Film list

37 Uses for a Dead Sheep 2006 85'
    Directed by Ben Hopkins .
The Pamir Kirghiz are a tribe of some 2,000 people from the Pamir region of Central Asia. For the last 27 years they have lived in exile in Eastern Turkey. In 2005 an Anglo-Turkish film crew arrives
Middle and Near East Film / Photography / Mass media Animals Migration
The Absence of Apricots 2018 49'
    Student Directed by Daniel Asadi Faezi .
In the Hunza Valley in the northern Pakistan there is a magnificent turquoise lake. But the lake hasn’t been always there: it is the result of a massive landslide that blocked a river, causing
South Asia Environment Memory Development projects Resettlement
Across the Border: Afghan Musicians exiled in Peshawar 2008 54'
  Directed by John Baily .
It is the year 2000 and most of Afghanistan is under the control of the Taliban. Hearing that many of Afghanistain’s musicians are now in exile across the border in Pakistan, ethnomusicologist John
South Asia Refugees / Displaced populations Music / Ethnomusicology Religion / Belief / Faith
Adhiambo - Born in the Evening 2001 66'
    Directed by Ruth Prince Wenzel Geißler Ruth Tuchtenhagen .
‘Adhiambo’ means ‘the one born in the evening’ in the language of the Luo of western Kenya. The film follows NyaSeme, a married mother and grandmother in her late 30s, during the last month
East Africa Children / Young people Health / Health care / Healing
Agave is Life 2014 59'
    Directed by Meredith Dreiss David Brown .
Agave is Life is a documentary film about mankind’s 10,000 year-long symbiotic alliance with the marvelous agave plant, from which tequila, Mexico’s iconic distilled spirit, is derived. The
Central America Archaeobotany / Ethnobotany Food History
The Ainu Bear Ceremony 1931 27'
    Directed by Neil G. Munro .
The RAI has reedited the original film of this ceremony among the Ainu people of Japan. In the bear ceremony, now no longer performed, a specially reared bear was reverently killed and its flesh and
Central Asia and Far East Ritual Animals Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples
At Low Tide 2016 63'
  Directed by Anna Grimshaw .
Every day, carrying the simplest of tools, diggers across coastal Maine set out at low tide to dig for clams on the wide mud flats that stretch far into the bay. It is backbreaking work. But it has
North America Material Culture Labour Hunting / Gathering / Fishing
Atieno 2018 64'
  Directed by June Ndinya Effie Awino Ruth Njoki Lavine Atieno Dorcas Akin .
Atieno is a collaborative fiction film scripted, acted and directed by DreamGirls, a group of adolescent girls and young women from Nairobi and Kisumu. The film tells of Atieno, a 16 year old girl
East Africa Health / Healthcare / Healing Children / Young people Gender Role and Identity Ethnofiction Dance / Theatre / Performance Participatory / Collaborative methods Sex / Sexuality
Barbara and Her Friends in Candombleland 1997 52'
    Directed by Sylvie Timbert Carmen Opipari .
In the divine Afro Brazilian cult Candomble is an initiation religion centred around possession. The filmmakers concentrate on children who introduce and guide us to this world. The children play
South America Children / Young people Dance / Theatre / Performance Possession Ritual
The Bastard Sings the Sweetest Song 2012 71'
    Directed by Christy Garland .
'The Bastard Sings the Sweetest Song', using direct cinema style, introduces us to the Smith family in Georgetown, Guyana, where both Muscle, and his mother Mary, each struggle to fight the family
South America Elderly people Family / Kinship Intergenerational relations
Benin Kingship Rituals 1963 20'
    Directed by Frank Speed Ray Bradbury .
Until it was conquered by the British in 1897, the city of Benin, in what is now Nigeria, was the centre of a powerful kingdom. Its rulers, the Obas of Benin, were mysterious, secluded figures who
West Africa Ritual Dance / Theatre / Performance History
Between two Villages 2003 94'
    Directed by Muriel Jaquerod Eduardo Saraiva Pereira .
Between two Villages tells the story of Aldeia da Luz, population of 330, bound to disappear with the construction of the Alqueva dam in the south of Portugal. A new village is being built a few
Western Mediterranean Resettlement Development projects Infrastructure / Transport
Black Mountain 2008 84'
    Directed by Charlotte Whitby-Coles Amin Hajee .
A once unremarkable site of multi-faith pilgrimage to a Sufi Saint has been transformed and its local history rewritten - the film documents the journey of Charlotte, a student undertaking her PhD
South Asia Religion / Belief / Faith Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage Inter-religious relations
The Block 2016 60'
    Student Directed by Maria Șalaru .
From neighbourly disputes over garlic-heavy cooking to memories of Ceaușescu’s heatless winters, "The Block" explores the rich social and material universe of a Romanian apartment
Eastern Europe and Baltic States Urban Post-communism Infrastructure / Transport
Body Games - Capoeira and Ancestry 2014 87'
    Student Directed by Richard Pakleppa Matthias Röhrig Assunção Christine Dettmann .
The film follows master Cobra Mansa and his friends in the search for the African roots of the Brazilian martial art Capoeira. A powerful myth links Capoeira to a legendary Angolan game called Engolo
South America Southern Africa Dance / Theatre / Performance Music / Ethnomusicology Festivals / Carnival
Born 2008 56'
    Directed by Andy Lawrence Judith Kurutuac .
