Cutting Corners

Talking Architecture, City: Hall(ko)

A documentary film about Seoul City Hall Construction. The construction project has a hard going in every way. A city plan, excessive administrative notions, a design and all got mingled up. Can the project sail, yes?

Anthropocene: The Human Epoch(en)

Documentary on psychedelic potash mines, expansive concrete seawalls, mammoth industrial machines, and other examples of humanity’s massive, destructive reengineering of the planet.

Framing John DeLorean(en)

A documentary interspersed with acted scenes, this portrait of John DeLorean covers the brilliant but tragically flawed automaker's rise to stardom and shocking down fall.

If You Build It(en)

A year in the life of one of America's most innovative classrooms where students design & build to transform their hometown community. The film follows Emily Pilloton and Matt Miller as they teach the fundamentals of design, architecture and construction to a class of high school juniors in rural North Carolina.

High Steel(en)

A dizzying view of Manhattan in the 1960s, the tallest town in the world, and the men who work cloud-high to keep it growing. They are the Mohawk Indians from Kahnawake, near Montréal, famed for their skill in erecting the steel frames of skyscrapers. The film shows their nimble work, high above the pavement, but there are also glimpses of the quieter community life of the old Kahnawake Reserve.

Rise of the Centaur(en)

"Give me ten million dollars and trust me, we'll deliver a low-cost microprocessor compatible with Intel". This was former IBM Fellow and Dell Senior VP Glenn Henry's 1995 pitch to start a microprocessor company focused on low-cost Intel-compatible processors ("x86"). This documentary follows Henry and his team as they race to complete their latest chip, and offers an inside look at Centaur's unique management environment.

David Macaulay: Pyramid(en)

How did ancient Egyptians build the Great Pyramid at Giza, joining two million blocks of heavy stone with amazing precision? Who were the leaders who built these enormous structures, and what did these tombs signify? Host David Macaulay explores the history, mythology, and religions of Egypt's people, combining live footage and animation. Take a rare look at the mummy of Ramses II and buried treasure in the sacred Valley of the Kings.

Churchill's Toyshop(en)

In Britain's darkest hour Winston Churchhill assembles a team of eccentric geniuses to fight the Nazi menace by building biizzarre brilliant weapons.

Nutné zlo(cs)

Mechanical Marvels: Clockwork Dreams(en)

Documentary presented by Professor Simon Schaffer which charts the amazing and untold story of automata - extraordinary clockwork machines designed hundreds of years ago to mimic and recreate life. The film brings the past to life in vivid detail as we see how and why these masterpieces were built. Travelling around Europe, Simon uncovers the history of these machines and shows us some of the most spectacular examples, from an entire working automaton city to a small boy who can be programmed to write and even a device that can play chess. All the machines Simon visits show a level of technical sophistication and ambition that still amazes today.

Guy Martin: The World's Fastest Electric Car?(en)

Join self confessed petrol-head Guy Martin as he learns about the alternative to the internal combustion engine, Electric. In this TV special, Guy learns about the advantages of electric transport and the different varieties that exist from bicycles, cars and vans up to buses. Guy also learns some of the disadvantages from range anxiety and with the help of the Leicestershire Fire Brigade, how to deal with a fire. The ultimate aim is to produce a record breaking electrified retro road car that is suitable for the Drag strip, with Guy behind the steering wheel.

Bob Gurr: Turning Dreams into Reality(en)

The documentary, Bob Gurr: Turning Dreams into Reality, tells the story of one of Walt Disney's earliest 1954 Imagineering Legends, Bob Gurr. His career spanning 45 years creating 250 projects with Disney and beyond will be explored. From Disneyland to Las Vegas, Olympic spectaculars to rock star shows, Bob's creations included Monorails, Abraham Lincoln mechanical animation, Pirate Battle Shows, even massive animated figures of King Kong and Godzilla. Viewers will learn much about how these attractions were created from those who were there sharing these creations. Eight theme park creators who worked with Bob over these years will describe the unique ways in which he created a vast variety of attractions. The cast includes Disney Ambassador to the World Marty Sklar, Imagineering VP Craig Russell, Imagineer Chris Crump, and many others.

Skyscraper(en)

Nominated for an Academy Award, this live-action short film playfully chronicles the construction of the Tishman Building at 666 Fifth Avenue in New York City.

Monument to the Dream(en)

Documents the evolution of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Arch from concept drawings, to fabrication of its stainless steel sections, to assembly and completion. Innovative structural techniques and brilliant design show why this avant-garde monument is among the greatest civil engineering achievements of the twentieth century. Oscar Nominee: Best Documentary Short

Oravská priehrada(sk)

Spotlight on the Highlands(en)

It's 1948 and hydro-electric power is transforming Scotland's Grampians.

Engineering The Impossible(en)

Just how far can engineering go? This program explores the feasibility of constructing several extraordinary projects such as a Europe to Africa Bridge or a tunnel across the Straights of Gibraltar. Could engineers really construct a mile high skyscraper or floating ocean cities? State of the art computer graphics and real world scientists help to explain these technological dreams. Current engineering advances, like revolutionary new vacuum, make these engineering marvel's a distinct possibility!

Trains: Two Centuries of Innovation(fr)

Nearly 200 years ago, the train revolutionized our lives. It redrew the maps of states and nations, and changed concepts of distance and time like no other invention before. What visionaries imagined the development of the railroad? How did we get from the first chugging locomotives to the smooth giants of speed we see today? How does France's extensive rail network keep running smoothly, 24/7?

The History of the Pit Stop: Gone in Two Seconds(en)

The mavericks who pioneered the modern pit stop made it a raceday staple that takes less than two seconds.

Abegweit(en)

A day-to-day record of the construction of the Confederation Bridge linking Prince Edward Island to the mainland, Abegweit reveals some of the innovations that made this mammoth project one of the most impressive engineering feats in Canadian history.