Films

Film list

[the-albanians-of-rrogam--Film-image]
The Albanians of Rrogam 1991 52'
    Directed by David Wason .
With the fall of the Stalinist regime in Albania, one of the poorest countries in Europe, the people of a remote mountain village, Rrogam, are faced with the dilmma of how to re-allocate the land and
South-East Europe Post-communism Social Change Land Rights Rural
[the-basques-of-santazi--Film-image]
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
[conversations-with-dundiwuy-wanambi--Film-image]
Conversations with Dundiwuy Wanambi 1984 50'
    Directed by Ian Dunlop Philippa Deveson .
A series of interviews with Dundiwuy Wanambi, shot over twelve years. They reveal the struggles of one man in the face of the huge changes brought about by the coming of a mining project, and
Australia Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Health / Health care / Healing Social Change
[the-devils-mills-roundabouts-dont-build-houses-any-more--Film-image]
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
[the-golden-beach--Film-image]
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-good-wife-of-tokyo--Film-image]
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
[guiyang-beautiful-flavour-barbecue--Film-image]
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
[the-herders-of-mongun-taiga--Film-image]
The Herders of Mongun-Taiga 1989 52'
    Directed by John Sheppard .
The Tuvinians live deep inside the Soviet Union, at the very centre of Asia. Tuva is geographically closer to Peking than to Moscow. It only entered the USSR in 1944 and was closed to foreigners
Central Asia and Far East Herding Nomads and Nomadism Shamans and Shamanism Gender Role and Identity Social Change
[ignacios-legacy--Film-image]
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
[in-search-of-cool-ground-the-mursi-trilogy--Film-image]
In Search of Cool Ground: The Mursi Trilogy 1987 52'
    Directed by Leslie Woodhead .
This is a trilogy about aspects of the culture of two groups of people, the Kwegu and the Mursi, in Ethiopia. The titles are: THE MURSI , THE KWEGU, THE MIGRANTS *What made this trilogy special
North America Social Change Socioeconomic conditions Health / Health care / Healing
[kanraxel-the-confluence-of-agnack--Film-image]
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
[the-kazakhs-of-china--Film-image]
The Kazakhs of China 1983 52'
    Directed by André Singer .
The Kazakhs of Xinjiang (Sinkiang) are one of the fifty-five national minorities that now live within the borders of the People's Republic of China. The policy of the Chinese Communist Party toward
Central Asia and Far East Social Change Nomads and Nomadism Collective / Community identity
[kutaay--Film-image]
Kutääy 2014 20'
    Directed by Isis Contreras .
Fili, a 22-year-old Mixe, makes ornamental paper hot air balloons. Since this is an important tradition in his community, Fili —an expert in the art— is recognized and accepted. Yet, he is
Central America Material Culture Social Change Intergenerational relations
[land-of-udehe--Film-image]
Land of Udehe 2015 26'
    Student Directed by Ivan Golovnev .
This film takes us into the world of Udehe – indigenous people of the Far East of Russia. According to the census of 2010, their population dropped to 1,490 souls…
Central Asia and Far East Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Social Change
[the-last-lineage-opera-in-zhouguan-village--Film-image]
The Last Lineage Opera in Zhouguan Village 2016 42'
    Intangible Culture Directed by Xun Xiong .
Zhouguan, a Tunpu village in a multiethnic area of southwest China, is renowned for its performances of the Dixi exorcism operas. The village elders believe that they are descendants of ethnic Han
Central Asia and Far East Dance / Theatre / Performance Music / Ethnomusicology Festivals / Carnival Social Change
[the-last-of-the-cuiva--Film-image]
The Last of the Cuiva 1971 52'
    Directed by Brian Moser .
The film focuses on recent changes in the culture and society of the Cuiva, hunters and gatherers in a remote forest region of south-eastern Colombia, brought about through contact with Colombian
South America Social Change Race / Racism / Antiracism Land Rights Hunting / Gathering / Fishing
[the-lau-of-malaita--Film-image]
The Lau of Malaita 1982 52'
    Directed by Leslie Woodhead .
