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
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
After the Silence 2018 28'
    Material Culture Directed by Natalie Cubides-Brady .
An affecting portrait of a small town on the Magdalena River in Colombia during Day of the Dead, exploring the spiritual impact of the forced disappearances that became endemic during the nation’s
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
Amazonimations 2018 7'
    Shorts Directed by Camilla Morelli Sophie Marsh .
A compilation of three animated films written, voiced and illustrated by the Matses people of the Amazon rainforest, on the Peru-Brazil frontier. Made in collaboration with an indigenous artist, a
Amir - An Afghan Refugee Musician's Life in Peshavar, Pakistan 1985 52'
    Directed by John Baily .
The film investigates and portrays the life of Afghan refugees living in and around the city of Peshawar in northern Pakistan through the experiences of the musician Amir. The aspirations of Afghan
South Asia Music / Ethnomusicology Refugees / Displaced populations
The Archipelago 2015 41'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Benjamin Huguet .
The Faroe Islands: a remote group of islands, battered by the ever-changing weather patterns of the North Atlantic. For centuries, the Faroese have lived proudly off the natural resources that
The Art of Andrew Omoding 2016 9'
  Directed by Trevor H. J. Marchand .
Andrew Omoding is a Ugandan-British artist. Andrew enters into partnership with his materials, allowing their sensible properties to guide his exploratory gestures and fingerwork. In stitching and
As Aye, 2022 26'
    Student Directed by Sam Kenyon .
As Aye, is a fragment of correspondence with author and storyteller, Jess Smith, and with the ‘absent presence’ of Scottish Travellers in the archive and the landscape. Drawing on the memory and
Ayouni 2020 75'
  Directed by Yasmin Fedda .
Bassel was a successful open source developer and hacker in Damascus. Paolo was a well-known priest based in Mar Musa monastery. Both men were active in the 2011 Syrian revolution, and witnesses to
Middle and Near East War / Conflict / Reconciliation Memory Political Activists
BROKEN SKIN 2018 24'
    Directed by Lidija Burcak .
An emotionally charged poetic encounter between the filmmaker and other psoriasis sufferers, exploring skin as a metaphor of strength, belief, belonging and alienation.
Bearing 2021 29'
    Shorts Directed by Rosie Reed Hillman .
The everyday frustrations, heartache and joy of early motherhood are revealed through intimate, observational vignettes, offering a frank and raw account of the filmmaker’s life as a new mum over
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 Jirina and Anna 2015 5'
  Directed by Tereza Stehlikova .
My grandmother Jirina explains the history of a traditional costume that her own mother made. As Jirina's great granddaughter Anna tries the dress on, assisted by her own mother and grandmother, the
Between Memories 2015 34'
    Directed by Martha-Cecilia Dietrich .
Eudosia is still searching for her husband’s remains in the highlands of Ayacucho; Lucero has been in prison for 25 years now for the crime of terrorism against the Peruvian state; since 2009 the
South America Memory War / Conflict / Reconciliation
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
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
Boya Boya (Shine Shine) 2014 18'
    Directed by Karen Boswall Ruba Al Akash .
A portrait of Syrian refugee Mohammed, a 12-year-old shoe shine boy, 'Boya Boya (Shine Shine)' looks at the reality of the growing population of urban refugees from a child's point of view. While
Middle and Near East Children / Young people Refugees / Displaced populations Labour
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
Breaking the Yard 2018 21'
  Directed by Richard Werbner .
"Breaking-the-Yard" documents the court hearings and troubled affairs of a quarrelsome young couple, a stay-at-home farmer and his police constable, town-savvy wife. They claim to be still
Southern Africa Family / Kinship Gender Role and Identity Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy Love Marriage
Bridging the Gap 2021 7'
    Animation Directed by Nina Ross Meg Barrett .
Aged 18, Meg started hearing a voice. She tried ignoring it, didn’t tell a soul, yet the voice grew. More abusive, more delusional and often completely out of her control. Eventually, her paranoia
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
Caught in Between 2016 56'
  Directed by Richard Werbner .
The focus is on a leading village elder, John Lelatlhego, a retired Human Resources administrator trained in settling disputes in the South African mines. John gets entangled in the long troubled
Southern Africa Family / Kinship Gender Role and Identity Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy Love Marriage
Cultivating Death 2003 23'
    Directed by Martin Gruber .
Cemeteries are not only places for the dead. They are also spaces in which the living interact with each other – and with the dead. “Cultivating Death” depicts the different ways in which
British-Irish Isles Death Ritual
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
The Dancer and the Dance 1988 44'
    Directed by Felicia Hughes-Freeland .
