American Spirit (2024)

Avatar: Creating the World of Pandora

The Making-of James Cameron's Avatar. It shows interesting parts of the work on the set.

way

San Francisco filmmaker Konrad Steiner took 12 years to complete a montage cycle set to the late Leslie Scalapino’s most celebrated poem, way—a sprawling book-length odyssey of shardlike urban impressions, fraught with obliquely felt social and sexual tensions. Six stylistically distinctive films for each section of way, using sources ranging from Kodachrome footage of sun-kissed S.F. street scenes to internet clips of the Iraq war to a fragmented Fred Astaire dance number.

Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred

When Fred suspects that his new music teacher is a vampire, he and his friend Bertha set out to save the town from this garlic-hating fiend.

The King's Avatar: For the Glory

In this prequel to the animated series The King's Avatar, Ye Xiu enters into the pro gaming world of Glory, and competes in the first Pro League series tournament.

The Witch: Part 2. The Other One

A girl wakes up in a huge secret laboratory, then accidentally meets another girl who is trying to protect her house from a gang. The mystery girl overthrows the gang with her unexpected powers, and laboratory staff set out to find her.

Diabolik - Ginko Attacks

Diabolik narrowly escapes Inspector Ginko's latest trap, leaving his partner in crime Eva Kant behind. Furious, Eva offers Ginko her help in capturing him, but the former has to face first the return of an old flame of his, noblewoman Altea.

In the Name of...

The contemporary story of a priest who launches a centre for troubled youth in a small parish. He is a good priest and is well-liked by his congregation, which remains unaware of his complicated past.

Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl

A taped performance of the Encanto Live-to-Film Concert Experience at the Hollywood Bowl. The original cast puts on a miracle of a concert as they sing the favorite songs, accompanied by a full orchestra and 50 person ensemble, and the Hollywood Bowl transforms into Casita!

In Desert and Wilderness

Fourteen year old Polish boy Stas Tarkowski and eight year old Nel Rawlison from England are kidnapped as the hostages by Arabic fanatics and taken to their religion leader. Then they manage to escape and try to return to their fathers. Children have a lot of dangerous adventures, meet two Black kids; Kali and Mea, who also help them, make a friendship with an elephant and help one Black's tribe.

Attack on Titan

As viable water is depleted on Earth, a mission is sent to Saturn's moon Titan to retrieve sustainable H2O reserves from its alien inhabitants. But just as the humans acquire the precious resource, they are attacked by Titan rebels, who don't trust that the Earthlings will leave in peace.

Unhappily Ever After

María José and Alfredo are about to celebrate their 20th anniversary and their children give them a trip to the hotel where they celebrated their honeymoon, but a spell will make them repeat the same day.

The Exorcist

Ophelia, a young nun recently arriving in the town of San Ramon, is forced to perform an exorcism on a pregnant woman in danger of dying. Just when she thinks her possession has ended, she discovers that the evil presence hasn't disappeared yet. The director of the award-winning Here Comes the Devil and Late Phases adds a new twist to possession movies in one of this year's Latin American horror surprises.

Return

After reading an article about hypnotic regression, a woman whose maternal grandfather died when she was only three years old contacts the hypnotic subject named in the article believing that he is the reincarnation of her grandfather, and hoping that she can learn the truth about how he died.

R.I.P.D. 2: Rise of the Damned

When Sheriff Roy Pulsipher finds himself in the afterlife, he joins a special police force and returns to Earth to save humanity from the undead.

The Fanatic

A rabid film fan stalks his favorite action hero and destroys the star's life.

Detective Knight: Independence

Detective James Knight 's last-minute assignment to the Independence Day shift turns into a race to stop an unbalanced ambulance EMT from imperiling the city's festivities. The misguided vigilante, playing cop with a stolen gun and uniform, has a bank vault full of reasons to put on his own fireworks show... one that will strike dangerously close to Knight's home.

Q

New York police are bemused by reports of a giant flying lizard that has been spotted around the rooftops of New York, until the lizard starts to eat people. An out-of-work ex-con is the only person who knows the location of the monster's nest and is determined to turn the knowledge to his advantage, but will his gamble pay off or will he end up as lizard food?

Shamshera

Set in the 1800s, the film is about a "dacoit" tribe who take charge in fight for their rights and independence against the British.

Return

A young man returns home for the weekend to discover the difficulty of juggling friends, parents, magic mushrooms and several thousand chickens.

