Peter Watkins
Biography: Peter Watkins (born 29 October 1935) is an English film and television director. He was born in Norbiton, Surrey, lived in Sweden, Canada and Lithuania for many years, and now lives in France. He is one of the pioneers of docudrama. His movies, pacifist and radical, strongly review the limit of classic documentary and movies. He mainly concentrates his works and ideas around the mass media and our relation/participation to a movie or television documentary. Nearly all of Watkins' films have used a combination of dramatic and documentary elements to dissect historical occurrences or possible near future events. The first of these, Culloden, portrayed the Jacobite uprising of 1745 in a documentary style, as if television reporters were interviewing the participants and accompanying them into battle; a similar device was used in his biographical film Edvard Munch. La Commune (Paris, 1871) reenacts the Paris Commune days using a large cast of French non-actors. In 2004 he also wrote a book, Media Crisis, an engaged essay about the media crisis, the monoform and, foremost, the lack of debate around the construction of new forms of audiovisual media. Description above from the Wikipedia article Peter Watkins, licensed under CC-BY-SA,full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Place of Birth: Not available
Birthday: October 29, 1935
Deathday: N/A
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Known For
The Universal Clock: The Resistance of Peter Watkins
2001-09-07
The Universal Clock: The Resistance of Peter Watkins
Overview: This feature documentary is a portrait of Peter Watkins, an Oscar®-winning British filmmaker who, for the past 4 decades, has proved that films can be made without compromise. With the proliferation of TV channels, documentaries are enjoying an unprecedented boom fuelled by audiences seeking an alternative to infotainment. But now documentary filmmaking, too, finds itself constrained by the imperatives of television. However, there is a rebel resisting this uniformity of the spirit. Pre-eminent among today's documentary filmmakers concerned about this mind-numbing standardization, Peter Watkins has never strayed from either his principles or the cause.
Genres: Documentary History
Original Language: en
Release Date: 2001-09-07
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The Journey
1987-02-24
The Journey
Overview: Peter Watkins' global look at the impact of military use of nuclear technology and people's perception of it, as well as a meditation on the inherent bias of the media, and documentaries themselves.
Genres: Documentary
Original Language: sv
Release Date: 1987-02-24
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Edvard Munch
1974-11-12
Edvard Munch
Overview: Edvard Munch's childhood is overshadowed by death: he suffers the loss of his sister and mother, while enduring serious illness himself, almost dying. At university, Munch discovers his talent as a painter. As he immerses himself in the art world, he becomes part of a cultural revolution lead by the likes of nihilist Hans Jæger.
Genres: TV Movie History Drama
Original Language: no
Release Date: 1974-11-12
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Punishment Park
1971-10-01
Punishment Park
Overview: In this fictional documentary, U.S. prisons are at capacity, and President Nixon declares a state of emergency. All new prisoners, most of whom are connected to the antiwar movement, are now given the choice of jail time or spending three days in Punishment Park, where they will be hunted for sport by federal authorities. The prisoners invariably choose the latter option, but learn that, between the desert heat and the brutal police officers, their chances of survival are slim.
Genres: Drama Thriller
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1971-10-01
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The War Game
1966-04-13
The War Game
Overview: A docudrama depicting a hypothetical nuclear attack on Britain. After backing the film's development, the BBC refused to air it, publicly stating "the effect of the film has been judged by the BBC to be too horrifying for the medium of broadcasting." It debuted in theaters in 1966 and went on to great acclaim, but remained unseen on British television until 1985.
Genres: War TV Movie
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1966-04-13
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The Freethinker
1994-09-03
The Freethinker
Overview: The film portrays the Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter August Strindberg's life 1849-1912. Through his extensive correspondence and literary production, from the supposed first work, the drama "The Free Thinker" (1869), to the posthumously published "The Occult Diary" (published 1977 ). But also his three wives, Siri von Essen, Frida Uhl and Harriet Bosse, and the children Karin, Greta and Hans are given space in the film. The unpublished first drama "The Free Thinker", depicts a young man forced to break with family and tradition to follow his conscience and ideals, becomes a prophecy about the author's own life.
Genres: History
Original Language: sv
Release Date: 1994-09-03
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The Diary of an Unknown Soldier
1959-01-02
The Diary of an Unknown Soldier
Overview: A short story narrated by an unknown British soldier who reveals his hopes, fears, and disillusionment while heading into battle against the German army.
Genres: Documentary Drama War
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1959-01-02
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Culloden
1964-12-15
Culloden
Overview: Culloden, Scottish Highlands, April 16th, 1746. It was one of the most mishandled and brutal battles ever fought in Great Britain. Its aftermath was tragic. The men responsible for such a disaster must be exposed. The men, women and children who suffered because of it must be remembered.
Genres: TV Movie War History Drama
Original Language: en
Release Date: 1964-12-15
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