BRATTLEBORO — The following summaries are provided to The Commons by the organizers of the Brattleboro Film Festival. All films screen at the Latchis Theatre at 50 Main St.
• “50 Feet from Syria.” (Short documentary, 2015. Skye Fitzgerald; 39 min.; Turkey/USA/Syria; partly subtitled. Warning: this film contains graphic images of injuries caused by war.) Syrian-American surgeon Hisham Bismar arrives at a Turkish hospital on the Syrian border, ready for anything. What he finds is horror, chaos, and an ocean of refugees in need of medical care. This is a portrait of a quiet and determined man, performing intricate acts of medical necessity undeterred by the complexity of war around him. Saturday, Nov. 12, 4 p.m. (with “My Aleppo” and “Refugees of Shangri-La”).
• “After Spring.” (Documentary, 2016. Steph Ching, Ellen Martinez; 102 min.; USA; subtitles for Arabic.) As the war in Syria reaches its sixth year, millions of people continue to be displaced. “After Spring” follows two refugee families and the aid workers fighting to keep Zaatari, Syria's largest detainment camp, running. With no end in sight for the conflict, everyone must decide whether they can rebuild their lives in a place never meant to be permanent. Executive producer: Jon Stewart. Saturday, Nov. 5, 4 p.m.
• “Aria for a Cow.” (Animated short, 2015. Dan Lund; 7 min.; USA.) When a callow young farmer shows himself to be completely uninterested in the sensitive art of milking a dairy cow, Aria, a bovine diva, along with her singing and dancing backup bulls, belts out a tune, demanding to be respected for more than just dairy products. In the end, our young farmer learns to respect the collaborative effort that made Krelborn farms and its cows an award-winning dairy farm. Saturday, Nov. 5, noon (with “Birds of Passage”); Sunday, Nov. 6, 2 p.m. (with “Seed: the Untold Story”); Friday, Nov. 11, 8:30 p.m. (with “Hunky Dory”); Sunday, Nov. 13, noon (with “Birds of Passage”).
• “Birds of Passage.” (Children's drama, 2015. Oliver Ringer; 83 min.; subtitles; France/Belgium.) Cathy receives a very unusual gift from her dad for her 10th birthday: an egg. When a duckling comes out of the egg in the presence of Cathy's friend Margaux, he immediately recognizes her as his mother! But Margaux, who has to use a wheelchair, is not able to handle a baby duck. Both girls are determined to set their fluffy friend free, so they leave in secret on an adventurous journey to the distress of their very concerned parents but the duo learns a lot about self-discovery. Saturday, Nov. 5, noon (with “Aria for a Cow”); Sunday, Nov. 13, noon (with “Aria for a Cow”).
• “Body Team 12.” (Short documentary, 2015. David Darg; 13 min.; Liberia/U.S.) Body Team 12 is tasked with collecting the victims at the height of the ebola outbreak, arguably the most dangerous and gruesome job in the world. The story is told in Monrovia, Liberia through the eyes of the only female member of the team, Garmai Sumo. Through Garmai's maternal heroism, we see the heartbreaking, life-saving work of removing bodies from loved ones in order to halt transmission of the disease. Thursday, Nov. 10, 6:30 p.m. (with “Nakom”).
• “Dear President Obama: The Clean Energy Revolution Is Now.” (Documentary, 2016. Jon Bowermaster; 96 min.; USA.) During President Obama's terms, extreme energy extraction grew faster than anyone could have predicted, putting the 17 million people who live within 1 mile of any new gas or oil rig in harm's way. Interviews with scientists, economists, health professionals, geologists, and whistleblowers provide the core argument for the current president and those who will follow to join the growing “anti-drilling” majority and call for fossil fuels to be left in the ground. With Mark Ruffalo. Saturday, Nov. 5, 6:30 p.m.
