Discovering Christmas Films (2018)

The Toys That Made Christmas

The Toys That Made Christmas. Spirograph, Fuzzy Felt, Barbie, Meccano - Robert Webb tells the story of our Christmases through the toys we played with and loved.

Tour de Cinema: The Golden Age

Discover the birth of Cinema in the first installment of the “Tour de Cinema” series.

David Stratton: A Cinematic Life

A compelling personal journey with David Stratton, as he relates the fascinating development of our cinema history. David guides us from his boyhood cinema experience of Australia in England, where he saw the first images of this strange and exotic landscape via the medium of film, to his migration to Australia as a ‘ten pound pom’ in 1963 and onto his present day reflections on the iconic themes that run through our cinematic legacy. All of this reflects a passionate engagement in a uniquely Australian medium. Parallel and at the heart of the series is the story of an industry whose growing pains David has witnessed over a lifetime. Alongside David, the protagonists of this history are the giants of Australian cinema – both behind the camera and in front of it.

High School Musical: The Musical: The Holiday Special

The cast of “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series” delivers an abundance of feel-good holiday cheer as they perform their favorite Christmas, Hanukkah and New Year’s songs and share their fondest holiday memories.

Heckler

HECKLER is a comedic feature documentary exploring the increasingly critical world we live in. After starring in a film that was critically bashed, Jamie Kennedy takes on hecklers and critics and ask some interesting questions of people such as George Lucas, Bill Maher, Mike Ditka, Rob Zombie, Howie Mandel and many more. This fast moving, hilarious documentary pulls no punches as you see an uncensored look at just how nasty and mean the fight is between those in the spotlight and those in the dark.

Miracle on 19th Street

Nothing captures the magic of Christmas like a visit to Santa Claus. This beloved NYC store Santa, after nearly 30 years, is heading to the North Pole, leaving behind an indelible mark on generations of children and families. To them, he is the real deal.

Life Itself

The surprising and entertaining life of renowned film critic and social commentator Roger Ebert (1942-2013): his early days as a freewheeling bachelor and Pulitzer Prize winner, his famously contentious partnership with Gene Siskel, his life-altering marriage, and his brave and transcendent battle with cancer.

Great Western Road

Take a virtual stroll down the streets of Glasgow’s iconic Great Western Road.

Archive of Life

This documentary short-film follows the story of The White Bus Cinema based in Southend-on-Sea. They keep the process of projecting real celluloid film alive by showing films from their archive of over 3,000 films, ranging from Super 8, 16mm, and 35mm prints. The film argues why it's important to continue the shooting and projection process of film in our current age of digital shooting and projection in modern Hollywood, amidst the chaos of studios removing films from their streaming services.

Tour de Cinema: The Eighties

Dive full-force into the most electric, profound, action-packed, and emotionally resonant decade in the history of filmmaking with the fifth installment of the “Tour de Cinema” series.

Tour de Cinema: The Grunge Era

Experience the 1990’s and the end of a millennium in the sixth installment of the “Tour de Cinema” series.

A Big Lego Christmas

A look behind the scenes as the world's most profitable toy maker opens its biggest ever Lego store, in London. Designer Justin's first ever kit finally hits the shelves, and Lego pro Duncan prepares to make the largest model ever - a replica of Tower Bridge.

The Silent Laugh

Charlie Chaplin, The Tramp. In this documentary, we will take a look at the life of actor and director Charlie Chaplin, and talk about his films and hidden symbolisms.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas! Special Edition

Phil Hartman hosts this retrospective look back at the legacy and making of the classic 1966 holiday special 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'

Jingle Bell Rocks!

In JINGLE BELL ROCKS!, director Mitchell Kezin delves into the minds of some of the world’s most legendary Christmas music fanatics and hits the road to hang with his holiday heroes – including hip hop legend Joseph “Rev Run” Simmons of RUN-D.M.C., The Flaming Lips’ frontman Wayne Coyne, filmmaker John Waters, bebopper Bob Dorough, L.A. DJ and musicologist Dr. Demento, and Calypso legend The Mighty Sparrow. In his search for the twelve best, underappreciated Christmas songs ever recorded, Kezin both asks and answers the question, “Why, when Christmas rolls around, are we still stuck cozying up with Bing Crosby under a blanket of snow?”

Christmas in New York: Inside the Plaza

An access-all-areas look at how Christmas comes to life at one of the most famous hotels in the world, the iconic Plaza Hotel in New York, at their busiest time of the year.

The Making Of A Swingin' Christmas & Live In Concert

Bonus DVD included with Tony Bennett - A Swingin' Christmas. Include behind the scenes content and live performance.

