Alex Gibney • United States • 2014 • Fela Anikulapo Kuti's life, music, and political power.
Combining West African music with elements of American funk and jazz, Fela Kuti created a new musical movement. Afrobeat became a vehicle for Kuti’s revolutionary political opinions against the Nigerian dictatorship of the 1970s and 1980s, helping to bring a change towards democracy in Nigeria and promoting Pan Africanist politics to the world. Finding inspiration in his anti-colonial feminist mother and travels abroad, Kuti’s music and message sought to lift up all oppressed peoples in their struggle for freedom.
Featuring footage of Kuti’s live performances and interviews with fans and confidantes ranging from Paul McCartney to former Black Panther Sandra Izsadore, Finding Fela offers a jubilant portrait of the Afrobeat pioneer. Alex Gibney’s documentary premiered at Sundance, San Sebastián, Warsaw and Vancouver.
Gero von Boehm • Germany • 2020 • The life and legacy of a controversial photography genius.
One of the great masters of photography, Helmut Newton made a name for himself exploring the female form. Born to a Jewish family in Berlin, Newton lived as a teenager under the Nazis before fleeing G...
Pieter van Huystee • Netherlands • 2015 • A dive into the life and work of the controversial painter
The late-medieval artist Hieronymus Bosch died nearly 500 years ago. Yet his art remains a subject of fascainted study—in 2016, a special exhibition of his work was held at the Noordbrabants Mus...
Martina Kudlácek • Austria, Switzerland, Germany • 2002 • A portrait of a groundbreaking artist.
Maya Deren is considered by many to be the most innovative avant-garde filmmaker in the history of American cinema. Born in Kyiv, Ukraine, Deren’s family fled the USSR in 1922 to escape anti-Semitic ...
