our films
BETTY THEY SAY I”M DIFFERENT: An intimate portrayal of Betty Mabry Davis of one of the most mysterious and revolutionary cult figures in popular music. Often labelled ‘The Godmother Of Funk”, her trailblazing life story addresses issues of race, gender, fame, and the role of liberated women in American society.
World Premier: IDFA & New York Film Festival Broadcast: BBC, ARTE & AMAZON
Press: “Betty Davis was a raw funk pioneer, with this documentary her decades of silence are over…” The New York Times
“A beautiful impressionistic meditation on Betty Davis’s career.” The New Yorker
Directed Written & Filmed by Phil Cox
Produced by Giovanna Stopponi, Damon Smith, Laurent Mini.
Executive Producers: Karim Samai & Catherine Bailey
Editor: Esteban Uyarra
Graphic animations & VFX: Philip K Good.
KHARTOUM: Five lives, one city, the fate of a nation. A civil servant, a tea lady, a resistance committee volunteer and two street boys. Five stories from Sudan weave together in search of freedom through animated dreams, street revolutions and a war from the metropolis of Khartoum to escape in East Africa.
World Premiere: Sundance Film Festival & Berlinale
Press: “A kaleidoscopic document of identity, survival and hope…unique world cinema ” The Hollywood Reporter
“One of the most painful, moving, visually stunning and important documentaries to exist in this moment.” POV
Directed by Rawia AlHag, Snoopy Ibrahim, Anas Saeed, Timeea Ahmed & Phil Cox.
Produced by Giovanna Stopponi. Producer: Talal Afifi. Co-producers: Frank Albers & Trevor Snap. Executive producers: Tom Rhodes, Annie Sundberg, Judy Kibinge, Susan Mbogo, Bryn Mooser, Justin Lacob, Laura Choi Raycroft. Associate Producer: Yousef Jubeh. Film Editor: Yousef Jubeh. Animation & VFX: Philip K Good. Sound & Original Music: James Preston. Written & created by Phil Cox.
Produced with Sudan Film Factory, BBC Storyville, XTR, Ayin Media & Gisa Productions
Awards: Berlinale Film Peace Award, Milan Audience Award, Geneva FIFDH Prix Gilda Vieira de Mello, Amnesty Int Special Mention Berlinale 75. Hot Docs Bill Nemtin Award.
THE BENGALI DETECTIVE: The secrets of Kolkata’s citizens are revealed by charismatic, dance obsessed, intrepid detective Rajesh Ji. Mixing the suspense and intrigue of his investigations with dance and songs, this originally styled documentary provides an entertaining and poignant look into the realities of modern India.
World Premiere: Sundance Film Festival & Berlinale Broadcast: HBO ARTE
Press: “This portrait of a working cop with dreams is an absolute delight and a vivid look at crime-fighting in a big city.” Screen International
“It’s no small thing that The Bengali Detective has more to say about true love than most romantic films ever will achieve.” Hollywood Reporter
Directed & Written by Phil Cox
Produced by Giovanna Stopponi, Himesh Kar & Annie Sundberg
Associate Director: Sounak Chakravorty
Cinematographer: Lisa Cazzato Vierya
Editors: Taimur Khan & Tom Hemmings
Executive Producers: Thomas Brunner, Angus Ainsley, Gernot Schaffler, Jon Thompson, Karol Martesko Fenster
THE SALON: The story of a unique beauty salon in Khartoum that hides a secret; it doubles as an underground space for women in danger. Run by the charismatic Abeer who herself fled domestic abuse, the salon is a space where women who are ‘on the run’ arrive from across Sudan seeking advice, sanctuary and pathways. It also does fabulous hair and nails.
World Premiere: Cairo Film Festival Broadcast: ARTE
Directed by Rafa Renas
Producers: Giovanna Stopponi & Phil Cox
Cinematographer: Ahmad Snoopy
Editor: Joe Jubeh
Sound designer: James Preston
THE AUCTION HOUSE: Two charismatic brothers come back together, after 40 years apart, to save their family business - the oldest auction house in India - as it fights for survival in the age of eBay and a changing Calcutta.