*Our hope is to create a magical-real environment in which to go beyond the limits of our historical perspective on childbirth and its culturally bound rites, and to demonstrate an emotionally
British-Irish Isles Health / Health care / Healing Family / Kinship Children / Young people
Breaking the Chains 2015 64'
    Student Directed by Erminia Colucci .
The practice of using shackles and chains to physically restrain people with mental illness (known as pasung) is widespread in Indonesia (as in many other developing/low middle income countries) and
South-East Asia Prison Health / Health care / Healing Political Activists Development projects
Casado's Legacy 2009 49'
    Directed by Valentina Bonifacio .
For 100 years Maskoy people worked in Carlos Casado’s tannin factory. The factory, which had been founded on their land, based its production on the exploitation of local natural resources. After
South America Political Activists Labour Land Rights
A Chair: in six parts 2013 42'
    Student Directed by Anna Grimshaw .
A poem about a chair. In 1960, Bill Coperthwaite bought 300 acres of wilderness in Machiasport, Maine. Influenced by the poetry of Emily Dickinson and by the back to the land movement of Scott and
North America Material Culture Alternative culture Art / Artists / Artisans
Chantal's Choice 1990 30'
    Directed by Priscilla Hinckley Carlyn Saltman .
Adolescents in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, create a play for their peers in Europe and the USA. They enact an African folktale about a girl who faces a painful dilemma because she is determined to stay in school.
West Africa Dance / Theatre / Performance Children / Young people Reproduction (biology)
Confluences - Emerillon of French Guiana 2007 78'
    Directed by Perle Møhl .
Like self-fulfilling prophecies, scientific reports have hitherto depicted the Emerillon of French Guiana as cultureless and doomed to disappear. With this film, an anthropologist proposes to defy
South America Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Everyday Life
Cuyagua - Devil Dancers 1987 52'
    Directed by Paul Henley .
The men of the Afro-Caribbean population of Cuyagua enact a ritual that occurs 60 days after Easter. The film is a portrait of two men who direct the devil dancing. They tell the history of the
South America Ritual Religion / Belief / Faith
Cuyagua - the Saint With Two Faces 1987 56'
    Student Directed by Paul Henley .
The film centres on the predominantly female celebration of the feast of Saint John. The women sing the songs associated with the Feast, describe their beliefs and how they organise the feast.
South America Ritual Religion / Belief / Faith Festivals / Carnival
Daba - Portrait of a Na Shaman 1999 40'
    Directed by Hua Cai .
After more than a quarter of a century without any form of religious ceremony, the Na, an ethnic group living on the Himalayan plateau, began openly practising their religion again in the early
South-East Asia Education / Knowledge transmission Religion / Belief / Faith Shamans and Shamanism
Democracía Indígena 2000 39'
    Directed by Bruce Pacho Lane .
This film examines the indigenous rights revolution sweeping Mexico through the municipal elections in Huehuetla, Puebla. In 1989, the Huehuetla Totonacs formed the Organización Independiente
Central America Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Political Activists
Depending on Heaven 1988 56'
    Directed by Peter Entell .
The film is in two parts and focuses on the Mongols living in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China. Part One (28 minutes) follows the life of a nomadic Mongol family on their yearly journey
Central Asia and Far East Environment Nomads and Nomadism Herding Everyday Life
The Devil’s Mills. Roundabouts don't Build Houses any more 2006 56'
    Directed by János Tari .
The everyday life of migrant fun fair operators is the filter through which we view the social and economic factors of the 20th and early 21st century that define the life and work of this social
Central Europe Labour Social Change Trade Festivals / Carnival
Distant Temple 2002 90'
    Directed by János Tari .
The last orthodox synagogue in Makó was renewed and inaugurated in 2002. The little temple, as they call it, is more than hundred years old and represents the link between the Jews who emigrated
Middle and Near East Migration Religion / Belief / Faith
Doctors of Two Worlds 1989 55'
    Directed by Natasha Solomons .
In the Bolivian highlands an English doctor is setting up a network of health care for remote mountain villages. While teaching the inhabitants the essentials of Western medicine the doctor is
South America Health / Health care / Healing Informant-researcher relationship Development projects
Dor, Low is Better 1988 47'
    Directed by Robert Boonzajer-Flaes .
The film offers an experimental approach to the comparative study of cultures: the monks of a Tibetan monastery compare their own flutes with the Swiss alphorn and the Dutch windhorn introduced to
South Asia Music / Ethnomusicology Ritual
Drugs & Prayers 2009 55'
    Directed by Helene Basu .
The Sufi shrine of Mira Datar in North Gujarat is a large pilgrimage centre specialising in healing possession and mental illness. It has become a site of experimenting with new forms of community
South Asia Health / Health care / Healing Ritual Religion / Belief / Faith
Duminea: A Festival for the Water Spirits 1966 20'
    Directed by Frank Speed Robin Horton .
The communal rituals of most villages of the Eastern Niger Delta focus on two great classes of spirits - the heroes and the water people. The heroes once lived with the men, founded their
West Africa Ritual Possession
The Ethnographer 2012 86'
    Directed by Ulises Rosell .
John Palmer arrived in a Wichí community, located in Argentina, thirty years ago as an anthropologist - today he has married a Wichí woman with whom he has five sons in the last 5 years, who babble
South America History of Anthropology Everyday Life Informant-researcher relationship
Every Good Marriage Begins With Tears 2007 63'
    Directed by Simon Chambers .
