I Am Eleven explores the lives and thoughts of children from all around the world. It weaves together deeply personal and at times hilarious portraits of what it means to stand on the cusp between childhood and adolescence, that fleeting moment when childish naiveté has faded, yet teenaged self-consciousness has not yet taken hold. These young minds, still unguarded and remarkably honest, offer a powerful insight into the future of our world. [International Film Circuit]

A look at the battles Hugh Hefner fought over the years against the U.S. government, the religious right, and militant feminists.

This documentary examines the Kumbh Mela, the oldest, greatest, most fascinating festival on Earth.

In 1979, the US Customs Service reported that 87% of all marijuana seizures in the US were made in the South Florida area. Due to the region's 5,000 miles of coast and coastal waterways and close proximity to the Caribbean and Latin America, South Florida was a pot smuggler's paradise. In sharp contrast to the brazenly violent cocaine cowboys of the 1980's, Miami's marijuana smugglers were cooler, calmer, and for the most part, nonviolent. Square Grouper paints a vivid portrait of Miami's pot smuggling culture in the 1970s and 1980s through three of the city's most colorful stories. (Magnolia Pictures)

Declassified files related to President Kennedy's assassination in a far larger context, aiming to shine more light on what really happened in 1963.

As Maya Angelou narrates this powerful documentary, she reveals the story of a brave group of people who fought Hitler with the only weapons they had: charcoal, pencil stubs, shreds of paper and memories etched in their minds. These artists took their fate into their own hands to make a compelling statement about the human spirit, enduring against unimaginable odds. (Menemsha Films)

In the late 1960s Kim Jong Il guaranteed his succession as the Dear Leader of North Korea by adapting his father’s Juche (pronounced choo-CHAY) philosophy to propaganda, film, and art. Translated as self-reliance, Juche is a hybrid of Confucianism and authoritarian Stalinist pseudo-socialism. The film is about a South Korean video artist who comes to a North Korean art residency to help bring Juche cinema into the 21st century. The story is told through the films she makes at the residency, as well as interviews with a Bulgarian filmmaker, and even a brief sci-fi movie. (Lorber Films)

Director Reed Cowan experienced first-hand what it was like to grow up gay in Utah in the Mormon faith, and he turned his attention to the historic campaign by the Mormon Church to pass Proposition 8 in California believing that it was the cornerstone of an ideology that has worked for decades “to damage gay people and their causes.” The film is his emotional outcry to what he found. (RedFlag Releasing)

Amma, one of India's most famous "Mahatmas" or spiritual guides, is known internationally for her charitable donations, fight for peace, and work with illiteracy. In 2002, she won the Gandhi King Prize for her work, joining a prestigious group of winners that include, Nelson Mandela and Khofi Annan. This film is a chronicle of her journey throughout India, traveling with her inner circle to visit with her disciples. (IFC Films)

A uniquely intimate portrait of the music icon, Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts explores the contemporary composer's creative process in opera, concert, and film, interwoven with candid scenes of his personal and spiritual life. In July 2005, filmmaker Scott Hicks started shooting a documentary about the composer Philip Glass to celebrate his 70th birthday in 2007. Over the next 18 months, he followed Glass across three continents, from his annual ride on the Coney Island Cyclone roller coaster, to the world premiere of his new opera in Germany, to a performance with a didgeridoo virtuoso in Australia. Allowed unprecedented access to Glass' working process, family life, spiritual teachers, and longtime collaborators, including Martin Scorsese, Errol Morris, Chuck Close, Christopher Hampton, and others, Hicks gives audiences a remarkable mosaic portrait of one of the greatest--and at times controversial--artists of this or any era. (Koch Lorber Films)

During the summer of 2006, I was deep into editing my first film, Walking On Dead Fish. We were working twelve-hour days, six days a week, when the owner of the editing facility and my executive producer, Stan Cassio, asked if I would coach his son's AAU team in a tournament that was coming up in Las Vegas. First off, let me say, I'm not a big Vegas guy, and I'm definitely not a big Vegas guy in the middle of 110-degree temperatures of mid-July. Secondly, I prefer to stay away from AAU Basketball as much as possible. Don't get me wrong, there are some great AAU coaches, but 90% of them are the reason I got out of college coaching in the first place, so there was no way I was accepting this offer. Unfortunately, Stan knew I'd been a NCAA Division One Coach and ran a NBA camp with Hall of Fame Center, Bill Walton. So, each day he'd ask again. And each day, I'd decline. Finally, two days before the tournament, still without a coach, my editor urged me to go. I think I was driving him crazy trying to figure out the second act and he needed some space, so the next thing you know, I'm in the mid-summer Vegas heat coaching a bunch of 17-year olds. (Dutchmen Films)

