6 Films We Saw Online At Sheffield Doc/Fest 2020

A look back at some of the films we saw at the UK’s biggest documentary film fest.

September 2020

The Sheffield Doc/Fest has been running since 1994 and has become the UK’s biggest documentary film festival and the third biggest in the world. I’d never been, let alone heard of it (quite shamefully) until I was given a pass for the event as a Christmas present by my significant other. So, earlier this year I was set to travel to Sheffield for a long weekend of documentary film goodness.

Of course, as with most events this summer, Doc/Fest was forced to move online and through their Selects platform, the festival screened 115 films from 50 different countries over several different film strands. I might not have been able to attend my first Sheffield Doc/Fest in person but I still got to see some fantastic documentary films - here are 6 of my favourites.

If you’d like to know more about Sheffield Doc/Fest, visit them at https://sheffdocfest.com/

Welcome To Chechnya

In the Russian republic of Chechnya, it’s illegal to be gay and according to the head of the republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, there are no gay people in Chechnya. This is as much a denial of the existence of homosexuals as it is a denial of the state’s horrific human rights violations. If you’re discovered to be homosexual in Chechnya you’ll be hunted down, imprisoned, tortured and probably put to death - either by the government or your own family.

The wryly titled “Welcome To Chechnya” follows a group of activists working to protect Chechnya’s gay community, placing fugitives in safe houses before helping them secure visas and escape to safer countries. It’s a shocking film that tells heartbreaking, yet uplifting stories interspersed with heavy tragedy and horrifying imagery captured on CCTV cameras and smuggled out of the country.

Until recently, those involved had been reluctant to tell their stories or reveal their identities but “Welcome To Chechnya” marks a step forward in the movement against a violent and corrupt republic.

The film is currently available on BBC iPlayer as part of BBC Four’s curated “Storyville” strand. Watch it here.

Breaking Barriers - The Casteless Collective

India’s caste system has been around for 3000 years and is a method for sorting Hindu society into hierarchy’s of work, duty and status. The upper echelons get the best jobs and the financial stability that comes with it, whereas lower-ranking citizens must do menial jobs and live in slums. Whilst the system has lost some of its influence today, it still poisons the roots of society, acting as a basis for discrimination, prejudice and sometimes even justification for murder.

“The Casteless Collective” are a protest band from Chennai, South India, campaigning for the rights of the people: for the underprivileged caste communities, for the equality of woman and the LGBTQ+ community. With a mixture of styles, including rap and rock, and using traditional instruments straight from the slums, The Castless Collective delivers a strong message in a bid to rally the people against outdated ideas.

The film features interviews with members of the band, exploring their lives, the formation of the band and the state of affairs in India both historically and currently. It’s a real eye-opener into the inner workings of one the most technologically savvy, yet deprived nations on Earth and the people who are trying to change it one step at a time.

If you’re interested in the music, you can check out The Casteless Collective on streaming services or YouTube right here.

The Go-Go’s

“The Go-Go’s” are a trailblazing new wave punk band formed in the late 1970s, fronted by the enigmatic Belinda Carlisle. Notably, they’re the first all-female band to top the Billboard album charts whilst writing all their own songs and playing their own instruments.

The film documents the band from their inception in the Los Angeles punk scene through to their ultimate demise in the mid-80s and subsequent reformations through the 90s and to the present day. Interviews with band members, managers and friends and loads of live footage, provides a fascinating insight into the mindset of being a “Go-Go”, through their ups and downs of massive success, drug addiction and internal fall-outs.

It’s a fairly familiar story but when seen through the lens of women making fun and relatable music in a mostly male-dominated scene, it takes on a new life and new energy. “The Go-Go’s” are an inspiration to young women and musicians but their story should also be seen as a warning of the dangers of excess and fame.

The film is currently available to stream on Showtime right here, but you can also check out the music of The Go-Go’s on your favourite streaming platform or YouTube here.

Keith Haring: Street Art Boy

New York City in the 1980s was a thriving hub for art, music and creativity where new and exciting ideas, sounds, imagery and of course drugs were abundant. Keith Haring’s arresting pop art grew out of this scene, emerging from the streets to international notoriety and fame. His images were bright, bold and daring using simple imagery to convey powerful ideas including freedom of sexuality, social activism and AIDS awareness.

“Keith Haring: Street Art Boy” takes a look at the colourful artist’s legacy, from his early years in a small Pennsylvanian town through his meteoric rise to fame and untimely death at the age of 31. Keith led a life of excess with regular partying, drinking and drug-taking but his artistic expression was prolific too, often taking the form of impromptu guerilla street art in the bustling NYC subways.

The film also tackles the devastating emergence of AIDS in the NYC gay community and how this affected Keith’s life before his own death from the disease. Street Art Boy is a fascinating yet tragic look at a one of a kind artist.

Keith Haring: Street Art Boy is currently available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Watch it here.

Flint

In April 2014, an executive decision was taken to switch the city of Flint’s water supply from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department’s supply to the Flint River. It was a change driven purely by business interests and over the next few years, citizens of Flint would begin to complain of significant health issues such as burning skin and full-on neurological problems. It would later be discovered that water from the river had corroded the city’s ageing system of lead pipes, leading to dangerously high levels of lead in the water supply.

Narrated by Alec Baldwin, “Flint” the documentary goes behind the scenes with the local effort to clean up Flint’s water supply, following the fight to get the government to believe the problem actually exists and to secure justice for its citizens. The film uncovers huge failings on a local and national government level with the town suffering exploitation by numerous parties, including one apparently there to support their cause.

This is a film full of anger and confusion at the indifference of politicians and businessmen to the plight of the everyday people. The story of Flint’s water is an unmitigated disaster that still hasn’t been resolved and many residents still rely on bottled water daily.

“Flint” has been picked up by Cargo Film & Releasing. You can find out more about the film here.

The Story of Plastic

We all know that plastic is a huge problem in the world today and single-use plastics, in particular, are the scourge of our fragile environment threatening ecosystems and wildlife on a global scale.

“The Story of Plastic” seeks to explain the origins of our plastic usage and why we use so much of it, where it comes from and why it’s so difficult to dispose of. It’s a shocking and affecting film that discovers a worrying business mode where plastic manufacture is driven by supply and not demand. We use so much plastic because it’s supplied for use, generating profits for large oil and gas companies.

The film also shows us how the Western world exploits developing countries, sending them our plastic waste to sort through and attempt to re-use or recycle. It’s an unsustainable and disastrous system and if you’re not already up in arms about it, you will be after watching The Story of Plastic

The Story of Plastic is currently available to stream on Amazon Prime. Watch it here.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this list and take the time to check out some of these films. Please do head over to the Sheffield Doc/Fest website to see what exciting programmes they have this autumn.

Seen any great documentaries lately? Let us know in the comments or on social media.