1. Swimming to Ferguson
Beneath the fury of Ferguson unrest, an affable professor dedicates his life to actionable, peaceful change while attempting the grueling triple crown of ultra-marathon swimming.
2. Traceroute
Artist and life-long nerd Johannes Grenzfurthner is taking us on a personal road trip from the West Coast to the East Coast of the USA, to introduce us to places and people that shaped and inspired his art and politics. Traceroute wants to chase and question the ghosts of nerddom's past, present and future. An exhilarating tour de farce into the guts of trauma, obsession and cognitive capitalism. Features interviews with Matt Winston, Sandy Stone, Bruce Sterling, Jason Scott, Christina Agapakis, Trevor Paglen, Ryan Finnigan, Kit Stubbs, V. Vale, Sean Bonner, Allison Cameron, Josh Ellingson, Maggie Mayhem, Paolo Pedercini, Steve Tolin, Dan Wilcox, Jon Lebkowsky, Jan "Varka" Mulders, Adam Flynn, Abie Hadjitarkhani, Kelly Poots...
It has an average vote of 6.5 on TMDB.
3. Obit
How do you put a life into 500 words? Ask the staff obituary writers at the New York Times. OBIT is a first-ever glimpse into the daily rituals, joys and existential angst of the Times obit writers, as they chronicle life after death on the front lines of history.
It has an average vote of 6.4 on TMDB.
4. Claude Dornier - Pioneer of Aviation (Claude Dornier - Pionier der Luftfahrt)
German-made documentary about Claude Dornier, the aeronautical engineer and founder of Dornier GmbH which built warplanes for Germany in both world wars. Dornier's descendants are interviewed.
It has an average vote of 8.6 on TMDB.
5. L'Europe et ses Fantômes (L'Europe et ses Fantômes)
(L'Europe et ses Fantômes)
6. The Maroons
A film about the Maroons—freed or escaped slaves that created their own communities during slavery. Both stories are examples of Gerima’s driving motivation—sankofa, reclaiming the past in order to move forward.
7. The Stolen Body
Made for Italian national television, Ellis Donda’s Il Corpo Rubato is an experimental documentary on psychoanalisis in 70s/80s Italy, its analytical practices and forms of suggestion.
It has an average vote of 10 on TMDB.
8. Drugs as Weapons Against Us: The CIA War on Musicians and Activists
Evidence supports that the CIA manipulated musicians and activists to promote drugs for social control, particularly regarding the Civil Rights and anti-war movements. Some musicians that resisted these manipulations were killed.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
9. Tijdgravers
Documentary about archivists in Zealand.
10. JFK Remembered: 50 Years Later
A look back at the 1000 days of the John F. Kennedy presidency.
It has an average vote of 3 on TMDB.
11. Tupperware!
The remarkable story of Earl Silas Tupper, an ambitious but reclusive small-town inventor, and Brownie Wise, the self-taught sales-woman who built him an empire out of bowls that burped. Brownie was an intuitive marketing genius who trained a small army of Tupperware Ladies to put on Tupperware parties in living rooms across America in the 1950s. She rewarded her sales force with minks and modern appliances at extravagant annual jubilees which the company filmed. her saleswomen earned thousands, even millions, selling Tupperware. And the experience changed their lives.
12. Sudan's Forgotten Films
Benjamin and Awad run Sudan's national film archive. The two men, who have worked together for more than 40 years, are devoted to protecting their country's visual memories. Home to some 13,000 films, the archive preserves pivotal moments of Sudan's turbulent history and is one of the largest in Africa. But the archive is in a fragile state. Following years of neglect and poor storage, many film reels are turning to dust in Sudan's unforgiving tropical climate. The two friends are determined to turn it around and embark on a mission to save the old films. Will they succeed in preserving Sudan's visual history for future generations before it's too late?
13. New York Underground
In the mid 1800s, New York City was one of the most crowded places on earth. The congested streets and pokey transportation system were a source of constant complaint. On March 24, 1900, ground was broken for the Big Apple's subway; the Interborough Rapid Transit Line opened four years later, running more than 26 miles of underground track at the speed of 35 miles per hour. Soon thousands in the city were "doing the subway."
14. Kensingtonsteinens Gåte
Norwegian documentary from 2013. The Kensington stone was found in 1898 in Minnesota, USA. The disputed, stone-hewn inscriptions, if genuine, would prove that a Norwegian-Swedish expedition explored the American continent 100 years before Columbus. Rheological expertise has always maintained that the stone is a forgery, but others continue stubbornly and enthusiastically to assert the authenticity of the stone and that the history books must be rewritten.
15. Six by Sondheim
This intimate documentary explores the life and career of the stage legend Stephen Sondheim through six of his best-known songs.
It has an average vote of 7.313 on TMDB.
16. Kemper on Kemper: Inside the Mind of a Serial Killer
Ed Kemper, also known as the Co-Ed Killer, murdered and dismembered 10 people, including his own mother. Former FBI agent John Douglas takes us through his extensive interviews with Kemper, which became the backbone of modern criminal psychology.
It has an average vote of 7.808 on TMDB.
17. Dark Side of the Moon (Opération Lune)
A French documentary or, one might say more accurately, a mockumentary, by director William Karel which originally aired on Arte in 2002 with the title Opération Lune. The basic premise for the film is the theory that the television footage from the Apollo 11 Moon landing was faked and actually recorded in a studio by the CIA with help from director Stanley Kubrick.
It has an average vote of 7.013 on TMDB.
18. Living Memory (Memoria Viva)
The Living Memory Project began back in 2009 on the 70th anniversary of the end of the Spanish Civil War with the recording of the event, organized in Paris to the Spanish Exiles and the victims of the Nazi extermination camp of Mauthausen. Our goal thereafter focused on collecting the greatest possible number of testimonies related to the history of Spanish anarcho-syndicalism. As part of the celebrations of 100 years of CNT we set up the project, the union decided to fund it and we set off . We travelled 12,000 km visiting three countries relying on the logistical support of CNT and selfless work of their members as well as partners Malicious Films GuerrillART. This is the result: 80 hours worth of records, 300 hours worth of testimony in timing and transcription meant for reference purposes at the Anselmo Lorenzo Foundation and 0 actors.</p><p> Written by Antonio J. García de Quirós Rodríguez
It has an average vote of 6.5 on TMDB.
19. The Gang: How A Government Agency Uses The Law To Destroy Your Rights & Freedoms
A former minor tax collection department is now a billion-dollar agency. This groundbreaking documentary exposes how this agency harasses, oppresses, intimidates, and terrifies small businesses and decent citizens.
20. Memory Books
In Uganda, AIDS-infected mothers have begun writing what they call Memory Books for their children. Aware of the illness, it is a way for the family to come to terms with the inevitable death that it faces. Hopelessness and desperation are confronted through the collaborative effort of remembering and recording, a process that inspires unexpected strength and even solace in the face of death.