A Midsummer Night's Dream

Jean-Christophe Averty, a French television director and video artist pioneeer, retraces here the life story of Musidora, known for her signature role in the adventure serial.

The Bee Gees preform in this special created for German TV. Also featured are Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger, and the Trinity, and Lil Lindfors.

Serge Gainsbourg: Some Other News from the Stars] Directed by Serge Gainsbourg, Jean-Christophe Averty, and more 1958-1989 This release provides a glimpse of Gainsbourg's professional life from the period spanning 1958 to two years before his death in 1991. Many of the contents overlap with the (now out-of-print?) De Gainsbourg à Gainsbarre release (the title translates as From Gainsbourg to Gainsbarre, a reference to the alter-ego developed on his 1981 record Mauvaises nouvelles des étoiles -- Bad News from the Stars -- referenced by the title of this DVD), but everything has now been cleaned up as much as was possible given the varying states of the film and video sources included here. The quality is good overall, image is quite consistent (often lovingly un-restored), sound is superb. The "I said, I want to fuck her" Whitney Houston clip has not been collected here. It can be found rather easily on the Web, albeit sans Dolby 5.1.

Lost for 50 years, these newly discovered concerts were filmed at the 1961 Antibes Jazz Festival in France and show Ray Charles in his prime period with the original Raeletts and his most legendary band (including David "Fathead" Newman and Hank Crawford). These first concerts he ever gave in Europe opened the door for Ray Charles to become one of the most revered international stars America has ever produced.

Although Gainsbourg and Birkin had appeared in a string of films since their magnetic collision in Pierre Grimblat’s Slogan, Melody was a bit of diversion from their collaborations since it’s a series of interwoven videos inspired by the Gainsbourgalbum. For '71 it’s a novel concept to bring visual life to an LP, but even more surprising are the short film’s amazing visuals that director Averty crafted using a wealth of video filters, overlays, camera movements and chroma key effects. Averty applies these in tandem with the increasing tone of Gainsbourg’s songs, which more or less chronicle an older man's affair with a young girl. Each song is comprised of steady, sometimes brooding poetic delivery, with refrains timed to the phrase repeats of each song, while Alan Parker’s buzzing guitar accompanies and wiggles around Gainsbourg’s resonant voice. The bass is fat and groovy, the drums easy but steady, and the periodic use of strings or rich vibrato makes this short a sultry little gem.

Michel is a young technician in the fledgling TV industry and is due for military service in two months at the time of the Algerian War. Juliette and Liliane are inseparable best friends, and aspiring actresses, who hang around outside the TV studio. Michel invites them in to watch, flirts with them both, and dates them separately and together. When Michel goes on a holiday to Corsica, just before he is drafted, the girls follow.

Alice sets off in pursuit of a mysterious white rabbit in a hurry. After a dizzying fall into a deep well, she discovers a strange world populated by beasts who behave like humans. She changes size, is invited to a wacky tea-time party and becomes a witness to a momentous trial conducted by the Queen of Hearts.

Based on Alfredy Jarrry's 1896 play about a greedy, overweight, selfish dude named Pere Ubu. The story follows Ubu on his journey to overthrow the current ruler and become King of Poland. Along the way he betrays many of his followers, taxes the civilians to an unreasonable degree and eventually slaughters everyone. Along his side, is the equally crude but somehow more likable Mere Ubu, who's like a foul mouthed Lady Macbeth.

In 1898, strange things happen in a castle not far from the small village of Werst in the Carpathian mountains of Transylvania. Twenty years earlier, the castle had been abandoned due to some nefarious dealings there but a shepherd sees smoke coming out of the chimney, which stirs up the village with whispers Chort (a demon) is now occupying the place. Count Franz de Télek, a visitor to the area, becomes intrigued by all this turmoil and decides to investigate. Made for French television and based on the 1892 Jules Verne novel of the same name.

Rendez-Vous a Melbourne is the official filmed record of the 1956 Olympic Games in Australia. At the time of its release, there was much controversy in the documentary-filmmaking world over the fact that the Aussies signed over exclusive distribution rights to a French firm, resulting in a boycott from other movie companies. None of this matters when the film is seen today: though not in the same league as Leni Reifenstahl's Olympiad, this 110-minute extravaganza is consistently entertaining. Fifteen cameras were utilized to lens every aspect of the event; it was then up to editors Jean Dudrumet and Monique Lacombe to burrow through miles and miles of film to cull the highlights seen herein. Portions of Rendez-Vous a Melbourne have since resurfaced in practically every Olympics documentary -- not to mention the many TV specials attending the now-biannual event.

Rejecting the union of her daughter Brigitte with a modest worker, Madame Magnin invents an adultery for the lover, then introduces Brigitte to a good-looking man working on the famous RTF entertainment show 36 Chandelles. The show ultimately seals the reunion of the two estranged young lovers. The story features a parade of music-hall stars from the era: Charles Trenet, Charles Aznavour, Georges Guétary, Juliette Gréco, Roger Pierre and Jean-Marc Thibault, Fernand Raynaud, Georges Ulmer and many more.

A French TV movie directed by Jean-Christophe Averty , broadcast on December 24, 1964 . The Old Testament set in Louisiana with an all black cast.

A documentary about surrealist artist Salvador Dali, narrated by Orson Welles.

Ella Fitzgerald's concert recorded 31 Aug 1963 at the Olympia (Paris, France), in a condensed version for TV.