Community First! Village is designed to lift the chronically homeless off the streets of the Austin, TX, offering them a place to call home, helping them to heal from the ravages of life on the streets, and allowing them to rediscover a purpose in their lives. This documentary explores the events that cause homelessness and the heartwarming stories of being welcomed into a nurturing environment where dignity and self-worth are restored.
Africa Light / Gray Zone (2010)
"Africa Light" - as white local citizens call Namibia. The name suggests romance, the beauty of nature and promises a life without any problems in a country where the difference between rich and poor could hardly be greater. Namibia does not give that impression of it. If you look at its surface it seems like Africa in its most innocent and civilized form. It is a country that is so inviting to dream by its spectacular landscape, stunning scenery and fascinating wildlife. It has a very strong tourism structure and the government gets a lot of money with its magical attraction. But despite its grandiose splendor it is an endless gray zone as well. It oscillates between tradition and modernity, between the cattle in the country and the slums in the city. It shuttles from colonial times, land property reform to minimum wage for everyone. It fluctuates between socialism and cold calculated market economy.
The Wisdom to Survive: Climate Change, Capitalism & Community (2013)
Climate change is taking place. Will we have the wisdom to survive? The film features thought leaders and activists in the realms of science, economics and spirituality discussing how we can evolve in the face of climate disruption. Interviewees include Bill McKibbin, Joanna Macy, Roger Payne and young pioneers like Herschelle Milford and Quincy Saul.
Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (2005)
This documentary takes the viewer on a deeply personal journey into the everyday lives of families struggling to fight Goliath. From a family business owner in the Midwest to a preacher in California, from workers in Florida to a poet in Mexico, dozens of film crews on three continents bring the intensely personal stories of an assault on families and American values.
Cork City FC - The Rise of the Rebel Army (2015)
From liquidation to Europe in 5 years - this is the incredible story of how the supporters of Cork City helped save the club and bought them back from the brink of extinction.
I Am Another You (2017)
Through the eyes of a young drifter who rejects society's rules and intentionally chooses to live on the streets, Chinese filmmaker Nanfu Wang explores the meaning of personal freedom – and its limits.
Life After the Oasis (2019)
In 2008, feature documentary, The Oasis, shocked Australia with its gritty insight into the lives of homeless teens at a notorious youth refuge in inner city Sydney. An outpouring of social and political goodwill followed, with the then Prime Minister pledging to halve homelessness by 2020. A decade later, with social inequality and homelessness worse than ever, the original participants reflect on where their lives have taken them.
The Department (2021)
THE DEPARTMENT is a feature documentary which takes us inside the never-before-seen child protection system at work in NSW. Filmed in an observational style, it follows caseworkers across the state as they navigate the complexities of keeping children safe in families experiencing domestic violence, addiction, poverty, mental health issues and intergenerational trauma.
The Invisible Contract (2024)
A reflection on the concept of invisibility, narrated by women who clean public spaces in Mexico City. Combining documentary, fiction and still photography, the film is an intimate mosaic of testimonies and experiences that highlight the precariousness of work in the cleaning industry, in a world where subcontracting rules.
Say My Name (NaN)
People from different ethnic backgrounds with "difficult" names by Western standards share their experience with moving through the world with an identity that challenges others to simply just say their name. A short social docu-film by Mariam Meliksetyan, “Say My Name” is a meditation on identity, otherness, assimilation, community, and ancestral roots.
Son of Torum (1989)
In the same vein as Meri's other documentations, this one takes advantage of the glasnost policy to discuss the social and ecologic impact of the Russian oil industry on the natives and the lands they inhabit.
Me and the Mosque (2005)
Using original animation, archival footage and personal interviews, this full-length documentary portrays the multiple relationships Canadian Muslim women entertain with Islam’s place of worship, the mosque. Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. In North America, a large number of converts are women. Many are drawn to the religion because of its emphasis on social justice and spiritual equality between the sexes. Yet, many mosques force women to pray behind barriers, separate from men, and some do not even permit women to enter the building. Exploring all sides of the issue, the film examines the space – both physical and social – granted to women in mosques across the country.
Swamp Dialogues (2015)
The Danube Delta in Romania - the 'Last European Sanctuary’ - is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While major efforts are made to protect biodiversity, the plight of local communities is largely overlooked. Social scientists claim that the traumatic nature of the swamp bears heavy on the villagers' lives. But is Nature really to blame? Swamp Dialogues is based on an extensive field-research in the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve. Through a careful ‘argument montage’ built entirely on cinematic language the film represents an anthropological analysis formulated in image and sound.
Road to Austin (2016)
Road To Austin chronicles how Austin, Texas became the Live Music Capital of the World, dating from 1835 to present day. The film builds to a climax and weaves its way towards an all-star live performance led by Stephen Bruton and his 14-piece band.
Rom Boys: 40 Years of Rad (2020)
When a tragedy strikes the worlds most unique skate park, a dogged group of old school skaters, BMXers and street artists team up to fight for its survival.
The End of Suburbia: Oil Depletion and the Collapse of the American Dream (2004)
Since World War II North Americans have invested much of their newfound wealth in suburbia. It has promised a sense of space, affordability, family life and upward mobility. As the population of suburban sprawl has exploded in the past 50 years Suburbia, and all it promises, has become the American Dream. But as we enter the 21st century, serious questions are beginning to emerge...
Look Back at Grunwick (1980)
A RECORD OF THE STRIKE AT GRUNWICK IN 1977. The story of the continuing struggle at Grunwick’s by mainly Indian workers, from July 11th, 1977 until the struggle was lost. It shows the Special Patrol Group attack on the November 7th day of action, how the leadership of the struggle was taken out of the hands of the strike committee, how some of the strike leaders were disciplined by their own union for going on hunger strike outside the TUC in protest at the TUC’s inactivity, and how the post office workers were forced by their union to end their blacking of Grunwick mail. It also shows the beginnings of the similar struggle by immigrant workers at Garner’s Steak Houses in London.
Countdown (2004)
Portrait of Augustinas Baltrušaitis, film and theatre director, as well as actor, who fell into obscurity and has now been relegated to the margins of society, as a result of specific political circumstances. Countdown is a film about the limits of memory, the effects of the implacable passage of time, and a hope that surpasses time.