Kevin Spacey, Sam Mendes and the Bridge Project Company go on the road in NOW: In the Wings on a World Stage. In over 200 performances, and across 3 continents, Kevin and the troupe reveal some of the most intimate moments behind the scenes of their staging of Shakespeare’s classic tragedy, “Richard III.” Their story and experiences weave around, and reflect on, excerpts from the play from their various locations, from Epidaurus to Doha, and provides a great opportunity for those who have never experienced Spacey on stage to witness his immersive and captivating interpretation of Richard III.

Lion Ark follows the world's most ambitious and daring animal rescue, with a narrative meticulously compiled from film, interviews, conversations and the reactions of participants as events actually unfold. A shocking undercover investigation leads to a ban on animal circuses in Bolivia, but the circuses defy the law. The team behind the investigation return, track down the illegal circuses and try save every animal.

Few people know of Stanislav Petrov… yet hundreds of millions of people are alive because of him. The Man Who Saved the World tells the gripping true story of Stanislav Petrov - a man who single-handedly averted a fullscale nuclear war, but now struggles to get his life back on track before it is too late.

Walk With Me takes us inside the world-famous monastery of Zen Buddhist master Thich Nhat Hanh, and captures the life of a monastic community who have given up all their possessions for one common purpose – to practice the art of mindfulness.

1952. Jamaica. When author Ian Fleming needs a name for his suave, sophisticated secret agent, he steals one from an unaware birdwatcher and creates a pop-culture phenomenon about the ultimate fictional alpha male. 2022. It is the year of 007's sixtieth anniversary onscreen and Australian filmmaker Matthew Bauer is on a global mission to discover the lasting, contrasting and very personal impacts of sharing such an identity with James Bond. From a Swedish 007 super-fan with a WW2 past, a gay New York theatre director, an African American Bond accused of murder, and two resilient women caught up in it all, Bauer's cinematic mission is an audacious, poignant, and insightful examination of masculinity, gender, and race in the very real shadows of a movie icon.

Last Man Standing takes at look at Death Row Records and how L.A.'s street gang culture had come to dominate its business workings, as well as an association with corrupt L.A. Police Officers who were also gang affiliated. It would be this world of gang rivalry and dirty cops that would later claim the lives of the world's two greatest rappers: Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls.

One of the most iconic structures ever conceived, Barcelona's La Sagrada Familia is a unique and unfinished architectural project designed by the controversial architect Antoni Gaudi in the late 19th century. Stefan Haupt’s new documentary Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation celebrates the genius of Gaudi's vision while exploring the continuing work of the thousands of artisans, laborers, and designers as they strive to complete the colossal project. [First Run Features]

"Bra Boys" is a film about the cultural evolution of the inner-Sydney beachside suburb of Maroubra and the social struggle of its youth--the tattooed, much-maligned surf community known as the Bra Boys. The story is narrated by Australian actor Russell Crowe and is told through the eyes of Bra Boys members. (Berkela Films)

A documentary on the Manhattan department store with interviews from an array of fashion designers, style icons, and celebrities.

50 years after its release, Don McLean shares the secrets behind his iconic song American Pie, one of the great musical touchstones of the 20th century.

Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Hot Docs International Documentary Festival, this acclaimed film tells an astonishing story of Africa’s last absolute monarchy, the Kingdom of Swaziland. King Mswati III, a distant figure out of touch with his home and country, rules by decree and lives a life of luxury together with his 12 wives, while his subjects suffer from crushing poverty and the world’s highest HIV infection rate. With unprecedented access, we meet headstrong first wife Queen LaMbikiza, eldest child and teen rapper, Princess Sikhanyiso, King Mswati himself, as well as many Swazi citizens who are plotting his downfall. Filmmaker Michael Skolnik captures the birth of a nation's revolution, and the dawning awareness of a young Swazi princess as she realizes the contrast between her impoverished country and her lavish lifestyle. (First Run Features)

Narrated by Johnny Depp, award-winning writer-director Tom DiCillo’s riveting film uncovers historic, previously unseen footage of The Doors and provides new insight into the revolutionary impact of their music and legacy. “When You’re Strange” is the first feature documentary to tell their story. (Rhino Records)

How far would you go to live forever - or even just slow down the aging process? This startling documentary by Chris Smith (Fyre, 100 Foot Wave) is told through intimate access to Bryan Johnson, a man who has dedicated his life to defy aging. Don't Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever dives into the controversial wellness practices one man is using to maintain youth and vitality, and the effect this journey has on himself and those around him.

