Sheffield DocFest 2012

The spirit of rebellion is alive in this powerful collection of protest docs.

View other Sheffield DocFest Films by strand: Behind The Beats, Best Of British, BFI, China Now, Cross Platform, Euro Doc, First Cut, Global Encounters, Howard Street Screen, Queer Screen, Retrospective: Dziga Vertov, Shorts, The Habit Of Art, This Sporting Life

The Island President The Island President
The Island President and How To Survive A Plague
1/2 Revolution (Country: Denmark, Egypt; Year: 2011; Director: Omar Shagawi, Karim el Hakim; Stars: Omar Shagawi, Karim el Hakim)
Two documentary makers offer their footage of the Egyptian revolution of 2011, from the thrill of participating in mass protests to the dismay and fear at realising their movement has been infiltrated.
Ali - The Student Revolutionary (Country: UK; Year: 2011; Director: Fil Kaler)
Ali was a student in Manchester when a nationwide rebellion broke out in his native Libya. He headed back home to take up the fight – and soon found himself holding a gun for the first time, determined to do his part to end 42 years of misery for his people.
The Arab World In Revolution(s) (Country: France; Year: 2011; Director: Julien Félix, Gildas Corgnet, Marc Ghostine, Charlotte Bienaimé, Alexandre Grellier, Yann Le Gléau, Sébastien Mesquida)
The ongoing, unpredictable change in the Arab world represents fertile ground for cross-platform programming. Arte’s online project highlights the revolution’s many different perspectives. In addition to Generation Revolution, which profiles the young movers and shakers of the movement, Journal 2.0 provides blogs, cartoons and other related content.
The Betrayal (Country: UK, Norway; Year: 2011; Director: Karen Winther)
A woman looks back on her youth and her astonishing betrayal of the left wing anti-Nazi friends with whom he shared her home.
How To Survive A Plague (Country: US; Year: 2011; Director: David France), Official Site, Trailer
The story of Act Up and the ordinary people who transformed the tratment of AIDS.
Putin's Kiss Putin's Kiss
Putin's Kiss and The Arab World In Revolution(s)
High Tech, Low Life (Country: United States; Year: 2012; Director: Steve Maing; Stars: Zhou Shuguang, Tiger Temple)
Citizen journalists in China risk the wrath of the authorities to put the news they feel is important on the internet.
The Island President (Year: 2011; Director: Jon Shenk; Stars: Mohamed Nasheed), Official Site
The story of President Mohamed Nasheed, of the Maldives, and his attempts to save the country by brokering global agreement on climate change.
Mark Lombardi - Death-defying Acts Of Art And Conspiracy (Mark Lombardi - Kunst und Konspiration) (Country: Germany; Year: 2011; Director: Mareike Wegener)
The true story of Mark Lombardi, who dedicated his life to mapping out the connections between powerful people around the world, and who died in mysterious circumstances.
My Neighbourhood (Country: Israel, Palestine, United States; Year: 2012; Director: Julia Bacha, Rebekah Wingert-Jabi)
“My father built that house and an Israeli judge came and closed it.” Angry young Mohommed lost his innocence when his family’s home was violently taken over by Israeli settlers. But support for their plight comes from an unlikely corner: Israelis, horrified at what is being done in their name.
Not A Carwash (S'eshte Lavazh) (Country: Albania; Year: 2012; Director: Gentian Koçi)
Students battle to save their film school in Tirana when the government wants to sell off the land where it stands to foreign investors.
Putin's Kiss (Country: Denmark; Year: 2011; Director: Lise Birk Pedersen; Stars: Oleg Kashin), Official Site
A leading light of Russia's nationalist youth movement, begins to question what they really stand for.
The Reluctant Revolutionary (Country: UK / Ireland; Year: 2011; Director: Sean McAllister; Stars: Quais Al-Qalisi)
Filmed over a period of one year, this documentary reveals the tension present in Yemen three months prior to the first protests – a result of thirty-three years of Ali Abdullah Saleh’s dictatorship. Director Sean McAllister takes a seemingly unobtrusive protagonist and turns him into a genuine hero who experiences his country’s revolution at first hand and, in doing so, makes events tangible for the viewer.
Shadows Of Liberty (Country: UK; Year: 2012; Director: Jean-Philippe Tremblay)
Jean Phillippe Tremblay examines how the media in the US is in the controlling hands of a handful of commercial enterprises exercising extraordinary political, social, and economic power.
We Are Legion: The Story Of The Hacktivists (Country: United States; Year: 2011; Director: Brian Knappenberger)
The story of hacker group Anonymous, their battles against Scientology and their contribution to the Arab Spring.
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