International Documentaries

Het leven is een schouwtoneel, maar wat als het doek bijna valt? Leo is 80 en reist de wereld rond met het internationaal dans- en theatercollectief Peeping Tom. Actief zijn, creatief zijn en in het gezelschap verkeren van jonge, energieke mensen houdt hem jong. In het stuk ‘Vader’ speelt hij een man die door zijn zoon wordt achtergelaten in een bejaardentehuis, gedumpt. Lokale senioren spelen de andere bewoners van het rusthuis. Ook voor hen is creatief zijn, een belangrijk onderdeel van hun leven. Thuis, in België, is het Leo’s vrouw die in een instelling zit en wacht op haar man. Leo zal moeten kiezen tussen de zorg voor zijn vrouw en het afremmen van zichzelf voor een actieve oude dag. Hoe wil je de ‘derde leeftijd’ doorbrengen? Zal er iemand zijn die voor jou zorgt? In ‘Third Act’ worden de verhalen uit de voorstellingen verweven met de persoonlijke verhalen van de acteurs en de lokale extra’s.

"Theater en leven, fictie en realiteit, oud en minder oud:
het loopt in de docu ‘Third act’ ontroerend mooi door elkaar." **** De Standaard

"Kleine momenten van zorgzaamheid en treffende parallellen tillen THIRD ACT uit boven het eigenlijk voor de hand liggende vertrekpunt.
Wat uitvergroot en surreëel op het podium plaatsgrijpt, heeft roots in de realiteit, die enkel film zo minutieus kan aanreiken." Filmmagie

Een film van Lotte Stoops & Mieke Struyve / 2019 

Molenbeek, Brussel. Voor sommigen een broeinest van jihadi, maar voor de 6-jarige vrienden Aatos en Amine is het hun thuis. Dit is waar ze luisteren naar het geluid van spinnen, ontdekken wat een zwart gat is en kibbelen over wie er vooraan mag zitten op het vliegend tapijt dat hen naar het land van hun voorouders zal brengen. Ze wonen in hetzelfde gebouw maar hebben een totaal andere thuissituatie. Finland maakt kennis met Marokko, atheïsme schurkt zachtjes aan tegen de islam. De goden van Aatos en Amine zijn met velen, sommigen zijn echt, anderen zijn uitgevonden. Ze vormen de aanleiding voor speelse discussies, tot een terroristische aanval in Brussel en Zaventem hun harmonieuze wereld verstoort.

Gewapende soldaten patrouilleren nu de straten, kaarsen worden aangestoken ter nagedachtenis en zelfs in de verhaaltjes voor het slapengaan vallen er slachtoffers. De twee jongens zoeken naar de betekenis van dit alles. Ze fantaseren dat ze de laatste overlevenden zijn, de sterkste van allemaal. Tot een onverwachte gebeurtenis hun leven voorgoed zal veranderen.

Goden van Molenbeek is een film over vriendschap, geloof en identiteit. En bovenal, een film over wat ons bindt.

EXTRA: 'Aatos & De Wereld' is een ingekorte versie op kindermaat van de documentaire Goden van Molenbeek. Gefilmd door de ogen van kinderen.

Reetta Huhtanen • 2019 • België • 82 min.

This is the story of 75-year old Magnumphotographer Harry Gruyaert, whose life was saved by color. Harry grew up in a strict catholic Flemish family. His father, who works at Agfa Gevaert, doesn't want him to be a photographer because that would have been sinful. And so Harry decides to leave the house and starts travelling. suffocated by his grey, oppressive background, he suddenly discovers the world of light and color. Driven by a love-hate-relationship and an irresistible urge to become a photographer, Harry grows into the European pioneer of color photography.

With music by Tuur Florizooneand camerawork of Jimmy Kets.

"Harry touches an interesting field of tension. He's a photographer who lives for that one image. I'm a filmmaker and I love stories. Harry's work is essential, but I also want to tell the story of his person." - Knack Focus

"Harry Gruyaert. Photographer is an intimate portrait that combines lifetime with reflection about work and house style. In its imagery the documentary feels like photography, as if someone with a good eye has looked through the camera. And that shouldn't be surprising: the camerawork has been done by Jimmy Kets. An honorable image of a Big Mister. With a special mention for the delightful accordion-soundtrack by Tuur Florizoone." - De Morgen 

"Highly recommended" - Patrick Duynslaegher

Koen, Daan, Sven and Jeanine; four Zeelandic young teenagers with big dreams. They all work on their parents' farm. The seasons pass by, the crops are being sown and harvested, animals are being born and slaughtered. The cycles of sowing and harvesting determine their view on the world. Each in their own way dreams to continue the farm life; a deep rooted dream that is never doubted. But little by little their view becomes wider and more complex and slowly they become more curious of what is beyond the acres. Every one of them has to learn how to deal with their own changing worldview and with influences from the outside. A future as a farmer is still the dream, but it misses the obviousness from before. The survival of the family business depends on this new generation. but what about their own dreams and desires? The young protagonists are in a crucial stage of their life, in which the relationship between man and nature is externalized more than ever.