This film is an invitation to see Javanese palace dancing as performed in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, and to go beyond appearances to discover what the dance means to those who continue the tradition. In
South-East Asia Dance / Theatre / Performance
The Day I Will Never Forget 2002 92'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto .
The documentary explores the local dimensions of the female circumcision debate in Kenyan societies. In a region of Kenya that is home to Muslims, Massai and Somali and crosscut by Christian
East Africa Gender Role and Identity Ritual Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy Political Activists
Divorce Iranian Style 1989 80'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto .
This film is set in the Family Law Courts in central Tehran. The three main characters are Jamileh who punishes her husband for beating her, Ziba, a 16 year old girl who is trying to get a divorce
Middle and Near East Marriage Gender Role and Identity Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy Family / Kinship
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
A Donation to the Museum 2015 25'
    Directed by Teri F. Brewer .
Human remains from the California Channel Islands were donated to an English city museum nearly a century ago. More recently research began into how they came to be there, and whose remains they
North America Western Europe Archaeology Archival material / Museum displays
Dream Girls 1993 50'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto Jano Williams .
This award-winning film opens a door into the amazing world of the Takarazuka Revue, the all-female theatre troupe in Japan. Thousands of young women aspire to perform in the Revue’s glitzy musical
Central Asia and Far East Public Figure Popular Culture Dance / Theatre / Performance Gender Role and Identity
Dreamcatcher 2015 98'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto .
A film set in Chicago about an inspirational woman who has defied her past and now rescues girls and young women from a life on the streets.
North America Gender Role and Identity Labour Sex / Sexuality
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 Eagle Huntress 2016 87'
    Special Interest Directed by Otto Bell .
Aishol-pan, a 13-year-old girl, trains to become the first female in 12 generations of her Kazakh family to become an eagle hunter and rises to the pinnacle of a tradition that has been handed down
Eat the Kimono 1989 60'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto Claire Hunt .
A compelling biography of Hanayagi Genshu, a feminist and dancer who spent her lifetime defying the conservative traditions of Japanese society with her radical politics and unconventional
Central Asia and Far East Public Figure Gender Role and Identity Art / Artists / Artisans Dance / Theatre / Performance Alternative culture
Even When I Fall 2017 95'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Kate McLarnon Sky Neal .
Sheetal and Saraswoti met as teenagers in a Kathmandu refuge, both survivors of child trafficking to Indian circuses. They had been rescued and brought back across the border to Nepal- but what does
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
Extended Family 2016 31'
    Student Directed by Ramona Sonderegger .
This films offers an intimate insight into the lives of two same-sex families who found a way to create themselves within a legal grey area in Switzerland. Swiss law bans adoption and access to
Western Europe LGBTQI* Family / Kinship Sex / Sexuality Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy
The Family and the Animals 2015 15'
  Directed by Jacob Hesmondhalgh Marie-Josephine Hobson .
Sunrise to set. An ethnographic film, using no subtitles or narration to depict and illustrate the co-existence of a rural Zimbabwean family and their animals.
Father's Prescription 2017 11'
    Shorts Directed by Enke Huang .
A personal exploration of traditional Chinese medicine that considers the importance of its sensory qualities. Huang vividly recalls the extreme bitter taste and smell of the teas consumed by her
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
Firth on Firth 1993 49'
    Directed by Rolf Husmann Peter Loizos Werner Sperscheinder .
In a series of interviews in his London home and the London School of Economics, Sir Raymond Firth talks about his life and some of his personal views. The film focuses thus on his Maori studies,
British-Irish Isles History of Anthropology Public Figure
The Five Breakfasts of Mr Podgoretsky 2016 21'
  Directed by Carl Rowlinson .
In the shadow of Brexit an expat is deported from a country that he has made his home over the last 50 years. This documentary asks what it means to make a country a home.
The Forgotten Generation 2015 40'
  Directed by Deepa Dhanraj .
In the Forgotten Generation older people aged over 60 in urban Tamil Nadu, rural Rajasthan and tribal Maharashtra reveal the realities of their lives, relationships and work as well as their
Forms of Care 2022 7'
    Animation Directed by Charlotte Kühlbrandt Maayan L. Matz .
A stop-motion animation following the story of a mundane death, and the forms of care that accompany it. The script is taken verbatim from an interview conducted as part of an ethnographic research
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
Gaea Girls 2000 106'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto Jano Williams .
A film about courage, transformation and dreams in the extraordinary world of Japanese women's wrestling. Gaea Girls focuses on the hopes and fears of the beleaguered Gaea Japan squad, whose
Central Asia and Far East Gender Role and Identity Sport
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
The Good Wife of Tokyo 1992 52'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto Clare Hunt .
