Sacred

Sacred explores cultural and religious ritual as it relates to life’s cycles: birth, adolescence, marriage, aging and other key passages of life.

2016-11-01 | en

Luto

Damian, grieving his girlfriend's death, travels through Mexico seeking solace. Along the way, he connects with strangers and witnesses their coping rituals, finding a path through his own memories and regrets.

2024-10-31 | es

Tokyo Phoenix

In 150 years, twice marked by total destruction —a terrible earthquake in 1923 and incendiary bombings in 1945— followed by a spectacular rebirth, Tokyo, the old city of Edo, has become the largest and most futuristic capital in the world in a transformation process fueled by the exceptional resilience of its inhabitants, and nourished by a unique phenomenon of cultural hybridization.

2017-05-20 | fr

The Story of the Weeping Camel

When a Mongolian nomadic family's newest camel colt is rejected by its mother, a musician is needed for a ritual to change her mind.

2003-06-29 | mn

Lord of the Dance/Destroyer of Illusion

The documentary focuses on the annual Mani Rimdu festival of Tibet and Nepal, an event which encapsulates the Himalayan Buddhist experience.

1985-01-01 | en

La belle histoire de Noël

2024-12-17 | fr

Rebuilding an Old Japanese House

Five Japanese carpenters came to Boston that summer to reconstruct a Kyoto silkweaver's 150 year old townhouse that had been packed in crates and shipped to Boston Children's Museum. This first-hand observation of traditional tools and woodworking techniques chronicles the assembly process. In the progress of construction the contractor performed three Shinto housebuilding ceremonies.

1981-12-01 | en

Le pouvoir des prêtresses égyptiennes

2019-02-14 | fr

Africa Uncensored

Documentary film making at its best as it narrates very exotic and esoteric rituals of the primitive peoples of Africa.

1971-11-05 | it

Salvia Divinorum: A Western Approach

Salvia Divinorum is an often misunderstood and powerful psychedelic plant used by the Mazatec shamans in southern Mexico for centuries. This entheogen's mysteries are thoroughly explored, by Director Erin Wyche, from an American view point.

2022-07-22 | en

Wheel of Time

Wheel of Time is Werner Herzog's photographed look at the largest Buddhist ritual in Bodh Gaya, India.

2003-10-30 | de

Here We Come A-Wassailing

A documentary on the surviving syncretic pagan midwinter customs of the British Isles, focusing on nine ritual celebrations ranging from the Moray Firth in the north, the Somerset Levels in the south, Humberside in the east, and County Kerry in the west. Featuring music by the Albion Band and narration by John Tams.

1977-12-22 | en

The Birth of Saké

Through the unrelenting winter in the north of Japan, a small group of workers must brave unusual working conditions to bring to life a 2,000-year-old tradition known as sake. A cinematic documentary, The Birth of Sake is a visually immersive experience of an almost-secret world in which large sacrifices must be made for the survival of a time-honored brew.

2015-04-16 | ja

Tales of Sand and Snow

In a quest to rediscover the spiritual values of his own people, an African filmmaker from the Gourmantche tribe of Burkina Faso visits an Aboriginal band, the Atikamekw of northern Quebec. The resulting documentary is a dialogue between those who divine the future in the sand with those who use snow-encased sweat lodges to reconnect with the spiritual world.

2004-01-01 | fr

The Occult Experience

An examination of occultism as practiced in different parts of the world.

1985-07-07 | en

Journey Into the Beyond

Mondo-style shockumentary about various aspects of the occult and paranormal. An investigation into the fringes of psychic spirituality with so-called experts, it includes demonic possession, exorcism, seances, Voodoo ceremonies, hypnotism, ESP, psychic surgery, and more. A warning bell alerts squeamish viewers to avert their eyes from the more graphic scenes.

1975-11-14 | de

Savage Man Savage Beast

A notorious mondo film depicting unbelievable and bizarre rituals, animal killing and cruelty, and people being killed and eaten, all by either animals or humans against each other or themselves.

1975-10-23 | it

The Beaning

An experimental documentary exploring a sinister theory surrounding the death of Cleveland baseball player Ray Chapman in 1920 and the subsequent rise of the Yankee dynasty.

2017-11-11 | en

Holmie Day

A short film documenting the dying tradition of Holmie Day, where islanders on Papa Westray, in Orkney, sail across to the nearby uninhabited island to shear the sheep.

2025-01-05 | en

King for a Day

King for a Day is a poetic archive-led documentary immersing us in the personal story of the people of Padstow in Cornwall, their ancient rituals and the challenges they face in a rapidly changing world. The tension between tradition and progress highlights the importance of cultural identity and the role of folk customs in our globalised society. King for a Day is an intimate portrait of a place and community pushed to the margins. A cinematic journey interweaving audio-visual archive spanning 150 years. Will this be the last generation to tease the ‘Old Oss’ from his stable to welcome the Summer?

2023-09-01 | en