World Premiere: Open City London & Docs Leipzig. Broadcast: Al-Jazeera
Press: “Featuring enough juicy material to fuel a long running sitcom, its personal and ethnographic themes are told in an expertly entertaining fashion.” Hollywood Reporter
“The Auction House is intimate and funny…” IndieWire
Directed and Filmed by Ed Owles
Producer: Giovanna Stopponi
Assistant Director: Sounak Chakravorty
Editor: Emiliano Battista
Composer: Harry Lightfoot
Executive Producer: Phil Cox
WE ARE THE INDIANS / MBYA TIERRA EN ROJO: A cinematic window into life amongst Argentina’s Guarani Indians who are struggling to hold onto their traditions whilst being pulled into the ‘White World’.
World Premiere: Sheffield Doc Festival & BAFICI Broadcast: Channel 4
PRESS: “A beautifully made film, with rare pathos and humor.” THE INDEPENDENT
“Bold and poetic filmmaking laced with humor and characters that break stereotypical indigenous representations…” CINEMA LOVER
Awards: BAFICI Buenos Aires Award, MANAUS Film Festival Award, Contra El Silencio Award Mexico
Directed and Filmed by Phil Cox & Valeria Mapelman
Produced & Written by Phil Cox
Editor: Ben Stark
Executive Producer: Catherine Bailey
LOVE HOTEL: Pensioners, lawyers, married couples and teenagers are all customers at the Angel Love Hotel in Osaka Japan. With unprecedented access into one of the most private and anonymous spaces in Japanese society, this film follows the love hotel’s struggling manager and staff as the try to keep their hotel running, as well as revealing the intimate and private lives of the customers who visit.
World Premiere: Toronto Hot Docs Broadcast: BBC & NETFLIX
Press: “The explicitly sexual, wholly emotional and tantalizing Love Hotel….” INDIEWIRE
“Lifting the veil of moral and sexual conformism through the power of film…with echoes of works by Pasolini…” IL FATTO QUOTIDIANO
Directed, Written & Filmed by Phil Cox
Produced By Giovanna Stopponi & Sophie Parrault
Executive Producers: Karol Martesko-Fenster Gernot Schaffler Thomas Brunner
Executive Producers: Emmanuel Priou Yves Darondeau Christoph Lioud
Editor: Esteban Uyarra Sound: Dennis Wheatley Music: Florencia Di Concilio
THE SPIDER-MAN OF SUDAN: In Sudan's capital, Khartoum, an anonymous protester dressed as Spider-Man joins the hundreds of thousands of protesters desperate to protect their fragile civilian government after the military coup in October 2021. However, its the double life as a teacher with some of the poorest children in Khartoum that reveals ‘Spidey’ to be a positive focus for the resistance, helping a new generation to know their worth and take pride in their country's rich heritage.
World Premiere: Guardian Documentaries Broadcast: ARTE
Press: “A breathtaking work of filmmaking and journalistic courage” The New York Times.
Awards: Hinzpeter Award & Prix Bayeux Calvados
A Film by Phil Cox and Rafa Renas
Directed, Written & Filmed by Phil Cox
Produced by Giovanna Stopponi
Edited by Esteban Uyarra
Composer James Preston
Executive Producers Lindsey Poulton & Jess Gormley
Produced with Guardian Documentaries & The Pulitzer Center.
THE CLEANER / EL LIMPIADOR: Heavy metal loving Donovan Tavera, a ‘forensic cleaner’ who supports his family by cleaning up the murdered and the dead across Mexico City. This innovative feature mixing verite documentary and surreal animations, centers around the extraordinary Mexican citizen Donovan, and his struggle to find happiness despite his bloody work. A surreal and ultimately inspiring story that gives a personal insight in the soaring ‘violencia’ and the balancing act between life and death in modern Mexico.
World Premiere: DOCS MX Broadcast FRANCE 2, TV UNAM
Press: “A powerful and surreal story, which ultimately is inspiring” La Jornada
A Taxi Brousse (France) & Native Voice Films (UK) Production
Directed, Written & Filmed by Phil Cox
Produced by Laurent Mini & Giovanna Stopponi
Executive Producer Karim Samai & Associate Producer Joseba Calvo
Edited by Marine Benveniste
Animations by Rich Arnauda & Karol Arnauda
Composer Sylvain Moreau
Since 2004, alongside our cinema features, the Natives have also produced over thirty reportage documentaries and audio visual investigative journalism works principally from Southern Europe, Latin America and Central and East Africa. We enjoy winning awards but value more the relationships we have made with the people whose stories we have been granted to tell. Recently, we have begun working in the scripted narrative area so watch this space!
