The collection opens with Len Lye's modernist abstraction ‘Tusalava’, which, heavily influenced by Maori and Aboriginal art, shares an interest in ‘primitive’ cultures that was typical of the Modernist movement of the time. It was almost refused a certificate by the puzzled British Board of Censors who suspected that the dancing abstract shapes might be about sex. Lye's own explanation was that it showed the beginnings of organic life. ‘Crossing the Great Sagrada’, is a lowbrow spoof on travel find out more...

Award wining documentary ‘Song of Ceylon’, is a lyrical beauty, but owes its enduring charm to its anachronistic notions of Empire and Englishness. ‘Bread’ is a slice of realism that looks at hunger in Britain. ‘Beyond This Open Road’ shows the urban populace journeying into the countryside during their weekends away from work; the imagery and utopian aesthetic are reminiscent of the work of Leni Riefenstahl. ‘Coal Face’ is an experiment in realism that focuses on the importance of coal mini find out more...

The man's a genius. Watch his films. That is an order. On this disc are: find out more...

The Castle of Otranto (1979); The Fall of the House of Usher (1980); Dimensions of Dialogue (1982); Down to the Cellar (1983); The Pendulum, The Pit and Hope (1983); Virile Games (1988); Another Kind of Love (1988); Meat Love (1988); Darkness-Light-Darkness (1989); Flora (1989); The Death of Stalinism in Bohemia (1990); Food (1992). find out more...