The 2008 presidential elections in Ghana, West Africa, serve as a backdrop for this feature documentary that looks behind-the-scenes at the complex, political machinery of a third world democracy struggling to legitimize itself to its first world contemporaries. At stake in this race are the fates of two political parties that will do almost anything to win. Director Jarreth Merz follows the key players for almost three months to provide an unprecedented insider’s view of the political, economic and social forces at work in Ghana. He builds suspense by taking the viewer down the back roads of the nation to capture each unexpected twist and turn in a contest that is always exciting and never predictable. Throughout the film, Merz depicts the pride and humanity of the larger-than-life politicians, party operatives and citizens who battle for the soul of their country. (Urban Republic)

blur: To The End follows the unique relationship of four friends - and bandmates of three decades - Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree as they came together in early 2023 to record new songs ahead of their sold-out, first ever shows at London’s Wembley Stadium in July last summer. Featuring performances of their most iconic, much-loved songs, footage of the band in the studio and life on the road, blur: To The End is an intimate moment in time with this most enduring of English bands, who have been at the heart of British cultural life and influence for over three decades.

Spaceship Earth is the true, stranger-than-fiction, adventure of eight visionaries who in 1991 spent two years quarantined inside of a self-engineered replica of Earth’s ecosystem called BIOSPHERE 2. The experiment was a worldwide phenomenon, chronicling daily existence in the face of life threatening ecological disaster and a growing criticism that it was nothing more than a cult. The bizarre story is both a cautionary tale and a hopeful lesson of how a small group of dreamers can potentially reimagine anew world. [Neon]

Ady Barkan’s life is upended when he is diagnosed with ALS, but a confrontation with a powerful Senator catapults him to national fame and ignites a once-in-a-generation political movement.

For nearly 40 years, Wolfgang Beltracchi fooled the international art world and was responsible for the biggest art forgery scandal of the postwar era. An expert in art history, theory and painting techniques, he tracked down the gaps in the oeuvres of great artists – Max Ernst, Fernand Léger, Heinrich Campendonk, André Derain and Max Pechstein, above all – and filled them with his own works. He and his wife Helene would then introduce them to the art world as originals. What makes these forgeries truly one-of-a-kind is that they are never mere copies of once-existing paintings, but products of Beltracchi’s imagination, works “in the style of” famous early 20th-century artists. With his forgeries, he fooled renowned experts, curators and art dealers. [KimStim Films]

A European musician and composer sets out to capture the musical diversity of Istanbul. (Strand Releasing)

In 1977, “Star Wars” became a cultural phenomenon that single-handedly revitalized a stagnant film industry, and forever changed how films were sold, made, and marketed. Movies would never be the same again. A year later, neither would television. In 1978, CBS aired the two-hour “Star Wars Holiday Special” during the week of Thanksgiving and was watched by 13 million people. It never re-aired. While some fans of the franchise are aware of this dark secret, this bizarre two hours of television still remains relatively unknown among the general public. Simply put, we will answer how and why did the “Holiday Special” get made.

Pablo Escobar was the richest, most powerful drug kingpin in the world, ruling the Medellín Cartel with an iron fist. Andres Escobar was the biggest soccer star in Colombia. The two were not related, but their fates were inextricably-and fatally-intertwined. Pablo's drug money had turned Andres' national team into South American champions, favored to win the 1994 World Cup in Los Angeles. It was there, in a game against the U.S., that Andres committed one of the most shocking mistakes in soccer history, scoring an "own goal" that eliminated his team from the competition and ultimately cost him his life. The Two Escobars is a riveting examination of the intersection of sports, crime, and politics. For Colombians, soccer was far more than a game: their entire national identity rode on the success or failure of their team. Jeff and Michael Zimbalist's fast and furious documentary plays out on an ever-expanding canvas, painting a fascinating portrait of Pablo, Andres, and a country in the grips of a violent, escalating civil war.

