1. Nanook of the North
This pioneering documentary film depicts the lives of the indigenous Inuit people of Canada's northern Quebec region. Although the production contains some fictional elements, it vividly shows how its resourceful subjects survive in such a harsh climate, revealing how they construct their igloo homes and find food by hunting and fishing. The film also captures the beautiful, if unforgiving, frozen landscape of the Great White North, far removed from conventional civilization.
It has an average vote of 7.105 on TMDB.
2. Namibia’s Desert Kingdom (Namibia’s Desert Kingdom)
Rocks, dunes, sand and dust - large areas of Namibia in southwest Africa are characterized by deserts. Riverbeds full of sand meander through these inhospitable regions. Some of these only have water once every few years when enough rain has fallen in the mountains and the water rushes to the coast - but most of the time the river courses have dried up. And yet they are crucial for the survival of many living beings.
3. 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.
4. Guadalquivir (Guadalquivir)
'Guadalquivir' is a feature length documentary directed by Joaquín Gutiérrez that features a fox, an animal that has adapted, living in packs and alone and that is a carnivore, vegetarian and even carrion. The camera follows the path of the fox by the Sierras de Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas.
It has an average vote of 6.3 on TMDB.
5. 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.
6. Attenborough at 90: Behind the Lens
As Sir David Attenborough turns 90, this intimate film presents new interviews, eye-opening behind-the-scenes footage and extraordinary clips from some of his most recent films. The doc, which was made for the occasion of Attenborough’s 90th birthday, was shot over seven years and follows him as he travels to Borneo, Morocco and the Galapagos to shoot wildlife specials. Anthony Geffen, the CEO of Atlantic Productions, commented, “This is such a special Attenborough film because unusually he is the subject. As I look back over the last seven years, I never fail to be amazed by his extraordinary ambition and drive to use the very latest technology to communicate the natural world to audiences around the globe. This film gives audiences the chance to see what it’s like to be on the road with David.”
It has an average vote of 8.4 on TMDB.
7. Speechless: The Polar Realm
Beautifully filmed by New Zealand nature photographer Richard Sidey over the past decade around the polar regions, Speechless: The Polar Realm is a visual meditation of light, life, loss and wonder at the ends of the globe. This is the second film in Sidey’s non-verbal trilogy which is comprised of: - Landscapes at the World’s Ends - Speechless: The Polar Realm - Elementa
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
8. African Safari
A documentary that leads the audience from Namibia to Kilimanjaro to explore the African wildlife.
It has an average vote of 6.8 on TMDB.
9. Behind The Garden Gate
'Behind The Garden Gate' is a documentary film about homegrown biodiversity and the challenges that come with it. In the 1970s Guus Lieberwerth and friends cleared a patch of agricultural wasteland in order to take care of rare and endangered plants and animals. Now, 50 years later nature is thriving within a hidden paradise just five minutes away from a city centre, but even closer to systemic pressures and land developers.
10. In the Kingdom of the Lapland Bear
Documentary about bears where the animals were filmed completely undisturbed.
11. 30 Years of National Geographic Specials
Celebrates 30 years of televised specials by The National Geographic Society.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
12. Grizzly Man
Werner Herzog's documentary film about the "Grizzly Man" Timothy Treadwell and what the thirteen summers in a National Park in Alaska were like in one man's attempt to protect the grizzly bears. The film is full of unique images and a look into the spirit of a man who sacrificed himself for nature.
It has an average vote of 7.531 on TMDB.
13. Biocentrics (Biocêntricos)
Through the eyes and voice of biologist Janine Benyus, the non-fiction feature “Biocentrics” takes the viewer through different corners of the planet to reveal the birth and the principles that guide biomimicry, a methodology of innovation inspired by nature. As a hub connecting ancestral knowledge, diverse cultures, natural technologies and initiatives that choose the continuity of life as their premise, the charismatic activist proposes a common agenda, a new posture and a tool, which is the vanguard of contemporary science, to face the global challenges that lie ahead and putting life back at the center of decision-making.
14. Tasmania: Curious Life of Quolls
Naturalist and filmmaker Simon Plowright has dedicated his life to understanding and protecting Tasmania's unique wildlife. That mission leads him to an old, abandoned farmhouse, where a community of rarely seen eastern quolls resides. To find out more about these enigmatic, small marsupials, Simon packs his cameras and moves in with them for a year. However, this will be no simple field study. Over the next twelve months, he and his quolls will encounter invasive predators, opportunistic thieves, and the worst bushfire in Australia's history.
It has an average vote of 8 on TMDB.
15. Ocean Super Predators
Masterful traps set by humpback whales in the straits of Alaska. An ingenious partnership between dolphins and gannets by Bird Island, South Africa. A killing school where orcas teach their young to hunt sea lions on the shores of Punta Norte. For ages, the oceans have hidden the true depth and breadth of their hunters' inventiveness. But now, wildlife photographers below and above the water's surface are capturing images that show off their remarkable prowess. Discover their secrets as we travel the world to see the ocean's predators at work.
16. Goshawk - Soul of the Wind
A visually stunning portrait of one of nature's most agile and fearsome predators, the Goshawk. This secretive bird of prey can be hard to see in the UK, but reigns supreme in Korea's mountains.
17. America's Heartland: Wild Prairie Reborn
In northern Montana is a massive wildlife sanctuary on track to become one of the largest, protected ecosystems in the United States: the American Prairie Reserve. Here, scientists and ranchers are working in partnership to restore these grasslands to their natural state. To do that, they must bring back the animals, starting with the keystone species: Bison. Enter America's heartland and witness surprising landscapes and never-before-filmed animal behavior, featuring sandhill cranes, swift foxes, grizzly bears, pronghorn antelope, and more.
18. Salmon (Mia')
Transformed into a salmon, an Indigenous street artist travels through decayed urban landscapes to the forests of long ago, in this sublime mixed animation.
19. An Inconvenient Truth
A documentary on Al Gore's campaign to make the issue of global warming a recognized problem worldwide.
It has an average vote of 6.978 on TMDB.
20. Four Corners: Saving the Amazon
The Amazon plays a vital part in regulating the planet's temperature. Yet, last year, forest destruction in the Brazilian Amazon soared by 85 per cent. Illegal logging and slash-and-burn agriculture are decimating the land. With huge profits to be made, the Amazon is a dangerous place to ask questions. Despite the threat, the Amazonian tribes want the world to hear their message.
It has an average vote of 7 on TMDB.