Bethany Hamilton lost her arm to a tiger shark at age 13, but this didn't stop her from pursuing her dream of becoming a professional surfer. However, it wasn't only the competition that fueled her desire to stay in the big blue, but her love for the ocean. Not only has she conquered the giant walls but also the journey of being a mother--all with only one arm. She inspires and she never stops; Bethany Hamilton is Unstoppable.

Much more than a comedian, Bill Hicks was and still is an inspiration to millions. His timeless comedy tackled the contradictions of America and modern life head on. But his unique gift was to tease apart the essence of religion, the dangers of unbridled government power and the double standards inherent in much of modern society, using nothing but his hilarious ideas and the uncompromising observational style that continues to resonate with successive generations. (Variance Films)

This documentary feature examines why genocides keep occurring -- from the Armenian genocide in 1915, to the Holocaust, Bosnia, Rwanda and now Darfur -- through the eyes and music of the Grammy award-winning rock band "System of a Down," based in Los Angeles, whose members are all grandchildren of genocide survivors. (Maya Releasing)

A documentary which traces how crucial mistakes made by the West helped lead to the unnecessary breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991, culminating in the devastating NATO bombing campaign in 1999. (Frontier Theatre and Film Inc.)

This feisty, informative documentary takes us on a journey around the globe - from the Moroccan Sahara to the middle of the Pacific Ocean, from a factory in China to the highest peaks of the Alps - to reveal the far-flung reaches of our plastic problem. Interviews with the world’s foremost experts in biology, pharmacology, and genetics shed light on the perils of plastic to our environment and expose the truth of how plastic affects our bodies and the health of future generations. (First Run Features)

Wild Horse, Wild Ride tells the story of the Extreme Mustang Makeover Challenge, an annual contest that dares 100 people to each tame a totally wild mustang in order to get it adopted into a better life beyond federal corrals. Stunning and poignant, Alex Dawson and Greg Gricus’ debut feature documentary chronicles a handful of unforgettable characters from their first uneasy meeting with their horses and over three months as they attempt to transform from scared strangers to the closest of companions. (Screen Media Films)

A recently discovered cache of hundreds of personal letters, diaries and photos belonging to Heinrich Himmler, the Nazi Gestapo chief, seems to reveal a thoughtful, loving husband and devoted father to his daughter. The documents first found in the Himmler family house in 1945 were hidden in Tel Aviv for decades and sold to the father of the Israeli documentary filmmaker, Vanessa Lapa. Through readings of Himmler's and his family's most personal writings and rarely seen restored film footage from key German archives, Lapa has fashioned a fascinating case study: a portrait of the man responsible for some of the worst atrocities of the Second World War, who thought of himself in heroic terms. [Kino Lorber]

A feature documentary on African American ballerina Misty Copeland that examines her prodigious rise, her potentially career ending injury alongside themes of race and body image in the elite ballet world.

Ella Blumenthal is not your average 98-year-old. Her feisty and magnetic personality makes her past even more surprising. Follow this spirited South African Holocaust survivor as she reveals to her family her astonishing life journey and her unwavering appreciation of life.

Welcome to the Jejune Institute, a mind-bending San Francisco phenomenon where 10,000 people became "inducted" without ever quite realizing what they'd signed up for. Was it a cult? Was it an elaborate game?

They gave him their love, their money and their obsessive online parodies. He gave them ... the prequels. An innovative feature doc that explores the love/hate relationship that fans have with filmmaker George Lucas, as well as the bigger question of whether or not filmmakers can own and control their own work in the digital age. (Quark Films)

I Am Ali is told through exclusive, unprecedented access to Ali's personal archive of 'audio journals' combined with touching interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends, including his daughters, sons, ex-wife and brother, plus legends of the boxing community including Mike Tyson, George Foreman and Gene Kilroy. Experience Ali's extraordinary story, as a fighter, lover, brother, and father - told from the inside for the very first time. [Focus Features]

Assange remains a remand prisoner at U.K.'s maximum security Belmarsh Prison as he appeals an extradition order to the U.S. where he could face 175 years in prison for his role in the release of classified U.S. diplomatic files.

