Expedition Svalbard: Part 1 - Hornsund to Bear Island(2012)

Nanook of the North(en)

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.

The Alps(de)

The Alps – wild mountains, extreme lives, but also a magical world. This majestic mountain range connects eight countries and reaches heights of up to 4,000 metres above sea level. At a length of 1,200 kilometres, the Alps form both a connecting bridge between western and eastern Europe and a high barrier between southern and central Europe. The mountains act as a mighty water reservoir and continental watershed, feeding innumerable rivers that flow into three different oceans. Their highest peak, Mont Blanc, is surrounded by long, soaring mountains with ice-covered slopes. These great summits are just one reason the so-called “Roof of Europe” continues to fascinate – across the continent and around the world. The incredible diversity of landscapes, flora and fauna makes the Alps a unique natural treasure at the heart of Europe.

Iceland: The Quest for Origins(fr)

The fascinating landscape formations of Iceland in the North Atlantic bear witness to the beauty and primal power of nature. They were created through the interaction of powerful volcanic, geological and biological processes that have been changing the face of the earth for billions of years. This is what the Earth might have looked like four billion years ago. Iceland is the realm of ice and fire. Nowhere else is there such a high density of volcanoes. The landscapes, which are continually reshaped by eruptions, make the island a natural laboratory full of clues about the formation and development of the earth. The documentary follows a group of scientists through the most active areas of Iceland, along a mountain range that has emerged from the ocean. On the slopes of the volcanoes, in the fog of the fumaroles and on streams and rivers, the three researchers explore how the first forms of life populated the earth's surface and in what evolutionary steps they took over the earth.

The Canary Islands(de)

There are few places on earth that have such a diverse variety of terrain and range of climates concentrated in a relatively small area - temperate coastline, scorching arid deserts and tundra, tropical rainforests and frozen snowcapped mountains. And there are few places that are as heavily exploited by humans, yet remain a wilderness.

Isöken(fr)

Three Frenchmen go out on their first polar expedition to the largest polar desert in the world. Sarek, in the north of Sweden.

Battle at Kruger(en)

An eight-minute amateur wildlife video that depicts a confrontation between a herd of Cape buffalo, a small group of young lions from a pride, and one crocodile.

Winged Migration(fr)

This documentary follows various migratory bird species on their long journeys from their summer homes to the equator and back, covering thousands of miles and navigating by the stars. These arduous treks are crucial for survival, seeking hospitable climates and food sources. Birds face numerous challenges, including crossing oceans and evading predators, illness, and injury. Although migrations are undertaken as a community, birds disperse into family units once they reach their destinations, and every continent is affected by these migrations, hosting migratory bird species at least part of the year.

Earth(en)

An epic story of adventure, starring some of the most magnificent and courageous creatures alive, awaits you in EARTH. Disneynature brings you a remarkable story of three animal families on a journey across our planet – polar bears, elephants and humpback whales.

Koyaanisqatsi(en)

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.

Blue(en)

From space, our planet appears as a tiny blue dot in the vastness of space. Blue, because 99% of all living space on Earth occurs in the Ocean. But the seas are under threat. The industrialization that has occurred in the oceans over the last century mirrors the events that triggered mass extinctions on land. As we learn of the ecological crimes occurring worldwide, we also uncover the shocking truths happening on our own shorelines.

Heïdi's Ice(fr)

Horizon(ar)

From the turtles of the Farasan Islands to the ibex that dot the Asir Mountains, this documentary captures Saudi Arabia's diverse wildlife and scenery.

Shark Land: Welcome to Cocos Island(en)

“Entourage” star Adrian Grenier ventures to Cocos Island off the shore of Costa Rica to bring attention to the plight of endangered sharks who are being threatened by poachers and ocean pollution.

Running Fields IV(en)

Twenty-four images of a camera running in the woods, a moonlight and a cemetery through improvised gestures, mechanical abstraction and saturated colors

Microcosmos(fr)

A documentary of insect life in meadows and ponds, using incredible close-ups, slow motion, and time-lapse photography. It includes bees collecting nectar, ladybugs eating mites, snails mating, spiders wrapping their catch, a scarab beetle relentlessly pushing its ball of dung uphill, endless lines of caterpillars, an underwater spider creating an air bubble to live in, and a mosquito hatching.

The Tree of Authenticity(nl)

Photographer and visual artist Sammy Baloji’s fascinating film essay explores the Democratic Republic of Congo’s colonial history and its ecological significance. Drawing on research from the 1930s, the film highlights the Congo Basin’s vital role in consuming carbon dioxide and shaping global environmental balance over a century.

Le Monde secret des libellules(fr)

Ukhrul Medical Tour(en)

A doctor and party visit the villages of eastern Manipur in India's far north east.

Arctic Tale(en)

Arctic Tale is a 2007 documentary film from the National Geographic Society about the life cycle of a walrus and her calf, and a polar bear and her cubs, in a similar vein to the 2005 hit production March of the Penguins, also from National Geographic.

Sheep(nl)

In the lush fields of northern Belgium, as winter tightens its grip, the sheep of Eddy, Jeroen, and Johny become silent witnesses of a hidden drama when a wolf is driven to the edges of human lands in search of sustenance. With the three human protagonists doing anything within their power to patronize their rights of existence, this film stands up for the least heard voice in Belgium’s brand new wolf territory: that of the bleating sheep.