A film by Janet van den Brand / 2018 / 1h13 / België

"Impeccable cinematography, immersive sound design on par with Dunkirk and Mad Max: Fury Road, a therapeutic experience that makes viewers aware of the essence of humanity" - Screen Anarchy

In the eyes of many, Sweden is a perfectly organised society. Thanks to a fine piece of social engineering, the Swedish civilians are the most free and independent of the world. Perfect right? Does this hyperindividuality and advanced self-development make people happier? Do people not need community, contact and unity? Do we really want that total individual independence?

In 1972, the Swedish government published a manifesto titled "The Family of the Future". In this manifesto they put forward a new societal ideal: only when people are fundamentally independent from each other, they can have authentic relationships. The Swedish society put everything to work to be able to offer equal opportunities and an independent existence to everyone. Women can perfectly choose single motherhood through a spermbank, the sick and the elderly can rely on the instutions that they need, a woman can no longer be denpendent of her husband for her financial wellbeing, children can't be dependent from their parents. Because only then it is possible to experience real, authentic love: when we no longer need the other. This starting point is an ideal for most people in the Western society to this day. Many decades after tge launch if this manifesto, people start having doubts. Because when people no longer need each other, there is no longer a need for social contacts. The results are starting to shoc... 

Filmmaker Erik Gandini (Videocracy) knows like no other how he has to look behind this façade of our 'perfect' Western world. In his usual uptempo style, with beautiful images, sophisticated soundtrack and immersive voice-over Gandini makes The Swedish Theory of Love a fascinating reflection on our society where people strive for individual independence. Sometimes funny, often profoundly sad, the movie asks resolute questions about the search for hapinness, human relations and the essence of being human.

A movie by Erik Gandini | 2015

DRIES brings an intimate and fascinating portrait of Flemish fashion designer Dries Van Noten whose style is characterized by warm colors, exquisite prints and rich embroidery. As one of the last independent fashion designers, he holds a unique position in the fashion landscape. He has been at the top for 25 years already and a lot of his collections can be called iconic. Van Noten himself is known for his soberness and modesty, you will hardly ever meet him at fashion parties and he rarely gives interviews. For the first time, he lets in a camera into his professional and personal life. Director Reiner Holzemer followed Dries Van noten for a year through the creation of four collections.

Reiner Holzemer / 2017 / 1h30 / With: Dries Van Noten, Iris Apfel, Suzy Menkes, Pamela Golbin e.a.

Life, Animated is the inspirational story of Owen Suskind, a young man who was unable to speak as a child until he and his family discovered a unique way to communicate by immersing themselves in the world of classic Disney animated films. This emotional coming-of-age story follows Owen as he graduates to adulthood and takes his first steps toward independence. The subject of his father Ron Suskind’s New York Times bestseller, Owen was a thriving three year old who suddenly and inexplicably went silent – and for years after remained unable to connect with other people or to convey his thoughts, feelings or desires.

Over time, through repeated viewings of Disney classics like The Little Mermaid and The Lion King, Owen found useful tools to help him to understand complex social cues and to re-connect with the world around him.

Life, Animated evocatively interweaves classic Disney sequences with verite scenes from Owen’s life in order to explore how his identification and empathy for characters like Simba, Jafar, and Ariel gave him a means to understand his feelings and allowed him to interpret reality.  Beautiful, original animations offer rich insights into Owen’s fruitful dialogue with the Disney oeuvre as he imagines himself heroically facing adversity as a member in a tribe of sidekicks.

Owen’s story is a moving testament to the many ways in which stories can serve as a means of persevering through the dark times, leading us all toward the light.

We all use it every day and are completely dependent of it, but we no longer realise how exceptional the internet actuelly is. What started 25 years ago a a fascinating experiment for a small group of scientists and nerds, in no time became a massmedium of which we can no longer grasp the scope and impact of. We hardly ever take a step back to take a look at our endless connection and the somewhat frightening omnipotence of the internet. With his usual curiousness and imagination documentarymaker Werner Herzog ('Grizzly Man', 'Cave of Forgotten Dreams') explores both the appealing and the horrible future of the internet. He talks to pioneers of the technological world such as Elon Musk, Bob Kahn and Sebastian Thrun but also lets victims of radiation  of wireless networks and cyberbullying speak. In chapter 10, Herzog portrays a very complex and contrasting portrait of our modern, connected society. 'Lo and Behold' shows how important and necessary tehnological progress is, but it also shows the price we have to pay.