East London Muslim girl Shahanara is changing form pink hot pants into a sari to meet her husband at the airport. She has only met him once before, when she was married in a union arranged by her
London Family / Kinship Gender Role and Identity Marriage Intergenerational relations Social Norms
Fatmawati's Wedding: the Weddings of two Sisters, the Preparations 1998 50'
    Directed by Fiona Kerlogue .
This film records the preparations for the wedding of two sisters in eastern Sumatra in December 1996. There is an emphasis on the importance of the role of women in the village. Ritual exchanges
South-East Asia Gender Role and Identity Marriage Ritual Material Culture
Fatuma and Asya. Two Afar Girls in Ethiopia 2014 59'
    Directed by Francesco Sincich .
Two young Afar girls, Fatuma (10) and Asya (13), show us their daily life in two different contexts of the Afar Region in Ethiopia. Both of them face hard challenges: finding an alternative way to
West Africa Gender Role and Identity Marriage Children / Young people Rural
Fighting for Nothing to Happen 2015 48'
    Student Directed by Nora Wildenauer .
After the volcanic eruption of Mount Rokatenda, the people of the island of Pulau Palue in east Indonesia are to be relocated. But are the planned relocation and the "new" life at the
South-East Asia Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy Refugees / Displaced populations Development projects Disasters
Fragments from the Past 2006 27'
    Directed by Vedide Kaymak Hakan Demiralay .
In the days before DVD and satellite television, the cinema was important to London’s Turkish speaking population as a place to meet and as a link with home. Eight individuals recount their
British-Irish Isles Popular Culture Migration Film / Photography / Mass media
Garden Days: Village in Papua New Guinea 1988 25'
    Directed by Ariane Lewis Jon Jerstad .
A detailed account of domestic life in the Sepik area of Papua New Guinea, mainly from the women’s point of view. It describes their everyday activities in the ‘gardens’ in order to produce
Melanesia Agriculture / Farming Children / Young people Ritual
Gelede: A Yoruba Masquerade 1970 30'
    Directed by Frank Speed Peggy Harper .
Among the Yoruba of Western Nigeria and Dahomey the Gelede cult honours the earth spirits, the ancestors and especially the Great Mother. The festival filmed here emphasises the status of women and
West Africa Gender Role and Identity Ritual Festivals / Carnival Social Conflict
Gods and Satans 2005 87'
    Directed by Martine Journet Gérard Nougarol Gabriel Chabanier .
Among the Wana people, semi nomads from the Indonesian (Sulawesi) forest, Indo Pino is a shaman recognized by everybody. Her nephew, who is also a shaman’s son, converted to Christianity some
South-East Asia Religion / Belief / Faith Shamans and Shamanism Inter-religious relations
The Golden Beach 2008 58'
    Directed by Hasse Wester .
A small group of farmers belonging to the Halakki Gowda tribe live near a small beach in a valley in southern India. When the Swedish film maker Hasse Wester was first there twenty years ago the
South Asia Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage Rural Social Change
The Guardian of the Forces 1991 52'
    Directed by Anne Laure Folly .
'The Guardian of the Forces' introduces the viewer to the world of Sikavi, a ‘fetish priest’ in Lome, Togo. He controls the spirits of several voodoos or gods. The film explores the significance
West Africa Health / Health care / Healing Possession Ritual
The Guga Hunters of Ness 2010 59'
    Directed by Mike Day .
This film follows a vanishing community’s beloved and unique tradition. The Gaelic speakers of Lewis and Scotland are the only people in the EU exempt from a ban on hunting gannets, but they are
Western Europe Hunting / Gathering / Fishing Animals Ritual
HARMONI: HEALING TOGETHER 2021 98'
  Directed by Erminia Colucci .
As a nation of 270 million, Indonesia is facing the grave task of caring for millions of people living with mental illness. Many have experienced human rights abuses in their lifetime. In communities
South-East Asia Health / Health care / Healing Religion / Belief / Faith
Habilito - Debt for Life 2010 52'
    Directed by Chuck Sturtevant .
This documentary explores many of the conflicts and tensions that arise at the point of contact between highland migrants and lowland indigenous peoples, focusing particularly on the system of debt
South America Socioeconomic conditions Migration Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Labour
Heal the Whole Man 1974 50'
    Directed by Paul Robinson .
The ‘Barolong boo Ratshidi’ are one of the group of Tswana peoples, who together form a culturally homogeneous population of over two million. The Barolong themselves number about 75’000 and
Southern Africa Religion / Belief / Faith Health / Health care / Healing
Herat Films: The City of Herat 1983 21'
    Directed by John Baily .
These videos were edited from seven hours of Super 8 film shot by John Baily during two years of ethnomusicological fieldwork carried out in the Herat region of western Afghanistan between 1973 and
Middle and Near East Urban Trade
Herat Films: The Annual Cycle of Music in Herat 1983 54'
    Directed by John Baily .
These videos were edited from seven hours of Super 8 film shot by John Baily during two years of ethnomusicological fieldwork carried out in the Herat region of western Afghanistan between 1973 and
Middle and Near East Dance / Theatre / Performance Music / Ethnomusicology
Herat Films: The Shrines of Herat 1983 30'
    Directed by John Baily .
These videos were edited from seven hours of Super 8 film shot by John Baily during two years of ethnomusicological fieldwork carried out in the Herat region of western Afghanistan between 1973 and
Middle and Near East Religion / Belief / Faith Urban
Holy Men and Fools 2005 61'
    Directed by Michael Yorke .
