Poverty in the USA

For far too many, the American Dream will forever remain unattainable and unfulfilled. Plagued by skyrocketing costs and stagnant wages, it's more common than ever for average middle-income Americans to tumble into a life of poverty and despair. The DW Documentary series explores this troubling phenomenon in Poverty in the USA, a searing profile of the rising...

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Baalbek Megaliths

Though they've been ravaged by a history of armed conflict, earthquakes and the natural erosion and desecration of time, the Baalbek ruins continue to incite awe in everyone fortunate to visit them. Located near the Lebanon capital of Beirut, these ruins mark the remains of an ancient Roman temple complex which served as one of the most important holy sites in the...

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Anatomy of a Bribe

Working in conjunction with Wikileaks, the highly reputable Al Jazeera Investigates goes deep inside a complex and corrupt system with Anatomy of a Bribe. The film weaves a disturbing tale involving high ranking African government officials, large multi-national corporations, and the illegal transfer of millions of dollars to curry political favor. The corporation in...

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LSD is Back

Many people associate LSD with the era of long hair, tie-dye shirts and bell bottomed pants. But this popular hallucinogenic drug never really went away. In fact, it's currently undergoing a bit of a resurgence as a medicinal self-help tool. Produced by the German-based series DW Documentary, LSD is Back examines the veracity of these claims. The film provides a...

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Into the Unknown

In 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope was launched on its first mission outside Earth's orbit. In the years since, it has proven an invaluable tool to better understanding the nature of our universe. Its functions helped scientists at NASA determine the age of the universe, the existence of dark energy and the presence of multiple black holes throughout space. Not...

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White Right: Meeting the Enemy

Activist and filmmaker Deeyah Khan attempts to extract a sense of humanity from the dark heart of racism in White Right: Meeting the Enemy, a documentary that places her in the center of the violent extremist movement in America. Following a similar expose, Khan received a flurry of vitriolic and threatening messages. For this project, she sets out to face down this...

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Mystery Mind Maps

Street art is a vibrant form of expression all across the Asian cityscapes. But in Bangkok, one artist has taken the form to an intriguing extreme. Distinguished by a series of equations, slanted lines, circled objects and cryptic phrases written in both Thai and English, the art resembles a treasure map of some sort. For Raphael Treza, the director of the...

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Dominion

There's a stark contrast between the wholesome image Big Agriculture wants to project to the public and the grotesque realities that exist within the confines of their slaughterhouse factories. We witness this contrast from the opening frames of Dominion as it cuts from the graceful glides of polished drone footage to graphic and grainy surveillance videos of animal...

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Luxury: Behind the Mirror

From coats to handbags, the demand for brand name fashion accessories is at an all-time high. Beyond the glamorous façade lies a culture that thrives on the exploitation and abuse of its migrant workers. The DW Documentary Luxury: Behind the Mirror infiltrates these factories, farms and tanneries to expose the real cost of high fashion. We all know the brand name...

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Exposing Jeffrey Epstein

60 Minutes Australia tackles one of the most disturbing stories of recent times with Exposing Jeffrey Epstein, a sobering examination of the billionaire rapist and the ocean of questions that remain unanswered in the wake of his suspicious death. A highly successful financier, Epstein lived a grand life of private jets and private islands. But there was a side of...

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The Art of Effortless Living

Our modern age is polluted by urgent deadlines, endless responsibilities, and constant distractions. The challenges of simple living can sometimes feel overwhelming. For many, Taoism offers the building blocks to a more insightful and empowered existence amongst the chaos. The feature-length documentary The Art of Effortless Living explores these tenants of Taosim,...

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The Silent Summer: Why are Insects Dying?

For well over 400 million years, insects have played an essential role in the evolution of our ecosystem. While many may take them for granted, their extinction could spell catastrophe for the planet at large. Sadly, this scenario is currently playing out across the globe. The Silent Summer: Why Are Insects Dying? explores our dependence upon the insect population,...

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Fire in Paradise

The town of Paradise, California was aptly named. Beautiful, serene, and shrouded in the shelter of comforting trees, the town felt like the epitome of ideal California living. That was before the fire that decimated much of the town and its adjacent communities. In Fire in Paradise, the PBS Frontline series revisits the scene one year following the Camp Fire to...

