Portrait Of A M

Programme following the late Canadian novelist Carol Shields at home in Canada, on tour in the UK and undergoing treatment for breast cancer, of which she died in 2003.

Boasting an impressive private collection with a specific focus on the art of portrait, the Accademia Carrara in Bergamo is an Italian treasure which has been inaccessible to the public for several years. It features more then 600 paintings including Raphael, Mantegna, Bellini, Botticelli and many other works of art from the 15th to the 19th century. The film capture the restoration and reopening of the museum as an opportunity to meditate on the meaning of the act of looking from acclaimed director Davide Ferrario.

A girl, a hat, a painter, and ensuing developments are presented in a choppy, fast-motion style which lends a clownish air to the film. Each object or situation is followed by explorations into its aesthetic ramifications, revealed with brilliant color, very fast cutting, and multiple superimpositions. –S. L.

A collective, moving self-portrait of Polish painters of the turn of the century, composed of paintings presented at the exhibition "Symbolism in Polish art" at the National Museum in Warsaw in 1985.

British musician and writer David Toop leads viewers through a tour of his voluminous record collection, reflecting on perception, the limits of music and the connections between seemingly disparate performers. This unusual documentary from filmmakers Guy Marc Hinant and Dominique Lohlé also captures Toop's progression from engagement to near exhaustion as he methodically combs through tens of thousands of records.

'Year of the Bison' documents 2 x Olympian/World Silver Medalist, Nick Symmonds through his Final Season of Professional Track and Field. Through workouts, races and life off the track, Does Nick have what it takes to be best US track and field athlete for one more season?

Documentary on the interdependence of the world of the living and the dead, and 'the infernal influence on the thoughts and actions of living people.

Shot while he was preparing Un Flic, Melville carefully leads Labarthe through the trajectory of his career, from his daring debut The Silence of the Sea to his great successes of the 1960s, Le Samourai and Le cercle rouge. Labarthe also details the development of the Melville “myth: the dark glasses, the trenchcoats, the Ford Mustang, and his general tough-guy demeanor. This documentary first appeared as an episode on the French television series "Cinéastes de notres temps".

An Appropriated Self-portrait is an autobiographical piece conceived through the articulation of appropriated and recycled film fragments from over 180 movies and found footage. It was assembled as a fragmentary structure that relies on a non-linear narrative.

Director Mohsen Makhmalbaf claims to have never seen a movie before making his first film. Doubtful as it sounds, this boast matches perfectly with the controversial artist's personae. Stardust Stricken -- Mohsen Makhmalbaf: A Portrait documents the work of this Iranian filmmaker. After spending time in prison for political dissidence, Makhmalbaf discovered the social potential of the cinema. Some of his projects include Marriage of the Blessed and The Actor. While creating around 20 films, the outspoken director established new ideas about the nature of his work. In this release, Makhmalbaf speaks about art, human behavior, and his evolving fundamentalist beliefs.

Hailed in France as a national treasure, Serge Gainsbourg was beloved both for his music and for being the country’s favorite ’enfant terrible’. This poetic documentary presents Gainsbourg entirely in his own words, accompanied by carefully selected archival footage, including musical performances and Gainsbourg’s previously unreleased personal films.

A black-and-white travel journal, in which the themes of memories and their relationship to the past suddenly catch up and rush away from us. The film is based on a series of portraits of American artists, all of whom belong to a young and politicized generation, presented in static tableaus from their studios, films and home environments.

Renzo Kinoshita's animated self-portrait.

The film was shot in the year of the 975th anniversary of Yaroslavl. The painting is based on portraits of Yaroslavl residents from the distant past and Yaroslavl residents of the late twentieth century: workers, restorers, engineers, artists. The frame contains many recognizable places of the city, as well as courtyards, factories, and cultural institutions. This 10-minute film perfectly conveys the atmosphere of life in Yaroslavl in the mid-1980s.

In modern Estonia, a modern factory employs modern workers, a Russian, a Ukrainian and a Chinese. They try to understand each other and the society in which they find themselves.

Set against the backdrop of major historical events of the 20th century – the revolution, the dissolution of the Russian Empire, wars, the Stalinist regime – this film tells the stories of people who lived in Perm in different years.

Ed Gerlock, Romeo Mariano, and DJ De Guzman shares their experience in documenting a range of events in the decades of media censorship.