A shattering documentary on the lives of two hostile teenagers in an upstate town who react to their dead-end environment and social ostracism with a frenzied, narcotized downward spiral. (Two Boots Pioneer Theater)

A musical dance/art film documentary about the last two years of Jayne Mansfield's life, Mansfield 66/67 explores the legend of a uniquely enduring mega-watt star and the myth of her death being caused by a curse. In 1966, Jayne was 33 and she lived in a Pink Palace. Ahead of her time and refusing to play by society's rules, this astounding and amazing bombshell embarks on a wild and ultimately tragic psychedelic adventure with lawyer/boyfriend Sam Brody in tow, desperately trying to redefine herself and what a woman of her era could be.

Every era gets the drug it deserves. In America today, where competition is ceaseless from school to the workforce and everyone wants a performance edge, Adderall and other prescription stimulants are the defining drugs of this generation.

This documentary examines contemporary Cuban music and its Afro-Latino roots

A fascinating look at America's unlikeliest sex star. (Maelstrom Entertainment)

This documentary examines how a radical fringe of the Republican Party used the trauma of the 9/11 terror attacks to advance a pre-existing agenda to radically transform American foreign policy while rolling back civil liberties and social programs at home. (Media Education Foundation)

A feature-length documentary about the history and future of nuclear power. The film explores how and why mankind's most feared and controversial technological discovery is now passionately embraced by many of those who once led the charge against it.

Sleepless Nights Stories originated from readings of the One Thousand and One Nights. But unlike the Arabian tales, these stories are all from real life, though at times they too wander into somewhere else, beyond the everyday routine reality. (Jonas Mekas Films)

Meet The Plastic People of the Universe, the avant-garde, jazz-rock, Sun Ra meets Velvet Underground, Czech revolutionaries. A tribute to the band that against all odds used the power of their music to help topple their oppressive government. (Two Boots Pioneer Theater)

A look at the 20-year friendship of Gary Cooper and Ernest Hemingway.

A behind-the-scenes look at the televised benefit concert to raise relief funds for victims of Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

Musician, psychiatrist, and folk dancer Clark Wang prepares for his own green burial while battling lymphoma, determined that his last act will be a gift to the planet. Boldly facing his mortality, the spirited Clark and his partner Jane have joined with a compassionate local cemeterian to use green burial to save a North Carolina woods from being clear-cut.

Today, all anybody needs to run is the determination and a pair of the right shoes. But just fifty years ago, running was viewed almost exclusively as the domain of elite male athletes who competed on tracks. With insight and propulsive energy, director Pierre Morath traces running’s rise to the 1960s, examining how the liberation movements and newfound sense of personal freedom that defined the era took the sport out of the stadiums and onto the streets, and how legends like Steve Prefontaine, Fred Lebow, and Kathrine Switzer redefined running as a populist phenomenon. [IFC Films]

Autumn 2015. At the Paris Opera, Stéphane Lissner is putting the finishing touches to his first press conference as director. Backstage, artists and crew prepare to raise the curtain on a new season withSchönberg's Moses and Aaron. But the announcement of a strike and arrival of a bull in a supporting rolecomplicate matters. At the same time, a promising young Russian singer begins at the Opera's Academy. In the hallways of Opera Bastille, his destiny will cross paths with that of Bryn Terfel, one of the greatest voices of his time. As the season progresses, more and more characters appear, playing out the human comedy in the manner of a documentary Opera. But this comedy is set against a tragic backdrop when terrorist attacks plunge Paris into mourning. Even though the show must go on at all costs, there is no end of trouble for the new director. Star choreographer Benjamin Millepied jumps ship soon after taking over as director of ballet at Palais Garnier. Preparations for Richard Wagner's six-hour opera Die Meistersinger reunite the company.