Miles and Lies

Lu has a perfect life. Or so she pretends to have. She meets the handsome, short-tempered Argentinian, Diego, who is on a visit to Mexico, and she is confident to get him head over heels in love with her. In order to win a wager with her friends, her life will take a turn when she does the impossible to win him over, including taking a trip to Argentina to look for him.

There Are No Saints

A man is imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit. When his wife is murdered and his son kidnapped and taken to Mexico, he devises an elaborate and dangerous plan to rescue his son and avenge the murder.

Viva! Django

Django is on the trail of some renegade outlaws who raped and killed his wife. En route, he rescues a horse thief from an impromptu hanging. He discovers the man knows who committed the murder. The men team up and head west for revenge.

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared 6

All alone, Yellow Guy tries to stop a lamp from teaching him about dreams. While Red Guy finds out the truth about the puppets' existence.

The Park

A dystopian coming-of-age movie focused on three kids who find themselves in an abandoned amusement park, aiming to unite whoever remains. With dangers lurking around every corner, they will do whatever it takes to survive their hellish Neverland.

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared 3

During a chicken picnic, Yellow Guy gets upset after Green Bird kills a butterfly. Yellow Guy then meets a butterfly that takes him on a journey to discover his concept of love.

Hanni & Nanni 3

The Lindenhof School is expecting a busload of proper young English ladies as exchange students. The shock is great when the students turn out to be teenage boys! But while Mademoiselle Bertoux is delighted to stage “Romeo and Juliet” with real boys, both Hanni and her sister Nanni fall for their “Romeo,” Clyde.

3-Headed Shark Attack

The world’s greatest killing machine is three times as deadly when a mutated shark threatens a cruise ship. As the shark eats its way from one end of the ship to the next, the passengers fight the deadly predator using anything they can find.

Avatar Spirits

Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino, co-creators of the hit television series, Avatar: The Last Airbender, reflect on the creation of the masterful series.

The Price We Pay

After a pawn shop robbery goes askew, two criminals take refuge at a remote farmhouse to try to let the heat die down, but find something much more menacing.

Don't Hug Me I'm Scared 2

Step back into the imaginative and frankly terrifying world of Becky & Joe with Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared. In this episode: Some things change over Time.

Bad Ass 2: Bad Asses

Vietnam vet Frank Vega now runs an East L.A. community center where he trains young boxers to survive in and out of the ring. But when his prize student falls in with the wrong crowd and turns up dead, Frank teams up with his pal Bernie to take matters into their own fists and prove that justice never gets old.

Mummies

Through a series of unfortunate events, three mummies end up in present-day London and embark on a wacky and hilarious journey in search of an old ring belonging to the Royal Family, stolen by ambitious archaeologist Lord Carnaby.

Mariana Mariana

The story runs in the 1940s Mexico City. A schoolboy (Carlos) falls in love with his best friend's mother (Mariana). Carlos is impressed because this family is not like the ordinary mexican families of the time, because they have many expensive American things, although they are not rich. The drama begins when Carlos gets out of school to go to declare his love to Mariana, and is discovered by his teachers.

Novitiate

In the early 1960s, during the Vatican II era, a young woman training to become a nun struggles with issues of faith, sexuality and the changing church.

Measure of a Man

A bullied teen experiences a turning point summer in which he learns to stand up for himself.

Age Out

Fresh out of foster care at age 18, a young drifter turns to petty crime to survive, and discovers an impossible love in an unlikely friend.

Grecia

Grecia is a girl who lives with her best friend Alex in Lima, a city in Peru that constantly rejects young people and dreamers. These two are leading a journey of self-discovery, demonstrating the true meaning of their friendship.

This World Won't Break

A broke-down middle aged Texas troubadour yearns to be remembered like the southern bluesmen before him, but his failings and self-doubt forestall his musical dreams and blind him to the open road.

Lessons in Red

When a junior high student in 1963 suspects his teacher of being a communist, he investigates the truth to gain approval from his father.

My First Summer

Isolated on a remote property, 16-year-old Claudia finds her world transformed when a spirited girl named Grace wanders into her garden.

Manglehorn

AJ Manglehorn is an aging, ordinary guy in a small town. He nurses his sick cat, squeezes out a conversation with the local bank teller every Friday, and eats at the same place every day. But there is more to Manglehorn than meets the eye: he’s an ex-con who, 40 years ago, gave up the woman of his dreams for a big ‘job’. After a dramatic effort to start over, Manglehorn faces a terrifying moment and is unmasked as a guy with a very, very dark past.

Popular Music

Matti and Niila, growing up in the mid-sixties in the harsh and conservative environment of a Finnish-speaking part of Tornedalen in Swedish Laponia, close to the Finnish border. Their big dream is to become rock stars. In the present the now grown-up Matti feels guilt for the death of his drug-addicted rock star friend Niila.

