Best Video Documentaries About Revolutions, Uprisings, Strikes, etc ?

Submitted by klas batalo on July 7, 2018

I'd like to start compiling a good solid list of video documentaries about various revolutions, uprisings, strikes, other subjects primarily related to libertarian communism.

Feel free to help. I'm going to link dump for now.

AnythingForProximity

6 years 4 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by AnythingForProximity on July 8, 2018

Just to get this thread started, for the Spanish revolution, there is this:

Reportaje del movimiento revolucionario en Barcelona (1936) – in Spanish only; a documentary produced by the CNT Office for Information and Propaganda that contains invaluable footage showing what the very first days of the revolution looked like in Barcelona.

Aguiluchos de la FAI por las tierras de Aragón: Estampas de la revolución antifascista (1936; see also the highly incomplete part 2, part 3: La toma de Siétamo, and part 4: La batalla de Farlete) – in Spanish only; a series of official documentaries (produced by the CNT-affiliated Sindicato Único de Espectáculos Públicos) capturing the early days of the war. Parts 1 and 2 record the activities of the Durruti Column on the Aragon front in July and August 1936; part 3 focuses on the capture of the small Aragonese town of Siétamo in August 1936; part 4 is ostensibly about the battle of Farlete (October 1936), but the surviving version makes no mention of it, focusing instead on other military operations in which the Durruti Column was involved in September and October 1936.

Anarquía 1937: Un pueblo en armas / Fury over Spain (1937; also available in German and Italian) – commissioned by the CNT-affiliated Entertainment Industry Union of Barcelona for the purposes of international propaganda; mostly recycles footage from the previous two documentaries, but the Spanish voiceover (the original English one was apparently lost) was only recorded after the fall of Franco. See this thread for details.

Vivir la utopía / Living Utopia (1997) – contains interviews with people who lived through the revolution, as well as with some of its surviving leaders like Federica Montseny (note: this is not meant to be an endorsement of her views).

Mike Harman

6 years 4 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Mike Harman on July 7, 2018

There's a whole set of films from the anti-Narita airport protests/Sanrizuka uprising from a director who moved there for a decade. Peasants of the 2nd fortress is here https://www.dailymotion.com/video/xgdtt3 there are others focusing more on the Zengakuren. A torrent site with the initials kg has several of them.

klas batalo

6 years 4 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by klas batalo on July 8, 2018

http://www.christiebooks.com/Film%20Database/anarquismo/index.html

http://libcom.org/blog/angry-brigade-spectacular-rise-fall-britains-first-urban-guerilla-group-documentary-1301201

http://libcom.org/blog/kronstadt-short-film-24022012

http://libcom.org/blog/anti-fascist-action-–-fighting-talk-documentary-27022012

http://libcom.org/blog/british-miners-strike-198485-film-collection-29022012

http://libcom.org/blog/wobblies-1979-documentary-16032012

http://libcom.org/blog/living-utopia-documentary-16032012

http://libcom.org/blog/eyes-prize-documentary-18032012

http://libcom.org/blog/murder-fred-hampton-documentary-18032012

http://libcom.org/blog/anarchism-america-documentary-21032012

http://libcom.org/blog/quiet-mutiny-documentary-04042012

http://libcom.org/blog/canadian-postal-workers-wildcat-strike-1965-documentary-31072012

http://libcom.org/library/finally-got-news

http://libcom.org/library/antifa-chasseurs-de-skins

http://libcom.org/history/crisis-cooperatives-lessons-argentina’s-cartoneros

http://libcom.org/library/signed-sealed-delivered-1978-strike-against-mandatory-overtime-speedups-hazardous-workin

http://libcom.org/library/together-we-win-fight-organise-starbucks

http://libcom.org/library/levellers-true-levellers-diggers-1649

May 68
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ersgPFN0onQ

Concerning Violence

Harlan County USA

Many Straws Make a Nest: A Documentary about Proletarian Unrest in Delhi's Industrial Belt

Porto Marghera - the last firebrands

Street Politics 101 (2013)

Marx Reloaded (2011)

The Century of the Self - Adam Curtis
The Power of Nightmares - Also Curtis

The Take

Peasants Revolt 1381
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6pZTBxNTMc

VoiceOver: Riots Reframed [2011 UK riots documentary]

Negri
A Revolt That Never Ends

Working Slowly / Radio Alice

The Weather Underground (Documentary)

The Amsterdam Archives (2011) (spanish anarchists)

Live Nude Girls Unite! (2000)

The Potentiality of Storming Heaven

Battle of Trafalgar: The UK Poll Tax Riot (Documentary)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9X8vgdHw10

Emma Goldman: The anarchist guest

Battle of Cable Street
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AQDOjQGZuA

On the Threshold: Class Struggle in Delhi

La Commune

Libertarias

The Free Voice of Labor

Reds

Battle of Algiers

land and freedom

mate wan

Black Panthers and Young Patriots

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvNpVJGqu3U

http://libcom.org/forums/announcements/libcom-tv-here-02112011

https://libcom.org/library/working-class-cinema-video-guide

Reddebrek

6 years 4 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Reddebrek on July 8, 2018

There's two documentary films about the resistance to Pinochet, Battle for Chile which is in three parts by Patricia Guzman which documents the rise of Pinochet,

And Acta General de Chile by Miguel Littín, which was filmed secretly during the state of siege. I haven't seen clandestine in Chile but the book about how the film was made Clandestine in Chile is worth reading.
https://libcom.org/library/clandestine-chile-adventures-miguel-littín

AnythingForProximity

6 years 4 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by AnythingForProximity on July 8, 2018

klas batalo, I agree that The Battle of Algiers, Reds, Land and Freedom, Libertarias, and La Commune are all great movies, and you can learn a lot about the events in question from them, but surely they are not documentaries?

vicent

6 years 4 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by vicent on July 8, 2018

American Dream 1990 - Barbara Kopple documents the crushing of USA meat workers by capital, same director as the great Harlan County. You can find it on torrent.

Miner Shot Down 2014 - Follows the Lonmin miners strike and massacre of 2011; interesting though from a human rights perspective over class struggle.

Red Marriot's Machinists against the Machine - follows the wave of struggles of Dhaka garment workers, great stuff!

Method of Freedom

6 years 4 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Method of Freedom on July 9, 2018

No Gods No Masters A History of Anarchism a 3 part documentary

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZ-utvfgK8Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77GKgbUGJK0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6pysEKlg0Q

Reddebrek

6 years 3 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Reddebrek on July 31, 2018

R Totale

Has anyone actually watched 13th or either of the Lucasville films (Shadow of Lucasville or Lucasville: The Untold Story)? There's a fair few antifa films as well, like The Antifascists, Nästa Station Rönninge and so on.

I saw 13th, it was a slickly made documentary and very eye opening in just how vast the US prison and policing systems are and how many ways they have to target people in an almost routine manner, especially minorities.

Craftwork

6 years 3 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Craftwork on July 31, 2018

Labournet has films on struggles all over the world:

https://en.labournet.tv/

Mike Harman

6 years 3 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Mike Harman on August 1, 2018

Haven't watched it yet (except a couple of clips) but just came across this full length documentary on Marikana:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssPrxvgePsc

R Totale

6 years 3 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by R Totale on August 1, 2018

Oh, it's not had a proper release yet, but this documentary about the Scottish factory workers who defied Pinochet looks great, worth keeping an eye for when it comes out/hassling local independent cinemas to show it: https://twitter.com/naepasaran?lang=en