Marcelo Gomes is a danceur noble: a male ballet dancer whose extraordinary technique, charismatic presence, and seemingly effortless strength make him the embodiment of the classical prince. Raised in Rio de Janeiro, the darkly handsome dancer, a principal with American Ballet Theatre since 2002, has been called the Pelé of Ballet. When not performing, rehearsing, or traveling the world as a guest artist, Gomes is at home in NYC’s Hell’s Kitchen, accompanied by Lua, his dachshund. He is a delight, whether candidly discussing the positive influence of a gay uncle while he was growing up, the joys of particular roles, or the vicissitudes of his devotion to classical dance. [Cinema Tropical]

More than a decade after leaving the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church (the "Moonies"), through a trove of never before seen footage from within the church and extraordinary home videos of her family's upbringing alongside Reverend Moon and his disciples, filmmaker Cara Jones attempts to finally break free from the religious cult which dominated her childhood. Blessed Child is one daughter's attempt to unpack the legacy of the decisions her parents made while challenging assumptions - hers and ours - about cults and family.

Signature Jackass character Irving Zisman (Johnny Knoxville) and his grandson Billy will take movie audiences along for the most insane hidden camera road trip ever captured on camera. Real people in unreal situations, making for one really messed up comedy.

Love,Etc. is a witty, poignant and humorous exploration about the universal stages of love, depicted through five real stories over the course of one year in New York City. Young, old, gay, straight – everyone has experienced love – and the joy and frustration that come with it. From teen romance to a decades-long marriage; newlyweds to a recent divorcee, and even a bachelor so frustrated in his search that he chooses to have children without a partner, Love,Etc. documents the intimate journeys of engaging characters aged 18-89 who reflect the city’s diversity, and takes an honest look at life's most challenging pursuit. (Paladin)

Everything's Cool is a film about America finally “getting” global warming in the wake of the most dangerous chasm ever to emerge between scientific understanding and political action. While industry funded nay-sayers sing what just might be their swan song of pseudo-scientific deception, a group of self-appointed global warming messengers are on a high stakes quest to find the iconic image, the magic language, the points of leverage that will finally create the political will to move the United States from its reliance on fossil fuels to the new clean energy economy--AND FAST. Hold on... this is bigger than changing your light bulbs. (Working Films)

In his feature-length documentary The Big Uneasy, humorist and New Orleans resident Harry Shearer gets the inside story of a disaster that could have been prevented from the people who were there. Shearer speaks to the tireless investigators and experts who poked through the muck as the water receded, and uncovers a courageous whistle-blower from the Army Corps of Engineers. His dogged pursuit of facts reveals that some of the same flawed methods responsible for levee failure during Hurricane Katrina are being used to rebuild the system expected to protect the "new" New Orleans from future peril. (Official Website)

A documentary film about the impact of the newspaper comic strip Calvin & Hobbes, created by Bill Watterson.

Since their debut in the late 'sixties, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young have functioned as the "town criers" of their generation. Though fondly remembered for their harmonies and love songs, the band has never lost their political edge. "CSNY: Deja Vu" finds the band heading out on their "Freedom of Speech 2006" of North America, featuring music from Neil Young's controversial "Living With War" CD. The film also examines events surrounding the Tour in the crucial election season of 2006. Songs from the Tour are woven together with archival material, news footage, and audience reaction and observations, as the film examines the issues surrounding the integration of politics and art. (Roadside Attractions)

Performance artist Reno's rapid-fire witness of the events of September 11th -- of the day itself and of the country?s response, how they affected her personally and in the context of the world at large.

This documentary examines U.S. Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.), one of America's most well loved and outspoken politicians. It is also an unprecedented and surprisingly candid look at sexuality and politics at the end of the 20th Century. (Bart Everly)

Phil Demers is a part-time mailman who lives in a bungalow across the creek from MarineLand, the iconic amusement park in Niagara Falls, where he had his dream job as an animal trainer for over a decade. He swam with killer whales and ran the show, until he quit and blew the whistle, making claims of animal abuse and calling for an end to the near 60-year-old practice of keeping marine mammals in pools.

All over the world, as the technology grows and advances, so does our addiction to our devices. Join filmmaker Jon Hyatt and his family on a journey through the life changing effects of screen addiction, how the tech industry hooked global consumers, and its greater impact on our lives. From smartphones, portable tablets and social media, the tech industry has designed these fun immersive technologies, but are they good for us? Are we too dependent on our devices? What keeps us hooked and how is it impacting our children and the world as a whole?

This documentary follows an Ethical and Environmental expert from Nokia as she travels to China to inspect the facilities under contract to her company.

