Chasing 400 (2022)

What Killed the Roman Empire?

Why did the Roman Empire, which dominated Europe and the Mediterranean for five centuries, inexorably weaken until it disappeared? Archaeologists, specialists in ancient pathologies and climate historians are now accumulating clues converging on the same factors: a powerful cooling and pandemics. A disease, whose symptoms described by the Greek physician Galen are reminiscent of those of smallpox, struck Rome in 167, soon devastating its army. At the same time, a sudden climatic disorder that was underway as far as Eurasia caused agricultural yields to plummet and led to the westward migration of the Huns. Plagued by economic and military difficulties, attacked from all sides by barbarian tribes, the Roman edifice gradually cracked.

Titanic: The Digital Resurrection

Using cutting-edge scanning technology and state-of-the-art CGI, a team of experts creates the first high-resolution 3D digital twin of the Titanic wreck. Through a groundbreaking immersive investigation, they uncover the ship’s final moments, shedding light on the acts of heroism and cowardice aboard—and revealing the true story behind the sinking of the “unsinkable” ship.

Manca Moro

Born to an Algerian father and a Sicilian mother in Tunisia, I have always been wealthy of three cultures. This motherland is where were born my Algerian ancestors when it was called Ifriqya but also my Sicilian grand-parents whose parents were part of the important migration flux of the beginning of the last century. A reservoir of workforce by the thousands reached the shores of this "promised land". A hundred years later, I embark on a quest to rediscover my Sicilian family, exiled for the past sixty years, scattered between Italy and France.

The Endurance

Documentary on the Shackleton Antartic expedition. A retelling of Sir Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated expedition to Antarctica in and the crew of his vessel 'The Endurance', which was trapped in the ice floes and frigid open ocean of the Antarctic in 1914. Shackleton decided, with many of his crew injured and weak from exposure and starvation, to take a team of his fittest men and attempt to find help. Setting out in appalling conditions with hopelessly inadequate equipment, they endured all weather and terrain and finally reached safety. Persuading a local team of his confidence that the abandoned team would still be alive, he set out again to find them. After almost 2 years trapped on the ice, all members of the crew were finally rescued.

God's Girls

God's Girls describes life in a Sisters of Mercy convent in country New South Wales from the 1940's to present day. This courageous and clever film investigates the subtle complexities of change within a society that has been surrounded by mystery for hundreds of years. The stories from the women in the film reflect the often intricate paths of social, political and religious history, not only in Australia but also in the rest of the world.

Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds

The elite pilots of the Air Force Thunderbirds display exceptional skill, trust and courage during a high-stakes training season.

Rivers and Tides

Portrait of Andy Goldsworthy, an artist whose specialty is ephemeral sculptures made from elements of nature.

Inside the Mind of a Dog

Embark on a delightful journey into the world of dogs in this documentary that reveals scientific and emotional insights about our lovable BFFs.

The One Percent

Jamie Johnson takes the exploration of wealth that he began in Born Rich one step further. The One Percent, refers to the tiny percentage of Americans who control nearly half the wealth of the U.S. Johnson's thesis is that this wealth in the hands of so few people is a danger to our very way of life.

The Magical World of Moss

They have no roots, no seeds, no flowers, but mosses show immense survival capacities and can suspend their biological activity for long periods. Today, researchers are exploring the exceptional resistance of these archaic organisms. British ecologists have even resurrected a "zombie" moss that has been trapped in the permafrost for 1,500 years. Associated with decay and disliked in Europe, mosses are deified in Japan. With 25,000 species worldwide, bryophytes - their scientific name - are the seat of real ecosystems, and can develop in inhospitable landscapes, through an extravagant reproduction cycle.

Les gangsters de la finance

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Climate Change: The Brain Paradox

Although a real awareness of the populations is underway - the multiplication of natural disasters and heat records helping - the human activities responsible for global warming remain unchanged, as if the threat was unreal. This collective immobility could have its origin in the brain. A number of cognitive biases impede judgment.

The Click Trap

Digital advertising algorithms curate content precisely for users. Major tech firms claim to restrict disinformation yet still profit from harmful content, raising ethical concerns about democracy and online capitalism.

The Arctic: 66.5 Degrees North

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.

Chernobyl, Fukushima: Living with the Legacy

30 years after the Chernobyl catastrophe and 5 years after Fukushima it is time to see what has been happening in the “exclusion zones” where the radioactivity rate is far above normal.

ABUHADBA

From the slow waitings for opening of the big top to the loneliness in the dressing room backstage, Abuhadba follows the life of a small circus in Chile run entirely by a traditional circus family.

