London Socialist Film Co-op

SUNDAY, 13 of MAY, 2018, 10:20 for 11 am

EMPTY DESERT

Silvia Boarini, Linda Paganelli, Israel, 2016, (PG), Arabic/English, [EST] 58 mins.

The Al Turi maintain that the lands they live on, in Al Araqib, in the Negev, have belonged to them since before the time of the Ottoman Empire. Yet, since the creation of Israel, their land ownership rights have been denied by the very state of which they are now full citizens. On 27th July 2010 state authorities razed their village to the ground; since then it had been demolished by the state and rebuilt by the people some 97 times.
The Al Turi share their stories and hopes for the future. They talk of the difficulties of being 'unrecognized', of the paradox of being considered 'invaders'.

REYKJAVIK RISING. Iceland’s untold story

Danny Mitchell, Rosa Weber UK/Iceland, 2014, English/Icelandic, [EST] 45 mins

This beautiful and moving documentary depicts and analyzes what happened the last time the Icelanders got fed up with their politicians, the political system, and the banking system. Filled with insightful and engaged people, this film is a MUST SEE! In response to widespread media silence and a growing global trend towards people-led movements, the documentary explores how and why the people of Iceland resisted the measures imposed by their government following the crisis of 2008 and how they forced their government to resign in an attempt to forge a new political path.

Speakers: Linda Ramsden, Founder ICAHDUK and

Ken Livingstone, former Leader of the GLC from 1981-1986 and Mayor of London from 2000 to 2008, writer.

Screenings are at Bolivar Hall, 54 Grafton Way, London W1T 5DL.
Nearest tube: Warren Street. Overground: Euston.
Buses: 10, 14, 18, 24, 27, 29, 30, 73, 88, 134, 205, 390.
Booking information: tickets are available from 10.20 am on the day and may not be booked in advance.
Admission £10, concessions £8. Members £6/£4. Sorry, no credit cards.

SUNDAY, 8th of April, 10.20 for 11am

MONEY PUZZLES

Michael Chanan, UK, 2016, [U], English, 129 mins

Money Puzzles is a counter-narrative to mainstream economic orthodoxy. It also dispenses with the conventions of the mainstream documentary – the all-knowing narrator, the balanced opinions – and turns to different voices: economics students in England frustrated with the inadequacy of what they’re being taught, solidarity volunteers in Greece, anti-eviction activists in Spain, advocates of citizens debt audits across Europe, critical economists like Costas Lapavitsas, Molly Scott-Cato, Johnna Mongomerie and Axel Kicillof.
http://www.mchanan.com/money-puzzles/

Discussion led by: Michael Chanan, Documentarist, Writer, Speaker and Helen Mercer, former Lecturer in Economics,

SUNDAY, 11 MARCH, 2018, 10:20 FOR 11 AM

She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry

Mary Dore, USA, 2014, [PG] English, 92 mins.

This documentary resurrects the buried history of the outrageous, often brilliant women who founded the modern women's movement. It tells the story of the feminist movement of the 1960s. They said 'the personal is political' and made a revolution: in the bedroom, in the workplace, in all spheres of life. Called threatening by the FBI, yet ignored in many histories, these women changed the world. This amazing documentary is about the women's fight for independence and for reproductive rights. It is great learning about the history of second wave feminism and of its implications in the current society. Using statements, videos and photos, the film shows how the women's liberation movement emerged in the patriarchal society from 1960's.

Speakers invited: National Assembly of Women

SUNDAY, 11 FEBRUARY, 10:20 for 11 am

Mother Jones and Her Children

Emma Bowell and Eddie Noona, Framework Films & The Cork Mother Jones Commemorative Committee, with the support of the Sound and Vision scheme, an initiative of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. Ireland/USA, 2014, English, 52 mins.

Mary Harris Jones was born in 1830 in County Cork, Ireland. Her family left the devastation brought by the Irish Potato Famine and emigrated westward, first to Canada and then to America. Tragedy befell Jones when she lost her family to a yellow fever outbreak and then her home in the great Chicago fire. She went on to become a labour activist and was given the nickname “Mother Jones.” A champion of the working class, Jones was a campaigner for the United Mine Workers Union, founded the Social Democratic Party and helped establish the Industrial Workers of the World. Jones died in 1930.

First Cry

T. G. Ajay, India, 2014, Hindi, [EST]

First Cry tells the remarkable story of Shahid Hospital in the mining township of Dalli Rajhara, in Chattisgarh. The hospital was paid for and built by the voluntary labour of daily-wage contract miners and successfully provides modern health-care to workers, and advises the poor. The Film reveals the history of its making, key turning points of the hospital and the experiences of the doctors and worker- paramedics who manage this oasis of hope.

Discussion to follow: Speakers: Kelly Rogers, a BECTU member, and former employee at the Ritzi Picturehouse and Jonatha Parry, Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, LSE, recently did fieldwork in Chhattisgarh state of India

SUNDAY, 14 JANUARY, 2018, 10:20 for 11:00

REVOLUTION, a film about changing the world

In this follow up to Sharkwater, film maker Rob Stewart brings us to an adventure 3.5 billion years in the making – from the evolution of life to the revolution underway to save us. Filmed over four years in 15 countries, Revolution captures some of the most remarkable wildlife spectacles ever recorded, and gives audiences a firsthand look into the biggest battle ever fought.

Discovering that there’s more in jeopardy than sharks, Stewart uncovers a grave secret threatening our own survival as a species, and embarks on a life-threatening adventure through 4 years and 15 countries into the greatest battle ever waged.

