These Amazing Shadows

Documentary on the Thriller, Noir, Fantasy, Science Fiction genders in the Greek cinema for the last 50 years. It is a collage of authentic scenes and trailers of 50 films as presented by 4 girls, bearing the name of the gender they represent. 50 years (1959-2009), 50 films, 45 directors, script writers, authors, critics, producers.

A bunch of British working class amateur filmmakers with nothing left to lose tackle one of Hollywood's greatest musicals in order to save their beloved Club. Britain’s oldest amateur filmmaking club struggles to survive, as its members grow old amid flickering memories and hardships. In the northern industrial town of Bradford, England, a handful of diehard amateur filmmakers desperately cling to their dreams, and to each other, in this warm and funny look at shared artistic folly that speaks to the delusional dreamer in us all.

Initially, Ambivalent Future was intended as a film about the production of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's "Bright Future". But director Fujii has taken the "behind the scenes"-concept to unprecedented heights with this unique documentary offering a close look into the world of Kiyoshi Kurosawa, the auteur. Scenes from the surprisingly low key and relaxed production of "Bright Future" are of course sprinkled liberally throughout the documentary, but between these we are treated to interesting and revealing interviews with actors, producers and Kurosawa's many other collaborators. And perhaps the most surprising thing of all is how much of Kurosawa there is, talking candidly about his working methods and the philosophy behind it all.

Four Belgian-Moroccan filmmakers in their thirties produce their latest film. Since adolescence they have managed to produce over thirty low-budget movies in which they often have played the main characters. Their movies are not only the sum of their fears and desires, but also a way of projecting an image of themselves towards their own community and the outside world. When one of them decides to radically change his life, their friendship and the future of their common cinema goals are threatened.

It’s a story that made headlines: “Festival Film Banned!” In the late 1960s, the majority of films screened in Australia were censored in some way or another. DELETE the lovemaking. CUT the ‘Open Mouth Kissing’. REMOVE the fondling of the breast sequence. Deemed too ‘inappropriate’ and ‘morally corrupting’ for Australian eyes, these scenes were hacked from feature films and locked away in government archives. When young Sydney Film Festival director David Stratton attempted to program a Swedish film that the censors believed contained ACTUAL sex, a scandal erupted. In a mash-up of never-before-seen banned clippings, SMUT HOUNDS tells the story of how seventy-seven seconds of celluloid scandalised a government and transformed Australian cinema.

In this reportage, film professionals offer the viewers a peek behind the scenes at the Barrandov studios. We see how sets are constructed and we find out what sorts of things are stored in the prop department. The friendly commentary describes the journey from camera negatives to a film on the big screen. We learn about film technology and take a glance into film laboratories and editing rooms. The film also presents unique footage from the filming of The White Disease, namely the dramatic scene with five hundred extras in which the Marshal announces his declaration of war.

A look at the legendary Czech sound designer and his profession. Editor and documentary filmmaker Adéla Špaljová has her father Ivo Špalj talk about his life, career, and working methods. Over the course of his long life, sound designer Ivo Špalj (*1940) has collaborated on hundreds of films and become a mentor for at least one generation of men and women behind the mixing board. This gentle documentary also shows “Engi” (as he is known to his colleagues) again working with Jan Švankmajer, whose films he has lent their typical, dense, and sophisticated sound mix.

A documentary exploring the birth, death and resurrection of illustrated movie poster art. Through interviews with a number of key art personalities from the 70s and 80s, as well as many modern, alternative poster artists, “Twenty-Four by Thirty-Six” aims to answer the question: What happened to the illustrated movie poster? Where did it disappear to, and why? In the mid 2000s, filling the void left behind by Hollywood’s abandonment of illustrated movie posters, independent artists and galleries began selling limited edition, screenprinted posters — a movement that has quickly exploded into a booming industry with prints selling out online in seconds, inspiring Hollywood studios to take notice of illustration in movie posters once more.

HECKLER is a comedic feature documentary exploring the increasingly critical world we live in. After starring in a film that was critically bashed, Jamie Kennedy takes on hecklers and critics and ask some interesting questions of people such as George Lucas, Bill Maher, Mike Ditka, Rob Zombie, Howie Mandel and many more. This fast moving, hilarious documentary pulls no punches as you see an uncensored look at just how nasty and mean the fight is between those in the spotlight and those in the dark.

A short documentary about the making of D. W. Griffith's controversial 'The Birth of a Nation'.

The voices of the 2013 Generation of the now extinct CUEC, talk about issues such as loneliness, growing up and decisions about the uncertain future they face when leaving to study Cinematography.