This documentary follows the 2004 Missouri Democratic primary to replace retiring 28-year veteran and former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt. It is told from inside the campaign of Jeff Smith, a 29-year old part-time political science instructor at Washington University. The film offers an unvarnished look at the inside of what national pundits called one of 2004's surprising campaigns. And the film asks if it is still possible in America for voters excited by a person's ideas and ability to get involved in the political process and elect a candidate who has not sold out, or bought into the existing political establishment. (At Risk Films)

Araya lacks a conventional narrative. It is not a documentary. It is not a fictional film. It is a poetic suite that the director sculpts into a love story for a place, a culture and a time that has since been forever lost. (Milestone Films)

A documentary about the tragedy of the children whose parents have died of AIDS and are now stranded in a refugee camp in Kampala, Uganda.

An unflinching investigation of the role that poverty, mental health, race, and sexuality play within the criminal justice system. (Home Box Office)

This documentary profiles seven Cuban refugees who risked their lives in homemade rafts to reach the United States, and follows their stories over seven tumultuous years in their new country.

The first documentary exploring the history and legacy of the Billie Holiday classic. This history of the song's evolution tells a dramatic story of America's radical past using one of the most influential protest songs ever written as its epicenter.

This observational documentary follows a year in the lives of two inspirational teachers at Headfort, the only primary-age boarding school in Ireland. Housed in an 18th century estate, school life embraces tradition and modernity. For John, rock music is just another subject alongside Maths, Scripture and Latin, taught in a collaborative and often hilarious fashion. For his wife Amanda, the key to connecting with children is the book, and she uses all means to snare the young minds. For nearly half a century these two have shaped thousands of minds, but now the unthinkable looms: what would retirement mean? What will keep them young if they leave?

After 81 days of solitary detention, world famous Chinese artist Ai Weiwei is put under house arrest. He suffers from sleeping disorder and memory loss, 18 cameras are monitoring his studio and home, police agents follow his every move, and heavy restrictions from the Kafkaesque Chinese authorities weigh him down. Journalists, the art world and his family all want a piece of him and on top of that he is met with a gigantic lawsuit from the Chinese government, soon to be named The Fake Case. Ai Weiwei is shaken, but during the year on probation he steadily finds new ways to provoke and challenge the mighty powers of the Chinese authorities in his fight for human rights. Ai Weiwei strongly believes that China is ready for change. And he will do everything to make it happen.

A documentary that chronicles the life of young college professor Angela Davis, and how her social activism implicates her in a botched kidnapping attempt placing her on the FBI's 10 most wanted list.

Following in the footsteps of a long line of documentarians, a collective of three Italian filmmakers known for their politically acute cinema—Pietro Marcello (Martin Eden), Francesco Munzi (Black Souls), and Alice Rohrwacher (Happy as Lazzaro)—set out to interview a cross-section of their nation’s youth about their hopes, dreams, and fears for the future. With today’s political divisions, socioeconomic unease, overreliance on technology, and global weather crisis, the conversations they foster feel particularly urgent—these 15- to 20-year-olds together ask the implicit question: is there a future at all? At the same time, the intelligence, expressiveness, and foresight evinced by these teenagers in this moving and masterful film kindles a form of hope in itself. [Grasshopper Film]

One man’s wild, lifelong adventure of testing society's boundaries through his subversive art, Far Out Isn’t Far Enough: The Tomi Ungerer Story combines traditional documentary storytelling with original animation culled from seven decades worth of art from the renegade children’s book author and illustrator. [First Run Features]

Captured during her sold-out world tour, Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live In 3D) brings an innovative new concert experience to the big screen from one of the most celebrated and successful artists of her generation. Presented in immersive 3D, the film is directed by Academy Award® winners James Cameron and Billie Eilish.

Twenty-five years after the collapse of the German Democratic Republic, New York filmmaker Petra Epperlein returns to her childhood home of Karl Marx City to find the truth about her late father’s suicide and his rumored Stasi past. Had he been an informant for the secret police? Was her childhood an elaborate fiction? As she looks for answers in the Stasi’s extensive archives and from her own family, she pulls back the curtain of her own nostalgia and enters the parallel world of the security state.

