Under the Boardwalk: The Monopoly Story shows how the classic board game has become a worldwide cultural phenomenon and follows the colorful players who come together to compete for the coveted title of Monopoly World Champion.
Made for Play: Board Games and Modern Industry (2013)
Jettingen Germany is home to Ludo Fact, one of the world's largest manufacturers of board and card games. This documentary shows how a board game makes the leap from an idea to your table. You'll see every aspect of the manufacturing process: the technology and machines, the many detailed steps, and the hundreds of people that are involved in the production of a single game. Mostly, we hope the film gives you a greater appreciation of the time, effort and investment that goes into every quality board game that makes it to the marketplace and your home. The business of fun requires a lot of hard work!
Ruthless: Monopoly's Secret History (2023)
America’s favorite board game, Monopoly, is a love letter to unbridled capitalism and the impulses that make our free-market society tick. Contrary to the folksy legend spread by Parker Brothers, Monopoly’s origin involves a radical feminist and a community of Quakers in Atlantic City. If not for the determination of an economics professor and impassioned anti-monopolist, the real story behind the creation of the game might never have come to light.
Word Wars (2004)
The classic board game, Scrabble, has been popular for decades. In addition, there are fanatics who devote heart and soul to this game to the expense of everything else. This film profiles a group of these enthusiasts as they converge for a Scrabble convention where the word game is almost a bloodsport.
The Man Who Skied Down Everest (1975)
This Oscar-winning documentary tells the story behind Japanese daredevil Yuichiro Miura's 1970 effort to ski down the world's tallest mountain. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2010.
A Day With the National Ice Hockey Team (1975)
This documentary by the Finnish Broadcasting Company covers the Finnish national ice hockey team preparing for the spring 1974 World Championships. The film crew is there at meetings, training sessions, tactical meetings and also visits the infirmary. Along with the coaches Kalevi Numminen, Raimo Määttänen and the team leader Teuvo Peltola we also see glimpses of Heikki Riihiranta, Juhani Tamminen, Lasse Oksanen, Stig Wetzell and Veli-Pekka Ketola.
Ice Hockey World Championship Jubilee in Tampere (1995)
The Tampere-based VipVision production company recorded the scenes of jubilation at the Tampere Central Square in the spring of 1995 when the Finnish national ice hockey team celebrated after winning the World Championships. The fight song Den glider in rings out more than once, and Pate Mustajärvi works the crowd into a singing frenzy.
Bushido (2024)
Kakunoshin Yanagida (Tsuyoshi Kusanagi) was a samurai, but he was forced out of the Han due to a false accusation. He then lived in poverty with his daughter Kinu (Kaya Kiyohara). Despite being poor, he never gave up his pride and honor that he held as a samurai. Even when playing the board game Go, which is his hobby, he always plays in a fair manner. Because of a case, the truth behind the false accusation is revealed. Kakunoshin Yanagida is shaken and filled with rage. He decides to take revenge, even if it means he will be torn from his daughter.
Über Goober (2004)
Über Goober focuses on the often-misunderstood, sometimes-controversial, and always-kind-of-geeky world of Gamers. Director Steve Metze examines several different groups including historical miniature gamers, role-players, and those known simply as "LARPers." The film also explores opposition from religious groups, negative media portrayals, and some of the meanest 'man-on-the-street' interviews ever committed to video. Meet the Gamers, learn their exotic language, see their bizarre rituals, gasp at their semi-authentic costumes, and thrill to the painting techniques on their miniatures!
Who Did It? The Story Behind the Clue VCR Mystery Game (2013)
A documentary about the makings of two Parker Brothers VHS games - 'Clue VCR Mystery Game' and 'Clue II: Murder in Disguise'.
Friendly Local Game Store (2022)
The unlikely story of the world’s largest game store – The Sentry Box – located in Calgary. Communities are not just bound by borders – they are often comprised of people with shared passions. A friendly local game store (FLGS) is a unique place where people can connect with each other, create memories, and build community. Celebrating over 40 years of operation, the Sentry Box in Calgary, Alberta has grown to become the world’s largest game store. It has achieved this incredible milestone by being an inviting and welcoming space for people of all backgrounds to enjoy table top games, such as Dungeons and Dragons. The documentary from CUFF alumnus and Calgarian Garry Snow shares the unique history of the Sentry Box by interviewing the owner, long-time customers, current and former employees, and local industry influencers who have all been connected by the friendly local game store.
Game Over: Kasparov and the Machine (2003)
Garry Kasparov is possibly the greatest chess player who has ever lived. In 1997, he played a match against the greatest chess computer: IBM's Deep Blue. He lost. This film depicts the drama that happened away from the chess board from Kasparov's perspective. It explores the psychological aspects of the game and the paranoia surrounding IBM's ultimate chess machine.
AlphaGo (2017)
The ancient Chinese game of Go has long been considered a grand challenge for artificial intelligence. Yet in 2016, Google's DeepMind team announced that they would be taking on Lee Sedol, the world's most elite Go champion. AlphaGo chronicles the team as it prepares to test the limits of its rapidly-evolving AI technology. The film pits man against machine, and reveals as much about the workings of the human mind as it does the future of AI.
Space Lions: The Story of Twilight Imperium (2017)
Popular review site Shut Up & Sit Down follows the creative heads of Fantasy Flight Games as they develop a new edition of their flagship game Twilight Imperium.
The Game Designers (2019)
Board games are exploding in popularity. With scores of players, huge conventions, countless media outlets, and thousands of games coming out each year, the board game industry is truly a global phenomenon. But who makes all of the games that fuel this industry? And how are all of these games designed, developed, and eventually released to the public? The answer is found in The Game Designers!
How Much Wood Would a Woodchuck Chuck (1976)
A documentary short examining the language and performance of auctioneering, filmed at the World Livestock Auctioneer Championship in Pennsylvania.
The Pigeon People (NaN)
Directed by Patrick Gramm, 'The Pigeon People' (2023) takes you deep into Arizona's underground pigeon racing scene as racing rivals prepare for and compete in the Grand Canyon Classic - a 350-mile pigeon race from Utah to Arizona that crosses over the Grand Canyon.
Colours By Numbers: The Sudokumentary (2009)
Australia's first national sudoku team The Numbats - four ex-rugby mates - travel into the unknown of competitive puzzling as they enter the World Sudoku Championships in Goa, India.
Rocky Marciano vs. Joe Walcott (1952)
Jersey Joe Walcott was 38 and looked older. That he was even champion was a bit of a surprise. He’d taken the title with an upset of Ezzard Charles the year before. Marciano on the other hand, was the coming star. He’d hammered Joe Louis into retirement in 1951, a sad fight that many saw as a changing of the guard. Fans were eager to see the Rock take on Jersey Joe—but few expected to witness one of the all-time great heavyweight fights.
The Great Chess Movie (1982)
In this Gilles Carle feature documentary on the game of chess, the international chess match is cast as a classic Western shoot-out. Three chess greats dominate the film: Russia's Anatoly Karpov; Viktor Korchnoi, a Russian defector; and American Bobby Fischer. Chess aficionados Camille Coudari and Fernando Arrabal analyze the personalities and strategies of the players and comment on the interplay of politics and chess.