*Pierre Miranda and a team from Granada Television have made a fine film exploring the trouble realities of the people of the lagoon in the 1980s.* (B. Shore) This film focuses on the people of
Melanesia Social Change Social Conflict Ritual Death Religion / Belief / Faith
[the-legacy-of-antonio-lorenzano--Film-image]
The Legacy of Antonio Lorenzano 2000 46'
    Directed by Paul Henley .
Antonio Lorenzano was an acclaimed musician, shamanic healer and craftsman, and the leader of the Warao community of Morichito on the Winikina River, in the lower Orinoco Delta, Venezuela. The film
South America Death Public Figure Informant-researcher relationship Social Change Memory
[letter-to-the-dead--Film-image]
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--Film-image]
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
[living-with-the-revolution--Film-image]
Living with the Revolution 1983 52'
    Directed by Leslie Woodhead Claire Lasko .
*These three films ('Inside China: Living with the Revolution'; 'The Newest Revolution'; 'The Kazakhs of China') present a valuable record of aspects of most recent developments in China.* (A.
Central Asia and Far East Social Change History Family / Kinship
[lorangs-way--Film-image]
Lorang's Way 1977 69'
    Directed by David MacDougall Judith MacDougall .
The Turkana are a group of semi-nomadic pastoralists who inhabit a harsh environment of dry thorn country in northwestern Kenya. Lorang’s Way focuses upon a Turkana elder. Having spent time away
East Africa Herding Social Change Nomads and Nomadism
[marriage-maoism-and-modernity--Film-image]
Marriage, Maoism and Modernity 2009 30'
  Directed by Zhifang Song Gary Seaman Steven Rousso-Schindler .
This film outlines the types of marriage exchange practiced in a Chinese village over the last fifty years. Dowry, brideprice and exchange marriages have dominated the marriage market in turn as
Central Asia and Far East Marriage History Social Change
[masai-manhood--Film-image]
Masai Manhood 1975 52'
    Directed by Chris Curling .
This film was made after 'Masai Women' and in the same area. Together the two films provide a vivid view of Masai men and women and their place in Masai society. The Masai are pastoral nomads in
East Africa Gender Role and Identity Social Change Ritual Social Organisation Nomads and Nomadism Herding
[masai-women--Film-image]
Masai Women 1974 52'
    Directed by Chris Curling .
The Masai are cattle herders living in the East African rift valley: they grow no crops and are proud of being a non-agricultural people. Cattle are the all-important source of wealth and social
East Africa Gender Role and Identity Social Change Ritual Social Organisation Nomads and Nomadism Herding
[messages-by-music-senegal-in-transition--Film-image]
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
[the-migrants--Film-image]
The Migrants 1985 52'
    Directed by Leslie Woodhead David Wason .
The Migrants is the third film in the trilogy 'In Search of Cool Ground' for Granada Television's Disappearing World series. It is about a drought-induced migration of Mursi from their traditional
North and Northeast Africa Social Change Collective / Community identity Refugees / Displaced populations
[mongolia-part-1-on-the-edge-of-the-gobi--Film-image]
Mongolia, part 1: On the Edge of the Gobi 1975 52'
    Directed by Brian Moser .
Mongolia is a country the size of Western Europe with under 1.5 million people but over 23 million head of livestock. This film concentrates on life in the great plains of Mongolia, at the foot of
Central Asia and Far East Herding Social Change Rural Everyday Life
[the-newest-revolution--Film-image]
The Newest Revolution 1983 52'
    Directed by Leslie Woodhead Claire Lasko .
This film is a continuation of 'Living with the Revolution', set in the same communes near Wuxi and focusing on the same families. This film concentrates, however, on the new social and economic
Central Asia and Far East Family / Kinship Social Change
[the-quechua--Film-image]
The Quechua 1974 52'
    Directed by Carlos Pasini David Ash .
