S8.E4 ∙ Spirit in Paradise: The Decision

A documentary that showcases an extraordinary place in the heart of Europe: The Stelvio Pass. Here, at 3,000 metres above sea-level in the middle of the Italian Alps, one finds an imposing natural treasure where the present meets the past and the visitor discovers a breath-taking landscape and mountain sports experience. Whereas the Stelvio alpine glacier is a big tourist attraction for summer skiing, the mountain road to the Pass, an engineering wonder built in 1825 by the Austrian Empire, hosts the most famous stage of the Giro d'Italia. But people once battled here not just for sporting reasons: One hundred years ago soldiers on those peaks experienced the so-called White War which took place on the highest and coldest battlefield of World War I. After one hundred years trenches, cans, bombs and weapons from that cruel war are still found in the snow by people like Mario Pasinetti, a hotel porter and former member of the Italian Alpine brigade, who collects war remains in his spare time. Through Mario's story the viewer meets the people that make the Stelvio a lively microcosm: Claudia, a female forest ranger; Gustav Thöni, a former world skiing champion; Pompa, an aficionado and pilot of vintage airplanes as well as inventor of Artic rescue tools which he tests personally on the glacier; and Lorenz, a shaman who lives at the foot of the Stelvio road. Through these people and other characters, along with the help of majestic mountain shoots (including helicams and wescam shoots), this documentary enables us to discover the unexpected power and magic of this alpine microcosm that has changed from a point of collision between hostile forces to a place of interchange and discovery, of encounters and leisure activities: a "crossroad of peace".

Little girls love dancing and dress ups, and therefore ballet is a perfect choice for them. Debra Bradnum, instructor of the Royal Academy of Dance, teaches her students how to dance ballet in easy way, through warm-ups, rehearsals, and a performance of selected solos from Sleeping Beauty. And she teaches them how and why it requires discipline and practice.

If you could change the world, would you? In this hour-long documentary activists, authors, healers, mystics, ecstatic dancers, educators and others share their visions of how we create a more peaceful experience on planet Earth. A message that we heard repeatedly as we spoke with these inspiring people was, 'Peace begins with me.' The powerful energy of peace is generated in the heart of the individual and radiated outward into the world. Others are drawn to this higher vibration and in this way, one soul at a time, we erase the habits of millennia and contribute to the spiritual evolution of humankind.

In 2001, Bancroft piloted an initiative program enabled to create subtle, exciting works of art through a system developed by Artistic Realization Technologies (A.R.T.). The system makes it possible for medically disabled and mentally fragile people access to painting, photography, music and sculpture. The documentary follows three students involved with the program behind closed doors at the Bancroft School at Voorhees Pediatric Facility.

The Bloodlines Video Diary Project is a one hour documentary co-directed by two 8th grade children. Ebony Graves, 13, and Dennis Midiri , 14, each filmed video diaries over one school year chronicling their lives in inner city Philadelphia. Dennis, who lives in the working class neighborhood of Port Richmond, lives with his mother and two sisters. He attends a disciplinary public school and is isolated from his classmates and peers due to emotional and learning differences. Ebony Graves attends a small Catholic School in North Philadelphia, and lives with her mother and grandmother. Each child creates intimate and powerful family narratives about their transition from 8th grade to high school.