The film narrates the story of Uma Giri, a Swedish woman who has become a Hindu nun, called Uma Giri. She is one of the few western women to be accepted into the most radical order of wandering
South Asia Religion / Belief / Faith Inter-religious relations Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage
Horror in the Andes 2019 33'
    Special Interest Directed by Martha-Cecilia Dietrich .
Horror in the Andes is a behind-the-scenes documentary that follows the process of making a horror movie in Ayacucho, Peru. Directed by audio-visual anthropologist Martha-Cecilia Dietrich, it
South America Art / Artists / Artisans Dance / Theatre / Performance Ethnofiction Film / Photography / Mass media Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples
A Hospice in Amsterdam 2005 62'
    Directed by Steef Meyknecht .
At the end of Van Goghstraat in Amsterdam is the Veerhuis. A normal residential house in a normal urban area, where children play outside in front of the door. But people come to the Veerhuis to die.
Western Europe Health / Health care / Healing Elderly people
Ignacio's Legacy 2016 52'
    Special Interest Directed by Titus Fossgard-Moser .
Between 1960 and 1992, the acclaimed documentary filmmaker Brian Moser made four films concerning indigenous peoples of northwest Amazonia: "Piraparana" (1960), "War of the Gods"
South America Film / Photography / Mass media Social Change Reflexivity Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples
Imbalu: Ritual of Manhood of the Gisu of Uganda 1988 69'
    Directed by Richard Hawkins .
An insightful documentary, constructed with visual restraint, about the male circumcision ritual among the Gisu of Uganda. The narrative follows one male participant through the ritual and contrasts
East Africa Ritual Gender Role and Identity
In the Light of Memory 2010 40'
    Directed by Alyssa Grossman .
'In the Light of Memory' explores evocations of memory in contemporary post-socialist Bucharest, nearly twenty years after the fall of Romanian communism. The film is shot in Cismigiu Gardens, one of
South-East Europe Memory Post-communism
Indo Pino 2002 84'
    Directed by Martine Journet Gérard Nougarol Gabriel Chabamier .
The small ethnic group of the Wana Wewaju live in Indonesia in the eastern part of Sulawesi (Celebes Island) among the dense equatorial rain forest of the Tokkala Mountains. The film documents the
South-East Asia Shamans and Shamanism Health / Health care / Healing
Je ne suis pas moi-même 2009 50'
    Directed by Alba Mora Anna Sanmartí .
Shot in Cameroon and Brussels, 'Je ne suis pas moi-même' examines the complex network surrounding the international market of African antiquities, and the contradictions in a European art market
Central Africa Western Europe Art / Artists / Artisans Trade
Journey into Europe 2015 122'
  Directed by Akbar Ahmed .
In Journey into Europe, Akbar Ahmed, a world-renowned anthropologist, Islamic scholar, and filmmaker who the BBC has called “the world’s leading authority on contemporary Islam,” explores Islam
Central Europe Western Europe South-East Europe History Religion / Belief / Faith Collective / Community identity
Journey of the Maggot Feeder 2015 68'
    Directed by Liivo Niglas Priit Tender .
This film tries to solve the mystery of a bizarre Arctic fairy tale. Priit Tender, an Estonian animator, makes a film about an old Chukchi legend – The Maggot Feeder. The unconventional narrative
Central Asia and Far East Animation Film / Photography / Mass media Myths / Fairy tales
A Kabul Music Diary 2003 52'
    Directed by John Baily .
Ethnomusicologist John Baily returns to Kabul to see what is happening in the world of music one year after the defeat of the Taliban. The film documents a variety of musical activities, including
Middle and Near East Music / Ethnomusicology War / Conflict / Reconciliation
Kanraxël: the Confluence of Agnack 2015 52'
    Student Directed by Remigiusz (aka Remi) Sowa .
**DVD copies are available for secondary teaching and home use at the following prices: £35 (plus VAT) schools and colleges; £20 (plus VAT) individual / home use licence** Agnack is a
West Africa Linguistics / Language Social Change
Keepers of the Faith: The Buddhist Nuns of Sagaing Hills 1996 51'
    Directed by Hiroko Kawanami .
In the Sagaing Hills, 12 miles from the ancient capital of Mandalay are hundreds of pagodas, stupas, monasteries and nunneries which form a focal point of worship for Buddhism in Burma. In 1986 the
South-East Asia Religion / Belief / Faith Collective / Community identity Gender Role and Identity
Kusum 2000 69'
    Directed by Jouko Aaltonen Antti Pakaslahti .
Kusum is a 14-year-old Indian girl. She lives and attends school in Delhi. Kaushal, her father, drives a motorised rickshaw and works his fingers to the bone to support his family. Sumitra, Kusum’s
South Asia Children / Young people Health / Health care / Healing Possession
Kwagh Hir 1975 30'
    Directed by Frank Speed Peggy Harper .
Four million Tiv people form the major culture of the Benue state of southern Nigeria. They are popularly known as the greatest democrats in Africa as their society is based on fraternal cooperation
West Africa Festivals / Carnival Dance / Theatre / Performance Ritual
The Last Navigator 1989 50'
    Directed by André Singer .
This is the story of two cultures and two technologies. An American navigator is taught the skills of navigation by a traditional Micronesian navigator on Satawal island. The American tries to
Micronesia Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage Infrastructure / Transport Education / Knowledge Transmission
Law and War in Rural Kenya 2010 64'
    Directed by Suzette Heald .
