The Power of Personal Stories

Great documentaries are driven by people and the stories that only they can share. It’s a privilege to gain such access into someone else’s world, one we shouldn’t take for granted. Films are opportunities to learn about new perspectives and expand our horizons beyond our own lived experiences. These five shorts pay tribute to personal stories.

Wifi Rider (2020) | Roxy Rezvany

Queer Palestinian teenager Shukri spends most of his days on the internet. Immersed in an online world where Western popstars preach self-love and acceptance, he is inspired and finally decides to escape from his lonely life in Jerusalem.

Inhale (2017) | Sean Mullan

Walking with horses, a man feels an irrepressible duty to move in harmony with his pain. Inhale is a moving film that explores the infinite momentum of life, which goes on with an energy that can never be destroyed, only transformed.

Zef (2020) | Jessica Barclay Lawton

This is the story of Zef, a non-binary environmentalist, skimpy bar worker and free spirit. They are a 21-year-old on a mission to discover the truth in and amongst the noise. Zef is a snapshot of our human desire for real intimacy.

Stillness Arises (2014) | Benjamin Dowie

Shot in France over one week, Stillness Arises provides an insight into the mind of French adventurer and filmmaker, Mathieu Le Lay. Through this immersive journey into his world, we discover his connection with nature and the wild.

72 hours in André Balazs’ Chateau Marmont (2019) | Floria Sigismondi

We are placed in LA’s iconic Sunset Boulevard and enter inside the glamorous rooms of Chateau Marmont. Here, we follow filmmaker Floria Sigismondi, who shoots Kenneth Anger for a special edition of the renowned System Magazine.

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