Building for Books

Big Science - Was Tiere denken

August 2008 •German

things that won't die

March 2022 •Spanish

After finding some videos she uploaded to YouTube when she was a child, Manuela attempts to follow the trail she herself has left on the Internet. A search that looks into all that things that won't never die and that, especially, thinks about the way we look at ourselves.

Dying for the Other

January 2012 •English

Dying for the Other is a video triptych, documenting the lives of mice used in breast cancer research and humans suffering from the same disease. In order to produce this video, da Costa documented scenes of her own life during the summer of 2011 and combined them with footage taken at a breast cancer research facility in New York City over the same time frame.

One Book at a Time

July 2020 •English

Sarah Kamya is a school counselor in New York City. She began the project Little Diverse Libraries on June 3rd and has already raised over $13,000, supported black owned bookstores, and has distributed 775 books to Little Free Libraries across all 50 states. Sarah is helping educate communities while most importantly amplifying and empowering black voices.

Guitar

September 2019 •Azerbaijani

Since the late 1960s the guitar has been adopted and transformed by musicians across the Caucasus. Inspired by traditional genres, such as the courtly mugham and the songs and tunes of ashiq bards, guitarists have developed a unique sound, new techniques and styles of playing. Gitara traces the development of this musical subculture, following the lives of guitarists from the suburbs of Azerbaijan's capital Baku to the rural villages of Borçalı (Kvemo Kartli) in Georgia.

Tulevaisuuden rakentajat

December 2021 •Finnish

For a hundred years, the Association of Finnish Student Unions (SYL) has acted as the mouthpiece for Finnish university students. SYL opened its doors to the world and was a pioneer in both student health care and housing production. At the same time, there have been marches both for developing countries and against the Soviet Union.

Shepherds of the Earth

February 2022 •English

The region of Lake Turkana, located in Kenya and Ethiopia, is considered to be “the Cradle of Humankind”. Among other finds, primate fossils from millions of years ago have been discovered in the region. But what about the region’s modern inhabitants and their relationship to their environment? Iiris Härmä, whose previous work includes the award-winning Leaving Africa, had the chance of joining Helsinki University’s researchers, Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares and Mar Cabeza, on their pre-pandemic trip to study the Daasanach people’s relationship to their environment through traditional animal tales. The researchers hope that storytelling would help to bridge the gap between people’s everyday lives and conservation efforts.

Die Brust in der Kunst

January 2024 •German

Das Geheimnis der Affen - Kulturforschung bei Schimpansen

February 2014 •German

Rätselhafte Welt der Quanten

March 2019 •German

The Truth About Obesity

October 2019 •English

A Book Is to Care For

January 1969 •English

The film tells the story of Bill, a young boy who discovers a worn and damaged book about the American Revolution in a secondhand bookshop and buys it for 25 cents. Through his experience, the film explores the lifecycle of a book, from creation to wear and tear, and the importance of proper care and repair. Bill, with the help of his schoolmates and Miss Walker, the librarian, learns how to mend torn pages, remove stains, and protect the book with a new cover and dust jacket. The film emphasizes the collective effort required to create a book and educates on how to extend its life through careful handling and repair, conveying a message of respect and stewardship for books.

Whales in a Changing Ocean

February 2021 •English

Wildlife photographer Richard Sidey joins an international team of whale research scientists in Antarctica to document their work on how Humpback Whales are adapting to a changing ocean.

Fort comme un ours

December 2018 •French

Behind the Doors of Umberto Eco

October 2012 •French

Umberto Eco, the author of best-selling novels who passed away in February 2016, unveils the secrets behind his undertakings and novels.

Rat Brain

Invalid date •English

Rat Brain is a documentary that highlights Dr. John D. Douglass and his team's research at Seattle Pacific University on chronic stress' neurological impact, striving to uncover its link to suicidal behavior. Their work navigates ethical dilemmas while aiming to showcase vital insights into mental health and suicide prevention.

Project Grizzly

October 1997 •English

Documentary about the lifelong project of Troy Hurtubise, a man who has been obsessed with researching the Canadian grizzly bear up close, ever since surviving an early encounter with such a bear. The film documents Hurtubise's diligent work to improve his homemade "grizzly-proof" suit of armour, his efforts to test its resilience, and his forays into the Rockies to track down the grizzlies he dreams of meeting. The film manages to capture the humor of the project as well as its sincerity.

Les Trésors de la Bibliothèque nationale de France

December 2020 •French

The National Library of France is the guardian of priceless treasures that tell our history, our illustrious thinkers, writers, scholars and artists. Telling the story of the exceptional treasures of the National Library of France is like opening a great history book rich in many twists and turns. Without the love of the kings of France for books and precious objects, this institution would never have seen the light of day. The story begins in the 14th century under the reign of a passionate writer, Charles V, who set up a library in his apartments in the Louvre. But it was not until the 17th century, and the reign of Louis XIV, a lover of the arts and letters, that the royal library took over its historic quarters in the rue Vivienne in Paris, which it still occupies.

Education Week

January 1925 •

Young scholars get busy for Newcastle-on-Tyne's 'Education Week' in the tour of Tyneside classrooms.

A Word for Human

March 2019 •English

The library is a stronghold of humanism, but today libraries are more than places for borrowing books. At the Royal Library in the heart of Copenhagen, researchers and intermediaries work side by side with the library's visitors who come to read and study, but also to participate in talks, concerts, lectures and exhibitions that fill the halls all year round. This documentary looks behind the scenes in a year where Marina Abramovic and Olafur Eliasson contribute to the program, and where colonial history and climate change take center stage.