Kazuko Hohki goes back to Tokyo with her band, the ‘Frank Chickens’, after living in England for 15 years. This wry and delightful film records her re-experiencing of Japan after a long absence,
Central Asia and Far East Music / Ethnomusicology Gender Role and Identity Marriage Social Change
The Guest 2012 20'
    Student Directed by Kira de Hemmer Jeppesen .
Following the personal story of a Danish first-time surrogate mother, 'The Guest' explores issues of maternal bonding, modern families, relatedness, and desired control over body and mind. We follow
Scandinavia LGBTQI* Sex / Sexuality Reproduction (biology) Family / Kinship
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
Gyalmu's House 2016 18'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Asmita Shrish Gavin Carver .
In 2015 an earthquake shook the mountains of the Langtang Valley, Nepal, causing landslides and avalanches taking hundreds of lives from the small community. A year later Nima Gyalmu, a woman of
H is for Harry 2018 81'
    Directed by Ed Owles Jaime Taylor .
A coming of age story about Harry, a charismatic 11-year old boy, who arrives at secondary school in suburban London unable to read or write. With the help of Sophie, his extremely dedicated teacher,
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
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
Hidden Faces 1990 52'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto .
This film reveals contradictions in the lives of Egyptian women in Muslim society. Living abroad, Safaa Fathy returns to Egypt to interview the internationally renowned feminist writer Nawal El
North and Northeast Africa Gender Role and Identity Development projects
Hold Me Tight Let Me Go 2007 99'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto .
*The main reason I wanted to shoot is that when the kids misbehave, the teachers don’t punish them but try to find out why they are acting in such a way. The driving idea behind the school is to
British-Irish Isles Children / Young people Education / Knowledge Transmission Health / Health care / Healing
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
I Am the World 2022 9'
    Shorts Directed by Che Applewhaite .
A speculative documentary that explores how an archive of networked moving images, featuring famed ballroom hosts Selvin “MC Debra” Mizrahi and Kelly Gorgeous Gucci, enables worldly ways of seeing.
IT WAS TOMORROW 2018 53'
    Student Directed by Alexandra D'onofrio .
After living in Italy for almost ten years without documents, three Egyptian men - Ali, Mahmoud and Mohamed - are suddenly awarded legal residence. As a whole new world of opportunities opens up to
Western Mediterranean Animation Art / Artists / Artisans Dance / Theatre / Performance Film / Photography / Mass media Life Story / Life History Memory Migration Research methods Participatory / Collaborative methods
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
The Intelligent Hand 2015 21'
  Directed by Trevor H. J. Marchand .
The Intelligent Hand introduces us to a first-year cohort of British fine woodwork trainees at the Building Crafts College in Stratford, East London. Through the narratives of the course tutor and
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
Kalanda - the Knowledge of the Bush 2014 62'
    Directed by Lorenzo Ferrarini .
In some parts of West Africa, hunting is much more than killing animals. A donso is no common hunter, but a healer, a diviner, a ritual specialist and amulet maker. Kalanda is a unique initiatory
West Africa Hunting / Gathering / Fishing Religion / Belief / Faith Education / Knowledge Transmission Ritual
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
The King of the Cockroaches 2016 70'
    Student Directed by Timothy Cooper .
The degraded surfaces of mass-copied films - the glitches, scanlines, errors, and coding artifacts - rather than the filmmaker’s imprint, reveal the material culture and social life of film
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 Land Beneath Our Feet 2016 60'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Sarita Siegel Gregg Mitman .
The Land Beneath Our Feet weaves together rare archival footage from a 1926 Harvard expedition to Liberia with the journey of a young Liberian man, uprooted by war, seeking to understand how the past
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
Last Round of Jaldi Five 2017 26'
  Directed by Ellen Lapper .
2017 marked seventy years since the decolonisation and Partition of India, sparking one of the largest mass migrations in history. One particular community uprooted by this event were the
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
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
Letters from Palestine 2011 35'
    Directed by Ludovica Fales .
What if in your great-grandfather's letters there is a mystery your family doesn't want to talk about? In 1920 Angelo Levi Bianchini set out to Palestine on an Italian diplomatic mission and never
Western Mediterranean Middle and Near East War / Conflict / Reconciliation Memory History
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
Limpiadores 2015 39'
  Directed by Fernando Mitjáns .
Migrating is seldom an easy solution. It is rather a journey that begins with a journey. After more than eight years of campaigning, the immigrant cleaners outsourced at the School of Oriental and
Making a Living in the Dry Season 2016 35'
  Directed by Ines Ponte .
