The Story of Junkie Junior

Megacities

August 1998 •English

Megacities is a documentary about the slums of five different metropolitan cities.

The Weird World of LSD

April 1967 •English

The 60s equivalent of Reefer Madness and all those other 30s drug exploitation flicks. Apparently, dropping acid leads to stripteases, cat fights, promiscuous sex, playing with kittens, and being convinced your dinner is much larger than it actually is. This is all illustrated in a series of silent sketches accompanied by a droll narrator who seems positively doped out of his mind.

Hollywood Rated 'R'

June 1997 •English

A roller-coaster ride through the history of American exploitation films, ranging from Roger Corman's sci-fi and horror monster movies, 1960s beach movies, H.G. Lewis' gore-fests, William Castle's schlocky theatrical gimmicks, to 1970s blaxploitation, pre-"Deep Throat" sex tease films, Russ Meyer's bosom-heavy masterpieces, etc, etc. Over 25 interviews of the greatest purveyors of weird films of all kind from 1940 to 1975. Illustrated with dozens of films clips, trailers, extra footage, etc. This documentary as a shorter companion piece focusing on exploitation king David F. Friedman.

The Fall

July 2016 •English

The Fall tells the remarkable story of a South African barefoot runner, an American track-and-field prodigy, and the events behind one of the most memorable moments in sporting history – the 1984 LA Olympics. The film charts two journeys, from rural South Africa under apartheid and the rolling hills of Southern California, to the starting line of the women’s 3,000 metres. It uncovers a tale of betrayal and exploitation, of the blurred lines between politics, media and sport, and of the dedication and sacrifice required to compete at the highest level. It’s a story that split governments and divided nations, but at its heart is a tale of two young women who, despite the turmoil in their lives, just wanted to run.

Ibogaine: Rite of Passage

September 2004 •English

Ibogaine is a plant extract that stops drug addiction. In this documentary, a 34-year-old heroin addict undergoes ibogaine therapy with Dr Martin Polanco at the Ibogaine Association, a clinic in Rosarito, Mexico. In Gabon, where use of the iboga root is traditional, a Babongo woman's tribe uses the plant to help her recover from a depressive malaise. Director Benjamin De Loenen interviews people formerly addicted to heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine, who share their perspectives about ibogaine treatment.

The Sand Island Story

January 1981 •English

This short documentary chronicles a four-month period between 1979 and 1980 when residents of Hawaii's Sand Island "squatter" community attempted to resist eviction from the Honolulu shoreline - resulting in displacement, arrests, and the destruction of a community.

Mudflat

August 1980 •English

Years ago, artists would walk around the muck at the edge of the San Francisco Bay in Emeryville, and build loads of sculptures out there on the flats, created from driftwood and found objects that drivers would enjoy as they motored south on the old Highway 17 (known in numerous radio ads as 'Highway 17, The Nimitz'). Grabbing material off someone else’s work was considered fair game and part of the fun, and contributed a kinetic dynamic to the ongoing display. Now the place is a park, and the sculptures are gone, but you can see what it used to be like in this neat and funny documentary by Ric Reynolds, augmented by Erich Seibert’s wonderful musique-concrète/time-lapse sequences. The flashback circus sequence includes Scott Beach and Bill Irwin. Sculptors interviewed include Walt Zucker, Tony Puccio, Robert Sommer, Ron & Mary Bradden, and Bob Kaminsky.

Akademija the Republic

January 1995 •Serbian

Akademija Republika shows a group of people gathered around the club from 1981 until 1995 and how it changed and influenced the cultural and night life around them.

La Bréa

Invalid date •Portuguese

Documentary about Brazilian actress Sandra Bréa.

The Writing on the Wall

December 1986 •English

"In this half-hour documentary, Producer Sandra King provides an intimate portrait of a public phenomenon: Graffiti. Over an 18 month period, King and her crew followed the teenage members of a graffiti 'crew,' Vandals on the Street, as they painted and rapped and moved through the streets of downtown Newark. What emerges is a unique glimpse behind the 'tags' at the kind of inner city kids who write on walls, but who also make art; who create out of wedlock children, but who also form binding relationships; who drop out of school and never read a book, but who create their own brand of poetry through the medium of 'rap.'