Lucia Moholy, la photographe du Bauhaus

As a Bauhaus photographer, Lucia Moholy (1894-1989) was a pioneer of New Objectivity. Her husband László Moholy-Nagy was appointed to the Bauhaus in 1923. They worked there together and László became famous as the inventor of the photogram, a photo without film. Lucia's contribution to this only became known later. When the Czech-born Jew was forced to leave Germany in 1933 after the Nazis seized power, she was unable to take her most important possession, her glass negatives, with her. She struggled to keep her head above water in London and worked for the British secret service on the microfilming of valuable documents. With her vision of microfilm as freely accessible information for all, she is now regarded as a pioneer of the Internet. After the war, Lucia set out in search of her glass negatives.

On Lavender

A documentary that is a deep exploration of gender identity within the context of Greek society, providing a multi-layered narrative that reflects the experiences of individuals navigating the complexities of gender in a culture where these topics are still emerging. Over four years, the filmmakers captured intimate stories of people confronting their gender identities, revealing how personal, societal, and familial expectations shape their journeys. The documentary aims to challenge the traditional norms of gender and to give voice to those whose experiences are often marginalized. It marks a significant step in Greece’s cinematic exploration of LGBTQ+ themes and is a pivotal contribution to the global conversation on gender identity.

Polanski, Horowitz. The Wizards From the Ghetto

Filmmaker Roman Polanski and photographer Ryszard Horowitz meet in Kraków, Poland, where, strolling the streets, they share memories of their childhood and youth, the hardest days of their lives, when, during World War II, they met in the ghetto established by the Nazi occupiers.

Chaplin et "Les temps modernes", La voie du silence

In 1936, the sound film had already been around for a decade. Nevertheless, Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977) made another silent film, "Modern Times", which only used sound effects as a dramaturgical device. Speaking is reserved for the apparatus alone. The film became a monument in the history of cinema for this very reason.

Flying the Great Wall

An epic aerial journey covering the whole length of China’s Great Wall. Across 2500km, for the first time ever, this triumph of Ming dynasty architecture has been captured in its entirety from the air. With expert narration from William Lindesay, official protector of the Wall, travel from the Yellow Sea in the East to the Gobi Desert in the far West.

The Revelation of the Pyramids

For centuries, the Great Pyramids have fascinated Mankind. Patrice Pooyard's The Revelation Of The Pyramids reveals what lies behind the greatest of archaeological mysteries: a message of paramount importance for humanity. From China to Peru, from Egypt to Mexico, through the world's most enigmatic and most beautiful sites, the director has spent 6 years meeting eminent scientific specialists and verifying his discoveries. The result will shake the teaching of history to its very core, and revolutionize Egyptology entirely. A great odyssey along a breathtaking route climaxes in a revelation as unexpected as it is staggering.

Secrets of Christ's Tomb

We follow leading experts on a quest to unlock the mysteries surrounding the tomb of Christ, using the latest scientific techniques to restore the Aedicula housing the tomb.

Libres

For centuries, many men and women have left everything to dedicate their lives to contemplation. LIBRES, is a journey into the interior of man. We have obtained permission to enter and speak with people who rarely speak, in places that remain closed to the world: monasteries. What leads a person to divest himself of the world he knows, to withdraw from it for the rest of his life? How does such a person think? LIBRES approaches great questions of the existence of man, with a single objective: to listen to them.

The Third Door

One of the first (and perhaps therefore ambiguous) approaches to homosexuality in Spain at the time. The film narrates in cinematographic form the problem of the third sex, its justification and its existence within a real environment that is society itself. Two parallel worlds are shown to us; one, the hard and professional life of some artists who try to put on a 'music-hall' show. The other world is independent but it shows us what the life of an old glory was like, of an old man who was an artist in his time. Comparing one era with another is the intention of the film and ultimately its plot.

The People vs. George Lucas

The passion the original Star Wars trilogy inspires in its fans is unparalleled; but when it comes to George Lucas himself, many have found their ardor has cooled into a complicated love-hate relationship. This hilarious, heartfelt documentary delves deep into Lucas’s cultural legacy, asking all the tough questions. Has Lucas betrayed his masterwork? Should he just have left the original trilogy alone? Is The Phantom Menace so bad it should carry a health warning? Utilizing interviews taken from over 600 hours of footage, and peppered with extraordinary Star Wars and Indiana Jones recreations lovingly immortalized in song, needlepoint, Lego, claymation, puppets and paper-mâché, above all this film asks the question: who truly owns that galaxy far, far away—the man who created it, or the fans who worship it?