In 1998, a new movement swept through Kuria, in south western Kenya with dramatic effect. Cattle raiding fuelled by the increasing presence of guns had led to a situation of total insecurity, with
East Africa War / Conflict / Reconciliation Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy
Leaving Greece 2013 79'
    Directed by Anna Brass .
When entering the EU for the first time, a refugee must submit an application for asylum. So much is clear. Less well known, however is the fact that for 90% of all refugees, the Aegean is the
Western Mediterranean Children / Young people Migration Love
Lessons from Gulam 1986 52'
    Directed by John Baily .
A detailed study of musical enculturation within the Asian community of Bradford in northern England. Gulam Musa is the principal character and he is shown as a teacher and as a musician. The film
British-Irish Isles Music / Ethnomusicology Education / Knowledge Transmission
Letter to the Dead 2002 62'
    Directed by Andre Iteanu Eytan Kapon .
The film is about the encounter between tradition and modernity. In a small village of Papua New Guinea three exceptional men rival with each other in the field of rituals and artistic creation in
Melanesia Social Change Art / Artists / Artisans Death
Life Chances: Four Families in a Greek Cypriot Village 1974 43'
    Directed by Peter Loizos .
A careful account of social change in a prosperous Greek Cypriot village, which follows four closely related families before the Turkish made them all refugees. Their lives reflect the possibilities
South-East Europe Social Change Life Story / Life History Rural Family / Kinship
A Life with Slate 2006 59'
    Directed by Dipesh Kharel .
Alampu is a beautiful and exceedingly remote village in Nepal. The majority of the settlers there are Thami people, one of the indigenous groups of Nepal. More than 90 percent of them have been
South Asia Labour Socioeconomic conditions
Little Waterfall 2002 52'
    Directed by Joshka Wessels .
Shallalah Saghirah ('Little Waterfall') is a small village of about 20 households located in the Khanasser valley, in north Syria. The village has no electricity and still uses an ancient ganat
Middle and Near East Infrastructure / Transport Material Culture Development projects
Living with the Invisibles 2003 52'
    Directed by Dirk Dumont .
When they emigrated to Europe in the 60’s and 70’s, Moroccans brought with them their culture and their “diseases” ( caused by the the jinn that inhabit some of them). In Europe, most North
North and Northeast Africa Health / Health care / Healing Possession Migration
Masks of Mer 2010 37'
    Directed by Michael Eaton .
The film Alfred Haddon made in 1898 in the Torres Straits, lasting for less than a minute, is the world's first example of anthropological cinema. 'The Masks of Mer' tells the extraordinary story of
Australia History of Anthropology Film / Photography / Mass media Archival material / Museum displays Ritual
Matai Samoa 1989 65'
    Directed by George Milner .
The film is a valuable treatment of archival footage that George Milner shot while conducting fieldwork in 1955 and 1959. The footage (18 minutes of the total film) focuses on the traditional Samoan
New Zealand and Polynesia History of Anthropology Film / Photography / Mass media Social Organisation Archival material / Museum displays Ritual
Messages by Music - Senegal in Transition 2013 76'
    Directed by Cornelia Strasse .
The traditional musicians in Senegal were in charge of retaining the history of their ethnic group, along with ways of thinking and behaving. Their aim was to conserve the society. Nowadays the
East Africa Music / Ethnomusicology Colonialism / Postcolonialism Social Change Political Activists Resistance
Mirror Mirror 2006 58'
    Directed by Zemirah Moffat .
Mirror Mirror is based on an audio-visual ethnography of London’s queer Club Wotever. Begun in the autumn of 2003, it promoted itself as a club that welcomed all genders and sexualities – a
British-Irish Isles LGBTQI* Sex / Sexuality Gender Role and Identity
A Month in the Life of Ephtim D. 1999 56'
    Directed by Antonii Dontchev .
Ephtim D., 73 years old, is a retired postman. He lives in Sofia with his wife Ghinka in a three room suburban apartment. As a socialist he feels confused by the ‘crazy’ democracy and the
South-East Europe Health / Health care / Healing Post-communism Socioeconomic conditions
The Mystery of the Frozen Tombs: A Young Lady Emerges From the Ice 1994 44'
    Directed by Francoise Levie .
The film unfolds the archaeological discovery of the frozen tombs of Altai, part of the Scythian culture in the Siberian steppe.
Central Asia and Far East Archaeology
New Images 1964 27'
  Directed by Ulli Beier Frank Speed .
The film is a brief description of life in a busy commercial centre that still depends upon and retains its ancient traditions. These are based on the history of the town which was founded on the
West Africa Art / Artists / Artisans Religion / Belief / Faith Archival material / Museum displays
Nkabom: A little medicine A little prayer 2021 79'
    Werbner Award Directed by Erminia Colucci .
A mother is caring for her son at a healing shrine on the edge of a village in the central belt of Ghana. In another village, a father has taken his son to several Christian and traditional healers
West Africa Health / Health care / Healing Religion / Belief / Faith
Nuba Wrestling 1991 42'
  Directed by Rolf Husmann Werner Sperschneider .
The weekly wrestling tournaments of the Sudanese Nuba migrants in Khartoum usually take place between Northern and Southern Nuba men. The sport helps them strengthen their ethnic identity in a
North and Northeast Africa Collective / Community identity Gender Role and Identity Urban Sport
Orania 2012 94'
    Directed by Tobias Lindner .
