Lexi Cinema London

Mon 6 Feb, 20:30, a Tipping Point Film Fund presentation, followed by a panel discussion

Over the past 20 years we have seen a growing realization that the current model for society and culture is unsustainable. We have been living beyond our means…

Future of Hope is a documentary which follows individuals striving to change the world of consumerism, credit and debt that the Icelandic economy was built upon. Focusing on sustainable developments in farming, commerce, innovation, and energy, we are taken on a journey of struggle, determination and most importantly… hope. From the midnight sun to dark winters lit only by the snow, from geysers to volcanoes, this movie truly explores the magnificent country of Iceland. Future of Hope explains the country’s past, explores its present, and predicts a progressive future for a new and sustainable Iceland.

Tipping Point’s post-film discussion will explore the various themes in the film, including ways to turn the financial crisis into opportunities and how to extend equitable opportunities on a global scale.

The panel will comprise:

Mon 17 Oct, 20:15 + live director Q&A in partnership with The Tipping Point Film Fund

“A rare grass-roots view into one of the most important economic developments of the age.”   The Times

Ever since China announced its ‘Go Global’ policy in 1999,  encourageing domestic entrepreneurs to pursue opportunities abroad, huge amounts of capital have flowed into developing regions around the world.  One of the biggest destinations of this investment has been Africa where billions of dollars have gone into mining, manufacturing and agriculture. Now over a million Chinese people live across the continent.

This award-winning documentary charts one of the most intriguing examples of such developing interpendence, that of Zambia and China. Following three characters - a Zambian trade minister, a Chinese entrepreneur, and a manager of a Chinese multinational – the expanding footprint of a rising global power is tracked.  As business booms the film asks if Africa has merely exchanged one coloniser for the another.

When China Met Africa has been very popular at documentary festivals and director Nick Francis will be with us afterwards to discuss the many issues raised by the film.  To find out more visit the film’s website.  Another source of information is the production company, Speak-it.

Mon 19 Sept, 20:00, followed by a Tipping Point-led Q&A with director Mohamed Al-Daradji

Truth is stranger than fiction, as seen in this personal journey into war-torn Iraq.  Exiled Iraqi director Mohamed Al-Daradji returned to Baghdad in 2004 with the idea of shooting a feature film in the midst of war and violence. Undeterred by the volatile situation and very real dangers, Mohamed visits his Baghdad home that he fled years previously. He realises the Iraq of his memories is long gone as he witnesses the effects of 35 years of dictatorship, 3 wars and the toll of occupation.  Finding the once-vibrant streets filled with unemployment, poverty and madness, he strives to make his film as planned. He is challenged by unimaginable risk and reverses as his camera reveals, instead, a world unravelling around him. As Mohamed rediscovers his homeland we see through his eyes the real Iraqi people and their spirit to survive.

The powerful title refers to the fact that, in Arabic, there is only one letter’s difference among the words war, love, god and madness.

+ POST-FILM Q&A WITH DIRECTOR EMILY JAMES

Emily James spent over a year embedded in activist groups such as Climate Camp and Plane Stupid to document their clandestine activities. With unprecedented access, Just Do It takes you on an astonishing journey behind the scenes of a community of people who refuse to sit back and allow the destruction of their world.

Torpedoing the tired cliches of the environmental movement, Just Do It introduces you to a powerful cast of mischievous and inspiring characters who put their bodies in the way; they super-glue themselves to bank trading floors, blockade factories and attack coal power stations en-masse, despite the very real threat of arrest. Their adventures will entertain, illuminate and inspire.

Mon, Mar 28th, 19:45,followed by a panel discussion hosted by The Tipping Point Film Fund; and Thurs, Mar 31st, 18:30

“This film is as gripping as any thriller. Aided by some fascinating interviews, Ferguson lays out an awful story.” Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

The awful story referred to above is that of the factors which brought about the 2008 global financial collapse.  After his Oscar-nominated film  No End in Sight: The American Occupation of Iraq, director Charles Ferguson has been nominated again for Inside Job, a crime film in which the villains of the piece get away with the crime.  Through exhaustive research, and with a host of interviewees including financial insiders, politicians, journalists, academics  - and even the Wall Street Madam who provided the call girls – the film traces the rise of a rogue industry which has corrupted politics, regulation, and academia.  And he then, chillingly, leaves us with the knowledge that the authors of this disaster remain, unchallenged and uncensured, in control today.  This is no Michael Moore showboating documentary but it is just as committed to exposing injustice, and just as effective.

STOP PRESS:  Oscar award-winning Best Feature Documentary

Related articles

• Inside Job: how bankers caused the financial crisis (guardian.co.uk)
• Inside Job: filming the financial crash (independent.co.uk)

Mon, Feb 28th at 20:00, followed by panel discussion hosted by The Tipping Point Film Fund

With so much wealth in the world, how can there be such poverty?  This is the question this film asks, and the answers it comes up with will shock you.  And yet it also suggests that the remedies are in our hands, and the discussion afterwards will invite participation in the 10 point Call to Action campaign.

The End of Poverty? is a daring, thought-provoking and very timely documentary by award-winning filmmaker, Philippe Diaz, revealing that poverty is not an accident. It began with military conquest, slavery and colonisation that resulted in the seizure of land, minerals and forced labour. Today, global poverty has reached new levels because of unfair debt, trade and tax policies — in other words, wealthy countries exploiting the weaknesses of poor, developing countries.

The film has been selected for over 25 international film festivals, including the Critics Week at Cannes. Directed by Philippe Diaz, produced by Cinema Libre Studio with the Robert Schalkenbach Foundation, 104 mins, in English, Spanish, French with English Subtitles.

Monday 29 November (1930) – Book Tickets Now…

Jeremy Hardy versus the Israeli Army plus panel discussion.

The Radio 4 comedian tags along with Palestinian film-maker Leila Sansour as she travels to Israel and the Occupied Territories to team up with members of the International Solidarity Movement (or ISM), as they engage in non-violent direct action to challenge the occupation.

Christmas is almost upon us and the Holy Town of Bethlehem is anything but still. For almost five years now the Israeli Army has been building an enormous concrete wall around and through the city, carving up neighbourhoods and cutting off local Palestinians from generations-owned land and from food and medical supplies. Leila Sansour has been documenting the expansion of the wall and the impact on Bethlehem’s citizens for her new film The Road to Bethlehem, now in final stages of editing.

To highlight the emergency facing Bethlehem’s community this Christmas, Tipping Point Film Fund will be showing Leila’s first feature documentary film – also shot in Bethlehem – Jeremy Hardy versus the Israeli Army, plus a short preview clip of The Road to Bethlehem.

The event, which takes place at 7.30pm on 29 November, will be followed by a panel discussion, asking the question:  As we approach Christmas, and the Israeli ‘separation wall’ continues unabated to encircle the town, what future is there for Bethlehem? The panel, chaired by TPFF, will include Maxim Sansour, brother of the director Leila Sansour. Maxim is a character in her new film, The Road to Bethlehem, supported by TPFF and released next year.