This film is set in a community of peasant agriculturalists 2 1/4 miles above sea level in the southern Peruvian Andes. Concentrating on a single family, the film explores aspects of religious and
South America Indigenous peoples / First Nations peoples Religion / Belief / Faith Social Change
[reclaiming-the-forest--Film-image]
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
[runaway--Film-image]
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
[sahars-wedding--Film-image]
Sahar’s Wedding 1991 46'
  Directed by Hanna Musleh .
The chronicle of a wedding in a village in Palestine under Israeli occupation at the time of the first Intifada, this film looks at the lives of the bride and groom, and their families. Attitudes
Middle and Near East Marriage Social Change
[the-sakuddei--Film-image]
The Sakuddei 1974 52'
    Directed by John Sheppard .
The Sakuddei are a small and ethnically separate community living on the island of Siberut off the west coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. Their distinctive way of life and elaborate religious
South-East Asia Collective / Community identity Social Change Land Rights
[sermiligaag-6554n-3622w--Film-image]
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
[sherpas-of-nepal--Film-image]
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
[song-family-village-takes-a-bride--Film-image]
Song Family Village Takes a Bride 2009 27'
  Directed by Zhifang Song Gary Seaman Steven Rousso-Schindler .
Most weddings in the village still reflect traditional patterns of patrilineal descent and patrilocal residence. The bride leaves her natal home to marry into her husband’s village, where she is a
Central Asia and Far East Marriage Family / Kinship Gender Role and Identity Social Change
[sophia-and-her-people--Film-image]
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
[tempus-de-baristas--Film-image]
Tempus de Baristas 1993 100'
  Directed by David MacDougall .
This film depicts the characters, and social dilemmas of three generations of Sardinian mountain shepherds. Although born roughly 20 years apart, Franchiscu (62), his son Pietro (17) and their
Western Europe Herding Social Change Family / Kinship Rural
[those-who-dont-work-dont-make-love--Film-image]
Those Who Don’t Work Don’t Make Love 1998 30'
  Directed by Cristina Grasseni .
An observational documentary about dairy farmers in the Italian Alps. Caught between pride for tradition and the pressure for modernisation, the story of one family is told through the eyes of
Western Mediterranean Agriculture / Farming Social Change
[tiempo-de-vals--Film-image]
Tiempo de Vals 2006 22'
  Directed by Rebecca Savage .
The ‘Quinceañera’ celebration is a lived illusion. A daydream shared by the whole community of Tetlanohcan, a rapidly urbanising agricultural town in Tlaxcala, Central Mexico. The dream is
Central America Festivals / Carnival Social Change
[tingvong-a-lepcha-village-in-sikkim--Film-image]
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
[the-tuareg--Film-image]
The Tuareg 1972 52'
    Directed by Charlie Nairn .
This film is about a group of nomadic Tuareg living high up in the Hoggar Mountains near Tamanrasset in Algeria. The main focus of the film is the collapse of the former economic basis of their
North and Northeast Africa Social Organisation Social Change Socioeconomic conditions Nomads and Nomadism
[tuktu--Film-image]
Tuktu 1985 47'
  Directed by Graham Johnston .
Tuktu is the Kuvanmiit Eskimo word for caribou. The film traces the early evolution of Ambler, founded almost 30 years ago on the Kobuk River in Alaska. Change and development mark life now in this
North America Animals Social Change
[views-from-heavenly-lake--Film-image]
Views from Heavenly Lake 2010 26'
  Directed by Polly Vinken .
Since the beginning of the Mao era in 1949, populations that were once nomadic, isolated by miles of desert and mountains across the Tian Shan ranges, are now becoming highly sought after objects of
Central Asia and Far East Tourism / Travel / Pilgrimage Social Change
[witchcraft-among-the-azande--Film-image]
Witchcraft Among the Azande 1982 52'
    Directed by André Singer .
*Witchcraft among the Azande' is suitable for showing in undergraduate and graduate classes on topics of religion, philosophy, and African ethnography. It could also be stimulating to discussions of
West Africa Religion / Belief / Faith Health / Health care / Healing Social Change
[yanomami-from-machetes-to-mobile-phones--Film-image]
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