This special two-part series explores the interwoven history of the European project and the far right in postwar Europe – both East and West. Beginning with the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community from the ashes of World War II, we chart the trajectory of European integration, in tandem with the story of the European far right, recounting the series of shifts that have led to today’s critical juncture: a post-Brexit EU and a stark rise in support for far right parties across Europe.

We also trace the way in which far right politics has increasingly crept into the mainstream, setting the political agenda on issues such as the EU and immigration. Combining documentary storytelling with panel discussion, the series comprises both historical interpretation and incisive analysis on the history and future of Europe.

Runtime: 48′
Produced by: Al Jazeera English

Laurence Lee joined Al Jazeera in 2007 as Delhi correspondent and has also worked as Europe correspondent for the channel. A lifelong reporter, he began his career at the BBC before moving to Sky News. Laurence has reported from more than 40 countries around the world, covering the second Palestinian intifada and the Iraq war. He spent several years in Moscow covering Russia and the former Soviet bloc. Laurence’s work has won several RTS awards in the UK and he won the ‘Golden Verb’ prize for international correspondents in Moscow.

Sanjiev Johal first joined Al Jazeera in 2008 and has worked on projects covering current affairs and global geopolitics across various formats. He is part of a team currently working on special projects including an exploration of post-World War Two US political history.

All Governments Lie will change the way you look at mainstream media. Spotlighting the work of iconoclastic rebel journalist I.F. Stone, this eye-opening documentary lays bare the need for adversarial alternatives to the mainstream.

Giant media conglomerates are increasingly reluctant to investigate or criticise government policies – particularly on defence, security and intelligence issues. They are ceding responsibility for holding governments and corporations accountable to the independent journalists and filmmakers who risk their careers and their freedoms to expose the truth.

With government deception rampant, and intrusion of state surveillance into private life never more egregious, independent voices like Glenn Greenwald, Jeremy Scahill, and Amy Goodman are crucially important. All three are inspired by I. F. Stone, whose fearless, independent reporting from 1953 to 1971 filled a tiny 4-page newsletter which he wrote, published, and carried to the mailbox every week.

Stone is little known today, but All Governments Lie will reveal the profound influence he’s had on today’s independent journalists.

Directed by: Fred Peabody
Produced by: White Pine Pictures
Country: United States
Year: 2016
Runtime: 90′
Twitter: @AllGovsLieDoc

Syrian radio host Obaidah Zytoon and her friends are caught up in the euphoria of the 2011 Arab Spring. Cameras in hand, these artists and activists take to the streets to protest Bashar al-Assad. But as they film over the next several years, their hopes for a better future are tested by violence, imprisonment and death.

Working with acclaimed Danish director Andreas Dalsgaard, the film’s protagonists narrate and edit years of footage into a deeply moving personal narrative. Rather than dwelling on the violence of the conflict, The War Show focuses on what the revolution meant to individual people. Zytoon and her friends share similar aspirations to young people all over the world: to live free of repression.

Yet their dreams of revolution turn into the reality of civil war. Zytoon takes road trips to the centre of rebellion in Homs, to her hometown Zabadani near Lebanon, and to the north of Syria. Through poignant first-person narration, The War Show awakens audiences to understand how the conflict in Syria has impacted everyday people.

Host:

Razia Iqbal has worked for BBC news for more than 25 years. She presents Newshour on the BBC World Service and the World Tonight on Radio 4. She was the arts correspondent for a decade, and has worked as a reporter on both television and radio.

Directed by: Andreas Daslgaard, Obaidah Zytoon
Produced by: Miriam Nørgaard, Alaa Hassan
Country: Denmark
Year: 2016
Runtime: 100 mins

Followed by a discussion with Burmese filmmakers and experts, responding to the films as well as reflecting on Czech – Burmese parallels, Václav Havel´s friendship with Aung San Su Kyi, and the collaboration between Czech and Burmese filmmakers.