Orania is situated in South Africa's barren Northern Cape province. All of its 800 inhabitants are white Afrikaners. They live here on private property which was bought in 1991. People of other
Southern Africa Race / Racism / Antiracism Collective / Community identity Social Conflict
Other Europe 2011 75'
  Directed by Rossella Schillaci .
What happens to African migrants once granted political refugee status? In Turin, a northern Italian city, an abandoned clinic has been squatted by more than 200 refugees since December 2008. Khaled,
Western Mediterranean Migration Urban Squatter Settlements / Homelessness
Playing with Nan 2012 88'
    Directed by Dipesh Kharel Asami Saito .
Playing with Nan is the story of a Nepali young man who migrated to work in a Nepali restaurant in northern Japan. The film explores his daily life at work and his family at home, which reflects
South Asia Central Asia and Far East Labour Migration Socioeconomic conditions
The Poet's Salary 2008 59'
  Directed by Eric Wittersheim Alexandre Francois .
For the first time in many years, on the little island of Motalava in Vanuatu, a new song will be composed in the island's ancestors’ language, the language of god Quat, and become part of the
Melanesia Music / Ethnomusicology Linguistics / Language Informant-researcher relationship
Polka 1986 50'
  Directed by Robert Boonzajer-Flaes .
The film confronts the accordion music of Chicano immigrants in southern Texas with the traditional music of accordion players in Austria. Without making any final judgements on the ‘roots’ of
North America Music / Ethnomusicology Collective / Community identity
Q2P 2006 55'
    Directed by Paromita Vohra .
Q2P is a film about toilets and the city. It sifts through the dream of Mumbai as a future Shanghai and searches for public toilets, watching who has to queue to pee. As the film observes who has
South Asia Gender Role and Identity Urban Socioeconomic conditions
Rain in the Mirror 2012 48'
  Directed by Nilanjan Bhattachary Kanchan Mukhopadhayay .
Dorji Bhutia, a Buddhist monk and a reputed mask-maker with supernatural powers of bringing or stopping rain chose a self-determined death at the age of eighty-six. Dorji leaves his mystic image
South Asia Religion / Belief / Faith Children / Young people Education / Knowledge Transmission Intergenerational relations
Raju and His Friends 1988 40'
  Directed by Marcus Banks .
This film is set in the city of Jamnagar, western India. The film focuses on the emotions, quality of life, and on duty. Raju’s friendship with different people, including the director, provide a
South Asia Urban Informant-researcher relationship Life Story / Life History
Reclaiming the Forest 1987 39'
  Directed by Paul Henley Georges Drion .
National governments, itinerant gold-miners, and indigenous inhabitants compete for control of an area of the South American rainforest. The film shows the potential conflict between the interests
South America Land Rights Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Social Change Social Conflict
Return of the Nightingales 2013 33'
  Directed by John Baily .
In 2010 Afghan musicologist Dr. Ahmad Sarmast opened the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM), a coeducational vocational music school in Kabul that teaches Afghan, Indian and Western
South Asia Music / Ethnomusicology Education / Knowledge Transmission Children / Young people
Returning Home: Revival of a Bosnian Village 2001 48'
  Directed by Tone Bringa Peter Loizos .
The film is the sequel to 'We are all Neighbours', the 1993 Granada Disappearing World film, about the breakdown of relations between Muslims and Croats as war overtakes their ethnically mixed
South-East Europe War / Conflict / Reconciliation Collective / Community identity Refugees / Displaced populations
Ritual Journeys 2011 75'
  Directed by Dawa Lepcha Anna Balikci .
The film is an intimate portrait of Merayk, an 80 years old Lepcha shaman or Padim. Merayk lives with his family in Dzongu, a Lepcha reserve in North Sikkim. He performs healing rituals for
South Asia Ritual Shamans and Shamanism Health / Health care / Healing
Rockerill: Rekindling the Fire 2011 53'
    Directed by Yves Mora .
Five years ago, one of the oldest industrial buildings of Charleroi- ‘les Forges de la Providence’- was saved from demolition being brought by two citizens: Thierry Camuy and Mika Hell. Together
Western Europe Alternative culture Art / Artists / Artisans
Scenes of Afghan Music: London, Kabul, Hamburg, Dublin 2007 97'
  Directed by John Baily .
Scenes of Afghan Music is Part IV of 'A Quartet of Afghan Music Films', made in the author’s personal “fieldwork movie” style. It reveals the diversity of music and dance practices in the
Middle and Near East Music / Ethnomusicology Migration Collective / Community identity
Sea Boundary 2012 55'
  Directed by Rosella Schillaci .
The film depicts the daily struggle of fishermen to earn a living in a harsh physical environment that brings out the social and economic tensions of modern society. Manning the Priamo are Cola, the
Western Mediterranean Labour Hunting / Gathering / Fishing Socioeconomic conditions Migration
Sermiligaag 65°54'N, 36°22'W 2008 64'
    Directed by Anni Seitz Sophie Elixhauser .
The people of East Greenland inhabit a small string of coastal land at the edge of the biggest island of the world. Long winters have always shaped daily life here, a life that has gone within a few
North America Rural Social Change Environment
A Sheepherder's Homecoming 1996 40'
  Directed by Allen Moore Louis Werner .