Shot by legendary cinematographer Albert Maysles, this dynamic musical documentary follows five Gypsy bands from four countries who unite for the Gypsy Caravan as they take their show around North America for a six-week tour, astounding every audience they meet. Their musical styles range from flamenco to brass band, Romanian violin to Indian folk. And with humor and soul in their voices, they celebrate the best in Gypsy culture and the diversity of the Romani people in an explosion of song and dance. (Little Dust Prod.)

In 1970s San Francisco, 20-year-old Korean immigrant Chol Soo Lee is racially profiled and convicted of a Chinatown gang murder. After spending years fighting to survive, investigative journalist K.W. Lee takes a special interest in his case, igniting an unprecedented social justice movement.

‘Tis Autumn: The Search for Jackie Paris is a documentary film that comprehensively examines the groundbreaking jazz vocalist’s life and art—his meteoric rise, enigmatic career, and mysterious life, asking the question: How much do you we need to know of an artist’s life to approach his art? (Outsider Pictures)

Unsettled: Seeking Refuge in America follows the stories of LGBT refugees and asylum seekers from Africa and the Middle East as they flee persecution in their countries of origin to seek better and safer lives in the U.S.

Lucy and Desi explores the unlikely partnership and enduring legacy of one of the most prolific power couples in entertainment history. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz risked everything to be together. Their love for each other led to the most influential show in the history of television, I Love Lucy. Desi – an immigrant from Cuba who lost everything in exile, became a band leader, and eventually a brilliant producer and technical pioneer. Lucille came from nothing and, with an unrivaled work ethic, built a career as a model, chorus girl and eventually as an actor in the studio system. She found her calling in comedy, first in radio. When Lucille was finally granted the opportunity to have her own television show, she insisted that her real-life spouse, Desi, be cast as her husband. Defying the odds, they re-invented the medium, on the screen and behind the cameras. The foundation of I Love Lucy was the constant rupture and repair of unconditional love. What Lucy and Desi couldn’t make work with each other, they gave to the rest of the world. Lucy and Desi is an insightful and intimate peek behind the curtain of these two remarkable trailblazers – featuring interviews with Lucie Arnaz Luckinbill, Norman Lear, Desi Arnaz Jr, Carol Burnett and Bette Midler.

In his final days, we discover Eli Timoner and an extraordinary life of wild achievements, tragic loss and most of all, enduring love. LAST FLIGHT HOME shares a stunning verité account of a courageous family confronting life and death.

Why are Americans so fat? Find out in Super Size Me, a tongue in-cheek - and burger in hand -- look at the legal, financial and physical costs of America's hunger for fast food. (Samuel Goldwyn Films)

This documentary, set in an Islamic divorce court, examines the cultural difference surrounding this legal procedure.

Second Skin takes an intimate look at three sets of computer gamers whose lives have been transformed by online virtual worlds. An emerging genre of computer software called Massively Multiplayer Online games, or MMOs, allows millions of users to interact simultaneously in virtual spaces. Of the 50 million players worldwide, 50 percent consider themselves addicted. From individuals struggling with addiction to couples who have fallen in love without meeting; from disabled players whose lives have been given new purpose to gold farmers, entrepreneurs and widows, Second Skin opens viewers’ eyes to a phenomenon that may permanently change the way human beings interact. (Pure West Films)

Four Indigenous siblings survived 40 days in Colombia's jungle after a plane crash. The film shows their story through footage, recreations, and animation, highlighting Indigenous-military cooperation and traditional knowledge.

United in Anger: A History of ACT UP is a unique feature-length documentary that combines startling archival footage that puts the audience on the ground with the activists and the remarkably insightful interviews from the ACT UP Oral History Project to explore ACT UP (the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) from a grassroots perspective – how a small group of men and women of all races and classes, came together to change the world and save each other’s lives. (Act Up Film)

Writing, memory and architecture flow together in this sensual nocturnal wandering through the streets of Istanbul, which becomes a vibrant archive of life lived. [Soda Pictures]

Gilbert is a wildly funny and unexpectedly poignant portrait of the life and career of one of comedy's most iconic figures, Gilbert Gottfried.