The sea is forgotten until disaster strikes. But perhaps the biggest seagoing disaster is the global supply chain, which - maybe in a more fundamental way than financial speculation- leads the world economy to the abyss. The film follows container cargo aboard ships, barges, trains and trucks, listening to workers, engineers, planners, politicians, and those marginalized by the global transport system. We visit displaced farmers and villagers in Holland and Belgium, underpaid truck drivers in Los Angeles, seafarers aboard mega-ships shuttling between Asia and Europe, and factory workers in China, whose low wages are the fragile key to the whole puzzle. And in Bilbao, we discover the most sophisticated expression of the belief that the maritime economy, and the sea itself, is somehow obsolete. A range of materials is used: descriptive documentary, interviews, archive stills and footage, clips from old movies. The result is an essayistic, visual documentary about one of the most important processes that affects us today. The Forgotten Space is based on Sekula's massive long-term project Fish Story, seeking to understand and describe the contemporary maritime world in relation to the complex symbolic legacy of the sea. (Doc.Eye Film)

Older people are using Viagra, running marathons, flying planes and ditching them safely on The Hudson. This Brooklyn band of buddies break bread and each other's chops every Wednesday evening (ROMEOWS stands for Retired Older Men Eating Out Wednesdays).

Anton Corbijn Inside Out is an intimate and revealing portrait of an influential artist and the result of almost four years of filming by director Klaartje Quirijns. Examining Corbijn's youth and current life, Inside Out searches for the source and meaning of the themes in his life and work: sacrifice, fame, religion and death. The film shows what drives him and what his ideas are on the modern icons that he has created. [Music Box Films]

Rock in the Red Zone is an intimate portrayal of life on the edge in the war-torn city of Sderot. Once known for its prolific rock scene that revolutionized Israeli music, for thirteen years the town has been the target of ongoing rocket fire from the Gaza strip. Through the personal lives and music of Sderot's diverse musicians, and the personal narrative of the filmmaker, who ends up calling the town home, the film chronicles the town's trauma and reveals its enduring spirit.

Ishmael Muslim Ali (formerly LaBeet) is the American convicted of murdering eight people on a Rockefeller-owned golf course in the US Virgin Islands. After years of trying to get his conviction overturned, he took matters into his own hands and hijacked an American Airlines plane full of passengers to Cuba on New Years Eve 1984, and got away with it. Until now.

American Made Movie looks back on the glory days of U.S. manufacturing and illustrates how technology and globalization have changed the competitive landscape for companies doing business in America, as well as overseas. By illustrating the successes of companies and entrepreneurs that, of their own accord, have prospered without adopting the practices of their competitors, American Made Movie shows the positive impact these jobs can have on national and local economies in the face of great challenges.

See the film Ohio Republicans tried to shut down. Oscar-winner Michael Moore dives right into hostile territory with his daring and hilarious one-man show, deep in the heart of TrumpLand in the weeks before the 2016 election. [IFC Center]

A timely film exploring the confrontation between a feisty 92-year-old Scottish widow and her family and a billionaire trying to become the most powerful man in the world.

On July 25th, 2020, people all over the world filmed their lives and shared their stories to be part of a documentary film. When all the submissions were tallied, the filmmakers had received over 300,000 videos from 192 countries. The result is a film about love, death, heartbreak, and hope that looks beyond geography and circumstance to explore what connects us as humans.

Possibilities is an intimate documentary about Herbie Hancock and his in-studio collaborations with a dozen formidable pop recording artists, collaborations that explore the unexpected, like jazz improvisations. (Magnolia Pictures)

Until The Light Takes Us tells the story of black metal. Part music scene and part cultural uprising, black metal rose to worldwide notoriety in the mid-nineties when a rash of suicides, murders, and church burnings accompanied the explosive artistic growth and output of a music scene that would forever redefine what heavy metal is and what it stands for to other musicians, artists and music fans worldwide. Until The Light Takes Us goes behind the highly sensationalized media reports of "Satanists running amok in Europe" to examine the complex and largely misunderstood principles and beliefs that led to this rebellion against both Christianity and modern culture. To capture this on film, directors Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell moved to Norway and lived with the musicians for several years, building relationships that allowed them to create a surprisingly intimate portrait of this violent, but ultimately misunderstood, movement. The result is a poignant, moving story that’s as much about the idea that reality is composed of whatever the most people believe, regardless of what’s actually true, as it is about a music scene that blazed a path of murder and arson across the northern sky. (Variance Film)

Eddie Murphy in a stand-up performance recorded live. For an hour and a half he talks about his favourite subjects: sex and women.

