Asgard

Author Helen Macdonald follows Britain’s greatest river over four seasons, encountering salmon, beavers and the microscopic creatures helping to answer science's biggest questions.

Deep in Mexico’s mushroom-rich forests, two women from indigenous communities have become mycologists. This immersive sci-fi documentary follows their unusual, fungi-driven paths as they seek to reconcile the past and present while reimagining the future for themselves and the changing world they inhabit.

How have the changing views on children been reflected in their representation in art? From Baby Jesus to the first photographic portraits, an exploration of six centuries of art history through the prism of childhood.

"Meat Joy is an erotic rite — excessive, indulgent, a celebration of flesh as material: raw fish, chicken, sausages, wet paint, transparent plastic, ropes, brushes, paper scrap. Its propulsion is towards the ecstatic — shifting and turning among tenderness, wildness, precision, abandon; qualities that could at any moment be sensual, comic, joyous, repellent. Physical equivalences are enacted as a psychic imagistic stream, in which the layered elements mesh and gain intensity by the energy complement of the audience. The original performances became notorious and introduced a vision of the 'sacred erotic.' This video was converted from original film footage of three 1964 performances of Meat Joy at its first staged performance at the Festival de la Libre Expression, Paris, Dennison Hall, London, and Judson Church, New York City."

This documentary features a kinetic artist who creates vibrant mixed media works that push the boundary between 2D and 3D.

Steve Backshall visits a hedgehog rescue centre in Surrey founded by Brian May. He meets the dedicated staff and discovering the stories behind some of the animals being treated, helps to release a successfully treated hedgehog back into the wild, and offers advice on how to make a garden into a welcoming environment for the creatures.

OCEAN PARADISE unveils the secrets of the Pacific Ocean’s most remote islands and marine national monuments, immersing viewers in the pristine beauty of distant landscapes and reefs that defy the encroachment of civilization. This spellbinding adventure provides audiences with new insights and appreciation for the wonders of nature, and our efforts to preserve these almost-sacred places for future generations.

Documentary about the creation of the artwork Fryske Motor.

The film is a transfixing “flicker” film that distills the cinematic experience to projected light and color patterns, allowing “the viewer to become aware of the electrical-chemical functioning of his own nervous system.”

An underwater exploration beneath kelp forests in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California. The film captures the birth of a shark, squids mating, a lobster molting, a fish protecting its nest from an octopus and a sea urchin, and the sea bed covered with brittle stars.

Mountain Gorilla takes us to a remote range of volcanic mountains in Africa, described by those who have been there as ""one of the most beautiful places in the world"", and home to the few hundred remaining mountain gorillas. In spending a day with a gorilla family in the mountain forest, audiences will be captivated by these intelligent and curious animals, as they eat, sleep, play and interact with each other. Although gorillas have been much-maligned in our popular culture, viewers will finally ""meet the legend"" face to face, and learn about their uncertain future.

The film tells the story of the intimate and unprecedented encounter between the photojournalists of the Magnum Agency and the world of cinema. The confrontation of two seemingly opposite worlds – fiction and reality. For 70 years their paths crossed: a family of photographers, amongst them the biggest names in photography, and a family of actors and filmmakers who helped write the history of cinema, from John Huston to Marilyn Monroe to Orson Welles, Kate Winslet and Sean Penn.

Danusia and her daughter Basia live far away from the modern world, in tune with the rhythm and laws of nature, among animals and the spirits of the dead. The peace and sense of security offered by their enclave come at a price - the women increasingly long for contact with other people. Bucolic is an affectionate observation of people who live in a different way. It evokes a curiosity about their world and a desire to take a closer look.

"Africa Light" - as white local citizens call Namibia. The name suggests romance, the beauty of nature and promises a life without any problems in a country where the difference between rich and poor could hardly be greater. Namibia does not give that impression of it. If you look at its surface it seems like Africa in its most innocent and civilized form. It is a country that is so inviting to dream by its spectacular landscape, stunning scenery and fascinating wildlife. It has a very strong tourism structure and the government gets a lot of money with its magical attraction. But despite its grandiose splendor it is an endless gray zone as well. It oscillates between tradition and modernity, between the cattle in the country and the slums in the city. It shuttles from colonial times, land property reform to minimum wage for everyone. It fluctuates between socialism and cold calculated market economy.

Bombarded by thousands of images every day, are we still able to truly see them, especially those of conflict and its aftermath? Helen Doyle takes us on a quest for the meaning of images and discovers a vast palette of contrasting images which shock and compel.

‘de waanzin van het detail’ paints a portrait of the contemporary painter sam dillemans. To dillemans, who lives in borgerhout, van gogh, picasso, rubens or goya are not painters of yesterday but of today. They inspire him on a daily basis and at the same time their crushing genius also depresses him. In addition to being a very talented artist sam dillemans is so a gifted storyteller. While working on a self-portrait in his studio, he talks about his life and his work, how it relates to cultural history, the sacrifices painting demands and how people can learn to interpret paintings.

A Weaverly Path offers an intimate portrait of Swiss-born tapestry weaver Silvia Heyden. The film captures the inner dialogue and meditations of an extraordinary artist in the moments of creation. Heyden works for over a year to create works inspired by the Eno River in Durham, North Carolina. And she shares how nature, music, her Bauhaus inspired education at the School of the Arts in Zurich and her life experiences anchor and inform her art. Heyden was a 20th century modernist whose body of work redefines the art of modern tapestry.

Speaking Eyes

Venom expert Dr. Bryan Fry embarks on a dangerous island journey to uncover the deadly secrets of vipers, stonefish and the formidable Komodo dragon.

Martin Blaszko is considered one of the most important artists of geometric abstraction in Latin America. This documentary, which ends a trilogy, follows the setup of what ended up being his last art show, through only twenty sequences.