Documentary Movies 2018 List

For 33 months, from 1978 to 1980, the nightclub Studio 54 was the place to be seen in Manhattan.

With Peter Bogdanovich

Documents the life and career of one of America’s most influential and celebrated filmmakers and comedians, Buster Keaton, whose singular style and fertile output during the silent era created his legacy as a true cinematic visionary.

With Aaron Kopp • Amanda Kopp

Under the guidance of acclaimed South African storyteller, Gcina Mhlophe, five orphaned children from Swaziland collaborate to craft a collective fairytale drawn from their darkest memories and brightest dreams. Their fictional character, Liyana, is brought to life in innovative animated artwork as she embarks on a perilous quest to rescue her young twin brothers. The children’s real and imagined worlds begin to converge, and they must choose what kind of story they will tell - in fiction and in their own lives.

With Marta Prus

Documents the Russian rhythmic gymnast Margarita Mamun on her five-year journey to the Olympics.

On the streets of Baltimore, shooting is rampant, the murder rate is approaching an all-time high and the distrust of the police is at a fever pitch. With nerves frayed and neighborhoods in distress, dedicated community leaders, compassionate law-enforcement officers and a progressive young city councilman try to stem the epidemic of violence. Filmed over three tumultuous years covering the lead up to, and aftermath of, Freddie Gray’s death in police custody, CHARM CITY is an intimate cinema verité portrait of those surviving in, and fighting for, the vibrant city they call home.

For 33 months, from 1978 to 1980, the nightclub Studio 54 was the place to be seen in Manhattan.

With Lucien Castaing-Taylor • Verena Paravel

Documents the cannibalistic desire in human existence through the prism of one Japanese man, Issei Sagawa, and his mysterious relationship with his brother, Jun Sagawa.

With Neil Nightingale • Peter Chang • Mose Richards

Focuses on the Cuba’s culture, meticulously maintained colonial architecture and pristine ecosystems at a time when the nation is undergoing economic and social change.

With Michael Del Monte

In the summer of 2015, former US Marine and world record weightlifter Matt "Kroc" Kroczaleski was publicly outed as being transgender. The reaction was universal: her sponsors abandoned her, she was disowned by her parents, banned from competing, and she changed her name to "Janae". This film follows Janae as she attempts to find her place in society.

With Peter Bogdanovich

Documents the life and career of one of America’s most influential and celebrated filmmakers and comedians, Buster Keaton, whose singular style and fertile output during the silent era created his legacy as a true cinematic visionary.

With Rémi Kessler

Over half a million people are homeless in the United States--25% of whom are in California. Amid public outcry over the ballooning homeless population in Los Angeles--nearly 54,000 people on any given night--three advocates with three different organizations show what the lost ideal of “care in the community” looks like amid a changing policy landscape.

With Caroline Suh

Directed by Caroline Suh, each episode of this four-part series joins our spirited guide Samin as she travels to home kitchens of Italy, the southern islands of Japan, the heat of the Yucatán and back to Berkeley's Chez Panisse—where she started her culinary career—to demystify and explore the central principles of what makes food delicious and how each of us can easily incorporate those elements into every dish.

With Rosario Dawson • Alex Winter

Hacktivist and blockchain expert Lauri Love fights extradition in TRUST MACHINE—his computer skills a threat to the US government. Tech innovators strike a raw nerve as banks and network pundits rush to condemn volatile cryptocurrencies and their underlying blockchain technology. Why are banks terrified while UNICEF embraces it to help refugee children? Award–winning filmmaker Alex Winter reveals that proponents of blockchain—a verified digital ledger—are already using the technology to change the world; fighting income inequality, the refugee crisis and world hunger.

With Sanjay Rawal

3100: Run and Become follows an unassuming Finnish runner (Ashprihanal) and an Austrian cellist (Shamita) in their attempt to complete in the world’s longest certified footrace, the Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race.