Street Scene in unidentified European city

Sunderland

Poor pedestrian, horse drawn carts, wagons and bus travel across bridge at Sunderland, Tyne and Wear.

What We Can Know About Edmond and Basile

An exploration of Edmond Dédé and Basile Barès were 19th-century New Orleans composers of color. Dédé, born free, was an orchestral composer and violist, known for his opera Morgiane. Barès, born into slavery, was a pianist and composer of music for dance halls, unique for being the only known American composer with a copyright assigned to his work while enslaved.

Fall 2

Bas Jan Ader rides his bike into a canal in Amsterdam.

Fire Brigade

4 horse drawn fire brigade carts pull out from Newcastle fire station in the UK as part of a filmed demonstration

Dignitaries Coming Down Gangplank

Actuality film. Late 19th century General Officer ranks and higher cross to a ship over a gangplank. As VIPs they meet some people which we don't get to see, then cross back again, getting caught in a crowd melée at the top of the stairs from the quayside.

Abegweit

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.

Dawn of Impressionism: Paris 1874

The Impressionists are the most popular group in art history – millions flock every year to marvel at their masterpieces. But, to begin with, they were scorned, penniless outsiders. 1874 was the year that changed everything; the first Impressionists, “hungry for independence”, broke the mould by holding their own exhibition outside official channels. Impressionism was born and the art world was changed forever. What led to that first groundbreaking show 150 years ago? Who were the maverick personalities that wielded their brushes in such a radical and provocative way? The spectacular Musée d’Orsay exhibition brings fresh eyes to this extraordinary tale of passion and rebellion. The story is told not by historians and curators but in the words of those who witnessed the dawn of Impressionism: the artists, press and people of Paris, 1874.

L’épopée des vignerons

Jesse James: Legend, Outlaw, Terrorist

One of the most controversial figures in U.S. history, Jesse James has captured the imagination of the world for more than a century. Teen guerilla fighter, Civil War soldier, notorious bandit, James holds a place in popular legend like no other. Through expert accounts, historic analysis and forensic science, this revealing exposé traces the outlaw's life from his humble Southern childhood through his rise to infamy and his mysterious death.

Maillart's Bridges

Famed Swiss architect and artist Robert Maillart was renowned for his concrete bridges; this documentary examines the elegant design of his engineering masterpieces, which, the film argues, embrace both functionality and aesthetics. Instead of following a traditional journalistic structure, director Heinz Emigholz's spellbinding film reads more like ethereal visual poetry, allowing the beauty of Maillart's work to speak for itself.

Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West

Explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark lead a U.S. expedition to the Pacific Ocean and back.

The Mountain of the Lord

Recounts the 40-year history of building the Salt Lake Temple, shown as if recounted by Wilford Woodruff to a young reporter. It portrays the pioneers' dedication to temple worship.

Paname: The Ghost of the Great Frenchman

Ferdinand de Lesseps, known as “The Great Frenchman”, will embark in the greatest adventure of his life: To unite the Pacific and Atlantic oceans through a Canal in the Isthmus of Panama – without knowing that this will cost him his reputation, thousands of innocent lives and the biggest financial scandal of all time, up to that point: the famous “Scandal of Panama”. Today, the French capital is known as “Paname”.

Closure

After his teenage son goes missing, Daniel scours the depths of the Vistula River, torn between the dread of a fatal leap and the hope that his son may still be alive.

Vincenz Priessnitz

From Bella Coola to Berlin

In 1885, German Zoo owner Carl Hagenbeck hired nine Aboriginal men from Bella Coola to perform their dances and songs for German audiences. The nine dancers spent one year in Germany performing in zoos and theatres in 22 cities. During summer 2005, the Canadian filmmaker Barbara Hager came to Germany to retrace the steps of the nine Nuxalk men on their original 13 month long tour.

Tea War: The Adventures of Robert Fortune

In the 19th century, China held the monopoly on tea, which was dear and fashionable in the West, and the British Empire exchanged poppies, produced in its Indian colonies and transformed into opium, for Chinese tea. Inundated by the drugs, China was forced to open up its market, and the British consolidated their commercial dominance. In 1839, the Middle Empire introduced prohibition. The Opium War was declared… Great Britain emerged as the winner, but the warning was heeded: it could no longer depend on Chinese tea. The only alternative possible was to produce its own tea. The East India Company therefore entrusted one man with finding the secrets of the precious beverage. His mission was to develop the first plantations in Britain’s Indian colonies. This latter-day James Bond was called Robert Fortune – a botanist. After overcoming innumerable ordeals in the heart of imperial China, he brought back the plants and techniques that gave rise to Darjeeling tea.

Passage of Venus

Photo sequence of the rare transit of Venus over the face of the Sun, one of the first chronophotographic sequences. In 1873, P.J.C. Janssen, or Pierre Jules César Janssen, invented the Photographic Revolver, which captured a series of images in a row. The device, automatic, produced images in a row without human intervention, being used to serve as photographic evidence of the passage of Venus before the Sun, in 1874.

Elgar: Fantasy of a Composer on a Bicycle

Russell revisits the life of composer Edward Elgar, using his own music as the score and featuring evocative, visually rich scenes, often set in the Malvern Hills where Elgar grew up.

Eiffel's Race to the Top

Behind the iconic Eiffel Tower lies the story of an incredible challenge to erect a thousand-foot tower that went far beyond a design competition, and marked a major turning point in engineering history. It was the beginning of radical transformation where iron was pitted against stone, engineering against architecture, and modern design against ancients. Press campaigns, lobbying, public conferences, denigration of opposing projects, bragging about big names - all participants engaged in a fierce battle without concession. Using 3D recreations, official sources (reports, letters, drawings...) and intimate archives obtained from their descendants, this film will bring to life this vertical race through a fresh and visual way to mark the centenary of Eiffel death.