Set in the highlands village of Katuwo, the film is an intimate portrait of the day-to-day life of a family living in an agro-pastoralist farm in Namibe, Angola. Through my request to my host
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
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
Negotiating Amnesia 2015 30'
  Directed by Alessandra Ferrini .
Negotiating Amnesia takes as its starting point two collections of photographs found within the Alinari's photographic Archive in Florence (Italy): a series of black and white images of the Ethiopian
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
Niishii | Night Worlds 2017 22'
    Student Directed by Saranya Nayak .
What happens to a town after sunset? What happens to life and light? Niishii is an evocative tour through the night time hours in the town of Dubrajpur (West Bengal, India). Here, amidst inky
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
Of Love & Law 2017 94'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Hikaru Toda .
Fumi and Kazu are partners in love and law; they run the first law firm in Japan set up by an openly gay couple. As lawyers driven by their own experience of being ​outsiders​, they attract a
Pepe 2004 23'
  Directed by Juana Schlenker .
Pepe is a Spanish immigrant who came to England more than forty years ago to work as a waiter. After working in several restaurants and hotels, he retired two years ago and now he fills his days with
British-Irish Isles Migration Elderly people
Photo Wallahs 1991 60'
    Directed by David MacDougall Judith MacDougall .
This film is an exploration of the cultural and personal meanings of photographs in a hill station in northern India. The ‘photo wallahs’ are the local photographers of Mussoorie, a town which
South Asia Film / Photography / Mass media Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage
Pink Saris 2010 100'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto .
Pink saris are worn by the Gulabi Gang, a group of women vigilantes in Northern India. From the untouchable caste, they resist being condescended to as the lowest social class. They have a champion
South Asia Gender Role and Identity Resistance Socioeconomic conditions
Positive Women: Heartache, Hope & Living with HIV 2017 30'
    Directed by Rebecca Devaraj .
In 2016, filmmaker Bex Devaraj and anthropologist Anne Lotter were given unique access to one of the biggest slums in Kampala, Uganda, where every day is a struggle for survival. In this intimate
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
The Realm of Forgotten Existence 2015 28'
  Directed by Piotr Piasta .
While the images in the film reveal a landscape that often seems unchanged, the narrative reveals fragments of forgotten stories and traditions, skills and working lives no longer of value in
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
The Red Bowmen 1981 50'
  Directed by Chris Owen .
In a remote part of the West Sepik Province of Papua New Guinea, the Umeda people eke out a difficult living from the sago swamps and primary rain forest that surround them. Until recently, these
Melanesia Ritual Religion / Belief / Faith History of Anthropology
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
Rough Aunties 2008 103'
  Directed by Kim Longinotto .
Jackie, Mildred, Eureka and Thuli are the women behind Bobbi Bear, a nonprofit organization based in Durban, South Africa, that counsels sexually abused children and works to bring their abusers to
Southern Africa Socioeconomic conditions Children / Young people Development projects
Runaway 2001 87'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto Ziba Mir-Hosseini .
This film is set in a refuge for girls in Tehran and follows the stories of five girls who come here. These girls, in leaving a situation that has become intolerable, show incredible courage and
Middle and Near East Children / Young people Social Change Gender Role and Identity
Salma 2013 90'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto .
When Salma, a young Muslim girl in a south Indian village, was 13 years old, her family locked her up for 25 years, forbidding her to study and forcing her into marriage. During that time, words were
South Asia Gender Role and Identity Social Norms Marriage 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
Scratches on Celluloid 2018 53'
    Directed by Vindhya Buthpitiya Timothy Cooper .
In the rapidly changing urban landscapes of Jaffna and Lahore, the social and public space of cinema halls are recognisable for their longevity and resilience amid insurgency, war, and
Shinjuku Boys 1997 54'
    Directed by Kim Longinotto Jano Williams .
A film about love and gender. This film is set in the New Marilyn night club in Tokyo where all the hosts are women who have decided to live as men. They make their living by working in a club with
Central Asia and Far East Gender Role and Identity Sex / Sexuality Love
Sisters in Law 2005 104'
  Directed by Kim Longinotto Florence Ayisi .
Six year old Manka has run away from home, fleeing her abusive aunt. Sonita has daringly accused her neighbor of rape. Amina has decided to end her brutal marriage by taking her husband to court. Set
West Africa Law and Legislation / Bureaucracy Gender Role and Identity Children / Young people
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
Specialised Technique 2018 6'
    Directed by Onyeka Igwe .