Love and Bananas tackles the issue of what can be done to prevent the extinction of Asian elephants, which are at risk of becoming trophies and product imports for man’s desire and greed.

The searing story of President Duterte's bloody campaign against drug dealers and addicts in the Philippines, told with unprecedented and intimate access to both sides of the war - the Manila police, and an ordinary family from the slum. Shot in the style of a thriller, this observational film combines the look and feel of a narrative feature film with a real life revelatory journalistic investigation into a campaign of killings. The film uncovers a murky world where crime, drugs and politics meet in a deathly embrace - and reveal that although the police have been publicly ordered to stop extra-judicial killings, the deaths continue.

An in-depth look at the life and work of American journalist James Foley, who was killed by ISIS terrorists in 2014.

Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families -- including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopalian Bishop Gene Robinson -- we discover how insightful people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child. Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard's Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech, For the Bible Tells Me So offers healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the cross-hairs of scripture and sexual identity. (First Run Pictures)

Mija chronicles the emotional and complex stories of Doris Muñoz and Jacks Haupt, the daughters of undocumented immigrants from Mexico, navigating their careers in the music industry. For these two, “making it” isn’t just a dream, it’s a necessity.

In 1973, five men and six women drifted across the Atlantic on a raft as part of a scientific experiment studying the sociology of violence, aggression and sexual attraction in human behavior. Although the project became known in the press as 'The Sex Raft', nobody expected what ultimately took place on that three month journey. Through extraordinary archive material and a reunion of the surviving members of the expedition on a full scale replica of the raft, this film tells the hidden story behind what has been described as 'one of the strangest group experiments of all time.'

The Price of Sugar follows a charismatic Spanish priest, Father Christopher Hartley, as he organizes some of this hemisphere's poorest people to challenge powerful interests profiting from their work. When he arrives in the Dominican Republic, he's warned against entering the sugar plantations where most of his parishioners live. Breaking a centuries-old taboo, he discovers shocking examples of modern-day slavery intrinsic to the global sugar trade. (Uncommon Productions)

Though almost forgotten today, Veit Harlan was one of Nazi Germany’s most notorious filmmakers. Millions all across occupied Europe saw his films, the most perfidious of which was the treacherous anti-Semitic propaganda film Jew Süss—required viewing for all SS members. An unrepentant and blindly obsessive craftsman, no figure—save for Leni Riefenstahl—is as closely associated with the cinema of the Holocaust years as that of Joseph Goebbels’ top director. (Harlan’s 1945 epic Kolberg was the basis for Inglourious Basterds’ pivotal film-within-a-film Stolz Der Nation.) Harlan was also the only artist from the Nazi era to be charged with war crimes. (Zeigeist Films)

This documentary is a powerful and poignant journey into the harsh world of sweatshop workers. (Bullfrog Films)

For more than a decade, Olga has been picking up the black babies left in Ukrainian orphanages and raising them together so that they may support and protect one another. Neo-Nazis in Ukraine pose a real danger for a dark-skinned individual in the street. These white supremacist youth joke about their evening raids and how police seem to let them do it. Prosecutors are not particularly determined to give strict sentences to racially motivated crimes, and young thugs can get away with probation for beating someone nearly to death. Olga sends her foster children to stay with host families in France and Italy in the summers and over Christmas, where they are cared for by charitable families who have committed to helping disadvantaged Ukrainian youth since the Chernobyl disaster. Olga's kids now speak different languages, and the older girls chat in fluent Italian with each other even while cooking a vat of borscht. But Olga doesn't believe in international adoption and has refused to sign adoption papers from host families that wanted to adopt her kids. "At least when the kids grow up, they'll have a mother to blame for all the failures that will happen in their lives," she says. (First Pond Entertainment)

Uncle Howard is an intertwining tale of past and present––the story of filmmaker Howard Brookner, whose work captured the late 70s and early 80s cultural revolution, and his nephew’s personal journey 25 years later to discover his uncle’s films and the legacy of a life cut short by the plague of AIDS.

