All Films

Untitled Modest Mouse Documentary

1997 • 36 min • United States of America

Documentary about the indie rock band Modest Mouse made around 1997, as they were recording their second album, The Lonseome Crowded West

State of Fear

1997 • 15 min • Canada, United Kingdom

Seven hundred and seventy one words from Orwell, Chomsky, Shakespeare and others. Seven hundred and seventy one people off the street. A 15 minute meditation on Capitalism, Thought Control and the "Freedom" of Speech.

Thrill Ride: The Science of Fun

1997 • 40 min • United States of America

How to create the imagination of movement for fun parks is the theme of this documentary. Although engineers try and try to create machines that shake, tilt, turn, lift and drop people in a way that fools their senses, the real McCoy cannot be imitated: Roller Coasters just let you experience movement much, much more intense than everything else - even on the screen.

All For The Best

1997 • 36 min • Azerbaijan

The events occur during the Nagorno-Karabakh War. Because of a corpse in a zinc coffin with an arguable address, two families get excited. Having cut the lid off the coffin to identify the soldier, they find out that he is, in fact, Armenian - former citizen of Baku.

June Carr: The Virtual Vaudevillian

1997 • 30 min • United States of America

Tim Ormond’s loving portrait of his mother and collaborator, June Carr Ormond.

Patton: A Tribute to Franklin J. Schaffner

1997 • 50 min

Almost everyone who worked with director Franklin J. Schaeffer on the film is interviewed here, including George C. Scott (this piece was done before he died in 1999) and they all seem to unanimously agree that he was a complete and total gentleman to work with. Oliver Stone shows up here to give us his thoughts on the film and accuse it for being in some part responsible for the bombing of Cambodia, which is an interesting theory if perhaps a little misguided (he claims that Nixon was so influenced by Patton that it resulted in his decision to launch that first attack which in turn resulted in the bombing). Other interviewees in this piece include Richard Zanuck, Jerry Goldsmith, Fred Koenekamp, Franklin J. Schaeffer himself, and the film's producer, Frank McCarthy. The interviews are nicely complimented by some behind the scenes clips as well as a small assortment of camera tests.

Dá pra Segurar!

1997 • 20 min • Brazil

Stimulated by sketches in which young actors improvise about situations related to AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), students from a public school in Rio de Janeiro and teenagers from the Zona Sul and the Baixada Fluminense debate these themes. This video was made by CECIP for the Adolescence and STD / AIDS Project, with the support of the Ministry of Health's National STD / AIDS Control Program.

The Rocking Horse Winner

1997 • 23 min

A gambler comes to live with his sister and discovers his young nephew can predict the winner of horse races by riding on his rocking horse.

Pvc

1997 • 8 min • Brazil

Lysergy slices hovering under cathode tubes

Tales from the Far Side II

1997 • 46 min • Canada

An anthology of original animated shorts in the style and theme of Gary Larson's Far Side comics.

Noodles and Nedd

1997 • 8 min • France, United States of America

A short created by John R. Dilworth involving the daily lives of a yellow man and a purple cat.

Isamu Noguchi: Stones and Paper

1997 • 60 min • United States of America

Isamu Noguchi was a sculptor, designer, architect, and craftsman. Throughout his life he struggled to see, alter, and recreate his natural surroundings. His gardens and fountains were transformations meant to bring out the beauty their locations had always possessed.

Alice Guy-Blaché

1997 • 60 min • Germany

A one-hour biographical documentary about Alice Guy-Blaché, one of the first women to direct films.

Calamity Malik

1997 • 60 min • France

Malik, who grew up in Paris suburbs, dreams to move to Canada. Someone will give him a chance. But, when you are an unlucky guy by nature, it is hard to keep its chance.

