En Frame

CONTACT

CONTACT is a short documentary film directed by Jonathan Walley that chronicles the transformation of an entire skatepark into a playable musical instrument—where the skate, BMX, art, and music scenes collide. HCS has been many things: a skatepark, gallery, library, museum, and stage; but, for one weekend, Derek Nelson fabricator, activist, BMX pro, and artist, transformed his skatepark into an immersive sonic installation—part instrument, part playground—for the community of Binghamton, NY to become co‑creators in a conflagration of sound. SMALL TOWN, BIG SOUND. CONTACT reminds us of the joy in creativity, community, and the DIY spirit. Contact is about pushing boundaries, experimenting with art, and reclaiming space in an increasingly cruel, unkind, and oppressive world. It’s a poetic exploration of the creative process told by a filmmaker who calls HCS home.

Bala

A documentary about the aging prima ballerina Balasaraswati (popularly known as "Bala"), the most famous exponent of the Bharatanatyam dance.

Sheena Ringo: Gekokujyo Xstasy

"Gekokujyo Xstasy" is a video album by Japanese singer and songwriter Ringo Sheena, released on 7 December 2000 by Toshiba EMI. It contains a live recording of Sheena during her first tour of the same name. "Gekokujyo Xstasy" was the first nationwide tour for Shiina performed from April 17, 2000 to June 7. The live video takes up two performances at NHK Hall and at Fukuoka Sunpalace mainly from this tour. The stage design of the tour makes a hospital a motif like her single "Honnou." The stage setting imitated an operating room, and an ECG Monitor or an anatomical model of the human body, etc. were arranged on the stage, and the synthesizer and the drum set were laid on operating tables. Shiina wears a white dress looks like gauze bandages with which she blinds her body. Four members of the tour band also wear the white coat.

UPFALL

A Story of Love, Loss & Rebirth through a Musical Journey. Rachel Andie tells her story of Love, Loss and Rebirth in a feature length visual album, complimenting her music album, "Tu Me Manques." As the story winds through a few years of her life in Philadelphia, her essence is captured both on and off the stage. The co-director, Skyler Jenkins, has been a friend of Rachel's since he moved into Philadelphia, always living a block away; since he was so close to her, he was able to capture a very authentic and intimate look into this artist's life. The visual album was released in 2022 on YouTube, each week a new visual is released, along with a part of the story.

The Artist Body

A Singer, Musician & Filmmaker embark on a Cross Country Journey to explore what it takes to Find your Creative Voice. Through conversations, theory & musical moments, they uncover the steps & struggles every artist faces. This isn’t just a film—it’s a blueprint to find your voice.

Radioactive Vampire Teeth

A short documentary exploring Calgary noise-rock band, Radioactive Vampire Teeth.

Terror Mandelão

Terror Mandelão addresses sound, technology, and the job market in the universe of baile funk in São Paulo's favelas. The film follows the journey of DJ K, one of the main DJs of Baile do Helipa, the street party of Heliópolis favela, and his friend Zero K, who got his first hit after 10 years as MC. Combining documentary, fictional elements, and visual experimentation, it portrays the ups and downs faced by young artists on the outskirts.

The Improv: 50 Years Behind the Brick Wall

Several comic greats pay tribute to the legendary stand-up stage founded by Budd Friedman in 1963.

Daniel Balavoine : 40 ans déjà

Through Daniel Balavoine's greatest songs, which have become cult classics, this documentary traces the dazzling career of a free-spirited singer, driven by an urgent need to speak out, denounce injustice, and love, whose lyrics continue to touch several generations. Rare archives, testimonials from those who knew him, expert analysis and insights from today's musicians highlight the enduring modernity of his work and examine the legacy he left to French music.

A Bright Nowhere: Journeying Into Improvisation

An important audio-visual record of a landmark series of four concerts staged in London in 2022 when more than 30 musicians joined improviser, percussionist and animateur Eddie Prévost to mark his 80th birthday. The film takes a close look at improvisers who create music in the moment, free from the authority of a composer, score or conductor. Ranging from profound delicacy to subversive atonality, the “awkward wealth” of this music raises vital questions about artistic freedom, individual responsibility and what it means for people to make music together in the 21st Century. Featuring performances by John Butcher, Sue Lynch, Ute Kanngiesser, Marjolaine Charbin, Nathan Moore, Seymour Wright, Veryan Weston, Alan Wilkinson, John Tilbury and Eddie Prévost amongst others. Plus readings by musician and author David Toop. The film includes the last ever concert by AMM, the pioneering improvising group co-founded by Eddie Prévost in the mid-1960s.

Du 5éme des Arts de Shiraz

The creation of Iannis Xenakis’ « Persephassa » at the Shiraz-Persepolis Art Festival. There are only a few archives left of this piece, for its ring-like disposition around the audience made it difficult for people to record it or take pictures of it. When it was created in Persepolis, each percussionist was settled on the stump of a column of the Palace of Darius. The distance between them could go as far as 164 feet (50 metres).

Listen

Documentary without audio produced by deaf people. Music is depicted visually with the complete absence of musical instruments or voices. Directed by Makihara Eri and choreographer Dakei. With a diverse lineup including ordinary deaf people with zero acting experience and a choreographer who performs in Japan and abroad, this film pulls out all the tops to give visual expression to music through the physical body. An aging man uses multiple sign language poems to convey the four seasons, and a girl expresses the wind amidst the rustling trees.

Portrait of a Song

A documentary looking at the making of the hit sing ‘Runaway’ for its 10 year anniversary, by AURORA

Ni Por Mil Puñados De Oro

Radical Harmonies

Interviews and performance footage are used to provide an overview of the women's music scene.

Saddari

Saddari is a story of A 3 Young bikers decide to hit the road to another state for adventure , Ending up embarking on a challenging bike trip across all of Sudan with less than a 100$ In their pockets combined and worn-out bicycles, Facing numerous challenges along the way.

Mi Vida Me Pasa

Arturo Urbiola, independent singer/songwriter, talks about the influence music has had on his life, it's impact, and what's in store for his artistic career after becoming a father.

Holger und ich.

Holger Diekmann was a singer, bass player, and drummer in multiple local bands throughout his short life. Filmmaker Jonas Helmerichs sets out to learn what kind of person his late uncle was. Intimate family portrait and exploration of grief, depression, and death.

We Want the Funk!

Stanley Nelson's syncopated voyage through the history of funk music, from early roots to 1970s urban funk and beyond.