Milford Graves Full Mantis is the first ever feature-length portrait of renowned percussionist Milford Graves, exploring his kaleidoscopic creativity and relentless curiosity.

A walk in the woods will never be the same after watching this documentary The Hidden Life of Trees. Based on his best-selling book that profoundly changed our understanding of forests, renowned forester & writer Peter Wohlleben guides us through his most enlightening ideas. Presenting his ecological, biological and academic expertise with infectious enthusiasm and candor, Wohlleben travels through Germany, Poland, Sweden, and Vancouver to illustrate the amazing processes of life, death, and regeneration he has observed in the woodland for decades.

Bill Nye is a man on a mission: to stop the spread of anti-scientific thinking across the world. The former star of the popular kids show "Bill Nye The Science Guy" is now the CEO of The Planetary Society, an organization founded by Bill's mentor Carl Sagan, where he's launching a solar propelled spacecraft into the cosmos and advocating for the importance of science, research, and discovery in public life. With intimate and exclusive access —as well as plenty of wonder and whimsy — this behind-the-scenes portrait of Nye follows him as he takes off his Science Guy lab coat and takes on those who deny climate change, evolution, and a science-based world view.

Barney Rosset is the greatest American publisher of the twentieth century and the most influential cultural figure that you haven’t heard of. Under Rosset, Grove Press and Evergreen Review fought decisive battles, including many before the state and federal supreme courts, defeated legal censorship, and opened American life to new and dangerous currents of freedom. But Rosset’s public fight against hypocrisy and injustice is inextricable from his tumultuous personal life: the same unyeilding, quixotic, restless energy that upended centuries of law brought Rosset perilously close to destruction. (Arthouse Films)

After two years of painstaking work, designer Edmund McMillen and programmer Tommy Refenes await the release of their first major game for Xbox, Super Meat Boy—the adventures of a skinless boy in search of his girlfriend, who is made of bandages. At PAX, a major video-game expo, developer Phil Fish unveils his highly anticipated, four-years-in-the-making FEZ. Jonathan Blow considers beginning a new game after creating Braid, one of the highest-rated games of all time. First-time filmmaking duo Lisanne Pajot and James Swirsky capture the emotional journey of these meticulously obsessive artists who devote their lives to their interactive art. Four developers, three games, and one ultimate goal— to express oneself through a video game. (BlinkWorks Media)

Established in 1960, Tower Records was once a retail powerhouse with two hundred stores, in thirty countries, on five continents. From humble beginnings in a small-town drugstore, Tower Records eventually became the heart and soul of the music world, and a powerful force in the music industry. In 1999, Tower Records made $1 billion. In 2006, the company filed for bankruptcy. What went wrong? Everyone thinks they know what killed Tower Records: The Internet. But that's not the story.

Documentry focusing on the lives of professional wrestlers. Gives the viewer a behind-the-scenes look at how their sport is not fake.

This feature documentary analyzes the very nature of the corporate institution, its impacts on our planet, and what people are doing in response. (Zeitgeist Films)

The story about the outcast, Herbert Khaury's rise to stardom as Tiny Tim. Either considered a freak or a genius Tiny Tim left no one unaffected.

Patient compendium drawing from 3400 hours of audio tapes, archival footage, declassified documents, et al, weaves a rich texture of understanding, particularly effective in flashbacks from their current day selves to their Watergate-era roles for such stalwarts as Carl Bernstein, Bob Woodward and John Dean. Numerous current day parallels are elegantly understated.

