History is made, for better or worse. The Happiness Machine (USA, 24 min., Rebecca B. Blumhagen) profiles philosopher, inventor and farmer, Carl, who grew up a sharecropper on 22 acres in rural Iowa which he now hopes to pass on to his children as a gift of place. Using entirely archival footage, In the Absence […]
Life, loud and proud. The NYPD’s LGBT support organization is profiled in The Journey: Gay Officers Action League (USA, 7 min., Det. John Giretti, Andrew Sklar), while Landline (UK, 12 min., Matt Houghton) explores the impact of a helpline for gay farmers set up by a chaplain in Cheshire, England. Before heading into irreversible surgery, […]
Unexpected moments and unusual discoveries. The story of a fake news writer in a Macedonian town is a Fake News Fairytale (UK, 14 min., Kate Stonehill) for the post-truth era. The Traffic Separating Device (Sweden, 15 min., Johan Palmgren) is installed in downtown Stockholm to keep cars out of the path of buses. Tungrus (India, […]
New York, NY. It’s a helluva town. The Daily Show’s Aasif Mandvi uses humor to tackle anti-Muslim sentiment in The Accidental Activist (USA, 7 min., Samia Khan). Footprint (USA, 18 min., Sara Newens) turns a contemplative lens on the World Trade Center memorial. Bob, The Sheriff of Goodtimes (USA, 13 min., Brad Hinkle) journeys through […]
On artists, performers and designers. Painting the Town (USA, 17 min., William Higbie) profiles the street art of Detroit, MI. In Barbara Kruger: Part of the Discourse (USA, 7 min., Ian Forster), the artist share her earliest influences and explains the origins of her 2017 Lower East Side public art project, Untitled (Skate). In Perspective. […]
The states of the nation. Lonesome Willcox (USA, 12 min., Ryan Maxey, Zack Wright), Arizona has a single radio station, run by a live-in employee seen as an outcast by many of its townspeople. Sole Doctor (USA, 5 min., Paula Bernstein) profiles George’s Shoe Repair, a father-son shop that has served Portland, OR for over […]
Athletes, on and off the field. El Gallo (Mexico/USA, 14 min., Michael Medoway), one of Mexico’s most famous boxers, must overcome tremendous odds to regain lost glory. Climbing the Big Wall (Canada, 9 min., Jennifer Law-Smith) can be a meditative exercise of trust between climbers. Concussion Protocol (USA, 5 min. Josh Begley) tracks injuries sustained […]
Traffic Stop tells the story of Breaion King, a 26 year-old African-American school teacher from Austin, Texas who is stopped for a routine traffic violation that escalates into a dramatic arrest. Caught on police dashcams, Breaion is pulled from her car by the arresting officer, repeatedly thrown to the ground, and handcuffed. En route to jail in a […]
High in the Andes, a frog with an unusual appearance is threatened with extinction. (Screening with Samantha’s Amazing Acrocats)
Over 30 years in the garbage business, Nick has become a bonafide trash connoisseur. (Screening with Rodents of Unusual Size)