Mandemænd

Union with David Olusoga

National identity, social class, inequality. David Olusoga shines a light on our fractured modern society through the lens of the past, exposing the fault lines dividing the UK.

Megacitys - Wenn es Nacht wird in ...

Glittering facades, vibrant life, and people facing the daily struggle for survival. ZDF correspondents each profile a megacity within their reporting area. How do people celebrate, laugh, and love in such a city? How are problems like housing shortages, food supply, transportation, and climate change solved – in metropolises with over ten million inhabitants?

The Most Dangerous Animal of All

Soon after his birth-mother contacted him for the first time, Gary L. Stewart decided to search for his biological father. His disturbing identity would force Stewart to reconsider everything he thought he knew about himself.

Unhappy

What do we need to live a happy life? Follow Ronja von Rönne, author and self-proclaimed sceptic, as she explores this age-old question by meeting people with fascinating or surprising answers. A unique insight into the different mindsets and strategies that people employ to find happiness.

China: The Making of a Nation

China: The Making of a Nation is the story of the painful transformation of the vast Qing Empire into the Chinese nation after the 1911 revolution. Spanning more than a century up to the Xi Jinping era, the story pits the two pivotal leaders of this transformation against each other: Chiang Kai-shek, leader of the Republic of China for 47 years, and Mao Zedong, who rose from ‘red bandit’ to master of the mainland in 1949. Sworn enemies, they fought a merciless battle: first military, then diplomatic, and finally, beyond their deaths, in the conflicting memories of the Taiwanese and the Chinese of the People's Republic. Beyond their fierce hatred, the two tyrants also had much in common: a certain vision of Chinese territory and the greatness of China, the desire to regain the country's sovereignty and the quest for a Chinese identity in a nation that also includes Tibetans, Uighurs, Mongols... and a certain ability to rewrite history.

Grayson Perry’s Big American Road Trip

Artist and social commentator Grayson Perry crosses the US, exploring its biggest fault lines, from race to class and identity, making art as he goes

Ireland - The Emerald Isle rediscovered

The journey through Ireland begins in the Rugged North, in the middle of the rough and untamed nature. From there, we travel to the West of Ireland, where the original, traditional life is preserved. From the traditional west, our route takes us to the popular south, with a milder climate and lush vegetation. Our journey ends in the lively East, where the contrast between today and the past is not only palpable, but also visible. On our journey we meet people who would never leave their homeland despite the harsh living conditions, we wander through spectacular landscapes, get an insight into the traditional ways of life and experience the four sides of Ireland in a completely new way.

China with Ben Fogle

In beautifully crafted episodes, presenter Ben Fogle embarks on a once-in-a-lifetime journey to understand China - to see its most staggering sights, go beyond the stereotypes and discover its true identity. Ben delves into an epic 3000-year tale of how China has got to where it is today - how centuries of Imperial rule gave way to Communist revolution under Chairman Mao and the breakneck economic transformation as the state capitalist China of recent years has emerged. Mixing both the experiences from the people themselves, and a tour of this magnificent region Ben takes the temperature of a country now at the very centre of humanity in the 21st century. So why and how has contemporary China become so important to all our lives?

WM 1994 - Elf Helden, ein Albtraum

For the 1994 World Cup, Germany entered as the favorite and defending champion, but was eliminated in the quarterfinals. Internal conflicts, media campaigns, and public criticism of coach Berti Vogts led the so-called "eleven friends" – players like Lothar Matthäus, Jürgen Klinsmann, Stefan Effenberg, Bodo Illgner, and Matthias Sammer – to maneuver themselves into a collective nightmare within just a few weeks. This documentary takes a behind-the-scenes look at Germany’s memorable World Cup and shows how one of the strongest German teams of all time spectacularly failed.

Grayson Perry Has Seen the Future

Artist Sir Grayson Perry visits Silicon Valley to explore how AI and robotics will shape the future, in a series that raises profound questions about what it is to be human.

he-Motions

A two part film series exploring the struggles, strength & healing of Black men. “My Vulnerability is NOT weakness.”

Prendre la parole

Revolutionary Girl Utena

"Never lose that strength or nobility, even when you grow up." When Utena was just a child and in the depths of sorrow, she found salvation in those words. They were the words of a prince, who bestowed upon her both a ring and the promise that it would lead her to him again. She never forgot the encounter. Now a teenager, Utena attends the prestigious Ohtori Academy; however, her strong sense of chivalry soon places her at odds with the student council and thrusts her into a series of mysterious and dangerous duels against its members.

Plum

Peter Lum, a football star, lives an ideal life in Cronulla until a diagnosis links his concussions to a brain disorder. Unable to accept it, he tries escaping through pub nights but his ex-wife and son know the game caused his downfall.

Take a Letter, Mr Jones

Take a Letter, Mr Jones was a short-lived 1981 British sitcom produced by Southern Television for ITV. It ran for a single series of six episodes. Graham Jones works as personal secretary to female executive Joan Warner within a London-based multinational corporation called 8-Star. Although he ably assists her in their busy office, Graham often helps Joan with her equally hectic domestic arrangements as she is a single mother to seven-year-old Lucy.

Beforeigners

In the near future a new phenomenon starts happening all over the world with powerful flashes of light occurring in the ocean and people from the past mysteriously reappearing. Called "beforeigners," these people come from three separate time periods: the Stone Age, the Viking era and late 19th century. A couple of years later, Alfhildr – who comes from the Viking Age – has to partner up with a burned-out police officer, Lars Haaland, to investigate the murder of a beforeigner. The pair begins to unravel a larger conspiracy behind the origin of the mysterious mass arrivals.

Sense8

One gunshot, one death, one moment out of time that irrevocably links eight minds in disparate parts of the world, putting them in each other's lives, each other's secrets, and in terrible danger. Ordinary people suddenly reborn as "Sensates."

Young Americans

Young Americans is an American television drama. The show explores themes of forbidden love, morality, social classes and gender roles.

T-REX

Édouard does not meet the popular standards of virility, and this generates in him a feeling of inferiority. During a weekend at the chalet with Renaud and Xavier, his childhood friends, he discovers that despite their mutual affection, they no longer have a positive influence on each other, being trapped in a dangerous game of virility.

You Me Her

An unusual, real-world romance involving relatable people, with one catch - there are three of them! You Me Her infuses the sensibilities of a smart, grounded indie rom-com with a distinctive twist: one of the two parties just happens to be a suburban married couple.