This film documents a migrant worker’s experiences as a herder on a Nevada sheep ranch who then returns to his family in Mexico after a long absence to renew ties and find a job at home. It
North America Central America Migration Labour
Shepherds in the Cave 2016 87'
    Material Culture Directed by Anthony Grieco .
An international team of art restorers, archaeologists and volunteers begin work on the restoration of religious frescoes inside a network of ancient caves. Faced with local bureaucratic challenges
Western Mediterranean Archaeology Herding Art / Artists / Artisans Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy
Sifinja - The Iron Bride 2009 70'
  Directed by Valerie Haensch .
A film about mobility, human creativity, and technology in a Sudanese truck community. The English Bedford-Lorry was introduced to Sudan in the late 1960s. Since then, local craftsmen technically
North and Northeast Africa Infrastructure / Transport Material Culture Art / Artists / Artisans
Silk, Muthappar and VHS: Portraits from South India 1997 63'
    Directed by Ulrich Grossenbacher Damaris Luethi .
The documentary, filmed during ethnographic field research, shows three portraits of ‘ordinary’ personalities — Mala, a young weaver sharing a one-bedroom house with nine siblings; Santa Cruz,
South Asia Labour Everyday Life Film / Photography / Mass media
Since the Company Came 2001 52'
  Directed by Russel Hawkins .
Set in the South Pacific, in a remote Solomon Islands village, 'Since the Company Came' is the story of a community coming to terms with social, cultural and ecological disintegration. When village
Melanesia Land Rights Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Social Conflict Socioeconomic conditions
Sons of the Moon 1984 25'
  Directed by Frank Speed Deirdre LaPin .
In isolated mountain hamlets in Nigeria’s Jos Plateau the Ngas have traditionally observed the movements of the moon in the night sky. The moon is a key symbol in Ngas cosmology, believed to
West Africa Religion / Belief / Faith Music / Ethnomusicology Everyday Life Ritual
Sophia and Her People 1985 35'
  Directed by Peter Loïzos .
Sofia and her family lost their village home in 1975 when Turkey invaded Cyprus. The film, mainly set in Nicosia in 1983, shows the pressures of refugee economic recovery through shift work in a
South-East Europe Refugees / Displaced populations Social Change Family / Kinship
Southeast London Ethnography - Three Student Films: Anglesea Road; The Good Ol' Days; Talk of Trade 2007 13'
    Directed by Elhum Shakerifar Ed Owles Jamie Taylor .
These 3 films on Southeast London were made by GCC college students who took a course in anthropology & film. ANGLESEA ROAD: Situated in Woolwich, South East London, Anglesea Road is a small
British-Irish Isles Urban
Steel Lives 2005 45'
  Directed by Massimiliano Mollona .
The anthropologist spent several months working as unskilled labourer alongside Sheffield steelworkers at Morris for his PhD. This film is a look into the working lives of men who earn a living in
British-Irish Isles Labour Socioeconomic conditions Collective / Community identity
The Storyteller 1990 50'
    Student Directed by John Paul Davidson .
Unaware of the written word until the 1950s, the Waura tribe who live in the headwaters of the Xingu river in Brazil still practise the art of storytelling. Tribal storyteller Aruta recounts one of
South America Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Dance / Theatre / Performance Religion / Belief / Faith
Sundanese Culture Alive 1988 46'
    Directed by Jean Hellwig .
Jaipongan is a new style of music and dancing which was ‘invented’ about a decade ago on Western Java, Indonesia. Drawing on more classical Javanese music and taking elements from Japanese and
South-East Asia Music / Ethnomusicology Dance / Theatre / Performance
Tablas and Drum Machines: Afghan Music in California 2001 58'
    Directed by John Baily .
Ethnomusicologist John Baily visits Fremont, California, the new home of the large community of exiled Afghans. He is joined by Kabuli master-musician, Ustad Asif Mahmoud, who plans to open a small
North America Music / Ethnomusicology Education / Knowledge transmission Refugees / Displaced populations
Tayuban: Dancing the Spirit in Java 1996 30'
    Directed by Felicia Hughes-Freeland .
Once a year a ritual is held in a Javanese village. After a distribution of food, men dance with professional female dancers. Their allegedly sexual ethos makes these ‘tayuban’ unacceptable as
South-East Asia Ritual Dance / Theatre / Performance Sex / Sexuality Gender Role and Identity
There is Nothing Wrong with my Uncle 2012 78'
  Directed by Sylvie Bringas Dul Johnson .
Nigerian writer Dul Johnson returns to Tarok land to observe the local death rituals and the record of the Tarok ways of dealing with grief and honoring departed. This film provides a rare and
West Africa Death Religion / Belief / Faith Ritual
This is My Face 2018 57'
    Student Directed by Angélica Cabezas Pino .
In Chile, people living with HIV fear stigma, and often conceal their condition and remain silent about what they are going through. This is My Face explores what happens when a range of men living
South America LGBTQI* Participatory / Collaborative methods Health / Health care / Healing Gender Role and Identity Film / Photography / Mass media Memory Life Story / Life History Art / Artists / Artisans
Tigers Apprentice 1998 57'
    Directed by M. Trinh Nguyen .
Tiger's Apprentice is the story of M. Trinh Nguyen's journey to her native Vietnam. She observes and documents her great-uncle's folk medicine practices treating many patients and making his
South-East Asia Health / Health care / Healing Archaeobotany / Ethnobotany
Tindaya Variations 2018 40'
    Special Interest Directed by Isaac Marrero-Guillamon .
