1. The Infamous Chalk Girl
Two years since her arrest made her an accidental superhero of the Umbrella Movement, the infamous 'Chalk Girl', now 16, must decide whether to rejoin the battle for Hong Kong's democracy.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
2. Compton in C Minor
'Compton in C Minor' is a meditation on the gang capital of the world from a hometown girl's point of view. Frustrated by negative portrayals of the inner-city, director Ava DuVernay challenged herself to capture Compton in only two hours and present whatever she found. The results touch on everything from unemployment to entrepreneurship, from graffiti to pride of ownership. The short documentary ends with an inspiring spectacle that will cause you to rethink your stereotypes of this community.
It has an average vote of 1 on TMDB.
3. All This Panic
Shot over a three-year period with unparalleled intimacy and access, ALL THIS PANIC is a feature length documentary that takes an intimate look at the interior lives of a group of teenage girls as they come of age in Brooklyn. A potent mix of vivid portraiture and vérité, we follow the girls as they navigate the ephemeral and fleeting transition between childhood and adulthood.
It has an average vote of 6.1 on TMDB.
4. They Called Us "Les Filles du Roy" (Les Filles du Roy)
The history of the roles of women in Quebec society, beginning with the women shipped from France to the New World by the King to populate the colony with the men already there, and ending with the modern career woman.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
5. The Program
Filmmaker Laura Poitras profiles William Binney, a 32-year veteran of the National Security Agency who helped design a top-secret program he says is broadly collecting Americans' personal data.
It has an average vote of 9 on TMDB.
6. Death of a Prisoner
The filmmaker Laura Poitras follows the tragic return home to Yemen of a Guantánamo Bay prison detainee, Adnan Latif.
It has an average vote of 4 on TMDB.
7. Late For My Mother's Funeral (En retard pour l'enterrement de ma mère)
Former Portland director Penny Allen’s new film is the intimate, turbulent portrait of a French-Algerian-Moroccan family residing in Algeria and adrift following the death of their mother, Zineb, a notorious smuggler of gold and jewels. Filmed over the course of three years, the film finds its own space between documentary and fiction as the family’s story brings to life the complexities of cross-border identities, the influence of political context on individual lives, and the importance of the mother figure in Arab/Islamic cultures
8. A Man, When He Is a Man (El hombre, cuando es hombre)
What are the social climate and cultural traditions in Costa Rica which nurture "machismo" and allow the domination of women to continue in Latin America?
It has an average vote of 1.5 on TMDB.
9. Under the Electric Sky
This 3-D film chronicles the love, community, and life of festival-goers during Electric Daisy Carnival Las Vegas, the largest music festival in the U.S. Behind-the-scenes footage and exclusive interviews with Insomniac's Pasquale Rotella reveal the magic that makes this three-night, 345,000-person event a global phenomenon.
It has an average vote of 6.5 on TMDB.
10. Getúlio Vargas (Getúlio Vargas)
Documentary on one of Brazil's most controversial personalities: Getúlio Vargas, an ex-president.
It has an average vote of 4.2 on TMDB.
11. Thank You, Mr. President: Helen Thomas at the White House
This documentary profiles iconic journalist Helen Thomas who has held a front-row seat at White House press conferences for more than 60 years.
12. Sundays (Κυριακές)
After thirty years of serving as a Greek Orthodox priest in the US, Tom Avramis decides to leave the priesthood, shocking his tight knit family and admiring parishioners. When his daughter discovers an old video he made about his life detailing the burdens and secrets he carried, she turns the camera on him, revealing further secrets about her father’s past.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
13. Billie Holiday: A Sensation
A documentary about the legendary jazz singer Billie Holiday . There exist many myths and legends about the Jazz Singer Billie Holiday — one of the greatest voices of the last century. Most of them tell the story of the tragic victim of drugs, alcohol, men, color, or the circumstances of her upbringing. To some extent she contributed herself to these legends, especially in her autobiography "Lady Sings the Blues". In recent years, more and more records and reports have shown a different picture of her. These statements of confidants, colleagues and friends clean up with many of the legends and show a strong personality who has been anything but a pitiable victim. Billie Holiday was a strong-willed and determined person and a very complex personality who did not correspond to the classic victim type.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
14. Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing
Shut Up and Sing is a documentary about the country band from Texas called the Dixie Chicks and how one tiny comment against President Bush dropped their number one hit off the charts and caused fans to hate them, destroy their CD’s, and protest at their concerts. A film about freedom of speech gone out of control and the three girls lives that were forever changed by a small anti-Bush comment
It has an average vote of 6.6 on TMDB.
15. Mur Murs (Mur murs)
Venturing from Venice Beach to Watts, Varda looks at the murals of LA as backdrop to and mirror of the city’s many cultures. She casts a curious eye on graffiti and photorealism, roller disco & gang violence, evangelical Christians, Hare Krishnas, artists, angels and ordinary Angelenos.
It has an average vote of 7.4 on TMDB.
16. Sylvia Plath: Inside The Bell Jar
The story of the making of The Bell Jar, the unique, semi-autobiographical novel written by American writer Sylvia Plath , published in February 1963, shortly before her death.
It has an average vote of 6.3 on TMDB.
17. Snow Beard
A moving tribute to New York icon Mike Kuchar, filmed on his last day before leaving Manhattan to relocate to San Francisco
18. Blindsight - Vertraue Deiner Vision
Six blind Tibetan teenagers climb the Lhakpa-Ri peak of Mount Everest, led by seven-summit blind mountain-climber Erik Weihenmayer.
It has an average vote of 6.8 on TMDB.
19. Tempest Storm
The controversial life story of America's greatest exotic dancer, who at 87 years old is preparing for her final and most important act: to repair her broken relationship with her daughter Patricia, who she walked away from fifty years ago.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
20. Memories of a Penitent Heart
Twenty five years after Miguel died from AIDS, his niece, filmmaker Cecilia Aldarondo, embarks on an excavation into a quagmire of unresolved family drama. Like many gay men in the 1980s, Miguel moved from Puerto Rico to New York City; he found a career in theater and a rewarding relationship. Yet, on his deathbed he grappled to reconcile his homosexuality with his Catholic upbringing. Now, decades after his death, Cecilia locates Miguel’s lover Robert, who has been shunned and demonized by the family, in order to understand the whole story.
It has an average vote of 5.6 on TMDB.