Paragot-Bérardini, La Cordée des Voyous

1997 • 26 min

Paragot and Bérardini: two climbers who fill all climbing enthusiasts with admiration. In Fontainebleau, Saussois, the Alps, the Andes, the Himalayas, and all over the world, they have left their names attached to the most difficult routes and the most prestigious peaks. Here, they recount only the climbs they completed together: famous expeditions to Aconcagua and Huascarán, firsts in the Alps and the Dolomites. An unwavering friendship, comical and tragic adventures—this is what they share with us in the warm atmosphere of their memories. "La Cordée des Voyous" will be included in Jean Afanassieff's film "La Grande Cordée," which deals with post-war proletarian mountaineering.

The Amazing Feats of Young Hercules

1997 • 31 min • United States of America

When Hercules misuses his might, Zeus banishes him from Mt. Olympus. In order to return home, he must prove his worth by facing four perilous tasks on earth. Follow the perils and adventures of Hercules and his sidekick Falina, a princess who's been turned into a sable. Hercules defeats the Stymphalian birds, which are drawn as robots, and the Hydra, a clumsy three-headed dragon. He also tangles with a Gorgon (borrowed from the legend of Perseus) and goes after some golden apples.

Affluenza

1997 • 56 min • United States of America

A look at the modern-day problem of "affluenza," an epidemic of stress, overwork, shopping and debt caused by the pursuit of the American Dream. The history of the condition is explored, as well as the advertising and marketing ploys used to sustain it. Men and women from around the country share their stories of personal debt and suggestions for financial recovery.

London's Burning: Play It For Real

1997 • 30 min • United Kingdom

A documentary where London's Burning actors Richard Walsh, Clive Wood and Zoe Heyes spend a night on duty with real life London firefighters.

David Cronenberg and the Cinema of the Extreme

1997 • 21 min • United Kingdom

A brief documentary about Cronenberg made by the BBC to precede a showing of 'Videodrome' on television.

Rouen, cinq minutes d'arrêt

1997 • 15 min • France

On a sunday, Marguerite and Mario meet while waiting for the train.

Steve Harvey: One Man

1997 • 57 min • United States of America

Before the success of the record-breaking "Kings of Comedy Tour," America's King of Comedy rocked the house from Augusta, Georgia's Bell Auditorium in his HBO "One Man" Show. If you enjoyed "The Original Kings of Comedy," then you will be in for a treat. In this live performance before a sold-out crowd, he continues to draw on his childhood experiences, observations about life, and human nature. It's a night of explosive comedy as Steve Harvey shows why people consider him "The Real Comedy King."

The Haunted History of Halloween

1997 • 50 min • United States of America

The origins of Halloween are explored in this engrossing program on the subject. A ghoulish array of costumes, make up, and decoration descend on communities every year on October 31st, but few people are aware of how the celebration came to exist. Harry Smith attempts to get to the bottom of the mystery in THE HAUNTED HISTORY OF HALLOWEEN, which delves into the 3,000 years of hoopla that traditionally unfolds when October comes around. As the history is explained, so are various failed attempts to co-opt the festival by various religious groups; but the most compelling revelation is how little the festival has changed over the centuries. A marvelous way to gain a historical perspective on this entertaining holiday, Smith's program is almost as fun as carving a pumpkin, donning a spooky costume, and undertaking a little trick or treating!

Too Young

1997 • 40 min

Mo Tz-yi is a high-school youth who likes to hypnotize himself by listening to tapes, intending to explore the world beyond. Chen Wen-yi, a student who failed in class before, cares about nobody and nobody cares about him. Mo begins to shift his attention to Chen. Rumours abound about Chen - he had once committed suicide. As two chords with the same frequency achieve resonance when played together, Mo and Chen begin an interesting journey together.

Kathy Acker in School

1997 • 7 min • Canada

Kathy Acker talks about being 14, hanging out at the New York Filmmakers Cooperative with Jack Smith, Stan Brakhage, and boyfriend P. Adams Sitney. She speaks to the theft of language, narrative versus myth, and digging herself out of hell. The interview was shot on Halloween night, 1996.