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‘The most ordinary things became kind of extraordinary.’
In the most widespread power outage in the history of North America, the Northeast blackout of 2003 left some 50 million people without power over two days. Combining several distinct animation styles, this short documentary chronicles the eerie, otherworldly and exuberant stories of those who experienced the blackout while living in Toronto, hinting that, if society were to collapse, at the very least there might be live music and a few days’ worth of free beer.
Director: Sharron Mirsky
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Food and drink
The passage of time is a peculiar thing in a 24-hour diner
13 minutes
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Anthropology
For an Amazonian female shaman, ayahuasca ceremonies are a rite and a business
30 minutes
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Gender
A filmmaker responds to Lars von Trier’s call for a new muse with a unique application
16 minutes
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Computing and artificial intelligence
Why large language models are mysterious – even to their creators
8 minutes
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Sports and games
Havana’s streets become racetracks in this exhilarating portrait of children at play
5 minutes
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Spirituality
Through rituals of prayer, a monk cultivates a quietly radical concept of freedom
4 minutes
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Fairness and equality
‘To my old master’ – a freed slave answers the request to return to his old plantation
7 minutes
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Design and fashion
A ceramicist puts her own bawdy spin on the folk language of pottery
14 minutes
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Animals and humans
Villagers struggle to keep their beloved, endangered ape population afloat
19 minutes