“…reminiscent of seeing 1982’s Koyaanisqatsi for the first time… Shen’s In Pursuit of Silence incessantly inspires and sometimes takes the breath away and can even accomplish both at once.” -Austin Chronicle

In Pursuit of Silence is a meditative exploration of our relationship with silence, sound and the impact of noise on our lives. Beginning with an ode to John Cage’s ground-breaking composition 4’33”, In Pursuit of Silence takes us on an immersive cinematic journey around the globe– from a traditional tea ceremony in Kyoto, to the streets of the loudest city on the planet, Mumbai during the wild festival season – and inspires us to experience silence and celebrate the wonders of our world.

“Replete with imagery that shimmers with the kind of almost otherworldly wonder one might associate with a Terrence Malick movie… This film does more than just tell a story, it testifies to the sheer loveliness of anything — everything — when drenched in silence.” -The Huffington Post

Director Patrick Shen | 2015 | 1h21

Shadow World reveals the shocking realities of the global arms trade - the only business that counts its profits in billions and its losses in human lives.

Directed by Johan Grimonprez (“dial H-I-S-T-O-R-Y”) and in part based on Corruption Watch UK founder Andrew Feinstein’s globally acclaimed book The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade, the film reveals how the international trade in weapons – with the complicity of governments and intelligence agencies, investigative and prosecutorial bodies, weapons manufacturers, dealers and agents – fosters corruption, determines economic and foreign policies, undermines democracy and creates widespread suffering.

The film unravels a number of the world’s largest and most corrupt arms deals through those involved in perpetrating and investigating them. It illustrates why this trade accounts for almost 40% of all corruption in global trade, and how it operates in a parallel legal universe, in which the national security elite who drive it are seldom prosecuted for their often illegal actions. Shadow World posits alternatives through the experience of a peace activist and war correspondent, as well as through the voice of Eduardo Galeano who contributed selections from his stories for the film.

Ultimately Shadow World reveals the real costs of war, the way the arms trade drives it, how weapons of war are turned against citizens of liberal democracies and how the trade decreases rather than enhances security for us all. In shedding light on how our realities are being constructed, the film offers a way for audiences to see through this horror, in the hopes of creating a better future.

https://shadowworldfilm.com/

‘I find that the most inexplicable behavior is motivated by very relatable human impulses,’ comments Louis Theroux as he heads to Los Angeles for his feature documentary, in collaboration with director John Dower and double Academy Award winning producer Simon Chinn, exploring the Church of Scientology. Following a long fascination with the religion and with much experience in dealing with eccentric, unpalatable and unexpected human behavior, the beguilingly unassuming Theroux won’t take no for an answer when his request to enter the Church’s headquarters is turned down. Inspired by the Church’s use of filming techniques, and aided by ex-members of the organization, Theroux uses actors to replay some incidents people claim they experienced as members in an attempt to better understand the way it operates. In a bizarre twist, it becomes clear that the Church is also making a film about Louis Theroux. Suffused with a good dose of humor and moments worthy of a Hollywood script, My Scientology Movie is stranger than fiction.

This astonishing documentary chronicles the adventures of an eclectic group of young pioneers - Canadian hippie journalists, photographers, musicians, scientists, and American draft dodgers - who set out to stop Richard Nixon's atomic bomb tests in Amchitka, Alaska, and end up creating the worldwide green movement.

Greenpeace was founded on tight knit, passionate friendships forged in Vancouver in the early 1970s. Together they pioneered a template for environmental activism which mixed daring iconic feats and worldwide media. The group had a prescient understanding of the power of media, knowing that the advent of global mass communications meant that the image had become a more effective tool for change than the strike or the demonstration.

Winner of the Editing Award and nominated for the Grand Jury Prize for World Cinema Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival. Nominated for Best Documentary at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival.

"A fascinating, skillfully assembled chronicle of the rise and inevitable fallout surrounding the granddaddy of the environmental activism movement." - Michael Rechtshaffen, The Los Angeles Times

"Few people know of Stanislav Petrov… yet hundreds of millions of people are alive because of him."

The Man Who Saved the World (Starring: Walter Cronkite, Robert De Niro, Matt Damon and Kevin Costner) tells the gripping true story of Stanislav Petrov - a man who single-handedly averted a fullscale nuclear world war, but now struggles to get his life back on track… before it is too late.

An epic and grand Cold War thriller that sends shivers down your spine and shows us just how close we came to Apocalypse … and it’s not over yet! With a new Cold War rising and thousands of nuclear weapons on hair-trigger alert, we still live under the same catastrophic danger that Stanislav faced back then.

