RAI Film Admin

A Balinese Trance Séance 1980 46'

Directed by Timothy Asch Linda Connor .

Jero Tapakan is ‘entered’ by deities and spirits who converse with her clients. Unbeknown to her, they wish to contact the spirit of their dead son to learn the cause of his death and his wishes

South-East Asia Death Possession Ritual

Ballad on the Shore 2017 98'

Intangible Culture Directed by Chi-hang Ma .

On the small isle of Tap Mun, Hong Kong, veteran fishermen sing ballads with pitches and tones that alternate and repeat themselves as if they were synchronising with the ocean waves. But as fewer

Hong Kong Hunting / Gathering / Fishing Music / Ethnomusicology

[barbara-and-her-friends-in-candombleland--Film-image]

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 Basques of Santazi 1987 52'

Directed by Leslie Woodhead .

*In her book 'The Circle of Mountains' Sandra Ott provided a fascinating analysis of social reciprocity (...) The film highlights the village's contemporary dilemmas and thereby complements rather

Western Europe Herding Social Change Rural

[the-bastard-sings-the-sweetest-song--Film-image]

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

The Bear Chase 2009 7'

Directed by Michele Trentini .

In the Catalan-speaking southern France, a proper “Bear Chase”, of the kind that was once popular throughout Europe, has been revived in a carnival context. This film is part of **Carnival

Western Europe Festivals / Carnival Folklore

[the-beautiful-white-masks-of-resije--Film-image]

The Beautiful White Masks of Rèsije 2017 15'

Directed by Michele Trentini .

In a small community of Italian Slavic-speakers, the performance by the Beautiful White Masks, impersonated by women, comes to an abrupt end with the burning of the Babaz. This film is part of

South-East Europe Festivals / Carnival Folklore

Behind the Screen 2012 35'

Directed by Aung Nwai Htway .

A son dissects his parents’ marriage – they were film icons in 1960s Myanmar. It turns out the heartrending scenes they acted out on the silver screen are a pretty accurate reflection of their

South-East Asia Film / Photography / Mass media Family / Kinship Memory

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

Benjamin and His Brother 1999 87'

Directed by Arthur Howes .

Years of war and ethnic conflict in the Sudan have created a generation of young men, known as the "Lost Boys", who have spent more years in refugee camps than in their home communities.

North America East Africa Refugees / Displaced populations War / Conflict / Reconciliation Children / Young people Family / Kinship

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

[the-blooms-of-benjeli-technology-and-gender-in-west-african-ironmaking--Film-image]

The Blooms of Benjeli: Technology and Gender in West African Ironmaking 1997 29'

Directed by Carlyn Saltman .

The filmmaker and two historians went into the village of Banjeli in 1985 to recreate for the film the traditional iron smelting techniques (which are no longer used) of the area. By focusing on the

West Africa Art / Artists / Artisans Archival material / Museum displays History Material Culture

[body-games-capoeira-and-ancestry--Film-image]

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

The Body Won't Close 2020 74'

Main Competition Directed by Mattijs van de Port .

Our bodies are semi-permeable. All over the world, stories are being told about heroes who magically “close” their bodies, so as to become invincible. This film follows one such story, as it is

South America Essay film Gender Role and Identity Folklore Reflexivity

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

Bridewealth for a Goddess 2000 72'

Directed by Chris Owen .

A unique insight into a secret spirit cult among the Kawelka people in the Western Highlands of Papua New Guinea. After a dream, a clan leader initiates a long and complex 'work’, when he and a

Melanesia Ritual Marriage Possession

Burying Hallelujah 2014 51'

Directed by Richard Werbner .

Hallelujah, a 'bush mechanic' turned archbishop, gets the funeral he deserves, one of the very biggest in Botswana's railway town, Palapye. Many churches come together, their robes, splendid, their

Southern Africa Religion / Belief / Faith Death

Film list