1. When Glaciers Go (When Glaciers Go)
A diminishing water supply is driving people from their land in a remote region of Nepal. The younger generation of the Gurung family adapts by commuting from their ancestral home, where subsistence depends on grazing goats and cows, to a village that has a commercial apple orchard, fed by irrigation. “We cannot give up cultivating our fields,” a elderly man explains. “The apple farm is not going to be able to feed us easily.” The older generation believes that water shortages stem from road building and bulldozing, upsetting the natural order, a young man explains. Both generations fly prayer flags, beseeching water.
2. Pablo Picasso: A Primitive Soul
(Pablo Picasso: A Primitive Soul)
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
3. Kunstkammer (Kunstkammer)
(Kunstkammer)
It has an average vote of 5 on TMDB.
4. The Life and Legacy of Dr. Susan La Flesche Picotte
This short documentary tells the story of the life and legacy of Dr. Susan La Flesche Picotte, an Omaha woman who became the first Native American physician.
5. Boome Satellites in Texas
Satellites in Texas is a feature documentary following musician Boome as he copes with his brothers sudden death. It follows his humble beginnings as he climbs the ladder of the music industry. Raised by a single immigrant mother Boome defies the odds and starts to scratch the surface of success. Faced by hard decisions to continue to pursue his dream, Boome takes us on the road.
It has an average vote of 10 on TMDB.
6. Fraňo Kráľ (Fraňo Kráľ)
(Fraňo Kráľ)
7. Koyaanisqatsi
Takes us to locations all around the US and shows us the heavy toll that modern technology is having on humans and the earth. The visual tone poem contains neither dialogue nor a vocalized narration: its tone is set by the juxtaposition of images and the exceptional music by Philip Glass.
It has an average vote of 7.9 on TMDB.
8. JFK: Seven Days That Made a President
'JFK: Seven Days That Made a President' investigates the seven key days in JFK's life that helped shape his character and have come to define him.
It has an average vote of 6 on TMDB.
9. The Way of the Shaman Drum (鼓韵关东)
During the Cultural Revolution in China in the late 20th century, ethnic Manchu people were persecuted and forced to give up such cultural traditions as the shaman dance . However, on Changbai Mountain in Northeast China, a farmer named Guan Yunde decided to start designing and building traditional Manchu shaman drums. At age 70, he is one of a minority of ethnic Manchu people in China's Jilin province, and one of the few people keeping the Manchu shamanic tradition alive.
It has an average vote of 9 on TMDB.
10. Drowning in Plastic
Liz Bonnin is setting out on a global mission to reveal the full scale of the world’s plastic problem – and explore ways in which this looming environmental disaster might be averted. As she chases plastic around the world, Liz is going to show us that this is a crisis far greater than we’d ever imagined…
It has an average vote of 7.3 on TMDB.
11. Ivo Livi dit Yves Montand (Ivo Livi dit Yves Montand)
(Ivo Livi dit Yves Montand)
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
12. Rigs of Nigg
It is the early 70s, and oil has been discovered in the North Sea. The UK needs rigs and needs them fast. Their search for a location to build the platforms settles on the sleepy Highland bay of Nigg on the Cromarty Firth, and a way of life is changed for ever.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
13. Nelson Algren: The End Is Nothing, the Road Is All...
An in-depth feature length documentary of one of America's greatest and least understood authors, Nelson Algren. This never before told compelling life story reveals a unique literary voice through rare interviews, archival footage and the gritty noirish voice of Algren on Algren. Kurt Vonnegut and Studs Terkel, literary giants in their own right, sing songs of praise along with many of his old friends, which makes this film seem like a hymn from the grave. This stylishly produced film embeds us in the 1950's cold war world when Algren worked. Algren's touching love affair with Simone de Beauvoir weaves it's way through the film along with the damaging impact of FBI and CIA surveillance.
14. The Happy Days of Garry Marshall
In a heartfelt tribute to Hollywood legend Garry Marshall, his family and friends share their favorite memories of the creative genius behind some of the most memorable series in television history.
It has an average vote of 7.714 on TMDB.
15. The Secret Life of Landfill: A Rubbish History
In a unique science experiment, Dr George McGavin and Dr Zoe Laughlin chronicle the history of rubbish and explore how what we throw away tells us about the way we live our lives. With unprecedented access to one of the UK's largest landfill sites, the team of experts spend three days carrying out tests all over the site, revealing the secret world of rubbish. They also carry out three other 'archaeological' digs into historic landfills to chart the evolution of our throwaway society. Ultimately, their quest is to discover whether the items we throw away today have any value for tomorrow's world.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
16. Jean-Michel Frank - Tragic Genius of Art Deco (Jean-Michel Frank – Tragisches Genie des Art déco)
Jean-Michel Frank designed style-defining interiors in the 1920s with the timeless ideal of simplicity. He worked in Paris with artists like Giacometti and Dali, and designed interiors for millionaires like Nelson Rockefeller and Templeton Crocker. The documentary tells of an amazing but tragic life of the innovative interior designer.
17. Poutník Václav Vydra (Poutník Václav Vydra)
(Poutník Václav Vydra)
18. The Real Adam Smith: Ideas That Changed The World
The Real Adam Smith: A Personal Exploration by Johan Norberg, takes an intriguing, two-part look at Smith and the evolution and relevance of his ideas today, both economic and ethical. It’s difficult to imagine that a man who lived with horse drawn carriages and sailing ships would foresee our massive 21st century global market exchange, much less the relationship between markets and morality. But Adam Smith was no ordinary 18th century figure. Considered the “father of modern economics,” Smith was first and foremost a moral philosopher. The revolutionary ideas he penned in The Wealth of Nations and The Theory of Moral Sentiments, changed the world. Norberg explores Smith’s insights regarding free trade and the nature of wealth to the present, where they are thriving and driving the world’s economy.
19. Lincoln's Last Day
We all know the main story of Abraham Lincoln's death, how he was killed, where it took place, and who pulled the trigger. But what exactly happened during the last day of his life? Relive April 14, 1865, as we track the hours of the day that shocked the world, following both assassin and victim on separate paths that would ultimately converge at the Presidential Box at Ford's Theatre. We'll also look at the objects, like Lincoln's hat and John Wilkes Booth's gun, that witnessed the crime that changed the course of American history forever.
It has an average vote of 8.2 on TMDB.
20. Close Encounters with Vilmos Zsigmond
A very special encounter between legendary American cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond and young French director Pierre Filmon. A personal journey with the brightest shadowmaker and his friends.
It has an average vote of 6.4 on TMDB.
