WArirang is a 2011 South Korean documentary film by Kim Ki-duk. The film addresses a personal crisis Kim went through, sparked by an incident during the filming of his previous film, Dream, where the lead actress nearly died by hanging, and by the departure of a couple of close colleagues, including the director Jang Hoon. The title comes from a Korean folk song with the same title. In a heavily line-broken text released about the film, Kim writes that "Through Arirang I understand human beings, thank the nature, and accept my life as it is now." Kim produced the film entirely on his own. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Prix un certain regard.
WBeyond This Place (2010) is a documentary film directed by Kaleo La Belle, screened at a number of film festivals. In it, La Belle reunites with his biological father Cloud Rock La Belle, a charismatic figure who was largely absent from his life. The film deals, in a personal and intimate way, with issues of parenting, issues of freedom versus responsibility, and with the aging of the 60's generation.
WBig Boys Gone Bananas!* is a 2011 documentary film, directed by Fredrik Gertten. The film is about how Gertten's film company was sued by Dole for the 2009 documentary film Bananas!*.
WBorn Rich is a 2003 documentary film about the experience of growing up in wealthy families. It was created by Jamie Johnson, an heir to the Johnson & Johnson fortune, and filmed primarily between 1999 and 2001. The film consists primarily of Johnson interviewing 10 other young heirs. These interviews are offset by Johnson's exploration of his own experience and family as he comes into a large inheritance on his 21st birthday. He seeks out how to be a productive person, avoiding the dysfunction that he sees affecting many of the very rich. The film explores the taboo the ultra rich have against talking about their wealth. Johnson believes this secrecy about wealth causes the wealthy to be dysfunctional, and exists because the discussion of their wealth challenges the notion that America is a meritocracy and their right to have their wealth.
WCaro diario is a 1993 Italian-French semi-autobiographical comedy film written, directed and co-produced by Nanni Moretti, who also stars as himself. The film is structured in three anthological episodes, presented as the chapters of Moretti's open diary, in which he describes his thoughts about various slice of life situations.
WA Complete History of My Sexual Failures is a 2008 British documentary film directed by Chris Waitt who also starred as the main character and composed some of the music. The film was part of the "World Cinema Documentary Competition" at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.
WDeath in Arizona is a 2014 autobiographical documentary film by Tin Dirdamal about his return to the empty home of a former lover.
WDemons and Wonders is a 1987 Brazilian autobiographical documentary film by and about Brazilian filmmaker, director, screenwriter, film and television actor and media personality José Mojica Marins. Marins is also known by his alter ego Zé do Caixão. In the film Marins focuses on himself in scenes recounting life and experiences in filmmaking, with much focus on Marins' many battles with Brazilian film censors.
WDiary is a 1983 Israeli experimental independent underground documentary art film directed by David Perlov, notable for being, together with its three follow-ups, פגישות עם נתן זך ,יומן מעודכן ,1990–1999 and תצלומי 2002–1952, the last based on his photography of fifty years, and one of the longest films ever made. It was released on DVD by Re:Voir Vidéo in 2006 and is considered by some to be the greatest and most important Israeli film ever made in its home country.
WDown There is a 78-minute 2006 Belgian-French English- and French-language independent documentary art film directed by Chantal Akerman.
WExile is a 2016 Cambodian-French documentary film edited, written, and directed by Rithy Panh which explores the effects of forced displacement. It was selected to screen in the Special Screenings section of the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.
WFamily Affair is a documentary film directed by Chico Colvard, exploring a history of abuse that had gone on inside his family, as a child. The movie was produced by Chico Colvard and Liz Garbus. It opened theatrically in Los Angeles on July 30, 2010 and opened in New York City on August 13, 2010 at the 14th Annual DocuWeeks. The film is a joint venture between OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network and Discovery Communications.
WFlawed is a 2010 short animated documentary film and website by Halifax filmmaker Andrea Dorfman about body image, combining stop-motion animation and hand-painted images. Flawed was produced in Halifax by Annette Clarke for the National Film Board of Canada.
WFortunate Son is an autobiographical feature documentary film by Tony Asimakopoulos, a Canadian film director of Greek origin. The film was released in 2011 and produceed by Mila Aung-Thwin, Daniel Cross and Bob Moore of the Montreal-based film production company, EyeSteelFilm. The film is in English and Greek, with subtitles in English and French. As Asimakopoulos' first documentary, the film has been called "A searing documentary about family" by Liz Braun of the Toronto Sun, as well as "[...] a story of what binds families together, and what it means to be loved" by Daniel Pratt of Exclaim!.
WH Story is a 2001 Japanese drama film by writer-director Nobuhiro Suwa. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. It is an autobiographical docudrama about an attempt to remake Alain Resnais' 1959 film Hiroshima Mon Amour.
WI Am is a 2010 American documentary film written, directed, and narrated by Tom Shadyac. The film asks the question: "What is wrong with the world, and what can we do about it?", and explores Shadyac's personal journey after a bicycle accident in 2007 which led him to the answers "the nature of humanity", "the world's ever-growing addiction to materialism", and "human connections" Shot with Shadyac and a team of four, the film contrasts sharply with the director's most notable comedic works.