The mountain of Tindaya (Fuerteventura, Canary Islands) is more than a mountain. It was a sacred site for the indigenous people of Fuerteventura; later, its rock was quarried and sold for ornamental
Western Mediterranean Archival material / Museum displays Art / Artists / Artisans Environment Material Culture Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Archaeology
Tingvong: A Lepcha Village in Sikkim 2005 60'
  Directed by Dawa T Lepcha Anna Balikci-Denjongpa Asen Balikci .
The film illustrates the changes the Lepcha of the Dzongu reserve, North Sikkim, have been through in the last 60 years. From the 1940s, the Lepcha of Tingvong village gradually abandoned hunting,
South Asia Social Change Religion / Belief / Faith Agriculture / Farming
Tracking the Pale Fox: Studies on the Dogon 1983 48'
  Directed by Luc de Heusch .
This film tells with verve and a touch of self-irony the history of research on the Dogon since the famous 1931 expedition of Marcel Griaule. The film establishes the original expedition in the
West Africa History of Anthropology
Transfiction 2007 58'
  Directed by Johannes Sjøberg .
Transfiction explores 'ethnofiction' - an experimental ethnographic documentary film style in which the participants collaborate with the filmmaker to act out their own and others' life experiences
South America Reflexivity Film / Photography / Mass media Gender Role and Identity Sex / Sexuality LGBTQI* Ethnofiction
Travel 2016 63'
    Special Interest Directed by Nick Mai .
(This version of the film is edited using a single screen. For the split screen version see 'Travel - double screen version'). Joy left Nigeria to help her family after her father’s death. She
Western Europe Sex / Sexuality Labour Migration Ethnofiction Informant-researcher relationship Reflexivity
Travel (double screen) 2016 63'
  Directed by Nick Mai .
(This version of the film uses a split-screen device throughout. For the single screen version see 'Travel'). Joy left Nigeria to help her family after her father’s death. She knew that she was
Western Europe Sex / Sexuality Labour Migration Ethnofiction Reflexivity
The Trobriand Islanders 1952 58'
    Directed by Harry Powell .
During his field work in the region of Omarakana, H.A.Powell filmed various sequences from which the film is assembled. In spite of the technical handicaps under which he was operating — shooting
Melanesia Everyday Life
Uncanny Strangers 2009 46'
    Directed by David Picard .
Uncanny Strangers has been filmed in a fishing village in the South-West of Madagascar. Through a series of everyday life episodes the film provides insight into the relationships between the
East Africa Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage Development projects Environment
Ustad Rahim 2008 55'
    Directed by John Baily .
Shot in the city of Heart, western Afghanistan 1994, in the period between the fall of the last leftist government and the coming of the Taliban, this is a portrait film of an outstanding musician,
South Asia Music / Ethnomusicology Education / Knowledge Transmission Personal Narrative
Vasile Nedea 2009 43'
  Directed by Sjoerd van Grootheest .
The film tells the story of Vasile Nedea, a Romanian gypsy musician an Amsterdam. Due to his former illegal status there have been times in which he was forced to show his skills whilst busking the
Western Europe Travellers / Roma Music / Ethnomusicology
The Water Goddess and the Computer 1989 52'
  Directed by André Singer Steven Lansing .
The film demonstrates how in Bali, development projects can threaten a carefully balanced ecological irrigation system that is maintained by temple priests. A biologist and an anthropologist look at
South-East Asia Infrastructure / Transport Development projects Environment
Were Ni! He is a Madman 1963 30'
  Directed by Frank Speed Raymond Prince .
This ethnopsychiatric film shows the management of psychiatric disorders by the Yoruba of Nigeria. There are two basic types of institutions to deal with psychiatric disorders. First there are
West Africa Health / Health care / Healing Ritual Possession
Where the Clouds End 2014 52'
  Directed by Wanphrang Diengdoh .
“My late great grandfather was a Bengali who came to Shillong in the early 1900s - long before the present political border divided the lands.” After the creation of borders between India and
South Asia Colonialism / Postcolonialism Race / Racism / Antiracism Collective / Community identity
Without Fathers or Husbands 1995 26'
  Directed by Hua Cai .
The Na are an ethnic group in south-east China. Their particularity is that all the members of each household are consanguineous relatives; their social organisation is absolutely matrilineal and as
South-East Asia Family / Kinship Collective / Community identity Gender Role and Identity Sex / Sexuality
Wives 2017 85'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Lisbet Holtedahl .
Alhajji Ibrahim is an Islamic scholar who has served as judge at the Sultanate of Ngaoundéré in Northern Cameroon for 46 years. The film follows Alhajji during the last years of his life, focusing
West Africa Family / Kinship Everyday Life Gender Role and Identity Marriage Personal Narrative Religion / Belief / Faith Social Norms
Yanomami: From Machetes to Mobile Phones 2012 58'
  Directed by Cliff Orloff and Olga Shalygin .
The Yanomami Indians are one of the last large relatively unacculturated indigenous groups remaining in the world. In November 2000 filmmakers Orloff and Shalygin documented the lives of a small
South America Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Material Culture Social Change
Ymako 1998 52'
  Directed by Laurent Van Lancker Robin Shuffield .
Ymako Teatri, a theatre company based in the Ivory Coast, uses street theatre to question some contemporary West African problems. Their originality consists in using the ‘invisible theatre’
West Africa Dance / Theatre / Performance Health / Health care / Healing Social participation