Discover the unknown history of the birth and destruction of Cambodian cinema, from the first film ever made in 1960 to the arrival of the Khmer Rouges in 1975. In 15 years, about 400 films were produced. Only 30 films remain today. Almost all the actors were killed during the Khmer Rouges regime and only a few of the directors were able to flee the country. Most of the old movie theaters of Phnom Penh have become restaurants, karaoke places or squats. With a few of the survivors telling their stories, Golden Slumbers tries to bring back to life the myths and legends of this lost cinema.

Today, Europe’s fastest growing Jewish population is in Berlin. Germany is considered one of the most democratic societies in the world, assuming the position of moral leader of Europe as they embrace hundreds of thousands of refugees. This development couldn’t have been imagined in 1945. Through personal stories Germans & Jews explores Germany’s transformation as a society, from silence about the Holocaust to facing it head on. Unexpectedly, a nuanced story of reconciliation emerges. What began as a private conversation between the two filmmakers and friends, Tal Recanati (Jewish) and Janina Quint (non-Jewish German), grew into a cultural exchange among many and we realize that the two people are inextricably linked through the memory of the Holocaust. Germans and Jews is at once uncomfortable and provocative, unexpected and enlightening. [First Run Features]

Philadelphia native Tommy Oliver follows the efforts of Mike Africa Jr. to exonerate his parents, both incarcerated members of the revolutionary group MOVE.

Using never-seen-before interrogation footage, this investigation of Benjamin Netanyahu and his inner circle provides an unflinching gaze into the private world behind the headlines. Petty vanity and a sense of entitlement leads to corruption, and the unwillingness of the Netanyahus to give up power. The extreme right senses opportunity in Bibi’s weakness, and the dominos fall.

They are one of the most influential figures in American 20th century history. It’s time you learn their name. Fifteen years before Rosa Parks refused to surrender her bus seat, a full decade before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned separate-but-equal legislation, Pauli Murray was already knee-deep fighting for social justice. A pioneering attorney, activist, priest and dedicated memoirist, Murray shaped landmark litigation—and consciousness— around race and gender equity. As an African American youth raised in the segregated South— who was also wrestling with broader notions of gender identity—Pauli understood, intrinsically, what it was to exist beyond previously accepted categories and cultural norms. Both Pauli’s personal path and tireless advocacy foreshadowed some of the most politically consequential issues of our time.

Two different girls sexually assaulted on two different nights, in two different towns. Audrie & Daisy takes a hard look at the issues faced by America's teenagers who are coming of age in the new world of social media bullying, spun wildly out of control.

Wildlife activists in take on poachers in an effort to end illegal ivory trade in Africa.

Exhausted by loneliness, social anxiety, and all the crushing barrage of pressures felt by their generation, three teenagers leave the comforts of home to enroll in a traditional “folk high school” in the wilds of northernmost Norway. Dropped in the arctic wilderness for one year, Hege, Romain, and Bjørn Tore must rely only on themselves and a pack of loyal sled dogs as they take the daunting step from childhood to adulthood. Freed from technology, social media, and the noise of modern life, this brave trio learns to face themselves for the first time, and experience an unexpected transformation.

Saving Banksy is the story of one misguided art collectors attempts to save a Banksy painting from destruction and the auction block.

After the 2008 election, a secretive, well-funded partisan initiative poured money into state legislative races in key swing states to gain control of their redistricting processes and used high-tech analytics to dramatically skew voting maps based on demographic data. The result is one of the greatest electoral manipulations in U.S. history, one that poses a fundamental threat to our democracy and exacerbates the already polarized atmosphere in Congress and state houses across the country. Gerrymandering, the practice of redrawing electoral maps to serve the party in power, has been around for centuries. But in today’s hyperpartisan political environment it has been taken to unprecedented extremes, fueled by the elimination of corporate campaign contribution limits and the availability of vast amounts of personal information. The effects of this insidious strategy have continued to bear fruit through the 2018 midterms. But voters, fed up with cynical efforts to sidestep the will of the majority, have begun fighting back. In one example, a grassroots movement led by a young woman with no political experience gathered hundreds of thousands of signatures to put an anti-gerrymandering initiative on the ballot in Michigan. The new documentary Slay the Dragon shines a light on this timely issue, and follows a handful of citizens’ groups, outraged by what they see as an attack on the core democratic principle that every person’s vote should count equally, as they battle party operatives and an entrenched political establishment to fix a broken system.

