Worlds of Ice

Antarctica: Journey into the White Desert(en)

A vast white wilderness that stretches across the south of our planet; a giant natural laboratory that has long occupied the human psyche. Antarctica is a continent of remote natural wonder. For brief moments each year this hauntingly beautiful landscape opens up, beckoning scientists and explorers from around the world to investigate its frozen secrets. 'Journey into the White Desert' takes us on a mesmerizing visual adventure into this mysterious continent, introducing us to a team of South African scientists, researchers and explorers who have braved the inhospitable continent in the quest to learn its secrets. The film explores South Africa's role in the greatest wilderness on earth and showcases some of the groundbreaking research that could make the difference to our survival on this planet.

Wenn die Arktis schmilzt(de)

The Arctic: 66.5 Degrees North(de)

The beauty of the Arctic is breathtaking. For as long as we can remember, the Arctic has been associated with inhospitable cold. But the climate is changing, and with it the northern polar region, which begins beyond latitude 66.5 degrees north. Climate change is now happening four times faster north of the Arctic Circle than on the rest of the planet, making the future outlook dire. At the moment it is still possible for polar bears to raise their cubs, but hunting is becoming increasingly difficult on the drastically shrinking pack ice. The disappearance of the ice also affects the marine fauna. The wintry ice bridge between Canada and Greenland is threatened with collapse. The unstoppable melting of the permafrost, which has held the tundra together for thousands of years, is worrying. But the Arctic is still one of the wildest and loveliest regions on earth. A documentary visit to the Arctic - as long as it still exists.

Encounters at the End of the World(en)

Herzog and cinematographer Peter Zeitlinger go to Antarctica to meet people who live and work there, and to capture footage of the continent's unique locations. Herzog's voiceover narration explains that his film will not be a typical Antarctica film about "fluffy penguins", but will explore the dreams of the people and the landscape.

Searching for Planet 9(fr)

At the edge of our solar system supposedly lies an immense planet. Five to ten times the size of the Earth. Several international teams of scientists have been competing in a frantic race to detect it, in uncharted territories, far beyond Neptune. The recent discovery of several dwarf planets, with intriguing trajectories, have put astronomers on the trail of this mysterious planet. Why is this enigmatic planet so difficult to detect? What would a ninth planet teach us about our corner of the universe? Could it help us unlock some of the mysteries of our solar system?

White Winter(de)

In southern Germany, winter can still be admired in all its glory every year. With its white coat of snow and icicles and myriads of small crystals that look like geometric works of art. In the valleys and on the slopes the snow is still so thick every year that the alpine huts are snowed in up to the windows. Cows and dairymen are safe in their farms at lower altitudes. But not the wild creatures of the mountains! They need strategies to survive the cold season and to defy snow masses, cold and ice. And some seem to do it so easily that they even raise their young in the middle of winter. But how do animals, plants and fungi cope with the annually recurring ice age, which from our perspective is a time of need? The many adaptations in nature prove that winter is an integral part of the natural cycle of the year and the living environment of species. They are adapted to cold and frost. That is why the animals and plants at the edge of the Alps suffer particularly from climate change!

Secrets of the Solar System(en)

New planets are now being discovered outside our solar system on a regular basis, and these strange new worlds are forcing scientists to rewrite the history of our own solar system. Far from a simple story of stable orbits, the creation of our solar system is a tale of hellfire, chaos and planetary pinball. It's a miracle our Earth is here at all.

The Alaska-Siberian Expedition(en)

Captain Kleinschmidt leads an expedition sponsored by the Carnegie Museum to the arctic regions of Alaska and Siberia to study the natives and the animal life.

Searching for Skylab, America's Forgotten Triumph(en)

The first American space station Skylab is found in pieces scattered in Western Australia. Putting these pieces back together and re-tracing the Skylab program back to its very conception reveals the cornerstone of human space exploration.

Johannes Kepler - Storming the Heavens(de)

Nowadays we associate Johannes Kepler with his famous laws of planetary motion. But the history of his discoveries is a drama of Shakespearian proportions - full of intrigue, passion, depravity and corruption.

Winter's End(en)

A short film shot on Super 8 which captures the last days of winter.

Face to Face with the Polar Bear(fr)

Filmmaker Jerome Bouvier spent a year in Spitzberg following the incredible destiny of a polar bear family in a rapidly changing environment. Casting brother and sister twin cubs, this tale focuses on their education and reveals their individual characters.

Odyssées blanches(fr)

1947. The rush to the poles marked the beginning of an incredible human adventure to discover the last-remaining unknown lands. In France, Paul-E?mile Victor persuaded the government to finance expeditions to explore the Arctic and Antarctic. For the pioneers the conditions were Dantean, all in the name of science.

Snowfall(en)

As a winter storm approaches the shallow water crystallizes, ice builds up along the edges of a stream, and the first snowflakes of the storm layer over the newly formed ice. The following morning a soft light approaches through the snow covered forest.

Being Caribou(en)

Wildlife biologist Karsten Heuer and his wife, environmentalist Leanne Allison follow a herd of 120,000 caribou on foot across 1500 km of Arctic tundra, hoping to raise awareness of the threats to the caribou's survival. Along this journey, they brave torrid conditions, dangerous wildlife and treacherous terrain all in the hopes of learning the truth about this epic migration.

Sailing the North Pole(fr)

This is a documentary about the expedition of Sebastien Roubinet et Rodolphe André who have decided to cross the Arctic Ocean from Alaska to the Norwegian islands of Spitsbergen, via the geographic North Pole! For this, Sébastien Roubinet has invented a strange little boat "TiBabouche" capable of sailing on sea and on ice. This boat is a prototype brimming with technology and science, made-up by Hervé Le Goff, a CNRS engineer. It will allow Hervé to calibrate the satellite “Cryosat”, the first one capable of measuring the thickness of ice.

Babouchka: The North Pole - A Return to Hell(fr)

To be the first in history of mankind to take a sailing vessel to the Pole. One of the greatest maritime adventures ever undertaken: to cross the Arctic Ocean from one Land to the Other without assistance.

Reindeer Family & Me(en)

Wildlife cameraman Gordon Buchanan travels to the frozen north, deep inside the Arctic Circle, to meet the ancient Sami people and the animals they hold so close - reindeer.

Nova: Monster Of The Milky Way(en)

Astronomers are closing in on the proof they've sought for years that one of the most destructive objects in the universe—a supermassive black hole—lurks at the center of our own galaxy. Could it flare up and consume our entire galactic neighborhood? Join NOVA on a mind-bending investigation into one of the most bizarre corners of cosmological science: black hole research. From event horizon to singularity, the elusive secrets of supermassive black holes are revealed through stunning computer-generated imagery, including an extraordinary simulation of what it might look like to fall into the belly of such an all-devouring beast.

Bear Witness(en)

The film Journeys alongside the filmmakers behind Disneynature’s “Polar Bear” as they face profound challenges 300 miles from the North Pole. The team, who created a revolutionary arctic camp on site, navigated virtually impassible snow drifts and tenuous sea ice, garnering unprecedented footage revealing adaptive behaviors that surprised even this veteran team of filmmakers.