Online video portal telegraph21 makes choosing what to watch easier by curating some of the best up-and-coming documentaries and art films from around the world.
Twice a week, telegraph21 uploads either a short film or sample from a feature documentary, accompanied by screening information, additional links to the work, and an interview with the filmmaker. Whether featuring award-winning journalists or new independent filmmakers, the site’s emphasis is always on spreading good ideas related to important issues. Commencing this October, in partnership with The Big Screen Project, the site will also broadcast its films on the Eventi Hotel‘s outdoor multimedia screen in Midtown Manhattan.
Explore telegraph21 online, become a fan on Facebook, follow the site on Twitter, and check out more of its videos on YouTube.
Click through for a selection of videos and descriptions from the site.
The Time Machine (Short Documentary Winner) Director: Mark Kendall
The Time Machine tells the story of Wilfredo Alvarez, a Honduran immigrant who works in a small watch shop in New York City’s Grand Central terminal. The film is a fascinating exploration of craft, culture, identity, and the nature of time itself.
“Just the Facts for A.J. Jacobs” Executive Producer: Jill Bauerle
In this episode of Stacked Up TV, author and Esquire editor-at-large A.J. Jacobs gives a guided tour of his library and talks about some of his favorite books. Most of the books on his shelves reflect his most recent obsessions, from living according to the Bible to the life and habits of George Washington.
Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors Without Borders Director & Producer: Mark Hopkins
Haiti. Rwanda. Kosovo. Sierra Leone. Pakistan. Whether the result of war or nature, recent disasters at these sites and others devastate populations and cripple health systems. Despite the immense dangers and difficulties of the work, one organization, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), has continuously intervened at these frontlines of overwhelming human need.
The Girl Effect Creative Director: Emily Brew
The Girl Effect refers to the powerful changes brought about when girls are allowed to participate in the economic life of developing countries. With access to education and economic opportunity, the 600 million adolescent girls in these countries have the capacity to change the world, reinvesting their income and knowledge back into their families and communities.
George & Brad in Bed Director: Jessica Sanders
George & Brad in Bed profiles the relationship between actor George Takei (Star Trek‘s Captain Sulu) and his husband and lifelong partner Brad Altman. The two recently married after being together for 21 years.
P-Star Rising Director: Gabriel Noble Producer: Marjan Tehrani
A talented young hip-hop performer becomes the vehicle for her father’s unfulfilled ambitions in the feature documentary P-Star Rising.
Crude Director & Producer: Joe Berlinger Producer: Michael Bonfiglio
Three years in the making, this cinéma vérité feature from acclaimed filmmaker Joe Berlinger (Brother’s Keeper, Paradise Lost, Metallica: Some Kind of Monster) is the epic story of one of the largest and most controversial legal cases on the planet. An inside look at the infamous $27-billion “Amazon Chernobyl” case, Crude is a real-life high-stakes legal drama set against a backdrop of the environmental movement, global politics, celebrity activism, human-rights advocacy, the media, multinational corporate power, and rapidly disappearing indigenous cultures.
Absent Director: Justin Hunt
Absent explores the worldwide devastation caused by the disengagement of fathers from their children. The documentary features Metallica frontman James Hetfield, boxer Johnny Tapia, and prostitutes on the streets of Las Vegas, among others, to dig deep into the issue of fatherlessness and the overwhelming need for change.
The Two Escobars Producers & Directors: Jeff Zimbalist & Michael Zimbalist
While rival drug cartels warred in the streets and the country’s murder rate climbed to highest in the world, the Colombian national soccer team set out to blaze a new image for its country. What followed was a mysteriously rapid rise to glory, as the team catapulted out of decades of obscurity to become one of the best teams in the world. Central to this success were two men named Escobar: Andrés, the captain and poster child of the National Team, and Pablo, the infamous drug baron who pioneered the phenomenon known in the underworld as “narco-soccer.”
Waiting for Women (Feature Documentary Winner) Director: Estephan Wagner
In the remote Spanish village of Riofrio, the women left years ago. Only men are left, without the slightest possibility of finding mates. Unable to bear the situation any longer, the men of Riofrio organize a busload of potential brides to come from Madrid to visit their community. The men aim to fall in love, but what ensues is quite different.