Wasted Talent

July 2018 •English

Taiwan: The Generation After Martial Law

January 1990 •Chinese

This program illustrates how video activists have developed sophisticated use of small format video, with poetic and powerful imagery, complex mixes of sounds and scores and an effective editing style that belies the urgency under which it is being made. The video movement in Taiwan has made successful use of home cassette distribution, via both mail and street vendors. The Green Team collective has pioneered in this effort with over 100 titles in distribution, documenting the struggles of farmers, students, workers and environmentalists.

Slow, une histoire d'amour

January 2024 •French

Baldiga: Unlocked Heart

November 2024 •German

Using diary excerpts, photographs and memories from companions, the film paints the portrait of the artist Jürgen Baldiga who sensitively and authentically captured the West Berlin queer scene of the 1980s and early 1990s with his camera.

Sheila, toutes ces vies-là

December 2022 •French

The portrait of a woman who remembers. Sheila tells the story of Sheila, without concessions or evasions. Her childhood, her parents, her beginnings, the rumors, her love affairs, her marriage, her son, her successes, her farewells, her return, her mourning. The journey of an extraordinary popular icon who never stopped fighting. The courage of an artist who never gives up. "Sheila, toutes ces vies-là" is also a journey through time. 60 years of pop music, punctuated by numerous archives, personal films, timeless hits and illustrations by Marc-Antoine Coulon. But also 60 years of fashion, through a legendary wardrobe (her TV show outfits) that Sheila invites us to rediscover.

The Business of Recovery

March 2015 •English

The Business of Recovery examines the untold billions that are being made off of families in crisis. With little regulation or science, addiction treatment has become a cash cow business that continues to grow while deaths pile up.

Hi, My Name is Dicky

July 2020 •English

Hi, My Name is Dicky is a sports documentary about hockey player Richard Clune, and his struggle with substance use disorder while playing in the National Hockey League (NHL). The story begins in Toronto, where we learn about his typical Canadian childhood, then moves onto his teenage experience with the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) Sarnia Sting. During his time in the OHL, Rich developed a crippling addiction to drugs and alcohol, which threatened to derail both his personal life and professional career. Shortly after debuting in the NHL with the Los Angeles Kings, Rich made the choice to get sober, embarking on a wild journey to the rehab clinic back home in Canada, from his brother's dormitory in Worcester, Massachusetts. Sober for over ten years, the viewer learns how Rich leads a fascinating life off the ice, and has become a mentor to many players in the NHL, now in the twilight of his career playing for his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs.

Freddie Mercury: The Final Act

April 2022 •English

The story of the extraordinary final chapter of Freddie Mercury’s life and how, after his death from AIDS, Queen staged one of the biggest concerts in history, the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium, to celebrate his life and challenge the prejudices around HIV/AIDS. For the first time, Freddie's story is told alongside the experiences of those who tested positive for HIV and lost loved ones during the same period. Medical practitioners, survivors, and human rights campaigners recount the intensity of living through the AIDS pandemic and the moral panic it brought about.

At Home in Utopia

January 2008 •English

During the economic boom of the 1920s, thousands of immigrant Jewish factory workers managed to build the house of their dreams, a cooperative apartment complex at the edge of Bronx Park. Then they were hit by the Great Depression. At Home in Utopia bears witness to an epic social experiment across two generations in the Coops - a place known as "little Moscow" - where people tried to change the American dream into one that included racial justice and workers' rights.

Tiananmen: The People Versus the Party

June 2019 •English

The true story of the seven weeks that changed China forever. On June 4, 1989, pro-democracy demonstrations were violently and bloodily repressed. Thousands of people died, but the basis for China's future was definitely planted.