A lot of films (brought to you by netflix)

I can't post separately on each film anymore - too many thanks to netflix. So here's my viewing of the week previous:

Chuck Close: A Portait in Progress
Photographic realist Chuck Close, the creator of groundbreaking portraits, gets the up-close-and-personal treatment in this documentary. Close's artistic vision and method are discussed, as well as his "close call" recovery from a paralytic spinal blood clot that almost ended his career. Avant-garde composer Philip Glass provides the soundtrack.

Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures
Stanley Kubrick's frequent collaborator and brother-in-law, Jan Harlan, offers a fascinating inside look at the genius behind such films as 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket and Dr. Strangelove. Narrated by Tom Cruise, the documentary features interviews with family members as well as colleagues, including Jack Nicholson, Nicole Kidman, Malcolm McDowell, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and more.

What Remains: The Life and Work of Sally Mann
At home at her Virginia farm, photographer Sally Mann reflects on the controversy surrounding her earlier collections while forging ahead with new work in this intimate portrait of an artist. Also offering insights into the photographer's career are Mann's husband and her now-grown offspring Emmett, Virginia and Jessie, whom Mann famously photographed nude when they were young children in her career-making collection Immediate Family.

War Feels Like War: POV
This film documents the lives of reporters and photographers who circumvent military media control to get access to the real Iraq War. As invading armies sweep into the country, several journalists in Kuwait decide to travel in their wake, risking their lives to discover the true impact of war on civilians. Their frustration, fear and horror are recorded along the way, as are the difficulties they experience returning to normal life back home.

Film School: Season 1:
Meet the Spielbergs and Fellinis of tomorrow in this innovative new documentary series that follows a group of students enrolled in New York University's renowned graduate film program. The show zeroes in on the efforts of four up-and-comers from diverse backgrounds as they labor to craft their first masterpieces. Find out which of these budding amateurs can't hack it -- and who's on their way to cinematic success.

These were all great. And all about process, artistic and otherwise. I'm certainly on a creativity kick these days (and most days). How do we nurture that? What made these people so special, as to want to create and be curious in non-traditional ways in difficult times?