Keepers of the Magic

Seeing through the eyes of the world's best cinematographers

How do cinematographers capture the perfect shots? From natural light's limitations to the importance of director-cinematographer relationships, Keepers of the Magic foregrounds a unique discussion with a seamless amalgamation of cinema's most iconic sequences. Featuring interviews and analysis from the masterminds behind them, including Gordon Willis (The Godfather), Vittorio Storaro (Apocalypse Now) and Sam Mendes (American Beauty), this doc is as much a tribute to their work as a thoughtful and intelligent expose into cinema's world-class visionaries.

Stroop: Journey into the Rhino Horn War

On the frontline of the war against rhino poaching

In South Africa, poachers kill three rhinos every day. Fuelled by the demand for rhino horn in Southeast Asia, where it’s widely believed to have medicinal powers, poaching could see South Africa’s rhino population disappear in just a decade. With exclusive access to the rangers on the front line in South Africa’s national parks and with extraordinary undercover footage showing how the horn is processed and packaged in Asia, Stroop presents a never-before-seen panorama of the international rhino poaching crisis.

Pani: Women, Drugs and Kathmandu

Living with addiction in Kathmandu

In Kathmandu, life for female opioid addicts is hard. Shunned by society and with limited access to rehabilitation services, many turn to sex work and petty crime to survive. Living in the shadows, they endure a cycle of abuse at the hands of clients, drug dealers and corrupt officials. This powerful and intimate doc offers unique access into the lives of eight brave women, charting their struggles to live on and recover against the odds.

Grit

An insight into Indonesia's unstoppable mud explosion

When Dian was six she narrowly escaped a tsunami of boiling mud that completely submerged 16 villages under a moonscape of grit, leaving 60,000 people displaced. Lapindo, an Indonesian drilling company, had unleashed a violent, unstoppable flow from the earth's depths, estimated to continue for another decade. Shot over six years, GRIT witnesses Dian's transformation in to a politically active teen, as she and her mother take on the perpetrators.

The Insufferable Groo

The world's most prolific filmmaker you've never heard of

Stephen Groo is the world's most prolific filmmaker. In the past twenty years, he has made two hundred and five films, ranging from an elf/human love story to a low-budget remake of Tomb Raider. Yet Groo's obsession comes at a cost: he is yet to make a dime and his family barely has enough money to survive. But when, out of the blue, a major Hollywood star agrees to be in his latest film, Groo finally has his shot at fame and fortune.

Of Fish and Foe

A surprising look at contemporary eco-activism on the Scottish Seas

The Pullars are one of the last families using traditional methods to fish for wild Atlantic salmon off the coast of Scotland. When these methods involve killing seals, the salmon’s natural predators, conflict erupts. Animal activist groups Sea Shepherd and Hunt Saboteurs oppose the Pullars at every turn, despite the legality of the fishermen’s actions and the consequences to their livelihood. Challenging preconceptions, this ambiguous doc puts modern environmentalism under the microscope.

Take Light

Caught up in the tangled wires of Nigeria’s electricity crisis

Although it has the largest reserve of gas in Africa, Nigeria cannot provide its population with electricity. Electricians, both legal and illegal, risk their lives on the power lines to earn enough to survive and provide for their families. When the lights go out, or customers can no longer pay their bills, the people have to take matters into their own hands. Take Light is an urgent doc that reveals a rarely-glimpsed side of Nigerian society.

Tanzania Transit

The disparate lives of three passengers aboard a cross country train

On board a sleeper train crossing Tanzania, the stories of three passengers unfold. Rukia is an entrepreneurial woman, on her way to begin a new life. Isaya is an old Masai man heading back to the bush with his grandson. Peter, a powerful preacher, makes money by letting his followers pay for his services. This microcosm offers a glimpse into their lives as each character moves towards an uncertain future in this precarious society.

Los Viejos (The Oldies)

A timeless look at music, love and beauty in Cuba

In the city of Santa Clara, Cuba, three elderly musicians drift between present and memory to relate their undying passion for what keeps them alive: music. Zaida sings her tired heart out, Bringuez struggles to play the saxophone again, and Cándido, with an impressively athletic form, uses old photographs and magazine clippings to convey his tireless love for life. An insight into the daily work and will of those who were once at the heart of Cuba's rich musical scene, The Oldies uncovers the young souls of the artists who shaped the country's culture and offers an intimate and compassionate perspective on life in old age.