Silicon Valley Goes to Space(2013)

The Lebanese Rocket Society(ar)

Lebanon's brief flirtation with space travel in the 1960s becomes a poignant metaphor for the Arab world's utopian dreams in this riveting documentary.

13 Factors That Saved Apollo 13(en)

April 13th, 1970, 180,000 miles from Earth, a devastating malfunction leaves Apollo 13 leaking previous oxygen and its crew of three astronauts facing a life and death crisis. If Mission Control cannot find a way to bring Apollo 13 home, the astronauts will be stranded 200,000 miles from Earth in their dying ship. Now with limited power and supplies on board the spacecraft, the ground teams work around the clocking, engineering creative solutions to overcome carbon dioxide poisoning, dehydration and the freezing temperatures of deep space, to ensure the crew's survival. Using spectacular NASA footage, exclusive interviews with Apollo space scientists and stunning visual effects; this film explores the thirteen remarkable factors that brought the crew safely home, and the full story of the courage and ingenuity that cemented Apollo 13 as NASA's finest hour.

Lost Cities of the Amazon(en)

Over the centuries, explorers traded tales of a lost civilization amid the dense Amazonian rainforest. Scientists dismissed the legends as exaggerations, believing that the rainforest could not sustain such a huge population—until now. A new generation of explorers armed with 21st-century technology has uncovered remarkable evidence that could reinvent our understanding of the Amazon and the indigenous peoples who lived there. Using CGI and dramatic re-creations, National Geographic re-imagines the banks of the Amazon 500 years ago, teeming with inhabitants living in the Lost Cities of the Amazon.

Motonomad II(en)

From Kazakhstan through to Russia, three riders venture deep into Siberia's Altai Mountain range and attempt to cross the great Steppes of Mongolia. Traversing flooded rivers, snow capped mountains and baking hot deserts, hardship tests their friendship as they race toward the capital of Mongolia to witness the country's greatest celebration, the Naadam festival. Their epic journey is a true testament to living on a motorcycle, and a cultural insight into one of the greatest empires in the history of the world, the reign of Chingis Khan's Mongolian Horde. Motonomad II is more than a motorcycle journey, it's a life adventure.

When the Road Ends(en)

Growing up in poverty as a child, Dylan dreamt of travelling the world on a motorcycle. Many years later he broke the shackles of a normal life and took to the road. After journeying 200,000km across four continents, the road from Panama to Colombia comes to an end, swallowed up by an impenetrable jungle. Dylan has no choice but to take to the sea, building a raft powered by his motorcycle engine in the hope of reaching Colombia's road network 700km away. He must brave strong ocean currents and storm batterings in his journey from Central to South America.—Journeyman Pictures

30 Years of National Geographic Specials(en)

Celebrates 30 years of televised specials by The National Geographic Society.

Stargazing Challenges(en)

Blue Peter presenters Helen Skelton and Barney Harwood want to learn more about the solar system so they challenge scientists Helen Czerski and Jem Stansfield to find out more. They look at how to make telescopes and rockets, and use a toilet roll to measure the distances between planets.

At the heart of Unknown South America(fr)

Marquis de Wavrin shot these images during a series of trips to South America between 1919 and 1922.

Drain the Titanic(en)

Computer-generated imagery and other visualization techniques reveal how it would look if all the water was removed from RMS Titanic's final resting place.

Vikings: Journey to New Worlds(en)

Filmmaker Marc Fafard examines the historical and cultural significance of the seafaring Vikings.

Road to the Stars(ru)

This film consists of three parts. The first dramatizes the life of the founder of Soviet astronautics, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky; the second describes the development of rocket technology; and the third visualizes the future with enactments of the first manned spaceflight, spacewalk, space station construction and humans on the moon.