WI Am Nancy is a 2011 American documentary that follows actress Heather Langenkamp as she explores her role as Nancy Thompson in the A Nightmare on Elm Street films, the fandom that surrounds the franchise, and why most of it focuses on Freddy Krueger, rather than Nancy.
WI Don't Hate Las Vegas Anymore is a 1994 documentary directed by Caveh Zahedi.
WIn the Bathtub of the World is a video diary directed by Caveh Zahedi. It covers a year in Zahedi's life. The film was released in 2001.
WJapanland: A Year in Search of Wa is a 2004 documentary television series and book by American documentary filmmaker and travel author Karin Muller, who spent a year in Japan searching for wa, the Japanese concept of harmony.
WKaty Perry: Part of Me is a 2012 American 3D autobiographical documentary concert film about Katy Perry. It was directed by Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz and released in the United States, Canada, the UK and Ireland on July 5, 2012.
WLiam is a 2018 first-person documentary film directed by Isidore Bethel. It follows the director's own story as he moves to France after his best friend Liam dies back in the United States. Through documentary, performance, and stop motion animation, a ghostly portrait emerges of Liam, prompting Isidore to question his relationships with his parents and his boyfriend in Paris. The film premiered at the Boston LGBT Film Festival and received the Paris LGBTQ+ Film Festival's Documentary Jury Prize in 2018. The francophone streaming service Tënk acquired the film in 2019 for streaming.
WLife Is But a Dream is a 2013 autobiographical television film, directed and executive produced by American singer Beyoncé Knowles. The film was released on February 16, 2013 on the HBO network, in conjunction with Parkwood Entertainment, Knowles' management company. The film uses a combination of professional camera footage, private videos from Knowles' laptop and from her May 2012 4-night revue at Revel Atlantic City. Upon its release, the documentary opened to mixed reviews from critics. It was nominated in the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Documentary category for the 45th Annual NAACP Image Awards.
WThe Little Deputy is a Canadian short documentary film, directed by Trevor Anderson and starring Luke Oswald, released in 2015.
WLittle Man is a 2005 American documentary film by Nicole Conn. The film was intended to document surrogate pregnancy but the baby was delivered 100 days early so the film documents experiences of a family dealing with an extremely premature birth involving 158 days in a NICU.
WMeet the Patels is a 2014 American romantic comedy documentary film directed by siblings Geeta V. Patel and Ravi V. Patel. The film explores the expectations surrounding marriage in the Patels' first-generation Indian immigrant family and in wider American society. It had its international premiere at Hot Docs in April 2014.
WMind Meld: Secrets Behind the Voyage of a Lifetime is a 2001 American documentary film in which actors William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy discuss the Star Trek science fiction franchise and its effects on their lives. Shatner and Nimoy portrayed the characters James T. Kirk and Spock respectively in the 1960s Star Trek television series, the 1970s animated television series, and their film sequels. They talk about differences they had with Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, and about the strained relationships between Shatner and some of the other cast members. It was in this film that Nimoy first publicly revealed that he had struggled with alcoholism while he was acting in the original television series. Shatner talks about the death of his third wife, Nerine Kidd, who accidentally drowned in a pool in 1999 after suffering from alcoholism.
WNema aviona za Zagreb is a 2012 Dutch film by Louis van Gasteren. The film is a retrospective of events in the director's life from 1964 to 1969, filmed by him in that period and reflected on from his vantage point over 40 years later at the age of 90. It is also Jan de Bont's first film credit as cinematographer since 1992's Basic Instinct.
WOur Curse is a 2013 Polish documentary film by Tomasz Śliwiński documenting the first six months in their life of his son Leo, who suffers from the rare genetic disorder called Ondine's curse. When Leo was born, a friend of Śliwiński's had suggested he document his experiences as a form of therapy. Śliwiński was in film school at the time; his wife Magda Hueckel is a professional photographer. Our Curse was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary at the 87th Academy Awards. The film was produced by Warszawska Szkoła Filmowa.
WThe Beaches of Agnès is a 2008 French documentary film directed by Agnès Varda. The film is an autobiographical essay where Varda revisits places from her past, reminisces about life and celebrates her 80th birthday on camera. Varda said it would most likely be her last film, but released the documentary Faces Places a decade later.
WPoétique du cerveau is a 66-minute 2015 French-German-Israeli French-, Hebrew-, and Italian-language independent underground experimental documentary art film directed by Nurith Aviv.
WPortrait Werner Herzog is an autobiographical short film by Werner Herzog made in 1986. Herzog tells stories about his life and career.
WReminiscencias is a 2010 Peruvian experimental documentary film written, produced, and directed by Juan Daniel Fernández Molero.
WRiding Solo to the Top of the World is a 2006 documentary film in English language directed by Gaurav Jani on the Chang pas of Ladakh, in India, about a journey of self-discovery.