Organised by the Czech Centre in partnership with Human Rights Human Dignity International Film Festival, Human Dignity Film Institute and Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic

Speakers:

Igor Blaževič is most known as a relentless human rights campaigner of Bosnian origin living in the Czech Republic. He participated in many humanitarian missions (Sarajevo, Chechnya, Cambodia, Burma, East Timor) and together with his wife, filmmaker Jasmina Blaževič, directed a wide range of documentaries (The Refugees of Twenty Years War (2000), Only 500 Deaths (2002), Burmese Prisoners (2002)) focusing on political oppression. In 1999 he founded One World Human Rights International Film Festival in Prague, which is today the biggest festival of its sort in Europe. For several years he headed the human rights department of the renowned Czech NGO People in Need. In the past five years, Igor has been based in Thailand and Burma, as the director of the Educational Initiatives, training program for Burmese activists. He is an international consultant for the Human Rights Human Dignity International Film Festival in Burma, in the establishment of which he played a crucial role. Currently he is with the Prague Civil Society Centre in charge for the Transitions Program.

Pavel Seifter was Czech ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1997 until his retirement in 2003. A lecturer in labour and social history in Prague, he was forced to leave his post after the Soviet invasion in 1968. He then worked as a window cleaner for twenty years, and signed the Charter 77, before becoming a key member of the Civic Forum movement, which led to the return from totalitarianism to democratic values in Czechoslovakia. He subsequently served as deputy director of the Institute of Contemporary History and then as the deputy director of the Institute of International Relations in Prague. He was appointed as Director of Foreign Policy to the President in 1993. He is currently a visiting research fellow at the Centre for the Study of Global Governance, LSE.

MP Susanna Hla Hla Soe is a member of the Burmese parliament representing the National League for Democracy, Susanna Hla Hla So has an impressive record as an activist working to improve the lives of Karen women in Burma. She worked for 12 years for the World Vision and established The Karen Women’s Action Group (KWAG) in 2010. Through KWAG she continued to empower Karen women in Karen State, ran anti-trafficking projects and took part in the peace negotiation process between the Karen National Union and the Burmese government to finally bring to an end 60 years of fighting between the two groups. She successfully ran for the MP position in the 2015 landmark elections. In 2012 she received the InterAction Humanitarian Award in Washington DC.

Lamin Oo is a Burmese filmmaker and director of A Peaceful Land

Programme:

THE LITTLE FINGER

Shune Lei Thar, Kaung Myat Thu Kyaw, Saw Reagan / Myanmar / 2016 / 35 min

Shot during the 2015 election, a portrait of a female Parliamentary candidate and an ordinary woman in the context of the change brought about the little fingers of the voters.

A PEACEFUL LAND

Sai Kong Kham, Lamin Oo / Myanmar / 2016 / 21 min

In 2005, Myanmar government started a nation-wide campaign to plant Physic Nut – a toxic bush-like tree – for biodiesel production. It was considered “a national duty” to grow these
trees. The country was to plant eight million acres within three years. This radical program resulted in land confiscations and forced labor all over the country. Faced with these hardship and injustice, four courageous farmers from Nat Mauk (Magway Division) stood up against the authorities and fought for their rights and their land.

I WANNA GO TO SCHOOL

Nyan Kyal Say  / Animation / Myanmar / 2015 / 3 min

A short animation about a brother and a sister who dream of going to school together. They are trying to escape from obstacles such as gender inequality, poverty, child abuse, child labour, human trafficking, etc. that are blocking their chance to education.

A BUFFALO BOY

Mai Ah Nway (Ta’ang Chitthu)  / Myanmar / 2015 / 12 min

A short fiction film about a boy from the village of Paloung Mountain and how he become a buffalo boy. Winner of the Min Ko Naing Award and the Hantharwady U Win Tin Award at the 2015 Human Rights and Dignity Film Festival.

PARTNERS

Human Rights Human Dignity International Film Festival (HRHDIFF) Burma´s first festival of its kind, Human Rights Human Dignity International Film Festival, aims to promote human rights awareness in Burma/Myanmar by using the power of film and to create space for encouraging human rights discussions amongst the general public. The festival is closely connected to the Human Dignity Film Institute which offers media and film trainings to aspiring young filmmakers in Yangon. The festival also tours every year in Burmese towns and villages.

