Features
1000 WOMEN AND A DREAM
Switzerland 2005, 55 mins,
Directors: Gabriela Neuhaus and Angelo Scudeletti, Subtitles
Women and men are equally represented amongst the millions of people the world over who work day in and day out to promote peace
- but only 12 women have ever been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
This documentary traces the collective nomination of 1000 women in 2005, and brings together a rich tapestry of many inspirational lives devoted to the pursuit of peace.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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BHOPAL: THE SEARCH FOR JUSTICE
Canada 2004, 52 mins,
Directors: Lindalee Tracy & Peter Raymont, Subtitles, Content may disturb
A strangely uplifting story of how a community of ordinary Indian
people became extraordinary social activists. Journalist Raajkumar
Keswani — in the best ‘Roger and Me’ tradition — takes us from Bhopal to
Michigan, and elsewhere in North America, then back to Bhopal. All the while he builds a case against
Dow Chemicals to attain justice for people still suffering from the pesticide plant gas leak twenty
years ago.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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BREAKING BOWS AND
ARROWS: A SEARCH FOR RECONCILIATION AND FORGIVENESS
Australia 2001
52 mins, Director: Liz Thompson, Subtitles,Content may disturb
An engaging and poignant exploration into
the challenging emotional terrain of personal
reconciliation emerging from Papua New
Guinea’s bloody civil war.
The painful process of forgiveness is steeped
in a rich cultural tradition that confronts a
long legacy of loss, anger, distrust and a desire
for revenge harboured by people on all sides
of the ten-year conflict.
Grand Jury Prize at the International Festival
of Oceania Documentary Film 2006
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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THE DOCTOR, THE DEPLETED URANIUM AND
THE DYING CHILDREN
Germany 2004, 53 mins, Directors: Freider Wagner and Valentin Thurn, Subtitles, Content may disturb
A pertinent exposé on the impact of radioactive weapons deployed
during the war in the Balkans, and both Iraq wars. This is a story told by
the voices of many nations, and paints a sobering picture of the long-term effects depleted uranium
will have, not only on the children of Iraq, but the children of servicemen and women
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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DROWNED OUT
UK 2004,
75 mins,
Director: Franny Armstrong,
Subtitles
 Presented by Oxfam NZ
With the water from the Narmada dam project
rising fast, the people of Jalsindhi in central
India take a desperate form of protest. They
decide to stay at home and drown.
Author, Arundhati Roy adopts their plight,
raising pertinent questions of water
distribution rights, and the legitimacy of
forced mass displacement in the face of
industrialisation.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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FROZEN ANGELS
Germany/USA 2005, 91 mins, Directors: Eric Black & Frauke Sandig
No holds are barred in California’s reproduction dream world. The
perfect child comes with the promise of a college degree, manners,
healthy genes, athletic body, correct gender and skin colour, all chosen
from a catalogue. It’s a designer’s creation. Man plays God.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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A LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER –
JO WILDING’S DIARY FROM IRAQ
UK 2005, 71 mins,
Director: Julia Guest, Subtitles, Content may disturb
A candid and unsanitised account of the devastating impact the ‘war
against terror’ has had on Iraqi civilians. International activist and
law student Jo Wilding documents the intensification of non-violent resistance to the economic and
military warfare being waged against the Iraqi people.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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LOST CHILDREN
 Germany 2005,
95 mins,
Directors: Ali Samadi Ahadi and Oliver Stoltz,
Subtitles, Content may disturb
Presented by Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand
This unsettling documentary follows the
rehabilitation of four children from Northern
Uganda who were abducted and forced to kill
by the rebel movement, the Lord’s Resistance
Army.
Their return home, branded as killers in one
of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters,
prompts the harrowing question; can they ever
be children again?
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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MARDI GRAS: MADE IN CHINA
USA 2005, 80 mins,
Director: David Redmon, Subtitles, Content may disturb
A sly and engrossing documentary, which traces the ‘bead-trail’
from a factory in China to an American Mardi Gras; this seemingly
unconnected journey highlights the extreme disparity between factory
workers and the pleasurable consumption of the objects they produce.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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ON THE SPOT -
MIGUEL, NË TERREN
Spain 2003,
59 mins,
Directors: Lluís Jené & Enric Miró,
Subtitles
A growing number of journalists are killed
each year doing the job they love: covering
conflict situations and trying to capture details
through their cameras to help reveal the
whole story.
This film records the life and work of one such
journalist who died while on assignment in Sierra
Leone. This personable documentary traces
Miguel Gil’s dedication to the job he loved.
