Movies and TvShows featuring "observational-cinema" theme.
Koyaanisqatsi is an experimental film that takes viewers on a mesmerizing journey through time-lapse photography, showcasing the beauty and destruction of the modern world. Through stunning aerial shots and captivating scenes of city life, the film provides a thought-provoking commentary on the impact of technology and urbanization on our environment.
A five-year visual ethnography of traditional yet practical orchestration of Semana Santa in a small town where religious woodcarving is the livelihood. An experiential film on neocolonial Philippines’ interpretation of Saints and Gods through many forms of rituals and iconographies, exposing wood as raw material that undergoes production processes before becoming a spiritual object of devotion. - A sculpture believed to have been imported in town during Spanish colonial conquest, locally known as Mahal na Señor Sepulcro, is celebrating its 500 years. Meanwhile, composed of non-actors, Senakulo re-enacts the sufferings and death of Jesus. As the local community yearly unites to commemorate the Passion of Christ, a laborious journey unfolds following local craftsmen in transforming blocks of wood into a larger than life Jesus crucified on a 12-ft cross.
Chronicle of a Summer is a documentary film that follows the lives of various individuals in France during the summer of 1960. It explores themes of society, working-class struggles, loneliness, and the pursuit of happiness.
Nai Nai follows the story of a Chinese immigrant grandmother, Chu-Ming Wu. Known as “Nai Nai,” Chu-Ming has always been a woman of control. But her grasp of reality and the control of her own mind is slipping away. Told through the lens of her grandson, the film focuses on the joyful, heartbreaking and intimate moments in the last chapters of her life.
A documentary film that takes us on a journey through the Cordillera of Dreams in Chile, exploring its breathtaking landscapes and reflecting on its historical and political importance. Through stunning visuals and insightful interviews, the film examines the impact of the Cordillera on the collective memory of the Chilean people, particularly in relation to the country's dark past and the 1973 coup d'état. It highlights the resilience of the human spirit and the power of nature to inspire and heal.
The diary of Takuya Ogushi, a 18 years old Japanese, who begins his new life as a sumo wrestler.
Nearly thirty years after making his surrealist La Formula Secreta, director Rubén Gámez returned to filmmaking with this impressionistic portrait of modern-day Mexico. Reminiscent in some ways of Godfrey Reggio’s Koyaanisqatsi, Tequila appears to be a cinematic extension of Mexico’s muralist tradition, a contemporary equivalent of Diego Rivera or David Alfaro Siqueiros with vignettes, quick ideas, visual puns, cartoons, and political statements.
A woman meditates on her life in an 80-minute unbroken zoom shot.
In 1829 the naturalist Alexander von Humboldt attempted a russian-siberian expedition. Humboldt travelled to obtain a clear view of nature, people and life in this immense country. 2019 naturalists and humanists attempted a transdisciplinary expedition on the trails of Humboldt. To capture the events various cameras were taken along. A non-chronological narration.
Tibetan Buddhist search for the meaning of death in an unforgiving Himalayan landscape and stir compassion by uncovering human truths
What does it mean to belong to a place, a country? In a south Tel Aviv elementary school, that question is addressed head-on by a fourth-grade class and their teacher. The children are asylum seekers whose families mostly do not have a legal status in Israel, yet learn, sing and play in Hebrew all the while examining their identity and sense of belonging.
“Olive” is a short documentary that follows Olive Hagemeier, an energetic woman, on her daily routine of salvaging, repackaging and redistributing food, and occasional other types of “waste”, across Atlanta, GA. Presented in a quiet observational style, this film is both a character study of a committed and enigmatic volunteer, as well as an ethnographic work that places the audience in the heart of a decentralized, volunteer-run mutual aid network in a “post-COVID” American city.
Reya’s World delves into the raw and poignant struggle of a young woman navigating the depths of depression. Feeling trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of isolation, Reya finds solace and gradual healing through small moments of self-connection and genuine friendships, gradually lifting the heavy burden that envelops her.
Anything Can Happen is an existentialist documentary that explores the themes of death and observational cinema. The film delves into the complexities of human existence and the uncertainties of life, capturing the essence of the human experience in an introspective and thought-provoking manner.
Sean Dunne's observational documentary of a 2016 Donald Trump Rally.
Rolling along on a bike or floating in a doctor’s office’s seasonal hamster display, Wheel Music explores the aesthetic feeling and social character of Sendagi, an old town in Tokyo under urban development in preparation for the planned Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics.
A group of friends gathers to celebrate the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024. Captured through a cellphone camera, the film showcases their various interactions while highlighting the artistic and cultural influences that shape their lives.