William Sellers and the Colonial Film Unit developed a framework for colonial cinema, this included slow edits, no camera tricks and minimal camera movement. Hundreds of films were created in
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
Ten by Ten 2021 29'
    Student Directed by Jami L. Bennett .
There is no denying the evocative power of food to remind us of who we are and where we come from. After living in Asia for over fifteen years, Jessica was longing for the burgers and barbecue of her
Thank You For The Rain 2017 87'
    RAI Basil Wright Directed by Julia Dahr .
Over the last five years Kisilu, a smallholder farmer in Kenya, has used his camera to capture his family life, his village and the impacts of climate change. He has filmed floods, droughts and
Theatre Girls 1979 57'
  Directed by Kim Longinotto Claire Pollack .
The “Theatre Girls Club” is a hostel for homeless, destitute and alcoholic women in Soho, London. It is run by six paid workers and it is the only hostel in London which takes any women at any
British-Irish Isles Squatter Settlements / Homelessness Socioeconomic conditions 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
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
A Town in Sicily 2015 120'
  Directed by Toni de Bromhead .
Castellammare is a 'high-density Mafia' seaside town. Local government is infiltrated, its economy is stagnant and there is no future for its youth. A group of angry young Sicilians now wish to
South-East Europe Political Activists
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
Treasured Moments 2016 33'
    Student Directed by Ravi Hart Lloyd .
This is the personal story of a boy who grew up mixed in every aspect of his life, his parents, where he was from, his race. The black kid who thought that he was white. The white kid who thought
Caribbean Islands North America Family / Kinship Race / Racism / Antiracism Collective / Community identity Film / Photography / Mass media
Trobriand Cricket: An Ingenious Response to Colonialism 1974 50'
  Directed by Gary Kildea Jerry Leach .
The film documents the transformation by the Trobriand Islanders of the game of cricket, first introduced by British missionaries into a highly distinctive political ritual. Shot in 1973-1974,
Melanesia Sport Colonialism / Postcolonialism Political Activists
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
Undercover in Underwear 2016 19'
    Student Directed by Diane Agatha .
The Internet provides an infinite place of freedom where self, mind and body are dislocated. We are able to reinvent and present ourselves the way we want. It is in this world that Circle, my alter
Unravel 2012 14'
    Directed by Meghna Gupta .
'Unravel' follows the Western worlds least wanted clothes, on a journey across Northern India, from sea to industrial interior. They get sent to Panipat, a sleepy town and the only place in the world
South Asia Labour Material Culture Collective / Community identity
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
A Village with a View 2022 20'
    Shorts Directed by Joseph Inman .
In wartime Britain, a Lord permitted unused land on Cornwall’s Rame Peninsula to be built on. Tiny chalets appeared, each as individual as its owner, and the community of Freathy came to life. In
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
The Water Holds Me / The Water Binds Us 2021 2'
    Animation Directed by Lily Mae Kroes .
Based on the stories of women who dip, dive and swim in rivers, lakes and seas, this animated film evokes many different experiences in one swim, from the anticipation of getting in cold water to the
A Wind of Change 2019 72'
    Directed by Toni de Bromhead .
A Wind of Change 72 mins Segesta Production UK/IT Toni de Bromhead Unlike most films that one sees, this film shows what it really means to live with, and to fight the mafia in Sicily - not
Women in Sink 2015 36'
  Directed by Iris Zaki .
At “Fifi’s”, a hair salon owned by a Christian Arab in Haifa, Iris Zaki installs a minimalist film set over the sink, where she converses with the clients she’s shampooing. She thus paints an
Yours Truly 2018 15'
    Directed by Maddi Barber Charlotte Hoskins Christopher Murray .
Yours Truly follows the trail of taxidermic pieces collected by The Manchester Museum during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Archival letters between the museums directors, explorers, and
Zahida 2018 28'
    Special Interest Directed by Seemab Gul .
Zahida is a unique woman in Pakistan: she is the nation's only female taxi driver. This sensitive film provides fascinating insight into the personal and professional trials faced by this strong
Zawawa - the sound of sugar cane in the wind 2017 50'
    Directed by Rupert Cox Angus Carlyle .
It is a strange and bitter irony that the US naval bombardment which launched the Battle of Okinawa in 1945 was called the ‘typhoon of steel’, invoking the turbulent winds that annually buffet
on-sea 2016 20'
    Student Directed by Hatty Bell .
on-sea is a portrait film about the small community that lives on the Bush Estate at Eccles-on-sea, Norfolk. It is a film about landscape, and how people interact with it through day-to-day minutiae