The Olympia Film Comes into Being

Sochi: 2014 Olympic Opening Ceremony: Dreams of Russia(ru)

The opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics took place at the Fisht Olympic Stadium in Sochi, Russia, on 7 February 2014. It began at 20:14 MSK (UTC+4) and finished at 23:02 MSK (UTC+4) This was the first Winter Olympics and first Olympic Games opening ceremony under the IOC presidency of Thomas Bach. The Games were officially opened by President Vladimir Putin. An audience of 40,000 were in attendance at the stadium with an estimated 2,000 performers. The ceremony touched upon various aspects of Russian history, and included tributes to famous Russians, such as Peter Tchaikovsky (1840–1893), Ukrainian-born Russian humourist, dramatist, and novelist Nikolai Gogol (1809–1852), filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein (1898–1948), ballet dancer Vaslav Nijinsky (1889–1950), and patron of arts, and founder of Ballet Russes, Sergei Diaghilev (1872–1929).

Operation Gamescan 76(en)

This short documentary profiles the Canadian military’s organization, logistical, and security operations at the XXI Olympiad held in 1976 in Montréal. The scale of the operation was large: 16,000 troops were mobilized to provide protection for 7,500 athletes, countless VIPs, and the general public on 138 sites located in Montreal, Bromont, and Kingston. This film offers a behind-the-scenes look at the planning and synchronization necessary to mount a successful international event of massive proportions.

PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Closing Ceremony: The Next Wave(ko)

Sochi 2014: Olympic Closing Ceremony: Reflections of Russia(ru)

We Beat the Dream Team(en)

Discover the little-known story of a group of college basketball players who were tasked with preparing Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan and the rest of the legendary "Dream Team" for their Olympic debut in 1992.

White Rock(en)

British documentary filmmaker and producer Tony Maylam reinvigorated the sports documentary genre with WHITE ROCK, an idiosyncratic and utterly engaging account of the XII Olympic Winter Games Innsbruck 1976. He did so by placing music (by organ and synth wunderkind Rick Wakeman) front and center, and by using Hollywood star James Coburn as a "guide for the uninitiated."

Nancy & Tonya(en)

Mary Carillo looks back at the events leading up to, during and following the ladies’ figure skating competition at the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in the one-hour special, “Nancy & Tonya.” The documentary, which originally aired during NBC’s Sochi Olympics coverage, features an exclusive sit-down with Nancy Kerrigan and a one-on-one interview with Tonya Harding.

Laure ! Laure ! Laure !(fr)

The Race to Dope(en)

Russia is about to be banned from participating in the next Olympics. Six other countries are on the watch list. Not a week goes by without a new doping scandal in the world of sports. But how does the doping system really work? Who designs the programmes and who supplies the substances? Filmed in 11 countries, this multi-sports investigation explores the implications of widespread doping.

Zlatý muž z Ria(cs)

Sanggyedong Olympic(ko)

When it was decided that the 88 Olympics would be held in Seoul, the residents of Sanggye-dong were forced from their homes and they struggled against the government to at least guarantee them new residences.

Lane 0(en)

A feature length documentary about the struggle of a group of swimmers from developing nations trying to qualify for the Olympic Games for the first time. A story about pursuing your dreams and overcoming adversity.

Do You Believe in Miracles? The Story of the 1980 U.S. Hockey Team(en)

At the Winter Olympics of 1980, after two tense weeks amidst growing Cold War fears, the U.S. Olympic hockey team found themselves playing improbably against the legendary unbeatable Soviet Army hockey team for Olympic Gold. From the live footage taken at Lake Placid, NY, and through interviews beginning with the team's assembly through the experience of winning the gold medal.

Putin's Games(en)

The 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia will be the first ever to be held in a subtropical resort. The most expensive games ever break all records when it comes to corruption and megalomania. Putin's administration has everyone at its beck and call, from oligarchs down to the ordinary people who have to pay the Olympic bill. Both the powerful and the weak speak out in this investigative documentary, which unveils the hidden story behind Putin's games. Government critic Garry Kasparov says that Putin's Olympic propaganda is really all about speeding up the privatization of land in Sochi. Many inhabitants have had to make way for hotels, ski jumps and a large harbor, which were subsequently swept away by storms and landslides – the Olympic village was built on a swamp in the hottest region of Russia. To a large extent, the story of these environmentally unfriendly Olympic Games is one of threats and enormous misappropriations of money.

Official Film of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Side B(ja)

From a vast record of 750 days, 5000 hours, Official Film of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 SIDE A and SIDE B are the official documentaries by Naomi Kawase capturing not only the athletes gathered from all over the world, but also their families, people involved in the Games, volunteers, medical personnel, and protesters shouting for the cancellation of the Olympics.

16 Days of Glory(en)

The definitive photographic record of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, told "from the inside" through the lives of the participants, the words of David Perry, and the singing voice of Placido Domingo. From the opening to closing ceremonies, this unique style of storytelling shows a side of the Olympic Games not seen by television audiences.

Tapavica(sr)

A story about the first Serbian Olympian who won bronze medal at the first Olympic games in 1896, also a world class architect.

The Golden Generation(es)

How a once-in-a-generation Argentina team, led by Manu Ginobili, brought down the “Dream Team” and won gold at the 2004 Olympic Games.

Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty(de)

Part two of Leni Riefenstahl's monumental examination of the 1938 Olympic Games, the cameras leave the main stadium and venture into the many halls and fields deployed for such sports as fencing, polo, cycling, and the modern pentathlon, which was won by American Glenn Morris.

Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations(de)

Starting with a long and lyrical overture, evoking the origins of the Olympic Games in ancient Greece, Riefenstahl covers twenty-one athletic events in the first half of this two-part love letter to the human body and spirit, culminating with the marathon, where Jesse Owens became the first track and field athlete to win four gold medals in a single Olympics.