The film explains the context in which Indian classical music evolved, and illustrates the role of the great king Maharaja Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma. Legendary musicians, the likes of Dr M. Balamuralikrishna, Padma Bhushan, T. V. Gopalakrishnan, Prince of the Travancore Royal Family- Aswathi Thirunal Rama Varma, the direct descendant of the great king Maharaja Swathi Thirunal, Sanjay Subrahmanyan and a group of young and enthusiastic music students feature prominently in the film.
A 20 minute film debut of Stompin' Tom Connors and live footage from The Horseshoe Tavern Toronto, also a small interview possibly from his home accepting his gold record award for Bud The Spud album exceeding $100,000 in sales from Canadian Music Sales. Tom also discusses where Canadian music is heading, and songs about Canada and where it lacks. Tom talks about his life growing up, a very hard life he had. Autograph signing takes place after a concert possibly from the Perth Summer Festival.
In this documentary, Donald Harington defines the background of Stay More, the fictional Ozark village where Harington’s novels are based. Harington shares his childhood memories of the small town of Drakes Creek (the town that was the model for Stay More) and looked back on his uneasy relationships with his parents and the upsetting loss of his hearing at the age of 12. Likewise, Harington reflects the dubious delights of getting his initial novels into print, with their sales on no occasion matching the favorable notices, blending these stories with the humorous perceptions on the writer's life (particularly the writerly penchant for liquor, religion, and sex). What came of this is a bittersweet portrait of an inspired but haunted artist, a writer genuinely rooted in American folk traditions whose triumphs seemed always to be matched by deep disappointments, a novelist who not only blends comic relief into his tragedies but poignant 'tragic relief' into his comedies.
“Shadows and Illuminations” paints a portrait of Nyoman Kereta, a rural Balinese man in his late sixties who, by psychiatric standards, suffers from a psychotic-like illness. He experiences auditory and visual hallucinations that are a source of great distress, prevent him from tilling his rice fields, and isolate him from his family and fellow villagers. Through the lens of local Balinese standards, he is seen as haunted by spirit visitations that villagers interpret within the frame of their culture and religion.