensory Ethnography Lab (Sweetgrass, Leviathan, the upcoming Manakamana), People's Park is an exhilarating single shot documentary that immerses viewers in an unbroken journey through an urban park in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, offering a fresh gaze on public interaction, leisure and self-expression in China.
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