Maria Bethânia: Música é Perfume

The spiritual culture of Russia is reflected in the beauty of its churches and monasteries, in the paintings and frescoes that adorn them and - above all - in the sacred music that is sung in them.

The director, a passionate musical documentary filmmaker, became fascinated by the machines used in a factory that produces stamped metal boxes. The machines, with their sonority, rhythms, tunes and automated movements, become musicians and dancers in a show that drive the film to play its cinematic score. The soundtrack, composed with workshops sounds only, unfolds as a musical masterpiece performed by machines for iron and bolt dancers, all coming together in a majestic mechanic choreography. The man who conceived and created these « iron monsters » occupies a fragile place in this powerful, metallic world, which is at the same time incredibly beautiful and musical.

In BEATOCELLO's UMBRELLA, award-winning director Georges Gachot tells the story of Beat Richner&emdash;pediatric M.D. author, illustrator and concert cellist; from his coming-of-age in Switzerland, to his street performances as a young medical student in the persona of the clown Beatocello; to his founding of five children's hospitals in today's Cambodia. Revered as a national hero, Richner's Herculean efforts have saved the lives of millions of Cambodia's children over the past 20 years, some who have grown up to serve as doctors in his state-of- the-art pediatric hospitals. Now at 64 , Richner continues to practice medicine and travel the world concertizing and singing about his protective red umbrella, which has come to symbolize the health and hope he brought to a grateful nation. Unlike many of his contemporaries who held utopian world views, Beat Richner is one of the few who worked to made his vision a reality.

Where are you, João Gilberto? sets out in the footsteps of German writer Marc Fischer who obsessively searched for the legendary founding father of Bossa Nova and last great musical legend of our time, Brazilian musician João Gilberto, who has not been seen in public for decades. Fischer described his journey in a book, Hobalala, but committed suicide one week before it was published. By taking up Marc Fischer's quest, following his steps one by one, thanks to all the clues he left us, we pursue João Gilberto to understand the history, the very soul and essence of Bossa Nova. But who can tell whether we will meet him or not?