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The short documentary Blaulicht (Blue Light) follows two paramedic teams in Switzerland, one in the country’s mountainous centre, the other in the city of Zurich. With a fly-on-the-wall style, the Swiss filmmakers Roman Hodel and Lena Mäder capture the first responders’ work as they aid those in need, in situations that range from a traffic accident to an at-home fatality. As the teams focus their attention on their patients, Hodel and Mäder focus their cameras solely on the paramedics. In doing so, the directors capture their emotions as they provide everything from wellness checks to life-saving care with a mix of expertise, compassion and composure – and attempt to find respite in the quiet moments in between.
Directors: Lena Mäder, Roman Hodel
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Consciousness and altered states
What do screens depicting serene natural scenes mean to those living in lock-up?
12 minutes
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Demography and migration
In California’s farmlands, immigrant workers share their stories of toil and hope
17 minutes
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Home
Life moves slowly in a Romanian mountain village, shaped by care and the seasons
13 minutes
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Family life
A mother and child bond in an unusual prison visitation space in this poignant portrait
11 minutes
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Illness and disease
Humanity eradicated smallpox 45 years ago. It’s a story worth remembering
25 minutes
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Gender
A catchy tune explains the world’s ‘isms’ – according to your mum doing the laundry
5 minutes
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Technology and the self
The commodified childhood – scenes from two sisters’ lives in the creator economy
14 minutes
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Food and drink
The passage of time is a peculiar thing in a 24-hour diner
14 minutes
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War and peace
A frontline soldier’s moving account of the fabled ‘Christmas truce’ of 1914
12 minutes