WSretno dijete is a Croatian documentary film directed by Igor Mirković, and produced by Rajko Grlić, an Ohio University professor of film, in 2003. The film is a nostalgic autobiographical overview of the authors adolescence in SR Croatia in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the late 1970s and early 1980s which corresponded with the emergence of the Yugoslav punk rock and new wave scenes, both which the author affiliated to, thus turning this film into a rockumentary. The film features interviews and rare footage of some of the top former Yugoslav rock acts ever such as: Azra, Film and Haustor from the author's hometown Zagreb, Croatia where most of the story takes place; then members of Električni orgazam and Idoli whom the author visits in Belgrade, Serbia; as well as Pankrti and Buldožer from Ljubljana, Slovenia. Beside materials filmed around former Yugoslavia, the film also contains interviews with important former Yugoslav artists who currently live abroad. For example, Darko Rundek is interviewed in Paris, France, Mirko Ilić in New York City in the United States, and there are also scenes shot on locations in the Netherlands, Germany, Hungary and other countries. The film is named after a song by Prljavo kazalište from their first self-titled album.
WStan Lee's Mutants, Monsters & Marvels is a 2002 American documentary film produced by Creative Light Entertainment consisting of an interview of Marvel Comics publisher Stan Lee by film director Kevin Smith. The two talk about Lee's life, his marriage with Joan Lee, the 2002 Spider-Man film, and Spider-Man comics. Lee refers to Marvel Comics character J. Jonah Jameson as "the version so many people had of me." The interview was filmed in February 2002 in Santa Monica, California at a comic book store. The result was a nearly two-hour-long film. The documentary was included in a four-disc release of the 2002 Spider-Man film.
WStories We Tell is a 2012 Canadian documentary film written and directed by Sarah Polley and produced by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). The film explores her family's secrets—including one intimately related to Polley's own identity. Stories We Tell premiered August 29, 2012 at the 69th Venice International Film Festival, then played at the 39th Telluride Film Festival and the 37th Toronto International Film Festival. In 2015, it was added to the Toronto International Film Festival's list of the top 10 Canadian films of all time, at number 10. It was also named the 70th greatest film since 2000 in a 2016 critics' poll by BBC.
WA Tale of the Wind is a 1988 French film directed by Joris Ivens and Marceline Loridan. It is also known as A Wind Story. It stars Ivens as he travels in China and tries to capture winds on film, while he reflects on his life and career. The film blends real and fictional elements; it ranges from documentary footage to fantastical dream sequences and Peking opera. It was Ivens' last film.
WTalk To Me is a 2006 British documentary film directed by and starring Mark Craig. The film won 'Best Short Doc' upon its debut at the Boulder International Film Festival in 2006.
WTarnation is a 2003 American documentary film by Jonathan Caouette. The film was created by Caouette from over 20 years of hundreds of hours of old Super 8 footage, VHS videotape, photographs, and answering machine messages to tell the story of his life and his relationship with his mentally ill mother Renee.
WTender Fictions is a 1996 autobiographical documentary film directed by American experimental filmmaker Barbara Hammer. It is the second of a trilogy of documentary films that includes Nitrate Kisses and History Lessons. Together, the three films are sometimes known as the "History trilogy". Tender Fictions details Hammer's life and her attempts to "construct" a self. The film was nominated for a prize at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival.
WTraceroute is a 2016 Austrian/American documentary film directed by Johannes Grenzfurthner. The autobiographical documentary and road movie deals with the history, politics and impact of nerd culture. Grenzfurthner calls his film a "personal journey into the uncharted depths of nerd culture, a realm full of dangers, creatures and more or less precarious working conditions", an attempt to "chase the ghosts of nerddom's past, present and future." The film was co-produced by art group monochrom and Reisenbauer Film. It features music by Kasson Crooker, Hans Nieswandt, and many others.
WTrente tableaux is a 2011 autobiographical feature documentary by Quebec film director Paule Baillargeon, made during her two-year film residency with the National Film Board of Canada. It is an anthology film composed of 30 short portraits—or tableau vivant—of her 66 years of life to date, reflecting her experiences as a woman in Quebec's changing society.
WVoyage in Time is a 63-minute feature documentary that documents the travels in Italy of the director Andrei Tarkovsky with the script writer Tonino Guerra in preparation for the making of his film Nostalghia. In addition to the preparation of Nostalghia, their conversations cover a wide range of matters, filmmaking or not. Notably, Tarkovsky reveals his filmmaking philosophy and his admiration of films by, among others, Robert Bresson, Jean Vigo, Michelangelo Antonioni, Federico Fellini, and Ingmar Bergman.
WWhen I Walk is a 2013 autobiographical documentary film directed by Jason DaSilva. The film follows DaSilva during the seven years following his diagnosis of primary progressive multiple sclerosis. When I Walk premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, won Best Canadian Feature at the 2013 HotDocs Film Festival, and won an Emmy for the News & Documentary Emmy Award.