Announcing the first release on any platform of the restored version of Chantal Akerman’s From The East.
For new documentaries, check-out Nancy Cooperstein Charney’s Who’s Next?, which examines how the lives of Muslim-Americans have been affected in the aftermath 9/11, and Anna Moot-Levin & Laura Green’s The Providers.
For fans of non-objective cinema, there’s Abstract Cinema featuring an interview with Stan Brakhage among others in the field of visionary filmmaking.
There’s also a duo of water-related docs: 90 Degrees South, Herbert G. Ponting’s spellbinding chronicle of Captain Robert Scott’s heroic and ultimately tragic race for the South Pole, and Drifters by early silent filmmaker John Grierson, who creates a ‘city symphony’ out of the North Sea herring fisheries.
| And, finally don’t miss Camille Claudel starring Isabelle Adjani (Oscar-nominated for best actress!) and Gérard Depardieu. And, Hans Richter’s hypnotic and satirical film on art—Dreams that Money Can Buy. Read on for more details on these new releases: |
| 90 Degrees South (1933) Directed by Herbert G. Ponting; BFI, Documentary |
Herbert G. Ponting’s spellbinding chronicle of Captain Robert Scott’s heroic and ultimately tragic race for the South Pole (not only did Amundsen reach the goal first but Scott and his entire team died on the return trip) was originally released in 1913. Ponting, who had been a renowned still photographer, dedicated his life to Scott’s memory. Twenty years after his friend’s death, he produced and narrated 90 Degrees South, the 1933 sound re-release of his original footage.
Drifters (1929)
Directed by John Grierson; BFI, Documentary
Early silent filmmaker John Grierson creates a ‘city symphony’ out of the North Sea herring fisheries, filmed at Lerwick, in the Shetlands, Lowestoft and Yarmouth and in the North Sea. Both a celebration of modern industry and a meditation on natural elements (sea, birds, fish), Grierson creates a strikingly balanced reflection on the process of historical change and modernisation.
Who’s Next?
Directed by Nancy Cooperstein Charney; Bullfrog Films, Documentary
WHO’S NEXT? examines how the lives of Muslim-Americans have been affected in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks. It focuses on six Muslim families—citizens and long-time legal residents—from diverse countries and widely different circumstances. In one way or another all of them have been targeted by federal agencies, hate groups, and even former friends solely on the basis of their religious beliefs.
The Providers
Directed by Anna Moot-Levin & Laura Green; Bullfrog Films, Documentary
THE PROVIDERS follows three healthcare providers in northern New Mexico. They work at El Centro, a group of safety-net clinics that offer care to all who walk through the doors, regardless of ability to pay. Amidst personal struggles that reflect those of their patients, the journeys of the providers unfold as they work to reach rural Americans who would otherwise be left out of the healthcare system. With intimate access, the documentary shows the transformative power of providers’ relationships with marginalized patients.
Camille Claudel
Directed by Bruno Nuytten; Zeitgeist Films, Narrative
The biography of the iconic French sculptor Camille Claudel in a tale of love, betrayal and female empowerment Starring Isabelle Adjani and Gérard Depardieu. When her enthusiasm for the arts captures the attention of famed sculptor Auguste Rodin, he hires her as his assistant. Slowly, Camille develops sculpting proficiency of her own, but when her and Auguste’s relationship becomes intimate, she struggles to escape from beneath his oppressive shadow.
From the East (restored!)
Directed by Chantal Akerman; Icarus Films; Documentary
Chantal Akerman’s austere masterpiece retraces the journey from the end of summer to deepest winter, from East Germany, across Poland and the Baltics, to Moscow. It is a voyage Akerman wanted to make shortly after the collapse of the Soviet bloc “before it was too late,” reconstructing her impressions in the manner of a documentary on the border of fiction.
By filming “everything that touched me,” Akerman sifts through and fixes upon sounds and images as she follows the thread of this subjective crossing. Without dialogue or commentary, From the East is a cinematographic elegy.
Abstract Cinema (1993)
Directed by Keith Griffiths; BFI, Documentary
Several well-known and pioneering abstract filmmakers discuss the history of non-objective cinema, the works of those that came before them and their own experiments in the field of visionary filmmaking.
Features: Stan Brakhage, Jules Engel, Malcolm Le Grice, Len Lye, William Moritz, and more.
Dreams that Money Can Buy (1946)
Directed by Hans Richter; BFI, Narrative
Joe, a young man down on his luck, discovers he has the power to create dreams, and sets up a business selling them to others. The ‘dreams’ he gives to his clients are the creations of Max Ernst, Fernand Leger, May Ray, Marcel Duchamp, Alexander Calder and Richter himself, and the result is by turns playful, hypnotic, satirical, charming and nightmarish.