Bonnie and Clyde

In the 1930s, bored waitress Bonnie Parker falls in love with an ex-con named Clyde Barrow and together they start a violent crime spree through the country, stealing cars and robbing banks.

Wild at Heart

After serving prison time for a self-defense killing, Sailor Ripley reunites with girlfriend Lula Fortune. Lula's mother, Marietta, desperate to keep them apart, hires a hitman to kill Sailor. But he finds a whole new set of troubles when he and Bobby Peru, an old buddy who's also out to get Sailor, try to rob a store. When Sailor lands in jail yet again, the young lovers appear further than ever from the shared life they covet.

Broken Hill Blues

In a small mining community in Northern Sweden, a group of youngsters about to take the leap in the adult age fight with themselves and the world around, while the ground literally trembles under their feet.

Some Freaks

A charming romance develops between a boy with one eye and an overweight girl, though when she loses weight after going to college, their relationship is tested in devastating ways they never dreamed would happen.

Dead Poets Society

At an elite, old-fashioned boarding school in New England, a passionate English teacher inspires his students to rebel against convention and seize the potential of every day, courting the disdain of the stern headmaster.

The Outsiders

When two poor Greasers, Johnny and Ponyboy, are assaulted by a vicious gang, the Socs, and Johnny kills one of the attackers, tension begins to mount between the two rival gangs, setting off a turbulent chain of events.

The Wanderers

The streets of the Bronx are owned by '60s youth gangs where the joy and pain of adolescence is lived. Philip Kaufman tells his take on the novel by Richard Price about the history of the Italian-American gang ‘The Wanderers.’

Stand by Me

After learning that a boy their age has been accidentally killed near their rural homes, four Oregon boys decide to go see the body. On the way, Gordie, Vern, Chris and Teddy encounter a mean junk man and a marsh full of leeches, as they also learn more about one another and their very different home lives. Just a lark at first, the boys' adventure evolves into a defining event in their lives.

Cassandro

The true story of Saúl Armendáriz, a gay amateur wrestler from El Paso that rises to international stardom after he creates the character Cassandro, the “Liberace of Lucha Libre.” In the process, he upends not just the macho wrestling world but also his own life.

She and Her Cat: Everything Flows

This simple, charming series follows a young woman as she job hunts and experiences various changes in her life, all while her cat Daru remains the supportive constant.

Fellows

A coming-of-age story about the three girl friends who had just graduated school.

Bye Bye Boredom

13-year-old Jackie and her best friend Nova do most things together. They hang out in the horse paddock, drive Epa tractors, and take drugs. At a farewell party for one of their friends, they buy some pink pills from the local dealer and mail carrier, Casper. Jackie encourages them to try the drug, which leads to disastrous consequences when Nova dies. In the aftermath, Jackie must not only cope with the loneliness and grief of losing her best friend but also deal with the guilt she feels.

Texas Heart

A California lawyer, hiding out in a small Texas town while on the run from the mob, risks exposure when he decides to defend a local man he believes innocent of murder.

Ben & Sam

A college heartthrob meets a college newbie - a challenge, a tension, a discovery, and a love that will change everything between them.

Giant

Wealthy rancher Bick Benedict and dirt-poor cowboy Jett Rink both woo Leslie Lynnton, a beautiful young woman from Maryland who is new to Texas. She marries Benedict, but she is shocked by the racial bigotry of the White Texans against the local people of Mexican descent. Rink discovers oil on a small plot of land, and while he uses his vast, new wealth to buy all the land surrounding the Benedict ranch, the Benedict's disagreement over prejudice fuels conflict that runs across generations.

Y Tu Mamá También

In Mexico, two teenage boys and an attractive older woman embark on a road trip and learn a thing or two about life, friendship, sex, and each other.

Tarnation

Filmmaker Jonathan Caouette's documentary on growing up with his schizophrenic mother -- a mixture of snapshots, Super-8, answering machine messages, video diaries, early short films, and more -- culled from 19 years of his life.

The Virgin Suicides

A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents.

Strawberry Time

Jagoda Kopriva is a typical teenage girl who hangs out with her friends from school, flirting with boys, quarreling with her parents, and discovering her own sexuality.

Kiss Me Softly

17 year old Jasper lives in a very grey, small town. In his family, he cannot be himself. Jasper's dad is a singer, named Lukkie Luk. All the attention in the family goes to his career. Jasper searches a way to handle this and is faced with the typical questions in the life of an adolescent. Questions that will not be answered when he stays in his own routine.

