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To Shoot an Elephant - an award-winning documentary about life on the Gaza Strip

Mona — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:00:21 +0000

To Shoot an Elephant is a licensed documentary directed by Alberto Arce and Mohammad Rujailah about life on the Gaza Strip. This hard-hitting film has already gained international acknowledgement and awards such as the “Most Innovative Filmmaker” at Florence’s Festival dei Popoli.

Despite the Israeli ban on foreign correspondents and humanitarian aid workers to cover and witness operation "Cast Lead" on the ground, there was a small group of international volunteers that managed to remain present in Gaza when the bombing started on December, 27th 2009. To Shoot an Elephant is therefore a collection of stories gathered by the only foreigners who decided and managed to stay embedded inside Gaza strip ambulances, with Palestinian civilians.

Backtrack on the last four decades; Gaza Strip’s situation has not been a pleasant ride; from being under the Israeli occupation until January 2006, when the Israelis imposed a total siege on its 1.5 million inhabitants. This was the country’s attempt to strangle the strip’s economy and to undermine the Hamas’ (ruling political party) government. Then on December 20, 2008, the six month truce between the Israeli and Hamas ended leaving Gaza Strip as a battle ground for an uprising war.

The documentary shows more than just moving stories from different sectors of society. It opens up with a long queue of Palestinians waiting for food, followed by an image of a United Nations relief warehouse that had stopped giving goods. These contrasting images are very powerful, as the inactivity of the warehouse and the long line of hungry people presents us with the seriousness of the humanitarian crisis.

The scenes are heart-breaking. Whether it’s the once flourishing olive plantation turned into a barren buffer zone or a playground dripping in civilian blood due to sporadic mortar hits.

I'm not trying to victimize myself; I think it's about being fair and being just in this world. It's giving the chance to live the way they want to and to elect and select the people who they want to represent them. -Mohammad Rajuilah

This is one of the most striking statements in the film because it came from the point of view of a normal citizen. This showed how the war affected civilians trapped in between two conflicting factions.

I admire how the film let the images speak for themselves. It doesn’t talk a lot or force opinions. It shared an impartial and honest look on the life of Palestinians during the attacks of Israelis.
Overall, To Shoot an Elephant focuses on the Palestinian’s struggle to live a normal life. The stories presented are extremely moving, you can really feel the tough conditions and the unbearable fear in the air.

Hands down to the people who have risked their life in making this excellent film, you showed the world that being a journalist is not just a profession; it’s the urge to tell the truth.

The documentary is available as a free torrent download.

The Revolution Will Be Animated - excellent documentary about free culture, Sita Sings the Blues and Nina Paley

Mona — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 15:00:07 +0000

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The Revolution Will Be Animated is a twenty-minute documentary created by Marie Lormant Sebag that presents multiple viewpoints on the concept of copyright laws and free culture. It focuses on Nina Paley, the creator of the animated film Sita Sings the Blues which is also available for free download.

The film captures well-selected footages of Paley while talking about the copyright problems that she had encountered while creating the said film. These experiences lead to her new advocacy of allowing free content dissemination to the public domain.

"The more you control it, the less far it could go," said Nina while explaining the reasons on why she allows copying and distribution of her own work. For her, art comes first before money which clashes with Bill Plympton's opinion, another well-known animator featured in the film.

The parallelism on Paley's and Plympton's views provoke an interesting contrast. He believes that a certain work should be copyrighted in order to make profit, because in the end, the bread and butter of each artist is his own craft. Plympton still continues to produce his work following copyright restrictions under the monopoly system while Nina Paley commits to an audience-distribution model.

This "Art for Art versus Art for Profit" idea adds depth to the film and raises questions on how information should really be distributed.

It's a laborious task to fit the copyright and public domain issue in just twenty minutes but by intimately looking from the viewpoint of a single artist affected by this system, the film clearly presented the whole picture.

Overall, The Revolution Will Be Animated is an impressive documentary that focuses on raising a network of issues and providing educated perspectives about it.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Everything is a Remix - a web video series ready to inspire

Natalie — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 14:03:28 +0000

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Download Everything is a Remix: Part 3

Everything is a Remix, for the few of you who still didn't get a chance to see it, is a four-part eye-opening and conversation sparking documentary video series. Produced by Kirby Ferguson, a New York based filmmaker, the series gives us a glimpse into the world of remixing - collecting material, combining and transforming it - as any new creation requires influence. Three of the four parts of the documentary have already been released (with the 3rd episode unveiled today!) and explore everything in music, from the Sugarhill Gang and Chic to Led Zeppelin, in Part 1: The Song Remains the Same, sampling and influences from earlier works in Hollywood hits such as Avatar, Star Wars, and Kill Bill in Part 2: Remix Inc. to Part 3: The Elements of Creativity. A definite 'must-see'!

