Films - RAI FILM

RAI FILM

Film list

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75 Grams 2008 31‘

Directed by Priscilla Clarissou .

Nestled below the rugged Chilean peaks of the Andes lies the gold mining town of Andacollo. The town’s remoteness and mining economy has nurtured religious beliefs in the power of the Virgin over the

South America Labour Material Culture Religion / Belief / Faith

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Across the Tracks – The Vlach Gypsies in Hungary 1988 52‘

Directed by John Blake .

*’Across the Tracks’ is a gripping film for the general viewer. It is beautifully filmed in observational style (lingering scenes of muddy courtyards) with enough subtitled interview material to

Central Europe Animals Labour Travellers / Roma

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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

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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

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Calcutta Calling 2006 16‘

Directed by André Hörmann .

“Business Process Outsourcing” is the fastest growing industry in the world. In India, approximately 350,000 people are currently working in call centres to maintain the contact between western

South Asia Labour

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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

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Caught in a Magic Place 2007 28‘

Directed by Niccolo Patriarca .

A story of sandwiches and generations, ambitions and regrets from the heart of the Italian kitchen.

Western Mediterranean Food Intergenerational relations Labour

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The City Beautiful 2003 78‘

Directed by Rahul Roy .

Sunder Nagri (Beautiful City) is a small working class colony on the margins of India’s capital city, Delhi. Most families residing here come from a community of weavers. The last ten years have

South Asia Urban Labour Socioeconomic conditions

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Copperworking in Santa Clara del Cobra, Michoacán, Mexico – Artisans Facing Change 2001 52‘

Directed by Beate Engelbrecht .

Santa Clara del Cobre, a village in Mexico’s province Michoacán, is well-known for its copperwork, a craft originating from pre-Spanish times. In the late 1940s the people of Santa Clara tried to

Central America Material Culture Labour Art / Artists / Artisans

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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

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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

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Earning a Crust 2009 28‘

Directed by Elisa Contreras .

Through their experiences, Uncle Isidro (a horse dealer) and Jeremo (a scrap collector) illustrate traditional gypsy occupations in the south of Spain, as well as the obstacles facing their

Western Mediterranean Travellers / Roma Labour

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Guiyang Beautiful Flavour Barbecue 2000 30‘

Directed by Richard Hughes .

In the teeming cities of the most populated country on earth, 20 years of economic reform have brought new opportunity, new energy, and new dangers. This film follows one family’s efforts to navigate

South-East Asia Food Social Change Labour

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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

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Land Lot S7 2020 28‘

Directed by Abtin Sarabi .

Following sugar cane field workers in Senegal as they chop and burn their way through seemingly endless fields, this poetic film takes an unconventional approach to understanding the gruelling work

West Africa Labour Agriculture / Farming

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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

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The Log Rafters of Lake Aegeri 2016 29‘

Material Culture Directed by Thomas Horat .

Aegeri, in a remote part of Switzerland, is one of the few lakes in Central Europe where professional log rafters can still be found. This film is based on the gentle observation of the work of a

Western Europe Material Culture Labour Rural

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Men at Work 2010 32‘

Directed by Christine Moderbacher .

"Men at Work" depicts the daily working life of one of the few remaining institutions in Austria that still employs only men. They are responsible for a 39 km stretch of Austria’s biggest

Central Europe Gender Role and Identity Labour

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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

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Promise and Unrest 2010 79‘

Directed by Alan Grossman Áine O’Brien .

Separated from her daughter Gracelle at 7 months, Noemi Barredo left the Philippines for work in Malaysia before arriving in Ireland in 2000. Filmed over a five-year period, ‘Promise and Unrest’ is

South-East Asia British-Irish Isles Family / Kinship Labour Migration Linguistics / Language

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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

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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

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Sherpas of Nepal 1977 52‘

Directed by Leslie Woodhead Pattie Winter .

Thami is a village 12,000 feet up in the Himalayas in the Kingdom of Nepal. As the film’s opening shots illustrate, in a type of filmic short-hand, Thami is composed of a patchwork of individual

South Asia Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage Labour Marriage Social Change

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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

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Some Women of Marrakech 1977 52‘

Directed by Melissa Llewelyn-Davies .

In Marrakech, traditional attitudes to women prevail perhaps more strongly than in other Moroccan cities. This is especially true for those women who live by the standards of traditional ideals in

North and Northeast Africa Gender Role and Identity Labour Dance / Theatre / Performance Social Norms

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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

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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

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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

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Tyres 2013 30‘

Directed by Kyaw Myo Lwin .

A recycling workshop in South Okkalapa in Myanmar’s former capital of Yangon is a place where discarded tyres are transformed from their original shape and use, and are re-purposed to new uses.

South-East Asia Material Culture Labour Infrastructure / Transport

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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