Love Steaks

Clemens works as a masseur, Lara as a cook, but their clientele is the same: the guests of a luxury hotel. As sparks begin to fly between the two, his sensitivity clashes with her more fiery temperament—opposites attract, but harmony is nowhere in sight.

Butterfly Affect

A young black ballet dancer from a South London Council Estate must learn how to survive in two opposing worlds in order to spread his wings.

The Rules of Attraction

The incredibly spoiled and overprivileged students of Camden College are a backdrop for an unusual love triangle between a drug dealer, a virgin and a bisexual classmate.

Nowhere

In Los Angeles, a colorful assortment of bohemians try to make sense of their intersecting lives. The moody Dark Smith, his bisexual girlfriend, her lesbian lover and their shy gay friend plan on attending the wildest party of the year. But they'll only make it if they can survive the drug trips, suicides, trysts, mutilations and alien abductions that occur as one surreal day unfolds.

The Last Virgin

Lost in a world where appearance reigns, Sara, a 13-year-old girl, must abandon her innocence to delve into the adult world and thus fit into her group of friends.

Harold and Maude

The young Harold lives in his own world of suicide-attempts and funeral visits to avoid the misery of his current family and home environment. Harold meets an 80-year-old woman named Maude who also lives in her own world yet one in which she is having the time of her life. When the two opposites meet they realize that their differences don’t matter and they become best friends and love each other.

Tommy and the Wildcat

Twelve-year-old Tommy reluctantly moves with his father from the big city to a small Lapp village - the childhood home of his mother, who has recently died. The village is close to the northernmost wildlife reserve in the world, where Tommy's father will be working on a project to release a captive lynx into the wild. The boy gradually falls under the spell of his new surroundings, and discovers that his mother was involved in protecting the local lynx, and, when his father's project fails, and the lynx is about to be sold, he decides to set it free himself. A dramatic series of events ensues, and Tommy, through his brave actions, regains the trust and respect of his family and the village.

The Mountain

Explores the journey of three young people as they seek solace under the watchful gaze of the Taranaki mountain and companionship in the spirit of adventure.

Little Man

David and Eliab, two apprentice jockeys, get to know each other through admiration, rivalry and jealousy.

The Great Phuket

Fourteen-year-old Li Xing lives in a district full of ruins and reconstruction. School brings him nothing but problems and his family is no help at all. One day, he finds an underground shelter where strange things happen...

Pleasantville

Geeky teenager David and his popular twin sister, Jennifer, get sucked into the black-and-white world of a 1950s TV sitcom called "Pleasantville," and find a world where everything is peachy keen all the time. But when Jennifer's modern attitude disrupts Pleasantville's peaceful but boring routine, she literally brings color into its life.

The Harrad Experiment

At fictional Harrad College students learn about sexuality and experiment with each other. Based on the 1962 book of the same name by Robert Rimmer, this movie deals with the concept of free love during the height of the sexual revolution which took place in the United States.

In Bed

It all begins at a party in Santiago, Chile, when a seemingly innocent gesture -- the offer of a ride home -- ends in a passionate night of lovemaking and intense conversation for young singles Bruno and Daniela. Shacked up at a flea-bitten motel for a one-night stand, the pair lingers deep into the night, alternating between powerful physical encounters and an ever-deepening emotional connection.

The Touching

Behind the closed doors of their room, two brothers share a secret of self-discovery. But when the elder Marek starts growing up, bringing his childish curiosity to an end, he realizes that they’ve crossed the boundaries of brotherly love – something that the younger David is still unable to understand...

Blossom

A young girl grows up in the company of her imaginary friend, a silent and friendly monster. As she matures and experiences all the joy and tragedy that life has to offer, she is forced to confront the truth about her companion.

Bambi

Bambi's tale unfolds from season to season as the young prince of the forest learns about life, love, and friends.

Midnight Cowboy

Joe Buck is a wide-eyed hustler from Texas hoping to score big with wealthy New York City women; he finds a companion in Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo, an ailing swindler with a bum leg and a quixotic fantasy of escaping to Florida.

Out of My Comfort Zone

Middle school, New York City. Everyone's got a secret. Josh and Rachel have been best friends since second grade, but their relationship is about to change. The Viper has an online blog dedicated to exposing people's innermost secrets and he's just found out the whopper of them all.

Driveways

Eight-year-old Cody is spending the summer in an unfamiliar setting with his mom Kathy. Though he can't relate to the neighbourhood kids, things take an unexpected turn when he develops an unusual friendship with grouchy old Del from next door.