Everything is a Remix has already gained a wide audience spanning hundred of thousands of viewers and an interest from the online community including Gizmodo, Short of the Week, and the technology section of NYTimes. In his Q&A by the Short of the Week, Ferguson explains that the inspiration behind the series came to him after seeing countless of journalists and bloggers treating plagiarism as a scandal, as a dismissal of achievements. Instead of focusing on the negative, Ferguson decided to put a more positive spin on the topic by showing real life examples of people remixing some of the already existing material and explain that this is element of creativity and is related to how all creativity happens in the first place.

Part 1: The Song Remains the Same, a first in series, provides us with a slightly different yet more than compelling look at the role that remixing, mash-ups, and sampling play in our culture, especially when we look at it through the vocabulary of Web 2.0. The short not only takes us on a journey through some of the most recognized melodies in the music industry but gives us a more detailed look into one of the most celebrated bands of the century - Led Zeppelin and some of their greatest hits that, as many uphold, stand dangerously close to 'plagiarism'.

Part 2: Remix Inc. continues the story by taking us on a journey inside of the Hollywood hits whose greatest strength is ... transforming old into the new; according to Ferguson, out of the 10 highest ranking blockbusters a year over the past ten years, 74 out of the 100 are either sequels, remixes of earlier films, or simply adaptations from books, video games, comic books, etc. Although Avatar and Star Wars are the center of this story make sure to stay tuned for one last treat waiting for you after the ending credits; a special look at Tarantino's Kill Bill, a "closest thing Hollywood has to a mash-up".

Want to know more about the documentary? Did you hear a sample in one of the two series and are now biting your nails while trying to figure out what it was? If you do, be sure to head to Everything is a Remix's official website, which holds a detailed, second by second, record of all the samples used in the documentary and a great number of comments from other viewers that will surely pull you into the debate.

And here is the released today Part 3!

Part 3: The Elements of Creativity reminds us that creativity, well.... isn't magic. Nobody starts out original. We need copying to build a foundation of knowledge and understanding. And after that… things can get interesting. The series takes us back to some of the most important inventions showing that most were either improvements on the previous ones or closely based on something already in existence. However it is when those ideas come together that the the most dramatic results come alive. So sit back and be sure to yet again keep watching after the credits!

The third part is currently available for download from Vimeo.

And if you want to see the the rest of the series (Part 4 will hopefully find its way to the online community in the fall) be sure to visit the donation page.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Roskilde - The Experience 2008

Valerie — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 14:00:56 +0000

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Heard so much about Denmark's infamous music festival but simply too far away to witness it yourself? Now you can do this with Roskilde - The Experience 2008. These set of movies aim to bring the feel of the festival towards various audiences from across the globe.

Roskilde is among the top five most popular festivals held in Europe. The other four include the Glastonbury Festival, the Sziget Festival, Rock Wechter and the Paléo Festival.

The films about Roskilde are created by Per Tore Holmberg and begin with the 2005 festival and up. Roskilde - The Experience is a set of movies done in order to capture the feel of the festival. Every single film is done full HD so fans of the festival and those looking to experience it, can easily grasp the moment.

The festival itself has actually been around since 1971 when it was first started by two students. Pretty soon a Roskilde Foundation took responsibility for manning the organizing of the festival each year. Every year, Roskilde is usually held for about 4 days and features a variety of musical acts.

"The bands presented at Roskilde Festival are traditionally a balanced mix of large well known artists in the absolute live elite, cutting-edge artists from all contemporary genres, popular crowd-pleasing acts plus local Scandinavian headliners and up-and-coming names. The special Roskilde feeling is in particular ensured by stages located inside large tents, catering to an enthusiastic music-loving audience. As opposed to most other European festivals all bands play "real" concerts lasting for at least an hour." (Wikipedia)

The movie itself captures what the festival is like, from the music to the crowd. Each part of the movie/documentary is like a mini-reminder of what it was like being in Roskilde for that particular festival year. It also serves as an ode to the festival makers themselves.

So far there are four movies done (2005-2008) and each one is available in different formats for easy access. All of these are offered for free and for non-profit so grab a download link and experience Roskilde in the comfort of your home.

Beyond the Game - Documentary about the top Warcraft players - VODO

Glacius — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 17:53:04 +0000

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Warcraft III is the most popular real-time strategy computer game, thrilling over 2.5 million North Americans and 10 million people worldwide everyday. The game creates an alternate universe, where players challenge each other with a mythically-charged online world of humans, orcs, the undead, knights, and elves.

