As Australian cinema broke through to international audiences in the 1970s through respected art house films like Peter Weir's "Picnic At Hanging Rock," a new underground of low-budget exploitation filmmakers were turning out considerably less highbrow fare. Documentary filmmaker Mark Hartley explores this unbridled era of sex and violence, complete with clips from some of the scene's most outrageous flicks and interviews with the renegade filmmakers themselves.
Six by Sondheim (2013)
This intimate documentary explores the life and career of the stage legend Stephen Sondheim through six of his best-known songs.
575 Castro St. (2009)
Images set to a tape recording that slain San Francisco City Supervisor Harvey Milk made in November 1977 to be played in case he was killed.
Beyond Wiseguys: Italian Americans & the Movies (2008)
Documentary portrays the saga of how Italian Americans went from being outsiders who were stereotyped as gangsters in American movies to insiders in Hollywood who took control of their own stories. Interviews, film clips and home movies from Italian American filmmakers highlight personal experiences and comment on Hollywood's politics and cultural impact.
Columbus's Cursed Colony (2010)
In Columbus' Cursed Colony join two scientific expeditions on a journey that takes you beneath the waters of La Isabela Bay in Dominican Republic to search for the lost fleet of Christopher Columbus.
Secrets of Florence (2009)
Using a thermo-camera to reveal long-lost artworks and never-before-seen architectural layers in some of the city's most famous landmarks, Art detective Maurizio Seracini reveals an unsavory history.
Goody Goody Gumdrops (2021)
Set over three days, Goody Goody Gumdrops is an absurd, comic observational musical documentary cum live album launch for Tropical Fuck Storm’s new album Deep States. Situated deep in Central Victoria on the banks of the Goulburn River at TFS HQ, we follow the band as they prepare for a rock show in their barn. Referencing the feel of the Australian Western and Australian Gothic (see Wake in Fright, The Cars That Ate Paris and Picnic at Hanging Rock) we travel with the band through their abject, weird and beautiful space. The weekend starts as the band welcomes you into their studio/cocktail lounge and teach you how to make their signature drink, The Tropical Fuck Fizz, then entertain you, Rat Pack style.
Prisoner of Her Past (2010)
Sonia Reich- who survived the Holocaust as a child by running and hiding, suddenly believes that she is being hunted again, 60 years later.
Germany - Handle with Care! (1947)
This "March of Time" entry examines the many problems, both human and economic, that faced the Allies in their respective zones of Germany -- USA, England and Russia -- following the end of World War II, and the Allied occupation of what was left of the country following the Nazi reign of Adolf Hitler. The Cold War issues had not yet fully surfaced, so this entry, with fleeting glances into each Zone of the time, traced what economic recovery had been made by the end of 1946, and how the average German citizen of 1946 was living...or getting by.
Terror! Robespierre and the French Revolution (2009)
In 1794, French revolutionary Maximilien Robespierre produced the world's first defense of "state terror" - claiming that the road to virtue lay through political violence. This film combines drama, archive and documentary interviews to examine Robespierre's year in charge of the Committee Of Public Safety - the powerful state machine at the heart of Revolutionary France. Contesting Robespierre's legacy is Slavoj Zizek, who argues that terror in the cause of virtue is justifiable, and Simon Schama, who believes the road from Robespierre ran straight to the gulag and the 20th-century concentration camp. The drama, based on original sources, follows the life-and-death politics of the Committee during "Year Two" of the new Republic.
Barbarossa: Hitler Turns East (2007)
Hitler's invasion of Russia was one of the landmark events of World War II. This documentary reveals the lead-up to the offensive, its impact on the war and the brinksmanship that resulted from the battle for Moscow. Rare footage from both German and Russian archives and detailed maps illustrate the conflict, while award-winning historian and author John Erickson provides insight into the pivotal maneuvers on the eastern front.
A Toast to 2018 (2018)
The highlights and newsmakers of 2018 are brought to the fore in this year-end review.
México, México: Mexique en mouvement (1968)
"Mexico begins where the roads end ”. Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes tells us about the history of Mexico: its invasions, its revolutions, its sacred lands, its forgotten legends, its religious rituals and this frightening misery. François Reichenbach and his camera sink into the dust, on this sacred land, where "the land never ends."
Memory Books (2008)
In Uganda, AIDS-infected mothers have begun writing what they call Memory Books for their children. Aware of the illness, it is a way for the family to come to terms with the inevitable death that it faces. Hopelessness and desperation are confronted through the collaborative effort of remembering and recording, a process that inspires unexpected strength and even solace in the face of death.
The Last Days of JFK Jr. (2019)
A picture of John F. Kennedy Jr. you've never seen before - new interviews, rare video, intimate new details.
Reformation: Europe's Holy War (2017)
Historian David Starkey tells the story of the Protestant Reformation and how it transformed the face of modern Europe, unleashing fundamentalism, terror and religious violence.
The First State Bed of Henry VII & Elizabeth of York: An Investigation (2017)
An investigation into the fascinating discovery of the first State Bed of Henry VII & Elizabeth of York. This fascinating bed is one of the most significant examples of Tudor furniture in existence today, and its iconography sheds new light on our understating of the Tudor Monarchy. The film represents the culmination of many years of in depth research. A team of experts, including the beds current owner, have decoded the bed’s story via its iconography and symbolism. These tell the story of the bed to academics, historians, and anyone with interest in the Tudor period.