A Film About Coffee is a love letter to, and meditation on, specialty coffee. It examines what it takes, and what it means, for coffee to be defined as “specialty.” The film whisks audiences on a trip around the world, from farms in Honduras and Rwanda to coffee shops in Tokyo, Portland, Seattle, San Francisco and New York. Through the eyes and experiences of farmers and baristas, the film offers a unique overview of all the elements—the processes, preferences and preparations; traditions old and new—that come together to create the best cups. This is a film that bridges gaps both intellectual and geographical, evoking flavor and pleasure, and providing both as well.

The documentary “Gardenia” tells the story of great love, bitter disappointments and self-doubts – but most of all of courage. The courage to take risks, try something new and be yourself – no matter what age. The film dives deeply into the exceptional and heart-warming stories of a group of transsexuals and drag queens in their sixties and seventies, who summon up their bravery to take to the stage one last time. For two years they have been touring in five continents, basking in the success of a spectacular show called “Gardenia”, directed by Alain Platel and Frank Van Laecke. Now, as the show comes to a close, the glamorous aging performers must leave the limelight and go home to the quiet lives they left behind.

Star chef Sergio Herman strives for perfection day by day. But the beauty and the succes of his culinary art has a dark side. Every day, working for sixteen to eightteen hours, giving his all - there is hardly any time left for his children, his wife, his family, his friends. At the peak of his carreer he takes a radical decision: he closes the doors of his three start restaurant Oud Sluis. He can't sit still, however, so it's time for a new challenge.

The documentary by Willemiek Kluijfhout ('L'amour des Moules') is an honest and intimate portrait of the battle of a man who is on the verge of a big change. The existential questions and doubts he faces are something we can all relate to. Sergio Herman: FUCKING PERFECT is a revealing story about perfectionism, ambition and sacrifices.

As a young man, American Louis Sarno heard a song on the radio that gripped his imagination. He followed the mysterious sounds all the way to the Central African rainforest and found their source with the Bayaka Pygmies, a tribe of hunters and gatherers. He never left.

Today, twenty-five years later, Louis Sarno has recorded more than 1,000 hours of unique Bayaka music. He is a fully accepted member of the Bayaka society and has a 13-year-old son, Samedi. Once, when Samedi was a baby, he became seriously ill and Louis feared for his life. He held his son in his arms through a frightful night and made him a promise: “If you get through this, one day I’ll show you the world I come from.”

Now the time has come to fulfill his promise, and Louis travels with Samedi from the African rainforest to another jungle, one of concrete, glass, and asphalt: New York City. Together, they meet Louis’ family and old friends, including his closest friend from college, Jim Jarmusch.

Carried by the contrasts between rainforest and urban America, with a fascinating soundtrack and peaceful, loving imagery, Louis‘ and Samedi‘s stories are interwoven to form a touching portrait of an extraordinary man and his son. Song From the Forest is a modern epic set between rainforest and skyscrapers.

One night, when Brussels film maker Bernard Crutzen is driving home on his bike, he comes face to face with a fox. It is looking at him brutally as if to say "and you, what are you doing here in Brussels? Is this your kind of city?" The same question goes for the peregrine falcons, the toads in the fountains, the rattle snakes and the beetles in the capital. This film researches this co-existence between man and (wild) animal and asks at what distance we want to or should live from each other.

A movie by Bernard Crutzen

Over half the world now lives in cities. Filmmaker David Bond grew up in the countryside but now lives in the big city and he loves it. He is knee-deep in the digital world, constantly checking his Blackberry, consuming media 24/7. He has beaten nature. But following a rare trip to the countryside he was horrified to noticed a change in his and his children's behaviour. They stopped worrying - about emails, about what they were wearing and when their favourite TV show was on - and began to enjoy their natural surroundings. What has city living done to his family? Is the countryside really a better place for them to grow up happy? His carefree childhood was very different from theirs.

David enlists his family - his wife Katie and children Ivy (4) and Albie (2) along with his mother, Helen. They agree to test the effect that their life, separated from nature, is having on them. Helen has recently moved from remote North Yorkshire to live with them in London. She is about to turn 80 and has seen a massive change in children's lives since her own childhood. How has her behaviour changed since moving to the city? How will David's children's behaviour change, as he and Katie understand better the scientific arguments for and against nature in childhood? David is turning 40. His family represents three generations - and their changing relationship to nature.

David investigates the scientific basis for the changes in his family's behaviour. Project Wild Thing is a road trip, finding hilarity, joy and absurdity in the choices we face as 21st Century humans: What happens when we forget we are natural animals? Should we buy into the convenience of digital life, or should we believe in the power of nature? Is this a choice we have to make at all? Can we find a way to get the best of both?