• “Do Not Resist.” (Documentary, 2016. Craig Atkinson; 72 min.; USA.) Starting on the streets of Ferguson, Missouri, “Do Not Resist” offers a stunning look at the militarization of the United States, thanks to its amazing access, placing viewers deep in the center of the action: a ride-along with a South Carolina SWAT team, a nationwide police seminar on “righteous violence,” a New Hampshire small-town vote for a super-sized tank. The film also explores where frightening new technologies could lead next. Wednesday, Nov. 9, 6:30 p.m.
• “The If Project.” (Documentary, 2016. Kathlyn Horan; 90 min.; USA.) When Seattle police detective Kim Bogucki asked a group of incarcerated women a critical question, she struck a chord with Renata Abramson, a repeat offender who took it upon herself to answer that question in writing and invited her fellow prisoners to do the same. When Bogucki returned a month later, Abramson handed her a stack of raw and poignant essays, and the If Project was born. Monday, Nov. 7, 6:30 p.m. Director Kathlyn Horan and Detective Bogucki will participate in a question-and-answer session following the film.
• “Hunky Dory.” (Drama, 2016. Michael Curtis Johnson; 88 min.; USA.) Hard-partying, bisexual glam rock drag performer Sidney's life takes a sharp turn when his ex-girlfriend unexpectedly drops their 11-year-old son Georgie off for the week. Equally obsessed with himself and music, Sidney is forced to reconcile his hedonistic lifestyle with his new responsibilities. Friday, Nov. 11, 8:30 p.m. (with “Aria for a Cow”).
• “Kid Flix 2016 NYICFF.” (Collection of short dramas, 57 min. Recommended for ages 3-7.) A collection of the best short animated films from around the world presented at the 2016 New York International Children's Film Festival. Selected for younger audience members, it features audience favorites and award winners, including “The Visitors,” “Octopus,” “One, Two, Tree,” “Object at Rest,” “Looks,” and “Tiny Tunes: Food.” Sunday, Nov. 6, noon (with “My Favourite Things”).
• “The Last Cab to Darwin.” (Drama, 2015; Jeremy Sims, 123 min.; Australia.) In this sweet-hearted film, a cab driver, Rex, has spent his life avoiding getting too close to people, including his best friend, Polly. After discovering he is dying, he decides to leave his home alone and drive 3,000 kilometers across the continent to Darwin, where euthanasia was recently legalized. Sunday, Nov. 6, 4 p.m. and Tuesday, Nov. 8, 8:30 p.m.
• “The Last Laugh.” (Documentary, 2016. Ferne Perlstein; 88 min.; USA.) Can Nazis and the Final Solution be joked about? Comedians, writers, producers, and even Holocaust survivors weigh in - and show how personal and changeable ideas of humor and offense can be. A provocative mix of levity, tragedy, archival material, and marquee names, with a luminous 91-year-old Auschwitz survivor at its heart. Thursday, Nov. 10, 8:30 p.m.
• “A Man Called Ove.” (Drama, 2015. Hannes Holmes; 116 min.; subtitles; Sweden.) A heartwarming tale about a stubborn, short-tempered man with steadfast beliefs, strict routines, and who believes that everyone around him is an idiot - and who has no reticence about telling them so. After new neighbors accidentally run over his mailbox, his solitary world is shaken in ways he would never have imagined. Friday, Nov. 11, 6:30 p.m.
• “Mother.” (Drama, 2016. Kadri Kousaar; 89 min.; subtitles; Estonia.) Estonian humor is big on idiosyncratic folks negotiating emotional upheavals with placid exteriors. This quirky, Fargo-like tendency transforms the unsavory elements “Mother” deals with into an amusing if cautionary tale. As small-town eccentrics scramble to discover where the money went just before the gun went off, the most oddball of situations conceals the most serious themes. Saturday, Nov. 5, 8:30 p.m.