Close

Thirteen-year-olds Léo and Rémi have always been close, but they drift apart after the intimacy of their relationship is questioned by schoolmates.

Arlington Road

Threats from sinister foreign nationals aren't the only thing to fear. Bedraggled college professor Michael Faraday has been vexed (and increasingly paranoid) since his wife's accidental death in a botched FBI operation. But all that takes a backseat when a seemingly all-American couple set up house next door.

Paranoid Park

A teenage skateboarder becomes suspected of being connected with a security guard who suffered a brutal death in a skate park called "Paranoid Park".

Persepolis

In 1970s Iran, Marjane 'Marji' Statrapi watches events through her young eyes and her idealistic family of a long dream being fulfilled of the hated Shah's defeat in the Iranian Revolution of 1979. However as Marji grows up, she witnesses first hand how the new Iran, now ruled by Islamic fundamentalists, has become a repressive tyranny on its own.

Devadoothan

Vishal Krishnamoorthy, a renowned music composer and singer, reminisces about his initial struggles and an unknown spirit that inspires him to compose songs.

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A Date for Mad Mary

"Mad" Mary McArdle returns to Drogheda after a short spell in prison for something she'd rather forget. Back home, everything and everyone has changed. Her best friend, Charlene, is about to get married and Mary is maid of honor. When Charlene refuses Mary a 'plus one' on the grounds that she probably couldn't find a date, Mary becomes determined to prove her wrong.

He's Into Her: The Movie Cut

A spunky teenage girl from Mindoro, moves to Manila to live with her estranged father and study in a prestigious school. She clashes with basketball varsity captain, unaware that their one-upmanship will blossom into something beautiful.

The Apostle

After his happy life spins out of control, a preacher from Texas changes his name, goes to Louisiana and starts preaching on the radio.

City of Dreams

A Mexican teenager whose dreams of becoming a soccer star are disrupted when his mother dies. He's smuggled across the border with the promise of a better life but is instead sold to a sweatshop in downtown LA.

What's My Name Again?

In 1985, a seemingly quintessential Southern California teen's identity unravels as he's forced to choose one of his 3 fathers' last names before he comes of age.

Love is the Word

Love is the Word is a moving, romantic and funny coming-of-age drama about the magic of first love and the misery of first lost, set in 1978: the year 'Grease' hit the big screen.

December

In December of 1941, five teenage boys at a New England prep school hear the news of the bombing of Pearl Harbor and realize their lives are going to be changed forever.

Aparajito

Aparajito picks up where the first film leaves off, with Apu and his family having moved away from the country to live in the bustling holy city of Varanasi (then known as Benares). As Apu progresses from wide-eyed child to intellectually curious teenager, eventually studying in Kolkata, we witness his academic and moral education, as well as the growing complexity of his relationship with his mother. This tenderly expressive, often heart-wrenching film, which won three top prizes at the Venice Film Festival, including the Golden Lion, not only extends but also spiritually deepens the tale of Apu. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 1996.

Rudy Habibie

Rudy met Ilona. Their different visions made it hard to be together. Ilona wants Rudy to stay in Germany and is opposed to his love for Indonesia.

The Big Game

A quarterback stands against gangsters out to control the college sports scene.

The Finnster

Finn (15) is an uncomplicated schoolboy until one day, coming home from school, he catches his father Roelof in his moms dress. The man Finn has looked up to his whole life, wants to become a woman. Finn, just discovering his own sexuality, is troubled by this new discovery. A struggle with feelings of shame, love and loyalty follows. Luckily Lizzie, his newfound friend, is there to help him.

Heliconia

The feline and weary body of a young girl is surrounded by Christian symbols. Crosses, Sulpician images, miniature altars lose their religious meaning to become merely decorative items. Mixed with plastic toys and photographs, they compose secular still lives. A church service is observed surreptitiously through a ground-floor window, like some strange custom, only to be interrupted by the sound of a moped backfiring, inviting the girl to take flight. This religious setting, often filmed in countershot to the beautiful faces of three teenagers, then gives way to wide shots of the luxuriant nature they are bathed in. Their nimble, young bodies find a perfect refuge in the comfortable branches of a mango tree. But at this age, the thirst for thrills cannot be restricted to a familiar setting. The trio hits the road. Without bothering with narrative dross, Heliconia offers a sensual road-trip and gorgeous tableaux vivants that do justice to film as a medium.

Madison Baker Was Here

On her last night in town, a shy teenager sneaks out with her best friends to throw caution to the wind and confess her feelings to her longtime crush.