1. The Song of the Butterflies (El canto de las mariposas)
Rember Yahuarcani is an indigenous artist from the Uitoto Nation who lives in Lima, Peru. From his clan, the White Heron, only two families remain in Peru. Rember's paintings are inspired by the stories his grandmother Martha told him before she died. However, he has never dived into the darkest part of his nation’s history: the indigenous massacre during the rubber boom. Martha is a survivor of the horror and she speaks to Rember in dreams guiding him in a spiritual journey back to the jungle. He first visits his parents, who are also artists, in the Peruvian jungle. And finally, he sails to La Chorrera, in Colombia, where he confronts the past and meets other members of his clan.
2. Temple of Art
A documentary that explores what it means to be an artist and why it's important to pursue your passion- even in the face of failure.
3. A Desert Moment with Noah
Paying tribute to artist Noah Purifoy and his Outdoor Museum, Matthew’s film ‘A Desert Moment with Noah’ rapidly animates 78 still Super 8mm images like a slideshow gone haywire. Exploring the of elasticity of time, the film manipulates the essence of a moment as it periodically pauses to allow the viewer a space with various objects, surfaces, and textures within Purifoy’s Joshua Tree sculptural environment.
4. The Builders of the Alhambra (Los constructores de la Alhambra)
Kingdom of Granada, al-Andalus, 14th century. After recognizing that his land, always under siege, is hopelessly doomed to be conquered, Sultan Yusuf I undertakes the construction of a magnificent fortress with the purpose of turning it into the landmark of his civilization and his history, a glorious monument that will survive the oblivion of the coming centuries: the Alhambra.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
5. Teatro Amazonas: The Art of Sound and Nature (Teatro Amazonas – Musik im Regenwald)
The history of the Teatro Amazonas in Manaus, an opera house located in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, whose construction, between 1884 and 1896, depended on the labor exploitation of the local indigenous populations, provides an insight into the cultural, social and political situation in Brazil.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
6. Michael Palin In Wyeth's World
Michael Palin heads for rural Pennsylvania and Maine to explore the extraordinary life and work of one of America's most popular and controversial painters, Andrew Wyeth. Fascinated by his iconic painting Christina's World, Palin goes in search of the real life stories that inspired this and Wyeth's other depictions of the American landscape and its hard grafting inhabitants. Tracking down the farmers, friends and family featured in Wyeth's magically real work, Palin builds a picture of an eccentric, enigmatic and driven painter. He also gets a rare interview with Helga, the woman who put Wyeth back in the headlines when the press discovered he had been painting her nude, compulsively but secretly for 15 years.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
7. Dream Me Up Scotty!
Alex Norton discovers how showbusiness has handled the portrayal of the Scottish accent. For over 100 years audiences have struggled to understand our braw brogue: silent Harry Lauder films attempted an accent in the captions, and in Hollywood's golden era , everyone wanted to paint their tonsils tartan- but as examples from Katharine Hepburn, Orson Welles and Richard Chamberlain show, they couldnae. Then Disney made Brave and proved that it disnae have to be all bad!
8. Salvador Dalí: In Search of Immortality (Salvador Dalí: In Search of Immortality)
The documentary proposes an exhaustive journey through the life and work of Salvador Dalí, and also of Gala, his muse and collaborator. It starts in 1929, a crucial year in Dalí's career and life, as he joined the surrealist group and met Gala, and advances until the year of the artist's death in 1989.
It has an average vote of 7.3 on TMDB.
9. Amargosa
The inspirational story of Marta Becket: 76-yr old singer, writer, dancer, painter, visionary, and her creation Amargosa.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
10. Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists
Directors Jonathan Alter, John Block and Steve McCarthy bring New York columnists Jimmy Breslin and Pete Hamill’s courageous writing to life, celebrating the acclaimed journalists and the city they loved.
It has an average vote of 6.9 on TMDB.
11. To See Ourselves
Filmmaker Jane McAllister follows her father, Yes campaigner Fraser McAllister, through the events of the 2014 referendum on Scottish independence.
12. DAS ES (DAS ES)
The long flights of spacecraft have been in the past, as well as the chronicle of accomplishments. Snatches of memory bring to us the fragments of those memories that are confused and do not leave a coherent and consistent trace. All in the past. But was it really ?!
It has an average vote of 8.5 on TMDB.
13. See: An Art Road Trip
Artists Bo Bartlett and Betsy Eby travel the country finding art in their surroundings before being unexpectedly forced to consider what it would mean to lose the ability to see.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
14. Always Forward (Siempre para Adelante)
Plastic artist Aparicio Arthola talks with his student about the catarsis in his creative process, the loss, death and uncertainty of art life in Nicaragua
15. Maverick Modigliani (Maledetto Modigliani)
Born in Livorno, Tuscany, artist Amedeo Modigliani lived a short, tormented life, narrated here from an original point of view, that of his young common-law wife, Jeanne Hébuterne.
It has an average vote of 7.4 on TMDB.
16. Discovering Scotland
Rolling moors and highlands. Bluebells and heather. Cool lochs and refreshing streams. Tidy villages nestled into rolling fertile farmland. Rocky outcroppings and sleeping seaside towns. Around every corner, over every hill lies still another marvel. And each is yours for the discovering in this comprehensive tour through the colorful land of the kilt and the tartan. Come along, discover ALL of Scotland!
17. Peter Monaghan: A Portrait
This documentary features a kinetic artist who creates vibrant mixed media works that push the boundary between 2D and 3D.
18. People on Paper
Americans are preoccupied with the news, but need an escape from many of the events reported in the news. These escapes in the past have included dime store novels. The most accessible of these escapes is what are known as the funny papers, the set of serialized comic strips that are included within many newspapers. They appeal to all socio-economic classes, and all ages. Some of the earliest known from the late 19th century include the Yellow Kid, Little Nemo, Happy Hooligan, the Katzenjammer Kids, Mutt & Jeff, and Bringing Up Father. Many cartoonists are seen in action. Some originated their characters, while others have taken over following the passing of the originator. The joy of many comic strips are the absurd and the fantastical, which are limited only by the imagination of the cartoonist. Others are grounded in reality, which add to their poignancy within the public mindset.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
19. Town Destroyer
Controversy erupts over a New-Deal-era mural of the namesake of San Francisco’s George Washington High School. The thirteen-panel artwork "The Life of Washington" by Victor Arnautoff offers a view of the Founding Father both celebratory and critical, referencing his involvements in slavery and Native American genocide.
20. Lifeline: Clyfford Still
Jackson Pollock said, “he makes the rest of us look academic,” Mark Rothko acknowledged him as a “myth-maker” and Clement Greenberg called him “a highly influential maverick and an independent genius.” Clyfford Still, one of the strongest, most original contributors to abstract expressionism, walked away from the commercial art world at the height of his career. Extremely disciplined, principled, and prolific, Still left behind a treasure trove of works like no other major artist in history. With a wonderful mosaic of archival material, found footage and audio recorded by the artist himself, Lifeline paints a picture of a modern icon, his uncompromising creative journey and the price of independence.
It has an average vote of 9 on TMDB.