La Route de l'Audace

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Home

In 200,000 years of existence, man has upset the balance on which the Earth had lived for 4 billion years. Global warming, resource depletion, species extinction: man has endangered his own home. But it is too late to be pessimistic: humanity has barely ten years left to reverse the trend, become aware of its excessive exploitation of the Earth's riches, and change its consumption pattern.

It Kinda Scares Me

It Kinda Scares Me is a documentary about a drama coach and the “delinquent” boys he teaches. In their world, bravado is everything and Friday nights are for getting into fights. Tomer Heymann, both filmmaker and drama coach, encourages the boys to create something from their pain and marginalization, while they struggle in rehearsals to preserve their much-prized Israeli machismo. When Tomer announces to the group that he is gay, they are shocked, but his commitment to their play wins the day as they prepare for a performance that will give voice to the lives of disaffected Israeli youth.

Land of Silence and Darkness

Through examining Fini Straubinger, an old woman who has been deaf and blind since her teens, and her work on behalf of other deaf-blind people, this film shows how the deaf-blind struggle to understand and accept a world from which they are almost wholly isolated.

Doris Dörrie - Die Flaneuse

Why does Doris Dörrie have a bag on her head in the interview? Consistent in the sense that in her works she always poses the question of how we want to be perceived. Dörrie takes us through the most important stages of her life, her films, her work as a mentor and teacher, and also addresses existential themes: Identity, motherhood, her role as a woman. And she talks openly about fears, setbacks and crises, such as the untimely death of her partner and cameraman Helge Weindler. "Shut up and breathe", the advice of a Tibetan lama, carries her through life - even beyond the screen.

Le Premier Cri

Documentary about births around the different cultures and regions of the world.

L'Islande terre de feu et de glace

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White Man Walking

In July 2020, Rob Bliss, a young, white filmmaker, posted a video of what happened when he held up a ‘Black Lives Matter’ sign in Harrison, Arkansas, 'the most racist town in America'. It went viral, attracting 12 million views. What Bliss did next was remarkable. Over 1500 miles, two months and 25 miles a day, he set out to walk through the American South, wearing a Black Lives Matter t-shirt, and a sign that invited people to ‘come walk with me’. His goal was simple: to take the conversation Floyd’s murder had sparked about racism in American society into the places where it was most needed, yet most silent.

Planète Terre, le prix de la survie

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Planète Terre, héros de la nature

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La Danse: The Paris Opera Ballet

A film by Frederick Wiseman following the ins and outs of 7 ballets by the Paris Opera Ballet.

Tom Cruise : la dernière légende d'Hollywood

Tom Cruise is one of the last remaining superstars of world cinema. A portrait of one of the most powerful, but also most secretive, men in Hollywood.

According to Plan: The Making of 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'

Special feature documentary following the cast and crew through the making of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.

A Deeper Love: The Story of Miss Peppermint

Drag Race star Peppermint takes center stage in this up close and personal documentary about her journey with fame, identity, and the art of drag. Sharing her story alongside a close network of trans individuals, one of the world’s favorite drag performers takes you inside her rise from humble beginnings to her current reign as outspoken trailblazer for the trans community.

American Moon

Has man really been to the moon? It’s been 50 years, and the debate rages on. For the firs time, a film compiles in a single piece of work, all the best evidence in favor of the moon landings and the evidence contrary to them. For the first time we can also analyze the Apollo pictures in detail, with the aid of some among the top photographers in the world. What was the Apollo project really? The biggest achievement in the history of mankind, or the biggest fakery of all times, watched on live television by more than half a billion people?

Schlaue neue Welt - Das KI-Wettrennen

The race for supremacy in the age of artificial intelligence is on: between the USA, China and Europe. Between big tech companies and start-ups. Who will win the competition? Will Europe be left behind? And who will determine a technology that will shape the future of humanity?

In Our Day

Hanchul has been running a small neighborhood supermarket in Hoengseong, Gangwon Province, for decades. Over time, he faces the wear and tear of the store's belongings.

Reinventing Mirazur

Mirazur, Argentine-born chef Mauro Colagreco's 3 Michelin starred restaurant on France's Mediterranean coast, was awarded Best Restaurant in the World on the eve of the pandemic. Not content to rest on their laurels, Colagreco and his diverse team soldiered on through the global tragedy of the lockdown, boldly reimagining the restaurant's concept and menu to reflect their dedication to biodynamic principles. Mirazur re-emerged with a new and enthusiastic approach: the Moon Menu.

Jugend, Sex und Internet - Wenn Teenager Pornos gucken

Young people are discovering pornography at an increasingly early age. How does this early exposure affect them? Filmed in Europe and the United States, this is a comprehensive and nuanced scientific overview of a massive phenomenon.