Diploma of Honour and the FIPRESCI prize at the
Cracow Film Festival 2004.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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NGATAHI: KNOW THE LINKS (FESTIVAL CUT ONE)
Aotearoa/New Zealand 2004, 55 mins,
Director: Dean Hapeta, Subtitles
Dean Hapeta (Upper Hutt Posse) traces the links between minority cultures, exploring the rich diversity of music, politics and society in
his self-billed ‘rapumentary.’ A truly international documentary, with a
strong New Zealand flavour, Hapeta creates a mosaic of compelling sounds, visuals and ideas.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington
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PASSABE
Timor Leste/Singapore/East Timor 2005, 111mins, Directors: James Leong and Lynn Lee, Subtitles, Content may disturb
In 1999, the remote border village of Passabe was the site of a horrific
massacre emerging from tensions surrounding East Timor’s bid for
independence. Banned just three hours before it was due to play at
the Jakarta Film Festival, this touching yet humorous film documents the personal struggles of warweary
people. The film-makers pose the question; are attempts to reconcile a guilty past possible
without justice?
Screening times: Auckland Wellington
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THE REAL THING: COCA, DEMOCRACY AND
REBELLION IN BOLIVIA
Bolivia 2004, 92 mins,
Director: Jim Sanders, Subtitles
This independently produced documentary exposes the disturbing
truth about the “Drug War”, and the impact it has on the indigenous
peoples of Bolivia. It is a film that peels away the layers of rhetoric, revealing a war between two
worlds, one global and “modern”, the other local and indigenous.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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Short Films
AZADI
Australia 2005, 20 mins, Subtitles, Censor’s rating tba
Azadi follows the plight of an Afghani schoolteacher and his asthmatic
son, who escape their oppressive homeland only to encounter another
kind of persecution upon arrival in Australia. Director: Anthony Maras.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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DUAL INJUSTICE: FEMINICIDE AND TORTURE IN CIUDAD JUAREZ AND CHIHUAHUA
Mexico 2005, 16 mins, Subtitles
A revealing look at what is allegedly one of the most embarrassing
human rights scandals in Mexico’s history. Under fire for its negligence
and incompetence, local authorities have attempted to appease public
outcry around “feminicide,” by torturing people into making false confessions. Director: Witness
and CMDPDH.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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THE BEST KEPT SECRET - EL SECRETO MAJOR GUARDADO
 Presented by UNICEF New Zealand
Spain 2005, 18 mins, Subtitles, Censors rating tba
A young orphaned boy living in Southern India is rejected by his
community because of a fear he may be HIV positive. He represents one
of the 14 million children worldwide who have been orphaned by AIDS. Director: Patricia Ferreira.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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FROM PRISON TO FRONTLINE: PORTERING FOR
SPDC TROOPS
Burma 2005, 10 mins, Subtitles
The State Peace and Development Council, Burma’s military regime,
violates the human rights of prisoners by forcing them to become
military porters and human landmine sweepers. Director: Burma Issues
in association with WITNESS.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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DAUGHTERS OF BELEN - HIJAS DE BELEN
Presented by UNICEF New Zealand
Spain 2005, 25 mins, Subtitles, Censors rating tba
A vicious cycle of poverty is illustrated through the broken dreams of
an aging women who never learnt to read or write. The children around
her are similarly deprived of an education because they have to work in
order to support their families. Director:Javier Corcuera.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington
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VUKA VRCEVICA –
A VIOLATION OF HOUSING RIGHTS
Switzerland 2002, 7 mins, Subtitles
For the Roma community of Vuka Vrcevica in Belgrade, grossly
inadequate living conditions amount to a violation of their human
rights. Director: Fionn Skiotis.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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UNITED
USA 2005,5 Mins
Filmed in 14 countries, with the help of over 2000 volunteers, this human
rights music video features cameo appearances by Issac Hayes and
Jenna Elfman amongst others. Director: Taron Lexton.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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VOICES FROM THE SALWEEN VALLEY
Burma 2004, 19 mins, Subtitles
Burma’s military regime, the State Peace and Development Council,
in cooperation with the Thai government are planning to build a dam
on the Salween River – a project that will have a major imapct on the
people living in the area, as well as the environment. Director: Burma Issues in association with Karen River Watch.
Screening times: Auckland Wellington
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WINNER EVERY DAY
New Zealand 2006, 15 mins, Subtitles
Everyday perceptions of intellectual disabilities are challenged in this
personable tribute to a familiar face on Wellington’s streets. Directors:
Mary-Lou Harris and Nick Preval
Screening times: Auckland Wellington Christchurch
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