Czech Centre London‘s mission is to actively promote the Czech Republic by showcasing Czechculture in the UK. Its programme covers visual and performing arts, film, literature, music,
architecture, design and fashion. As well as hosting its own events, the Czech Centre offers support for other groups organising Czech related initiatives in the UK. The centre also seeks to further enhance cultural relationships between the UK and the Czech Republic through curatorial visits, media tours and artistic residencies; helping to generate creative dialogue among artists, scholars and cultural activists from both countries. The Czech Centre is a member of EUNIC (European Union National Institutes for Culture).

This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Nawal al-Maghafi and others.

Since March 2015, a coalition of the Middle East’s richest countries, led by Saudi Arabia, and armed by the UK and US has been bombing the region’s poorest state, Yemen.

While the bombing campaign has been receiving intermittent coverage in the international media, the enormous scale of the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Yemen as a result continues to be overlooked.

Today, more than twenty million Yemenis are relying on aid to survive. The coalition’s blockade of the country has previously cut off the food and aid imports on which the population depends, and while trade has now resumed they maintain complete control over all imports and exports to and from Yemen.

We meet Shuaib, he was rushed in to hospital suffering from fever and diarrhoea. Hodeida’s main hospital is already struggling to cope, working under airstrikes, electricity cuts and lack of supplies. Shuaib’s antibiotic is completely out of stock, and doctors do the best they can to save him with the little supplies that they have.

Through the eyes of Ashwaq Muharram, a medical doctor living and practicing in Hodeida, viewers will see the silent killer of this ongoing conflict: the blockade currently imposed by the Saudi-led coalition and the widespread bombing of infrastructure which is drastically disrupting civilians’ access to aid.

This critical film provides an insight into what is happening in Yemen beyond the bombs and the bullets. It will introduce the audience to Yemenis whose coping strategies have collapsed, and who are in desperate need of the world’s attention as a humanitarian catastrophe unfolds in their land.

Directed and Reported by: Nawal Al-Maghafi
Edit Producer: Karolina Mottram
Edited by: Shayma Alissi
Filmed by: Mohammed Al-Mikhlafi
Runtime: 25′

Speakers:

Kavita Puri – Editor, BBC Our World

Nawal Al-Maghafi – BBC Reporter

Andre Heller Perache – head of the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) programmes unit and former head of mission in Yemen

Peter Oborne – Associate editor of The Spectator and chief political commentator at The Daily Telegraph

90% of the goods we consume in the West are manufactured in far-off lands and brought to us by ship. The cargo shipping industry is a key player in world economy and forms the basis of our very model of modern civilisation; without it, it would be impossible to fulfil the ever-increasing demands of our societies.

Yet the functioning and regulations of this business remain largely obscure to many, and its hidden costs affect us all. Due to their size, freight ships no longer fit in traditional city harbours; they have moved out of the public’s eye, behind barriers and check points. The film answers questions such as: Who pulls the strings in this multi-billion dollar business? To what extent does the industry control our policy makers? How does it affect the environment above and below the water-line? And what’s life like for modern seafarers?

Taking us on a journey over seas and oceans, the newest film from veteran director Denis Delestrac (Banking Nature) reveals in an audacious and gripping investigation the many faces of worldwide freight shipping and sheds light on the consequences of an all-but-visible industry.

Directed by: Denis Delestrac
Country: Spain
Year: 2016
Runtime: 90 mins

In December of 2010, Tunisian street vendor Mohamed Bouazizi lit himself on fire protest of government corruption and poor living conditions. This act was a catalyst for the Arab Spring. Tunisians who had never known democracy were then left with the question of what democracy in their country could mean. A Revolution in Four Seasons seeks to answer that question from the perspective of two young women who persevere to change their country.

This compelling documentary follows journalist Emna Ben Jemaa and Constituent Assembly member Jawhara Ettis over the course of Tunisia’s critical first four years after the Revolution. Emna is a secular journalist fighting to keep religion out of government, while Jawhara works within Parliament to help gently guide the nation towards more Islamic principles. Both women exhibit remarkable determination, wisdom, and resilience in their efforts to steer the country towards disparate versions of the perfect democracy.

Through its central characters, the film embarks on an exploration of what it means to be a modern Islamic woman – balancing work, family, and politics in the context of a budding democracy. Over the four years following Tunisia’s revolution Jawhara and Emna must make difficult compromises as ambitious participants in this fragile new climate. Paralleling this is Tunisia’s development as it is threatened by economic strain, political assassinations, acts of terrorism, and protests which ultimately force Jawhara’s government to step down.

