The Rocking Barber of Hisingen

A Time There Was: Stories from the Last Days of Kenya Colony

A look at the Mau Mau Rebellion of the 1950s as experienced by filmmaker Donald McWilliams.

Torn from the Flag

A sociopolitical historical documentary-thriller about the international decline of communism and the 1956 Hungarian Revolution.

Camp Century: The Hidden City Beneath the Ice

How in 1959, during the heat of the Cold War, the government of the United States decided to create a secret military base located in the far north of Greenland: Camp Century, almost a real town with roads and houses, a nuclear plant to provide power and silos to house missiles aimed at the Soviet Union.

Il est minuit, Paris s'éveille

De Gaulle, l'homme à abattre

Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps: Be Bop a Lula

De Gaulle, the Last King of France

Charles de Gaulle, the first president (1958-1969) of the Vth Republic, France’s current system of government, left his mark on the country . He was statesman of action and has been compared to a monarch. This film depicts the general’s personality through the great events of his presidential term, at a time when the world was undergoing considerable changes.

The Very Worst Thing

On February 28, 1958, the community of Floyd County, Kentucky experienced one of the greatest tragedies imaginable when a school bus carrying 48 students careened over an embankment and plunged into the Big Sandy River. Miraculously, 22 children survived by swimming to shore; the rest of the students, and their driver, weren't so fortunate. Over 50 years later, filmmaker Michael Crisp reflects on the accident that broke America's heart by speaking with crash survivor Martha Burchett Marsh and numerous other locals whose lives were forever affected by this heartbreaking catastrophe.

The Deal

Stop-motion animation on the arranging of marriages in 1950/60s set in the Eastern-Polish borderland. The script is based on a part of Mikołaj Smyk's diary, the director's grandfather. The biographical objects used in the animation, such as an authentic headscarf, Polish and Russian books, the copy of Mikołaj Smyk's diary and photographs help situate the story in its original environment.

Boosting is a Business

Demonstration of shoplifting methods. With the Cooperation and Assistance of Berkeley, California Police Department and Berkeley Police Reserve; Addison H. Fording, Chief of Police; J.F. Hink & Son Department Store, L.W. Hink, President. Technical Assistance: Wm. P. Beall, Lieutenant; E.A. Skells, Sergeant, Berkeley Police DepartmentGeorge Jelten, Director of Visual Merchandising, J.F. Hink and Son. Director of Photography: John L. Siegle. Sound: Walter D. Porep. Narration: John E. Pedersen.

The Rumba Kings

In the fifties, when the future Democratic Republic of Congo was still a Belgian colony, an entire generation of musicians fused traditional African tunes with Afro-Cuban music to create the electrifying Congolese rumba, a style that conquered the entire continent thanks to an infectious rhythm, captivating guitar sounds and smooth vocals.

La banlieue, c’est le paradis

In the 1960s, the suburbs were meant to be modern havens for newcomers from rural France, Portugal, Spain, North Africa, and Africa, helping rebuild post-war France. Large housing complexes symbolized this ideal, offering comfort, heating, and electricity. But by the 1980s, disillusionment set in as economic crisis, unemployment, poverty, crime, racism, and police violence took hold. Mohamed Bouhafsi tells the story of a dream that didn’t last.

Spartamerika

An essay film exploring the thirteen United States Presidents that have led the country through war and conflict from 1950 to 2025.

The Great Smog of London

For five days in December 1952, a thick smog suffocated the British capital causing the death of thousands of Londoners. The health catastrophe lead to a realisation, in Britain and around the world, that air pollution was a serious threat to human health. This documentary reveals what happened, hour by hour, in one of the worst peacetime disasters of the 20th century.

Hugo in Argentina

A promising Italian cartoonist lands in Buenos Aires in 1950, with the dream of reaching the United States, to discover that, for him, America will be Argentina. The country immediately overwhelms him with its massive economic boom and a cultural scene among the most vibrant in the world. We are at the dawn of Argentina's most delirious decade, and the young immigrant feels that the vast promise of this country is within his grasp. His name will indeed make itself known: Hugo Pratt.