Winner of 5 prestigious awards and two nominations:

discussion with Q&A's will take place

https://filmefuerdieerde.org/en/films/planet-earth/revolution

Sunday, 10 December 2017, 10:20 for 11:00 am

TRAMONTANE

Vatche Boulghourjian, France, 2016 [PG] Arabic (EST),105 mins.
Rabih, a young blind man, lives in a small village in Lebanon. He sings in a choir and edits Braille documents for an income. His life unravels when he tries to apply for a passport and discovers that his identification card, which he has carried his entire life, is a forgery. Travelling across rural Lebanon in search of a record of his own birth, he meets people on the far fringes of society who tell their own stories, open further questions and give Rabih minor clues about his true identity. Descending into a void at the heart of his existence, Rabih encounters a nation incapable of telling his or its own narrative.

Boulghourjian’s poetic and sensitive debut, which premiered in Cannes’ Critics’ Week, is also a poignant reminder of the role of culture and storytelling in relaying truths and understanding the amnesia that surrounds complex histories.

Screenings are at Bolivar Hall, 54 Grafton Way, London W1T 5DL.
Nearest tube: Warren Street. Overground: Euston.
Buses: 10, 14, 18, 24, 27, 29, 30, 73, 88, 134, 205, 390.
Booking information: tickets are available from 10.20 am on the day and may not be booked in advance.
Admission £10, concessions £8. Annual members £6/£4. Sorry no credit cards.
Membership details.

Sunday, 19th of November, 11am: Film screening of The Idealist, Christina Rosendahl,

A plane crash, government corruption and nuclear warheads are just some of the ingredients for this taut Danish docu-drama, set in the aftermath of the Cold War. Based on a book by the award-winning journalist Poul Brink.
In an age of galloping globalisation and inscrutable international agreements around security and trade, "The Idealist" feels like a particularly resonant reminder of the concessions that arise when a little nation aligns itself with the powers of amajor one.

Speaker from the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom

Screenings are at Bolivar Hall, 54 Grafton Way, London W1T 5DL.
Nearest tube: Warren Street. Overground: Euston.
Buses: 10, 14, 18, 24, 27, 29, 30, 73, 88, 134, 205, 390.
Booking information: tickets are available from 10.20 am on the day and may not be booked in advance.
Admission £10, concessions £8. Annual members £6/£4. Sorry no credit cards.
Membership details.

Sunday, 10 September 2017, 10:20 for 11 am

Shadow World,

Johan Grimonprez, Belgium/Danemark, 2016, U, English/Spanish/Arabic, 94 mins

Based on the book "The Shadow World: Inside the Global Arms Trade" by Andrew Feinstein, Shadow World reveals the shocking realities of the global arms trade – the only business that counts its profits in billions and its losses in human lives.

The film reveals how the international trade in weapons – with the complicity of governments and intelligence agencies, investigative and prosecutorial bodies, weapons manufacturers, dealers and agents – fosters corruption, determines economic and foreign policies, undermines democracy and creates widespread suffering. In the hope that in understanding how our realties are being constructed, audiences may see through this horror, and create a better future.

Speaker: Andrew Feinstein, author of Shadow World, Inside the Global Arms Trade

Previous - SUNDAY 14 MAY, 2017,10.20 for 11 am

THE WOMAN KNIGHT OF MIRROR LAKE

Herman Yau, China, 2011, [PG], dubbed, 115 mins

The film tells the story of Qiu Jin and her involvement in revolutionary uprisings in Anhui province against the Qing Dynasty (the last dynasty 1644-1912) . Influences on her life are shown through a series of flashbacks. As a child, Qiu Jin resisted having her feet bound according to common practice, and instead pursued her interests to learn horse riding, martial arts and literature with her father and brother. Through her poetry, she expresses her sorrow at the weak state of the nation and the repression of women. Finding other like minded women in Beijing and then travelling to Japan to study reinforces her view that nationalist action is required to reform China.

Discussion: Invited Speaker from Chinese Embassy, Deborah Lavin, writer

SUNDAY 09 APRIL 2017, 10.20 for 11 am

THE WAR YOU DON’T SEE

Alan Lowery, John Pilger, UK, 2010, [PG] English, 97 mins

'The War You Don't See' is a powerful and timely investigation into the media's role in war. Tracing the history of 'embedded' and ‘independent’ reporting from the carnage of World War One to the destruction of Hiroshima, and from the invasion of Vietnam to the current war in Afghanistan and disaster in Iraq. As weapons and propaganda become even more sophisticated, the nature of war is developing into an 'electronic battlefield' in which journalists play a key role, and civilians are the victims. But who is the real enemy?

THEY CALL US MAIDS: THE DOMESTIC WORKERS’ STORY

Leeds Animated Workshop, 2015, [E] English,7 mins

The domestic workers’ story. tells of thousands of women from extremely poor backgrounds, from such countries as the Philippines, Indonesia, South Asia or the continent of Africa. They find work abroad to support their families. Mostly employed as ‘maids’ in foreign households and many find themselves trapped in conditions of great hardship and isolation. Based on the real life stories of migrant domestic workers, the programme uses vivid watercolour animation to reveal some disturbing truths about present-day slavery. Made in consultation with Justice 4 Domestic Workers (www.j4dw.com)

Discussion: led by Samir Ramadani, writer and senior lecturer,

Campaign for Press Freedom,

Invited John Pilger, film-director and journalist