The Creative Life
The team here at Highball TV are always drawn to films which celebrate art and illustrate the power of creativity. This collection features a number of films which do just that. Between them, they portray the ways in which theatre, film, dance, art and music can inspire others, give a voice to the marginalized, alter perceptions and have a profound effect on contemporary culture. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!
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Manu
"Emmanuelle Bonmariage delivers a multi-layered documentary about a filmmaker and extraordinary man’s road to remembrance." Cineuropa
IDFA
Docville
Munich Dok FestThe Belgian filmmaker Manu Bonmariage now has Alzheimer's at age 76. As his memory starts to fade, his daughter Emmanuelle goes bac...
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Desolation Center
"Offers a fascinating glimpse at the emergence of a phenomenon that was, back then, simultaneously modest and radical..." The Hollywood Reporter
Sheffield Doc/Fest
Slamdance Film Festival
Cork Film FestivalDesolation Center is the story of the early 80s music and art performance happenings in ...
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Luisita Photo Studio
Buenos Aires Int’l Independent Film Festival
Havana Film Festival
Brooklyn Film FestivalAt the crowded Corrientes Avenue in Buenos Aires City, among all the theatres, you can find Estudio Luisita. From 1958 to 2009, the photographic studio produced iconic images of the stars of Buenos Aires sho...
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Cinema Morocco
Dok Leipzig 2018 – Next Masters Competition
Cinema Morocco, located in São Paulo, Brazil was once the location of lavish red carpet film premieres and the most luxurious theatre in South America in the 50's. It was the host to Hollywood stars and South American premieres of classic films like Su...
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The Other Side of Porcupine Lake
Whistler Film Festival
Rhode Island Film FestivalThis fascinating, behind-the-scenes documentary follows acclaimed independent Canadian director, Ingrid Veninger, as she makes her sixth feature film, Porcupine Lake.
Canada - 2017 - 1h 15m
Directed By: Julian Papas
Cast: Ingrid Veninger, Lucind... -
The Smart Studios Story
SXSW
Wendy Schneider’s illuminating documentary pays tribute to the history of Madison, Wisconsin-based recording studio, Smart Studios and its connection to the global rise of Alternative Rock in the 1990s. Featuring fantastic archive material and contributions from its founders and many of the...
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Unarmed Verses
"There's a quiet, discreet magic at work with Charles Officer's latest documentary, Unarmed Verses." The Globe and Mail
Winner Hot Docs Film Festival
Seattle International Film Festival
Winner Vancouver Film FestivalA thoughtful and vivid portrait of a community facing imposed relocation. At ...
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A Drummer's Dream
"It's pure emotion... ...A Drummer's Dream isn't really about drumming, but about joy and self-expression." The Globe and Mail
Hot Docs Film Festival
Tokyo International Film FestivalExplosive talent, passion, humour and irresistible personality come together in a magical setting when seven di...
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My Prairie Home
"Director Chelsea McMullan captures Canadian transgender folk singer Rae Spoon's music and life story in sensitive detail." Variety
Sundance Film Festival
Cork International Film Festival
Winner Milan International Lesbian and Gay Film FestivalIn this feature documentary-musical by Chelsea McM...
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Debris
Vancouver International Film Festival
This short film is a portrait of Tofino, BC intertidal artist Pete Clarkson as he crafts his most ambitious and personal project to date: a memorial to the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami. He, like so many of us around the world, was deeply affe...
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In Search of Blind Joe Death: The Saga of John Fahey
Official Selection London Raindance Film Festival
100% on Rotten TomatoesThe legendary American guitarist, composer and provocateur John Fahey is often considered the godfather of 'American primitive guitar'. This documentary features Pete Townshend, Chris Funk of The Decemberists and Joey B...
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Robin & Mark & Richard III
Over the course of three years, Martha Burns and Susan Coyne filmed the late theatre director Robin Phillips and performer Mark McKinney (The Kids in the Hall) rehearsing a piece from Shakespeare’s Richard III at Robin’s home outside of Stratford. Eventually joined by the actor Christine Horne, a...
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A Breath with Pina Bausch
Istanbul Film Festival
A unique record of the visit to Istanbul in 2002 of legendary German dancer and choreographer Pina Bausch, and her Tanztheater de Wuppertal company, a visit which inspired the performance piece 'A Breath.' It provides a fascinating backstage look at a work in progress and ...
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Black President
Berlin International Film Festival
Durban International Film Festival
New Horizons Film FestivalMpumelelo Mcata’s debut documentary feature is an inventive and complex film looking at the life and work of Zimbabwean artist Kudzanai Chiuarai. The film uses the artist's 2011 exhibition ‘State of ...
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The Road Forward
Hot Docs Film Festival
imagineNATIVE Film FestivalMarie Clement's The Road Forward is a musical documentary that utilizes numerous filmmaking techniques to powerful effect. Using the story of Canada’s first Indigenous newspaper, The Native Voice, as its focal point, this particularly distincti...
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Lo Sound Desert
Hof International Film Festival
American Documentary Film FestivalA feature length documentary that unpacks the origins of California desert rock music, providing a unique insight into the Coachella Valley music scene in the 80s and 90s which begat bands such as Queens Of The Stone Age and Kyus...
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The Case Of The Three Sided Dream
“By emphasizing live performance and audio recordings over interviews, Kahan lets Kirk's talent speak for itself.” - Chicago Reader
Raindance Film Festival
Leeds International Film FestivalJazz musician Rahsaan Roland Kirk spent his career and life defying conventional limitations. Born blind,...
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Hedgehog
Philadelphia Independent Film Festival
LA Indie Film FestAn aspiring young comic, Ali (Madeline Brewer from “Orange is The New Black) is haunted by her father’s comedy legacy, and often hides behind the possibility of failure when it comes to taking any chances on advancing her career. In an ef...
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Una Banda De Chicas (A Girl's Band)
Rotterdam International Film Festival
Mar del Plata Film Festival
FRAMELINE, San Francisco International LGBTQ Film FestivalUna Banda De Chicas (A Girl's Band) sees former punk band bassist, Marilina Giménez, documenting women's bands from across Argentina, showing their struggles and achieveme...
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Brainiac: Transmissions After Zero
“Compelling… ‘Transmissions After Zero’ chronicles Brainiac’s unlikely rise and subsequent fall with intelligence and humor.” -Variety
SXSW Film Festival
Cleveland Film Festival
Cork Film FestivalIn the mid 90’s the Dayton, OH music scene became a hot spot generating worldwide buzz for the inf...
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Liyana
"A lyrical work that's as bright and captivating as it is poignant." The Hollywood Reporter
Dublin International Film Festival
BFI London Film Festival
Palm Springs Films FestivalA Swazi girl embarks on a dangerous quest to rescue her young twin brothers in a tale is born of the imaginations o...
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Our Time Machine
“...an elegant, focused piece of storytelling” Screen Daily
Tribeca Film Festival
Hot Docs International Documentary Festival
International Documentary Festival AmsterdamWhen influential Chinese artist Ma Liang (a.k.a. Maleonn) realizes that his father Ma Ke, an accomplished Peking Opera direc...
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Punk The Capital: Building A Sound Movement
"Punk the Capital is thoroughly entertaining and compelling and one of the most refreshing takes on D.C. hardcore ever." Exclaim!
When punk rock erupted in Washington DC, it was a mighty convergence of powerful music, friendships, and clear minds. This film is the first to explore the incredible...