In Beyond the Game, we meet - in real life and within the game - two of Warcraft's leading figures, known as Grubby and Sky. Acclaimed filmmaker Jos de Putter tracks these Kasparovs of a new generation and a new game across the world all the way to the world championships in Seattle.

A fascinating, surprising, and genuinely touching portrait, Beyond the Game is a study of, and participation in, the reformation of our communities in the internet age.

The Filmmakers
Support of this release helps Cinema Purgatorio with its next generation strategies to bring movies to theaters, discs, and downloads, seeing downloads (and torrents) as a "legitimate" release method. The company operates out of strange little movie theatres, hotel rooms, post offices, and internet cafes across the world...

About Vodo
Powered by Bittorrent, VODO is an online film distributor designed to fund, produce and distribute cutting edge independent films and "TV" shows. Since the launch of VODO last year, run away successes like "The Lionshare", "The Yes Men Fix the World" and "Pioneer One" were brought to a collective audience of nearly 5 million people.

"We're delighted to release this new episode of Pioneer One on VODO,' says founder Jamie King. "The success of the show proves that crowdfunding and P2P distribution can be viable models for the future. With a show like this, people can really engage with the creative process, as well as support it. We think the future lies in getting audiences to connect directly with filmmakers and play a part in the making of the show. That's where the real value is, both for creators and audiences.'

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

No Guns for Jews - anti-gun control documentary

Valerie — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 14:59:48 +0000

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Although No Guns for Jews might seem like an Anti-Semitic, anti-gun control rights for Jews, it's actually quite the opposite. This 40 minute documentary tackles the importance and provides simple, but valid arguments for having a pro-gun Jewish society.

The film was produced by JPFO and features pretty stark and controversial arguments on why gun disarmament among Jews can only lead to more chaos and death.

JPFO or Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership seeks to educate and inform Americans of how gun control should be abolished as well as garnering support for the Bill of Rights of every single individual. Although this Wisconsin based group was initially set up to educate Jews about how disarmament often leads to more problems instead of solutions, the group has expanded and opened their doors to welcoming anybody who seeks to learn more about their fight against gun control.

According to their site, the documentary seeks to expose the following:

Dangerous stupidity and hypocrisy of Jewish "gun controllers".
Evils of those who use man’s law to subvert G-d’s self-defense laws.
Mental Illnesses distorting the minds and ethics of "gun controllers".
Suicidal Jewish support for the United Nations’ small arms treaty.
Jewish support for Nazi policies in American laws and regulations.
Biblical evidence calling for an armed citizenry and much, much more.

The film is rather stark in its arguments, citing a lot of examples of how gun control has been used against the Jews for centuries to oppress and suppress them. No Guns for Jews took over a year in the making and is available for free download under a creative commons license.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Charbel, The Movie - religious documentary film

Valerie — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 14:00:11 +0000

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Charbel, The Movie is based on the life of a Lebanese saint who abandons everything in his life and dedicates his lifetime performing miracles and healing people. He was a monk that lived in the 19th century and is a well respected saint by both Christians and Muslims in Lebanon.

The movie chronicles the entire life of the Saint, shown through a flashback after he climbs to the top of a mountain monastery, preparing for death.

The movie has been praised by many critics for its gorgeous screenplay and important topic. It was produced by Ronald Eid, who admits that he feels his life has been changed by the saint. Production for the movie was started back in 2007 and required the help of Nabil Lebbos as director for the film.

Throughout his journey, Saint Charbel turns his back on his worldly life and moves into the St. Maron Monastery. After receiving his ordination into priesthood, he moves on to live in seclusion in Mount Annaya. Devoting his time in prayer and all his time to Christ. It was through his time in seclusion and his constant dedication that he began to manifest miracles like the gift of healing and clairvoyance.

If you are interested to know more about this remarkable saint, then this movie is one of the best introductions you can get.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Here Be Dragons - An Introduction to Critical Thinking by Brian Dunning

Valerie — Fri, 21 May 2010 12:00:15 +0000

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Here Be Dragons is a helpful 40 minute film on critical thinking. Created by Brian Dunning, it is a series aimed for general audiences and those that are looking to be more discriminative of the things offered to them.

Here Be Dragons pretty much centers on critical thinking directed towards marketing and other presentations done by the mass media. If you are simply tired of getting dissuaded into thinking that a particular product can do wonders for you, here's how you can avoid making the same mistake again. All you really need to do is apply a bit of critical thinking.

Brian Dunning aims to divulge the reality behind "paranormal and pseudoscientific claims without critique as they are promoted by the mass media." Pretty much this 40 minute video/documentary aims to unveil the various flaws of pseudoscience and showcases how a person can identify the truth just by making use of critical thinking.