• “My Aleppo.” (Short documentary, 2015. Melissa Lange; 18 min.; South Africa.) After fleeing the civil war in Syria and relocating to South Africa, a young family struggles to preserve their ties to the ancient city of Aleppo. Trying to establish a new life in their one-room apartment is difficult as they receive a string of unsettling news from relatives still caught in the conflict. Saturday, Nov. 12, 4 p.m. (with “50 Feet from Syria” and “Refugees of Shangri-La”)
• “My Favourite Things: A Story by Hennock.” (Short documentary, 2013. Chris Phillips; 5 min.; subtitles; Ethiopia.) An enchanting story about poverty, play, and the rights of children, starring 5-year-old Hennock from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Sunday, Nov. 6, noon (with “Kid Flix”).
• “Nakom.” (Drama, 2016. Kelly Daniela Norris and T.W. Pittman; 90 min.; Ghana/USA.) After his father's sudden death, a talented Ghanaian medical student returns to his native village, where his family's been struggling to pay his tuition. Now, he must plant and sell a crop so they can pay back a sizable recent debt. Thursday, Nov. 10, 6:30 p.m. (with “Body Team 12”).
• “National Bird.” (Documentary, 2016. Sonia Kennebeck; 92 min.; USA.) Plagued by guilt over participating in the killing of faceless people in foreign countries, three veterans become whistleblowers determined to break the silence - at great to risk themselves - on one of the most controversial current-affairs topics of our time: the secret U.S. drone war. This very revealing and haunting film brings an issue in distant lands close to home. Executive produced by Errol Morris and Wim Wenders. Wednesday, Nov. 9, 8:30 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 12, 8:30 p.m.
• “Only Yesterday.” (Anime drama, 1991. Isao Takahata; 118 min.; dubbed; Japan.) It's 1982, and Taeko, a young woman from Tokyo, decides to visit her relatives in the countryside. During the trip, memories flood back of her “fifth-grade self.” In lyrical switches between the present and the past, Taeko contemplates the arc of her life and wonders if she has been true to the dreams of her childhood self. Never before released in the USA, “Only Yesterday” is a masterpiece of time and tone, rich with humor and stirring emotion, and beautifully animated by one of the world's most revered animation studios. Saturday, Nov. 12, 2 p.m.
• “Political Animals.” (Documentary, 2016. Jonah Markowitz, Tracy Ware; 87 min.; USA.) Packed with hot-button moments of legislative debate footage, this engrossing documentary charts the years-long efforts by California's first four “out” state politicians to pass bills for LGBT rights. Enduring inflammatory, jaw-dropping grandstanding from their peers, these women fight for advances whose ripple effect led last year to the Supreme Court decision establishing marriage equality as United States law. Monday, Nov. 7, 8:30 p.m.
• “The Refugees of Shangri-La.” (Documentary, 2014. Doria Bramante, Markus Weinfurter; 55 min.; USA/Nepal/Bhutan.) After cultural persecution, loss of a beloved home, and 20 years surviving in refugee camps in Nepal, the Kingdom of Bhutan's forgotten exiles abandon hopes of returning to their lost land and seek a new life in a new country. In the past five years, 85,000 Bhutanese refugees have resettled to the United States. Saturday Nov. 12, 4 p.m. (with “50 Feet from Syria” and “My Aleppo”).
• “Robot Artists.” (Short documentary, 2011. Xenia Forrester; 9 min.; South Africa.) Zimbabwean artists whose marketplace and livelihood is a traffic-light intersection in Cape Town, South Africa talk about life as illegal immigrants, xenophobia, missing their families, and the role that art plays in their lives. Friday, Nov. 4, 8:30 p.m. (with “Tyrus”), Saturday, Nov. 5, 2 p.m. (with “Romeo Is Bleeding”), Saturday, Nov. 12, noon (with “Romeo Is Bleeding”).
• “Romeo Is Bleeding.” (Docuementary, 2015. Jason Zeldes; 93 min.; USA.) A fatal turf war between neighborhoods haunts the city of Richmond, California. Donté Clark transcends the violence in his hometown by writing poetry about his experiences. Using his voice to inspire those around him, he and the like-minded youth of the city mount an urban adaptation of Shakespeare's “Romeo and Juliet,” with the hope of starting a real dialogue about violence in the city. Saturday, Nov. 5, 2 p.m. (with “Robot Artists”) and Saturday, Nov. 12, noon (with “Robot Artists”).