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Red Flags

For several years, Australia's security agencies have warned the country's universities about the potential for foreign interference. Behind closed doors, they even name their chief culprit: Beijing. Why would the Chinese have an interest in infiltrating Australian universities, and what could these acts of espionage mean for the integrity of the educational system...

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Panic: The Untold Story of the 2008 Financial Crisis

The 2008 financial crisis brought forth an overwhelming sense of distrust and fury from consumers. It's a condition that continues to fester and boil to this day, and its lessons remain relevant and timely. Produced by VICE News, Panic: The Untold Story of the 2008 Financial Crisis is a feature-length documentary that attempts to break down the complex series of...

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Festival Drugs: Meet the Dealers

A three-part investigative documentary produced by BBC Three, Festival Drugs: Meet the Dealers goes undercover to infiltrate the criminal organizations that routinely prey upon young festival goers. In the early moments of the first segment, The Party Traffickers, the filmmakers enter the home of a dealer who specializes in the manufacture of party drugs. Keeping his...

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The Race is On

The race in question is the one we must take to avoid future climate catastrophe. Subtitled Secrets and Solutions, The Race is On paints a stark portrait of the current state of global warming, but offers notes of hopeful idealism as it outlines the power we still possess to save our planet. Produced in the UK, the film offers insights from top climate scientists who...

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Testosterone: The Making of a Man

Aggression, boldness, and brawn are all adjectives our society might apply when describing the testosterone-driven male. But the true effects of testosterone are much more subtle and varied than these descriptors would suggest. The DW Documentary series examines the truths behind the most important male hormone with the fascinating Testosterone: The Making of a Man....

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Space Shuttle: The Human Time Bomb

On February 1, 2003, as the Space Shuttle Columbia was making its re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, the craft began to disintegrate and tear apart. All seven crew members were killed. The tragic demise of Flight STS-107 immediately brought back traumatic memories of the Challenger explosion in 1986. How could something like happen again? Space Shuttle: The Human...

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Square One

Square One mounts a full-throated defense of Michael Jackson against the charges of pedophilia that plagued him in the latter part of his life and career. The centerpiece of the film lies in its debunking of the initial allegations made against Jackson in 1993. If those allegations can be disproven, the film seems to be arguing, then the subsequent charges against...

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The Great Leap Forward

Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the most significant leaps forward in the world of innovative technologies. The general public's knowledge of AI might be limited to its fanciful portrayals in modern TV and film, but how much of this representation is truly authentic? Will AI bring about a fundamental change in our lives, and what are its potential benefits and...

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Tim Burton: The Twisted Story of the Eccentric Filmmaker

Since he first burst onto the movie scene with his 1985 debut film Pee-wee's Big Adventure, director Tim Burton has amassed a reputation as one of the Hollywood's most unique and creative visual artists. In this documentary, Screen Rant attempts to dissect the influences the helped to shape Burton's unusual vision, and the peaks and valleys that have since come to...

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Addicted: America's Opioid Crisis

It begins with the children. Haunted by abandonment and other horrors they are far too young to fully process, they testify to the toll their parent's addiction has taken on them. These opening moments of the BBC Three documentary Addicted: America's Opioid Crisis set the stage for a harrowing portrait of hellish descent. This crisis originated from a position of...

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Plastic Tide: Choking on Coke

Plastic pollution is suffocating our oceans, and leading to the destruction of multiple species of fish. One of the largest producers of plastic bottles - Coca-Cola - has promised to take steps to curb this environmental crisis. Are these empty promises or is Coke really dedicated to enacting meaningful change? The DW Documentary series takes this major corporation...

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Kate: The Making of a Modern Queen

Blessed by a natural poise, beauty and elegance, the Duchess of Cambridge has brought new interest and scrutiny to the royal family. She is now the Queen in waiting, but that reality is far removed from her previous life. Kate: The Making of a Modern Queen explores this invigorating figure, and how she might redefine the global perception of British royalty in the...

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