Directed by: Jessie Deeter
Country: United States
Year: 2015
Runtime: 90 mins

Seen through the lens of filmmaker Brian Oakes, Foley’s close childhood friend, Jim: The James Foley Story takes us from small-town New England to the adrenaline-fuelled front lines of Libya and Syria, where photojournalist James (Jim) Foley pushed the limits of danger to report on the plight of civilians impacted by war.

On Thanksgiving Day 2012, Jim Foley was kidnapped in Syria and went missing for two years. Thrown into a world of false leads and misinformation, the Foley family was threatened with prosecution by the U.S. government if they paid a ransom. In Oakes’s gut-wrenching film, Foley’s family, friends, and fellow journalists tell Jim’s story, while his fellow hostages reveal the details of captivity with chilling immediacy.

Brilliantly constructed with unparalleled access, Jim is a harrowing chronicle of bravery, compassion, and pain at the dawn of a new World War against ISIS.

Tickets can be booked through the Bertha DocHouse website and the screening will take place at the Curzon Bloomsbury cinema.

Directed by: Brian Oakes
Country: United States
Year: 2016
runtime: 120′

National Bird follows the dramatic journey of three whistleblowers who are determined to break the silence around one of the most controversial issues of our time: the secret U.S. drone war.

At the centre of the film are three U.S. military veterans. Grappling with guilt over their participation in the drone programme, they decide to speak out publicly in spite of the possible consequences. Their stories take dramatic turns, leading one of the protagonists to Afghanistan where she learns about the horrific consequences of a drone strike for a civilian family. But her journey also gives hope for peace and redemption.

National Bird gives unprecedented insight into the U.S. drone programme through the eyes of veterans and survivors, connecting their stories to create a comprehensive overview of events as never seen before. Its images haunt the audience and bring a faraway issue close to home.

Discussion chaired by Juliana Ruhfus, journalist, filmmaker, and senior reporter at Al Jazeera English, People and Power.

Panel:

Sonia Kennebeck is an independent documentary filmmaker and investigative journalist with more than 15 years of directing and producing experience. She has directed eight television documentaries and more than 50 investigative reports. She lives in New York where she runs her own production company (Ten Forward Films) that makes films about international politics and human rights. Filmmaker Magazine recently selected her as one of the “25 New Faces of Independent Film 2016.” Sonia Kennebeck received a Master’s degree in International Affairs from American University in Washington, D.C. and was born in Malacca, Malaysia. NATIONAL BIRD is her first feature-length documentary film.

Frank Ledwidge is a barrister who served as a military intelligence officer in the Balkans and Iraq. He has also worked for the British government in Afghanistan and Libya. He is the author of ‘losing Small Wars’. He is the author of Losing Small Wars (Yale 2011) and Investment in Blood (Yale 2013)

Jack Serle is a specialist reporter on the Bureau’s Covert Drone War team. He has worked on the Bureau of Investigative Journalism’s drone war coverage since 2012.

Directed by: Sonia Kennebeck
Produced by: Ines Hofmann Kanna
Executive Producers: Wim Wenders and Errol Morris
Year: 2016
Country: United States
Runtime: 92′

With the opinion polls indicating a close-run race and the two major parties offering radically different viewpoints, the United States stands at one of the most significant political crossroads the nation has seen for many years. FRONTLINE’s critically acclaimed series returns for the 2016 election to examine the intriguing personal and political biographies of the presidential candidates.

Since 1988, when FRONTLINE (PBS) first presented a dual biography of presidential candidates Michael Dukakis and George H.W. Bush, The Choice has earned a reputation as one of the pinnacles of political broadcast journalism. In this exclusive access documentary, director Michael Kirk puts Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump under the spotlight.

Through interviews with those who best know the candidates in private and as public figures, The Choice explains the character of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump through key episodes in their lives and pivotal moments of their campaigns. This landmark series goes behind the headlines to tell a deeper story about both candidates, the decisions they made and why their nominations indicate historic change in American politics.

Directed by: Michael Kirk
Duration: 120′
Year: 2016