• “Salero.” (Documentary, 2015. Mike Plunkett; 76 min.; subtitles; Bolivia/USA.) Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni is a pristine, otherworldly expanse of white salt found in one of the most secluded places on earth. Until recently, the only signs of life have been the “saleros” who harvest salt from its radiant surface. “Salero” is a poetic journey through the eyes of Moises, who becomes one of the last links between the old world and the new one, as Bolivia's leaders embark on a plan to extract a precious mineral found beneath the salt crust. Sunday, Nov. 6, 8:30 p.m. (with “Territory”).
• “Sand Storm.” (Drama, 2016. Elite Zexer; 97 min.; subtitles; Israel.) Deep in the Negev desert, Bedouin villager Suliman has given his eldest child, Layla, many of the trappings of modern life - a cell phone, driving lessons, an education - instilling in her a sense of independence. But in other ways, he is firmly rooted in the patriarchal past, with all the power and privilege it confers. When he takes a second wife, the mother and daughter struggle to change the unchangeable, each in her own way. Winner of a Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. Saturday, Nov. 12, 6:30 p.m. (with “Territory”).
• “Seed: The Untold Story.” (Documentary, 2016. Jon Betz, Taggart Siegel; 94 min.; USA.) “Seed” tells a harrowing story of how 94 percent of vegetable seed varieties have disappeared in the 20th century. But the film also paints a heartening and expansive picture with regard to seed-saving efforts around the globe, including indigenous seed keepers who fight a David-and-Goliath battle to defend the future of our food. Compelling, timely, and urgent with extraordinary graphics, and enough gourmet touches to interest foodies. Sunday, Nov. 6, 2 p.m. (with “Aria for a Cow”).
• “Tanna.” (Drama, 2015. Martin Butler, Bentley Dean; 105 min.; Australia.) Based on a true story from the recent past of some of the last of the world's tribal societies, this film - Australia's entry to the Academy Awards - is an exotic echo of “Romeo and Juliet,” tense with intertribal strife. The acting by members of the tribe themselves is magnetic and their passion to tell their story lies at the heart of the film's success. Friday, Nov. 4, 6:30 p.m. and Tuesday, Nov. 8, 6:30 p.m.
• “Territory.” (Short documentary, 2015. Eleanor Mortimer; 17 min.; Gibraltar.) The rock of Gibraltar is shared between two primate species: people and monkeys. However, in recent years, some packs of monkeys have been straying from their traditional roaming areas in the upper rock to venture into town. They use the old city walls to come down early in the morning to play in the trees and prey on tourists for food, delighting in causing havoc at every opportunity. How will the humans respond? Sunday, Nov. 6, 8:30 p.m. (with “Salero”) and Saturday, Nov. 12, 6:30 p.m. (with “Sand Storm”).
• “Tower.” (Documentary, 2016. Keith Maitland; 96 min.; USA.) On Aug. 1, 1966, a sniper opened fire from the top floor of the University of Texas Tower, holding the campus hostage for 96 minutes. When it was finally over, a shaken nation was left trying to understand. This gripping reconstruction combines archival footage with rotoscopic animation in a dynamic, never-before-seen way. “Tower” reveals the untold stories of the witnesses, heroes, and survivors of America's first mass school shooting, when the worst in one man brought out the best in so many others. Produced by Meredith Vieira. (Sunday, Nov. 6, 6:30 p.m.)
• “Tyrus.” (Documentary, 2015. Pamela Tom; 78 min.; USA.) “Tyrus” is a surprising portrait of the life of Chinese-American artist Tyrus Wong and documents his breathtaking scope of work across multiple artistic mediums as well as his personal and professional journey navigating racial bigotry to become a celebrated modernist painter, Hollywood sketch artist, and Disney animation legend for his groundbreaking work on the classic film “Bambi” and many other Hollywood films, establishing their signature visual styles. At 106 years old, Wong is one of the oldest living American artists. Friday, Nov. 4, 8:30 p.m. (with “Robot Artists”).