Moby Dick: An American Allegory

Loving Highsmith

April 2022 •English

The story of the life, loves and work of US writer Patricia Highsmith (1921-95), told through her unpublished diaries, her own voice and that of those who knew her, both family and close friends.

Truman & Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation

June 2021 •English

The parallel lives of writer Truman Capote (1924-84) and playwright Tennessee Williams (1911-83): two friends, two geniuses who, while creating sublime works, were haunted by the ghosts of the past, the shadow of constant doubt, the demon of addictions and the blinding, deceptive glare of success.

Dorian Gray: A Portrait of Oscar Wilde

March 2019 •French

The Picture of Dorian Gray, the seminal work of Irish writer Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), continues to find new readers and inspire artists and creators around the world more than a century after its publication in 1891, because it was endowed with all the elements necessary to make it an undisputed heritage of world literature.

Fantômas: A Thoroughly Modern Villain

January 2022 •French

The story of Fantômas, the first villain of modernity, from his birth in 1911 as a novel character to his contemporary vicissitudes, passing through Louis Feuillade, André Hunebelle, surrealism and Moscow.

Stephen King: A Necessary Evil

October 2020 •French

The American writer Stephen King has been one of the world's best-selling authors for decades. How can the overwhelming success of his numerous works be explained? Perhaps by the boundless inventiveness of his literature? And what else is behind the longevity of his astonishing career?

Lightning Strikes Twice: The Real-life Sequel to Moby Dick

January 2013 •English

In the middle of the night on February 11, 1823, the seafaring career of Captain George Pollard, Jr. came to a dramatic end in the remote northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Having survived the tragic events of the Essex, one of the world’s most infamous seafaring disasters, and the true life events that inspired Herman Melville’s novel Moby Dick, Pollard optimistically set sail for the Pacific once again in the whaleship Two Brothers, believing with all his heart “that it was an old adage that the lightning never struck in the same place twice.” In this case it did, and Pollard’s promising career as a whaling captain came to a tragic end on an uncharted reef in the most remote archipelago on earth, and what is now Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. In 2008, a team of NOAA maritime archaeologists discovered the first clues of the whaleship Two Brothers and began to unlock the mystery of the only Nantucket whaleship ever found on the sea floor.

Words for an End of the World

November 2020 •Spanish

Spain, April 14, 1931. The Second Republic is born. From the beginning, the writer Miguel de Unamuno is considered one of the ethical pillars of the new regime. Five years later, on December 31, 1936, a few months after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War (1936-39), Unamuno dies at his home in Salamanca, capital of the rebel side, led by General Francisco Franco, and main center of dissemination of its propaganda apparatus.

Heidi's Alpine Dream

October 2022 •German

An account of the life and work of the Swiss writer Johanna Spyri (1827-1901), the barely known artistic mother of Heidi, her brave alpine heroine, who was first introduced to the world between 1880 and 1881, in a novel published in two parts, and became definitely immortal thanks to an anime series, released in 1974, directed by the Japanese genius Isao Takahata.

Paul Auster: What If

February 2019 •German

A look at the world of US writer Paul Auster, on the occasion of the publication of his new novel, an exploration of human identity and the soul of New York, the city that Auster has portrayed as no one else has ever done.

Anjelica Huston on James Joyce: A Shout in the Street

December 2017 •English

An account of the life and work of Irish writer James Joyce (1882-1941) narrated by US actress Anjelica Huston.

El Quijote desde la platea

April 2019 •Spanish

How Don Quixote de la Mancha, the immortal character created by Miguel de Cervantes in 1605, has been depicted in cinema, television, cartoons, theater, opera, ballet and other artistic disciplines. An adventure that began more than four hundred years ago in the pages of a book and is far from coming to an end.

Prisoner C33

May 2022 •English

Reading Gaol, England, 1896. Prisoner C33, starving and thin, unable to wash properly, is a brilliant writer, husband and father of two, once the most beloved artist in Victorian London. His real name is Oscar Wilde.

With Love from Truman

January 1966 •English

At his Long Island beach house, and on the occasion of the publication of his masterful nonfiction novel In Cold Blood, reporter Karen Dennison interviews celebrated writer Truman Capote, who displays his exuberant personality, makes witty jokes, shares his thoughts on writing, reflects on various aspects of the book and, in a sweet and endearing voice, reads and explains some of its highlights.

Aladdin and Ali Baba: Stories from the 1001 Nights?

May 2023 •German

The stories of The Arabian Nights (One Thousand and One Nights) have captivated mankind for centuries. However, two of its most famous tales do not belong to the original canon.

La Véritable Histoire du comte de Monte Cristo

December 2020 •French

Arthur Miller: A Man of His Century

October 2015 •German

An unparalleled portrait of Arthur Miller (1915-2005), a major writer who left an indelible mark on the world. Miller's life is intimately connected with the great themes that marked the 20th century. Glamour, fame, social criticism and Marilyn Monroe.

The Act of Reading

February 2021 •English

A retired high school English teacher is confronted by a former student who failed her class 15 years prior. He then involves her in a feature-length presentation on Moby-Dick and the science of reading.

Antonio Gala: figura con paisajes

April 2015 •Spanish

A first-person account of the life and work of Spanish writer Antonio Gala.

Do You Know Kafka?

May 2024 •German

A portrait of the German-language Czech writer Franz Kafka (1883-1924), a mysterious, strange and solitary individual, but also a visionary creator.

Dracula, l'éternel

December 2018 •French