What is a big corporation capable of doing in order to protect its brand? Recently, Swedish documentary filmmaker Fredrik Gertten experienced this personally. His previous film BANANAS!* recounts the lawsuit that 12 Nicaraguan plantation workers successfully brought against the fruit giant Dole Food Company. That film was selected for competition by the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival. Nothing wrong so far, right? But then just before leaving Sweden to attend the Los Angeles world premiere of his film, Gertten gets a strange message: the festival has decided to remove Bananas!* from competition. Then, a scathing, controversial and misinformed article appears on the cover of the Los Angeles Business Journal about the film a week before the premiere. And subsequently, Gertten receives a letter from Dole's attorneys threatening legal action if the film is shown at this festival and to cease and desist. What follows is an unparalleled story that Gertten captured on film. He filmed this entire process of corporate bullying and media spin - from DOLE attacking the producers with a defamation lawsuit, utilizing scare tactics, to media-control and PR-spin. Big Boys Gone Bananas!* can be seen as a thriller and a cautionary tale. But, mostly this is a personal story about what happened to Gertten, as a documentary filmmaker and to his company and how the livelihood of documentary filmmakers can be easily put into jeopardy. (WG Film)

Jian Ping was born in China in 1960, during the cultural revolution. After many hardships, she immigrated to America where she gave birth to her own daughter. As an emotional and cultural distance grew between her and her daughter, Jian began to write her memoir. And on a trip to modern China to visit relatives, Jian began to educate her daughter about her life.

Flexing is a dance style forged in far east Brooklyn, at the dead-end of a handful of subway lines. Flex dancers channel the grittiness and crime of East New York into choreographed violence with gun movements, simulated bone-breaking, and the mimicked ripping of hearts from opponent's chests. Through battles dancers gain respect, craft an artistic identity, and sometimes find a sanctuary from the poverty and violence that saturates their neighborhood. No other style of street-dance is this violent, scary, or beautifully theatrical. In this purely do-it-yourself scene, creativity and ambition bring a community together around frequent dance-battle showcases that have begun to attract an international audience and may catapult the best dancers into careers in theater or film. Following a group of dancers for over two years, Flex is Kings explores the hopes and realities of this under-acknowledged and totally unfunded group of urban artists.

Awake: The Life of Yogananda is an unconventional biography about the Hindu Swami who brought yoga and meditation to the West in the 1920s. Paramahansa Yogananda authored the spiritual classic “Autobiography of a Yogi,” which has sold millions of copies worldwide and is a go-to book for seekers, philosophers and yoga enthusiasts today. By personalizing his own quest for enlightenment and sharing his struggles along the path, Yogananda made ancient Vedic teachings accessible to a modern audience, attracting many followers and inspiring the millions who practice yoga today.

A charismatic activist leads a globally-regarded NGO that provides shelter and education for girls rescued from brothels in Northern Thailand. But as the filmmakers meet the girls and their families, discrepancies begin to emerge and the story takes an unexpected turn.

Perhaps Europe's most popular pilgrimage, the Camino de Santiago attracts wayfarers of all stripes to walk its ancient paths in search of meaning. One such pilgrim is Dane Johansen, an American cellist who in 2014 ventured to walk the Camino with his instrument on his back, performing music for his fellow pilgrims along the way. As Dane soon discovers, the paths we travel through life are often uncomfortably magnified by the reality of life on the Camino. Accompanied by the vast landscapes of Northern Spain, the haunting music of J.S. Bach for solo cello (performed by Johansen), and the very personal struggles and joys of the many pilgrims encountered along the way, Strangers on the Earth examines the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of the concept of 'journey' and the vital role it can play as part of the human experience.

This documentary explores the mystery of the musician who calls himself Jandek, his world and his music. (Unicorn Stencil)

Harry Thomason and Nickolas Perry's incendiary documentary, based on the best-selling book by Gene Lyons and Joe Conason, offers a glimpse at the genesis of these partisan vendettas and explores the myths and truths behind the nearly ten year campaign to systematically destroy the political legacy of the Clintons. (Regent Releasing)

A documentary portrait of two pioneers in the exotic world of exploitation movies.