We work in Kham, the easternmost of the three traditional Tibetan provinces. Its rugged landscape spans the Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan, Qinghai, and the Tibetan Autonomous Region. Most of the Tibetans who live here are farmers and nomads, and are tied to a predominantly subsistence economy. Our current projects are focused on various communities in the Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. (Kham Film Project)

Whores' Glory is an explicit and unflinching exposé of global prostitution. In Bangkok, Thailand, women punch a clock and wait for clients in a brightly lit glass box; in the red-light district of Faridpur, Bangladesh, a madam haggles over the price of a teenage girl; and in the border town of Reynosa, Mexico, crack-addicted women pray to a deity named Lady Death. (Kino Lorber)

Young-Chan is an accomplished poet who can no longer hear or see. He communicates with his wife Soon-Ho through finger braille, a unique form of communication where words are tapped on each other's hands. They rely on one another completely; even simple domestic tasks require complex collaboration and everyday moments that most of us hardly notice become tender shared experiences. (Cinema Guild)

One of the foremost American filmmakers of our time, Richard Linklater achieved cult immortality with the ‘90s classic Dazed and Confused, won critical respect for the sublime Before trilogy, and redefined cinematic storytelling with the groundbreaking Boyhood. But along the way, the director’s unconventional working methods and fierce independence have frequently put him at odds with the industry. Through interviews with both the filmmaker and many of his closest collaborators, this revealing profile traces Linklater’s life and work—from the DIY landmark Slacker to his latest comedy Everybody Wants Some!!—shedding light on how a creative visionary carved out a one-of-a-kind career unbeholden to the Hollywood machine. [IFC Films]

In 1971 at the world premiere of Death in Venice in London, Italian director Luchino Visconti proclaimed Björn Andrésen, the teen star of his latest film, "The most beautiful boy in the world.” This is the story of a boy who was thrust to international stardom for his iconic looks and lived a life of glamour. 50 years later, Björn looks back.

Alex Gibney examines the charged issue of pedophilia in the Catholic Church, following a trail from the first known protest against clerical sexual abuse in the United States and all the way to the Vatican.

A raw, fly-on-the-wall documentary about Francis Ford Coppola’s decades-long journey in creating his self-financed passion project, Megalopolis. The bold and unrelenting epic returns in Mike Figgis’ portrait of Coppola’s creative process – weaving together archival material, unfiltered cast interviews, and a close-up view of how the legendary filmmaker drew from Roman history, political allegory, and his own singular vision to shape the world of Megalopolis. This isn’t a record of a production on the brink, it’s a personal memoir unfolding in real time. [Utopia]

Twice a year the Italian city of Siena goes crazy for the oldest horse race in the world: the Palio. Not your average race: strategy, bribery and corruption play as much a part as the skill of the riders. Horses are allocated by lot four days prior to the race. This is when the madness truly begins. In the eye of the storm stand the jockeys. Loved and loathed by the districts they represent, they forge alliances and make deals promising large cash sums to try and get the best start. Legendary rider Gigi Bruschelli has won 13 Palios in 16 years and is accused by his critics of monopolizing the race. He works the system, paying off younger jockeys and fixing the race with average horses. Two races away from beating the world record, Bruschelli will do anything to win. But one jockey stands in his way, his former trainee, a handsome young Sardinian, Giovanni Atzeni, who is quietly determined to challenge his old mentor. Less interested in bribes and collusion, he rides for the love of the race.

Art Spiegelman: Disaster is My Muse! explores the life and career of cartoonist Art Spiegelman and the creation and ground-breaking impact of his Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel Maus, the story of his parents’ survival of the Holocaust and his own struggle to come to terms with this legacy.

From Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney and producer Graydon Carter comes a probing look into the uncanny life of national treasure and gonzo journalism inventor Dr. Hunter S. Thompson. A fast-moving, wildly entertaining documentary with an iconic soundtrack, the film addresses the major touchstones in Thompson's life--his intense and ill-fated relationship with the Hells Angels, his near-successful bid for the office of sheriff in Aspen in 1970, the notorious story behind the landmark Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, his deep involvement in Senator George McGovern's 1972 presidential campaign, and much more. Narrated by Johnny Depp. (Magnolia Pictures)

In the early-morning hours of Sunday, August 22, 1971, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and Attorney General John Mitchell announced that FBI agents had arrested 20 antiwar activists in and near a draft board office in Camden, New Jersey. Five days later, Mitchell made public the indictment of these individuals and included eight others who were linked to the break-in. The major charges against the group were conspiracy to remove and destroy files from the draft board, FBI office, and the Army Intelligence office; destruction of government property and interfering with the Selective Service system. If convicted, some of the indicted faced up to 47 years in federal prison. The men and women arrested that summer of ’71 in Camden called themselves “America’s conscience.” The government called them the Camden 28. The surprise arrest and unorthodox trial of the Camden 28 is a story of friendship and betrayal played out against the backdrop of one of the most turbulent periods in recent American history. (ECC Media)

The injustice of solitary confinement and the transformative power of art are explored in Herman’s House, a feature documentary that follows the unlikely friendship between Jackie Sumell, a New York artist, and Herman Wallace, one of America’s most famous inmates, as they collaborate on an acclaimed art project. [First Run Features]

Go behind the music as Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band record together live for the first time since Born In The U.S.A. in this intimate documentary that captures reflections on love, loss, and the way music has shaped Bruce Springsteen’s life.

This documentary is an intimate exploration of the lingering wounds of war and the healing power of art. The film is a heart-warming affirmation of humanity that will appeal to all lovers of peace, art, and cats. (Corporation for Public Broadcasting)

A woman's love for her pet ducks, chickens, geese, and turkeys - all 200 of them - ignites a battle with local animal rescuers and puts her marriage in jeopardy.

A landmark in Lenox, Massachusetts, The Bookstore is a magical, beatnik gem thanks to its owner, Matt Tannenbaum, whose passion for stories runs deep. Presiding at The Bookstore for over forty years, Matt is a true bard of the Berkshires and his shop is the kind of place to get lost in. This intimate portrait of The Bookstore and the family at its heart offers a journey through good times, hard times and the stories hidden on the shelves.

February 26 and 27, 2000, the Original Kings of Comedy play Charlotte, NC. The themes are Blacks and Whites, men and women, old-school and hip-hop. Steve Harvey emcees, celebrates '70s music and lyrics of love, and pokes at folks in the front row. D.L. Hughley mines racial differences and talks about his marriage. Cedric the Entertainer riffs on a Black president and on being grown up. Bernie Mac, who says he expresses what's in the back of our minds, closes with reflections on being 42 (new aspects to his sex life and his attitude toward children). Spike Lee's camera takes us backstage and off-stage with the Kings and into the crowd where everyone's laughing.

Sam Dunn is a 30-year old anthropologist. He's also a lifelong metal fan. After years of studying diverse cultures, Sam turns his academic eye a little closer to home and embarks on an epic journey into the heart of heavy metal. His mission: to try and figure out why metal music is consistently stereotyped, dismissed and condemned, even while the tribe that loves it stubbornly holds its ground - spreading the word, keeping the faith and adopting the style and attitudes that go way beyond the music.

ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway is a feature-length documentary that examines the annual influx of ambitious, star-crossed hopefuls, scrambling for the high-board to make their big leap into everlasting limelight. (Regent Releasing)

The film follows the Major League’s only knuckleballers in 2011, Tim Wakefield and R.A. Dickey, as they pursue a mercurial art form in a world that values speed, accuracy, and numerical accountability. (FilmBuff)