Some of the main points that Dunning tackles in the video includes the many points to identify pseudoscience which includes the red herring, the confirmation bias, the mystical energy, confuse correlation with causation etc.

These might seem like big words especially to those who simply hate bringing up a dictionary every time they encounter big words. Rest assured, however, that the video is much easier to digest. If you can move past the fact that it can be boring at times especially if you are not much of a listener, it can be quite enlightening if you actually digest what Mr. Dunning has to share.

By the end of the video, a viewer should have a much better capability of identifying pseudoscience and hopefully learn how to apply it.

Here Be Dragons is available for free download here on Frostclick or on Mr. Dunning's Website. Brian Dunning is also the host and producer for the Skeptoid Podcast and author of several books on the subject.

Related Links:
Here Be Dragons Website

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Route 66: An American (bad) Dream - America through the Windows of a Beat Up Cadillac

Valerie — Fri, 07 May 2010 12:00:52 +0000

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Three Germans, a camera, a beat up red Cadillac, and 2451 miles of the US highway. For many foreigners, America is treated as the "land of milk and honey." It's a place where almost anything is possible, where the sacred and the mundane exist together; where the lines of fantasy and reality are blurred together; and where "it feels so surreal that it feels like heaven."

Route 66 - An American Dream is a documentary created by three German travelers who wish to experience and see America. They travel different States, sleep in their near death Cadillac, travel the infamous Route 66 and discover America.

Route 66 is a story that cuts across boundaries, literally. Feeling the need to discover the true mystique of America, three German friends rent a Cadillac, drive across the country to California via Route 66 and eat nothing but McDonalds. The group encounters many different characters including a homeless woman who seems to have a solid grasp on the world of politics and the UN Resolution.

Although there are interesting situations in the film, a good majority of it is quite mundane. Characters they encounter seem genuinely fascinating, but there is simply a lack of interesting events in the documentary to help make it stand out (unless you count car trouble as exciting). To the film's credit, there are occasional witty insights about the US, but these are few and sparse. Moreover, for a $40.00 budget, the film did contain nice images and shots of both rural and urban America.

Despite making the mandatory stopover in New York and Las Vegas, the trio unsuccessfully find Hollywood, which was quite ironic considering how "tourists" essentially treat that as a must visit. Although that might be intentional, considering how the film maker's view Hollywood, commenting on Veb Film.com:

"Look at the credits and you'll see multiple credits for everybody – everybody did multiple jobs [...] That's why we stay out of Hollywood, because it's not that system. It's a completely different way of doing it."

Whether it was an intentional attempt to divert from the usual premise of "tourists traveling to America" or not, it is still ironic that they weren't able to find it.

The bottom line though is that Route 66 leaves much to be desired despite the sincerity it contains. A viewer comment in IMDB dubs the movie as nothing but an "extravagant vacation video." Sadly, despite the good shots and sequences, as well as the honest depiction of the people involved, the comment does ring true overall.

As a viewer, you constantly hope and think that something exciting happens to them in the film, however, nothing does happen. They simply drive, meet nice and interesting folks, fix their car (almost all the time), get hit on by girls (once in the film) and then return the car. End of story.

Route 66 was released in June 14, 2004 and featured German narration, however, since the film was shot in the US and featured people speaking in English; the film makers decided to do the narration in English as well. It was considered to be Germany's first Open Source Film and has been downloaded over a million times in various sites online.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Germany License.

Darwin's Tree of Life - see how living things are related

Amihan — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 12:00:40 +0000

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Tree of Life is a collaborative project by Wellcome Trust, BBC, and The Open University. It aired on BBC1 in early 2009 as part of BBC’s Darwin season. It serves as homage to Charles Darwin, whose 200th birth anniversary falls in 2009.

In Darwin's “On the Origin of Species,” he used the term 'tree of life' to describe the evolutionary relationships between all living things on Earth. The collaborators intended to produce an updated version of the Tree of Life, created by Shadow Industries. Sir David Attenborough narrates this six and a half minute video, which invites you to “see how living things are related.”

A hundred and fifty years since the publication of Darwin’s book, everyone now gets a chance to spread knowledge and information on the history of the planet Earth. The video is licensed under Creative Commons, and you are encouraged to make your own version of the video with Wellcome Trust’s remixable files.

The project has used cutting-edge technology to present the latest scientific knowledge and produce a “visually stunning, fully accessible and scientifically accurate interactive Tree of Life.” Even individuals who are not inclined to super-analyze the great history of life (such as myself) will find this video to be very interesting, to say the least. This is perhaps the most technically elaborate video ever produced to illustrate the history of our planet. I'd recommend this to friends, especially those who are into video production and those who work in the academe.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.