Mary Berry's Festive Feasts

Dame Merry Berry knows a thing or two about cooking up a festive feast, and this year she is sharing her cooking skills with three novice cooks, cousins James, Jack and Leah, who want to throw a spectacular surprise feast for their respective mums and bring together their whole family for the first time in two years.

Jacques Rozier: From One Wave to Another

Jacques Rozier or the fierce, independent itinerary of a filmmaker in perpetual disarray, admired by his peers and pampered by the critics.

A Baby Reindeer's First Christmas

Documentary following a community of herders in the Scottish Highlands preparing young reindeer for their first Christmas, including an orphaned reindeer calf who battles against the odds

A Life for Movies: Lotte Eisner

Born in Berlin in 1896, Lotte Eisner became famous for her passionate involvement in the world of both German and French cinema. In 1936, together with Henri Langlois, she founded the Cinémathèque Française with the goal of saving from destruction films, costumes, sets, posters, and other treasures of the 7th Art. A Jew exiled in Paris, she became a pillar of the capital's cultural scene, where she promoted German cinema.

I Am Santa Claus

Everyone thinks of Santa Claus as a magical figure without flaws, but the men who keep his legend alive, real-bearded professional Santas, are nothing like the jolly ol' Saint Nick we've all grown up knowing. In reality, the mall Santa in your cherished children's photo has problems just like the rest of us. Even the jolliest of men fall victim to divorce, job loss, insecurity and even the occasional hangover. 'I Am Santa Claus' is a documentary that follows the lives of five real-bearded professional Santa Clauses as they anticipate and prepare the coming holiday season while showing them for who they actually are flawed, flesh and blood men who feel an overbearing responsibility to protect the integrity of the spotless, untarnished reputation of the "Red Suit."

A Norman Rockwell Christmas

Could there ever really be a Christmas without Norman Rockwell? For three generations, America's most beloved and popular artist treated us with his inspiring, fun-loving and wonderfully optimistic portraits of American life. To Rockwell, people were at their best during holidays and Christmas was certainly his favorite. Join Eddie Albert and Ross Malinger (TV's Good Advice) as they host this nostalgic, heartwarming look at the illustrious world of Norman Rockwell. With the help of the magnificent 170 voices of the world famous Pacific Chorale, you'll experience these Christmas scenes springing to life with all the magic and wonder Rockwell originally envisioned. Lift your spirits with this Christmas adventure you'll watch again and again!

They Wore The Red Suit

Every year, tens of thousands don the Red Suit for families, parties and parades, but only a handful of men have reclaimed the connection to childhood magic by turning the portrayal of Santa into a full-time career. They Wore the Red Suit is a documentary featuring the rare individuals who have devoted their lives to keeping that magic alive in the world by actually being Santa Claus 365 days a year.

The Critic

A portrait of film critic Carlos Boyero, one of the most followed and feared figures in Spanish cinema, surrounded by controversy and both love and hate.

Decorating Disney: Holiday Magic

Academy Award-Winning Actress and "The View" Co-Host Whoopi Goldberg Reveals Disney Holiday Secrets in Freeform's "Decorating Disney: Holiday Magic".

The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee

Aristocratic Italian roots, a close family connection to James Bond novelist Ian Fleming, wartime experiences in the British and Finnish military, post-war Nazi-hunting adventures and a side career as a heavy metal rock singer. And one of the most iconic actors of all time.

In a Silent Way

A film crew crisscrosses England trying to unravel the mystery surrounding a record released 30 years earlier, 'Spirit of Eden', that defined the passage from light to shadow of its makers, the band Talk Talk and its lead singer Mark Hollis. From overwhelming obstacles to unpredictable encounters, their journey soon turns into an organic quest. With silence as a horizon line. And punk as a philosophy, thinking that music is accessible to all and that the human spirit is above the technique.

Inside Lidl at Christmas

Does the supermarket offer the cheapest Christmas cheer? The Wynne family put the store through its paces, to find out whether it offers the cheapest turkey and trimmings.

Inside Aldi at Christmas

Learn how the budget supermarket conquered Christmas in Britain and what random delights are on offer in the famous and festive middle aisle, as one family sees how many gifts they can get for £100.

Searching for Oscar

Óscar Peyrou is a veteran Spanish film critic who writes his reviews according to a very peculiar method: in his opinion, it is not really necessary to watch the films since it is possible to judge them simply by looking at their promotional poster.

Alone In Movie Theater

This documentary was written with passion and love for cinema, and on the other hand, he blamed her. Our fictional character for this documentary talks about her passion for cinema and how it affected her life and recounts the decades that passed on the cinema one after the other.

En julsaga

Christmas 1968 in Stockholm. A lot of people are working and promoting an alternative christmas. They gather to talk, paint and play music together.