This film is part of Rentals

Dust & Metal
Discover unfamiliar histories of Vietnam through Esther Johnson’s poetic documentary on the country’s love affair with the motorbike.
Director: Esther Johnson
Overview
Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the end of the American war in Vietnam, Dust & Metal (Cát bụi và Kim loại) combines stunning archive film, contemporary footage and an electronic soundtrack to highlight an unfamiliar history of Vietnam. Showcasing motorbikes at the very core of Vietnam's recent history, this unique film swoops and swoons to the sounds of engines and horns while paying homage to the country's remarkable cinematic history, creating an unparalleled symphony of Vietnamese life.
Through a unique partnership with the Vietnam Film Institute to digitise rare archive film, this Vietnamese-British production repositions difficult to access archive film alongside contemporary footage of Vietnam, and a score composed and performed by Vietnamese artist Xo Xinh. The work takes the form of a creative poetic documentary in the vein of director Esther Johnson’s debut feature film Asunder.
Related

Bogancloch Bogancloch
Documentary 2025 86 mins Director: Ben Rivers
The life and environment of a solitary man is gently observed in Ben Rivers' intimate, experimental documentary.

E.1027 - Eileen Gray and the House by the Sea E.1027 - Eileen Gray and the House by the Sea
Drama-documentary 2024 90 mins Director: Beatrice Minger
A love triangle of jealousy in the Parisian art scene of the 1930s is brought to life in a stylish docufiction about the iconic artist and architect.

One to One: John & Yoko One to One: John & Yoko
Documentary 2024 101 mins Director: Kevin Macdonald
Kevin Macdonald’s essential record of the former Beatle’s final full-length performance is a fascinating portrait of two artists in a state of flux.

A New Kind of Wilderness A New Kind of Wilderness
Documentary 2023 84 mins Director: Silje Evensmo Jacobsen
A tragedy shatters the idyllic world of a family living off-grid in the Norwegian wilderness.

Riefenstahl Riefenstahl
Documentary 2024 115 mins Director: Andreas Veiel
Captivating insight into the controversial filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, who became world-famous for her Nazi propaganda.

Blue Road: The Edna O'Brien Story Blue Road: The Edna O'Brien Story
Documentary 2025 100 mins Director: Sinéad O'Shea
A candid portrait of a literary sensation that’s as enchanting as O’Brien’s wonderful novels.

Ernest Cole: Lost and Found Ernest Cole: Lost and Found
Documentary 2024 107 mins Director: Raoul Peck
Raoul Peck’s sorrowful portrait of Ernest Cole, the first photographer to expose the horrors of apartheid to the world.

Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other
Documentary 2024 100 mins Director: Manon Ouimet and Jacob Perlmutter
A creative artist couple navigate love and ageing in this brave, fascinating documentary.

Blue Road: The Edna O'Brien Story Blue Road: The Edna O'Brien Story
Documentary 2025 100 mins Director: Sinéad O'Shea
A candid portrait of a literary sensation that’s as enchanting as O’Brien’s wonderful novels.

Riefenstahl Riefenstahl
Documentary 2024 115 mins Director: Andreas Veiel
Captivating insight into the controversial filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, who became world-famous for her Nazi propaganda.

One to One: John & Yoko One to One: John & Yoko
Documentary 2024 101 mins Director: Kevin Macdonald
Kevin Macdonald’s essential record of the former Beatle’s final full-length performance is a fascinating portrait of two artists in a state of flux.

Bogancloch Bogancloch
Documentary 2025 86 mins Director: Ben Rivers
The life and environment of a solitary man is gently observed in Ben Rivers' intimate, experimental documentary.

Bogancloch Bogancloch
Documentary 2025 86 mins Director: Ben Rivers
The life and environment of a solitary man is gently observed in Ben Rivers' intimate, experimental documentary.

When Autumn Falls When Autumn Falls
Drama 2024 104 mins Director: François Ozon
The ever-inventive François Ozon offers a bittersweet tale with a twist or two, about age, youth, the past and the art of breaking the rules.

Gholam Gholam
Drama 2017 95 mins Director: Mitra Tabrizian
An Iranian exile in London, who is haunted by his past, gets involved in the conflicts of a total stranger and has to see it through until the end, in this mesmerising slow-burn thriller.

When the Light Breaks When the Light Breaks
Drama 2024 77 mins Director: Rúnar Rúnarsson
A young woman is forced to reframe the future she’d hoped for, in Rúnar Rúnarsson’s quietly breathtaking elegy of love, loss and acceptance.

Words of War Words of War
Drama 2025 117 mins Director: James Strong
Maxine Peake leads an excellent cast in this true story of journalist Anna Politkovskaya’s fight to expose corruption and abuse in Putin’s Russia.

The Return The Return
Drama 2024 116 mins Director: Uberto Pasolini
Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche are superb in this moody and poignant adaptation of the final sections of Homer's Odyssey.