The Gig Is Up(en)

A very human tech doc, uncovers the real costs of the platform economy through the lives of workers from around the world for companies including Uber, Amazon and Deliveroo. From delivering food and driving ride shares to tagging images for AI, millions of people around the world are finding work task by task online. The gig economy is worth over 5 trillion USD globally, and growing. And yet the stories of the workers behind this tech revolution have gone largely neglected. Who are the people in this shadow workforce? It brings their stories into the light. Lured by the promise of flexible work hours, independence, and control over time and money, workers from around the world have found a very different reality. Work conditions are often dangerous, pay often changes without notice, and workers can effectively be fired through deactivation or a bad rating. Through an engaging global cast of characters, it reveals how the magic of technology we are being sold might not be magic at all.

In the Shadow of the Moon(en)

Archival material from the original NASA film footage – much of it seen for the first time – plus interviews with the surviving astronauts, including Jim Lovell, Dave Scott, John Young, Gene Cernan, Mike Collins, Buzz Aldrin, Alan Bean, Edgar Mitchell, Charlie Duke and Harrison Schmitt.

De Charles de Gaulle à Emmanuel Macron, les gardiens de l'empire(fr)

Icemen: 200 Years in Antarctica(en)

A riveting story of polar exploration that investigates the motivation, psychology, science, and physical endurance that have characterized the historic heroes who have explored the frozen continent of Antarctica over the last 200 years.

A Crack in the Mountain(en)

Deep in the jungle of Central Vietnam, lies a magnificent underground kingdom. Hang Son Doong which translates as “mountain river cave”, is the largest cave passage in the world and a place of spectacular beauty. With more people having climbed Everest than visited Son Doong, its pristine charm has remained undisturbed for millions of years. In 2014, Son Doong’s future was thrown into doubt when plans were announced to build a cable car into the cave. With many arguing that this would destroy its delicate eco-system and the local community divided over the benefits this development would bring, the film follows those caught up in the unfolding events. Beautifully shot and scored, “A Crack In The Mountain” is a powerful exposé about how both good and bad intentions can ultimately lead to one of the world’s greatest natural wonders being trampled for money. As well as inspire those who care about our natural heritage to fight to protect it.

Mr. Polaroid(en)

Before the iPhone, the Polaroid camera let people instantly chronicle their lives. Along with instant photo mania, its company culture became the model for Silicon Valley. Mr. Polaroid is the story of Edwin Land, the man behind the camera.

Antarctica: A Frozen History(en)

Antarctica: A Frozen History takes a look at the history and stories of the human explorations in the Antarctic. Although quite slow paced and relatively old, the documentary film successfully incorporates reconstructed film material and original Antarctic expedition footage to fully illustrate the hardships of the heroic and extreme arctic explorations. Human endurance is tested to the maximum, as the documentary takes a look back at those who have tried, failed and conquered this most unforgiving landscape. Some of these stories entail Robert Falcon Scott, a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery expedition of 1901–1904 and the ill-fated Terra Nova expedition of 1910–1913. Scott reached the South Pole in January 1912 only to find he had been beaten to the spot by 33 days. His entire party died on the return journey; eight months later, a search party discovered some of their bodies, diaries and photographs.

Becoming Cousteau(en)

Adventurer, filmmaker, inventor, author, unlikely celebrity and conservationist: For over four decades, Jacques-Yves Cousteau and his explorations under the ocean became synonymous with a love of science and the natural world. As he learned to protect the environment, he brought the whole world with him, sounding alarms more than 50 years ago about the warming seas and our planet’s vulnerability. In BECOMING COUSTEAU, from National Geographic Documentary Films, two-time Academy Award®-nominated filmmaker Liz Garbus takes an inside look at Cousteau and his life, his iconic films and inventions, and the experiences that made him the 20th century’s most unique and renowned environmental voice — and the man who inspired generations to protect the Earth.

Extreme der Tiefsee - Abysses(fr)

The deep waters of the Southern and Pacific Oceans still hold many mysteries. Two international teams of scientists set out to explore the icy depths of Antarctica and the abysses of the Mariana Trench. Filmed for the first time, creatures seemingly from another galaxy cohabit with champions of survival in extreme conditions.