Loti García Haoa
as Self
Henri García
as Self (archival footage)
Rodrigo Fernández
Ana María Barón Parra
How were the giant stone heads of Rapa Nui – also known as Easter Island – carved and raised, and why? Since Europeans arrived on this remote Pacific island over 300 years ago, controversy has swirled around the iconic ancient statues and the history of the people who created them. Now, a new generation of researchers is overturning old theories, revealing the rich history, innovation, and resilience of the Rapanui people, and uncovering intriguing new evidence about where they – and their practice of monumental stone building – came from.
The contrast between the majestic statues of Easter Island and the desolation of their surroundings is stark. For decades Easter Island, or Rapa Nui as the islanders call it, has been seen as a warning from history for the planet as a whole - willfully expend natural resources and the collapse of civilization is inevitable.
A simple, carved figure bought at an auction in New York leads David Attenborough on a global journey from Russia to Australia, from England back to the Pacific. On the way he delves into a history of the stunning stones on Easter Island.
Easter Island has long been the subject of curiosity and speculation. A triangle of volcanic rock in the South Pacific, Easter Island is over 2000 miles away from the nearest population center, making it one of the most isolated spots on Earth. It is best known for the giant stone statues, known as the Moai, that dot the coastline.
This is a tiny island, lost in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. But it stirs up passions: the Easter Island. Because it owns one of the most precious treasures of humanity: the famous stone statues called moai. Who was this Rapa Nui people who created such a masterpiece? Where did these men and women come from? How did they disappear ?
Inter-tribal rivalry leads to a competition to erect a huge Maoi statue in record time before Make can take part in the race to retrieve the egg of a Sooty Tern. The reward for winning this race is to rule the island for one year.
Summoned into life by a god-like deity, two Easter Island statues engage in a fierce battle in outer space.
A documentary that carefully explores the sensitive topic of mental health among young people, challenging social stigmas and dispelling common misconceptions often linked to the issue.
When the United States entered World War I, its Army Air Service lacked a combat-ready aircraft – a liability that prompted a search to find an aircraft suitable for production at home and combat operations abroad. This documentary from Bowling Green filmmakers tells the story behind the single-engine DH-4 plane dubbed The Liberty Plane.
They call it ’blue gold.’ Around the world, demand for water is exploding. By 2050, at least one in four will live in a country suffering from water shortages - creating ideal conditions for a new market. Goldman Sachs, HSBC, UBS, Allianz, Deutsche Bank, BNP. Banks, investment funds and hedge funds are all rushing to invest billions of euros in anything related to water. A real monopoly of water has begun. From California to Australia, from New York to London via Marseille, we investigate the financialization of water. New power relations are being established and access to water is being threatened. It’s a battle taking place on many fronts: ideological, political, environmental, and of course, economic. The fate of nearly 10 billion inhabitants around the world depends on its outcome.
Is our life a story? And if so, can we re-write it? In Drama Girl, director Vincent Boy Kars gets a young woman to act out a number of key scenes from her recent past. Perhaps, Kars thinks, this could help her come to terms with certain events. In the meantime, he also gains something: a film that probes how fiction and documentary can learn from one another.
In Not Criminally Responsible: Wedding Secrets, a film within a film and sequel to the acclaimed documentary NCR: Not Criminally Responsible from 4-time Emmy-winner John Kastner, a wedding is born of a terrible act of violence. The new film shows how the lives of six of the people involved in the original one were dramatically transformed. Two of them are marrying each other.
Richard Dreyfuss hosts a celebration of the 80 year history of Universal Studios. Founded as IMP by Carl Leammle to oppose Edison's Motion Picture Tust, it soon grew under the leadership of 21 year old production head Irving Thalberg with classic silents from artists like John Ford, Erich Von Stroheim, and Lon Chaney and prospered further in the Sound Era under the leadership of Carl Leammle Jr. with such classics as "All Quiet on The Western Front," "Showboat," and the studio's signature monster franchises, "Frankenstein" and "Dracula."
When twenty-six-year-olds Shainee Gabel and Kristin Hahn quit their Hollywood jobs, packed up a borrowed car and hit the road, it was with the deeply felt conviction that somewhere, shrouded in the din of talk shows and tabloid headlines, they'd discover the real America, alive and well in all of its regions and demographics.
Thriller about governments around the world racing to attempt to stop a terrorist organization from gaining loose nuclear weapons and supplies before it's too late.
From its simple beginnings in 1939 in a sleepy beach town in the south of France, the prestigious Cannes Film Festival has become the must-attend red carpet event of the year. Filmmaker Richard Schickel's fascinating documentary captures the glitz and glamour of the festival's incredible 60-year run with archival footage and unforgettable moments. Hollywood's biggest names including Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese, Sharon Stone and Harvey Weinstein talk about the politics, madness, and thrills of competing for one of the industry's highest honors - the coveted Palme d'Or - and what it's like to be at the most fabulous festival by the sea.
Filmmaker Kevin Macdonald travels across Europe in search of the grandfather he never really knew, Emeric Pressburger, the Oscar-winning screen writer.