A Life Among Whales

The White Planet

March 2006 •French

The White Planet or in French, La Planète Blanche, is a 2006 documentary about the wildlife of the Arctic. It shows interactions between marine animals, birds and land animals, especially the polar bear, over a one year period. The fragility of the Arctic is hinted at as a reason to prevent climate change. It was nominated for the Documentary category in the 27th Genie Awards in 2007.

Island of Whales

January 1990 •English

This film joins five of the world's leading whale researchers on a scientific expedition around Canada's Vancouver Island. Spectacular photography and sound recording, both above and under water, provide an imtimate look at killer, gray, and humpback whales, and the world they inhabit. Island of Whales examines the communication, habitat, food supply and behaviour of whales. What emerges is a picture of creatures more sophisticated and complex than ever before imagined. At the end of the film, we are left with one compelling question: Can these magnificent creatures survive in the face of declining food supplies and pollution?

Island Heroes: The Whale Rescuers of Campobello Island

January 2020 •German

Whales: An Unforgettable Journey

January 1997 •English

Scientists visit the remote surface and undersea locations to study various species of whales in their natural habitat.

The Mermaids' Tears: Oceans of Plastic

May 2009 •French

Every km of ocean now contains an average of 74,000 pieces of plastic. A 'plastic soup' of waste, killing hundreds of thousands of animals every year and leaching chemicals slowly up the food chain. In Holland, scientists found plastic in the stomachs of 95% of all fulmar birds. In Germany, plastic has been found to affect the reproductive systems of animals, while in the US, conservationists are seeing increasing numbers of dolphins die in agony, their guts blocked with rubbish. What will be the long term impact of this 'plastic pollution'? Can anything be done to clean up our oceans?

A Taste of Whale

May 2022 •English

In the Faroe Islands, hundreds of pilot whales are slaughtered each year in a hunt known as the “Grind.” This gruesome tradition has drawn outrage from activists, most notably the international conservation group Sea Shepherd, who routinely sail to the islands to try to block whaling boats. Yet the Faroese are equally determined to maintain their tradition, defending the practice as more sustainable and less cruel than getting meat from slaughterhouses. Director Vincent Kelner spends time with both Faroese hunters and Sea Shepherd crusaders, building to a nuanced look at a disturbing event with much larger implications for the way humans relate to other creatures.

Collision

April 2023 •English

Ocean Souls

December 2021 •English

Ocean Souls Films and Wildlife Media unite 100+ filmmakers, scientists, and leading experts to shine a bright, new spotlight on humanity’s closest living relatives - cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises). New footage and scientific discoveries reveal the extraordinary world beneath the ocean’s surface, where these majestic beings exhibit characteristics not unlike ours in terms of emotions, language, family, intelligence, and human interaction. Directed by Philip Hamilton, this multi-award-winning film inspires people to care and want to protect the oceans.

Sonic Sea

April 2016 •English

The devastating impact of industrial and military ocean noise on whales and other marine life.

A Whale’s Worth

June 2021 •Spanish

What is a whale worth? What price can be put on the life of such majestic animals? How can we estimate that cost? And how have humans changed the way they value whales throughout history? What are whales used for? What are they needed for? To answer these questions, and many more, Natacha Aguilar, eminent Canary Island marine biologist and expert in cetaceans, guides us on a spectacular – and highly personal – journey through time and space. With the help of a committed group of scientists and non-profit organizations, A Whale’s Worth discovers the remarkable, little-known lives of these animals.

Le retour des baleines à bosse

October 2025 •French

Blue Whales: Return of the Giants

May 2023 •English

Blue Whales: Return of the Giants 3D takes viewers on a journey of a lifetime to explore the world of the magnificent blue whale, a species rebounding from the brink of extinction. Following two scientific expeditions—one to find a missing population of blues off the exotic Seychelles Islands, the other to chronicle whale families in Mexico’s stunning Gulf of California—the film is an inspirational story that transforms our understanding of the largest animal ever to have lived.

Girt by Sea

February 2014 •English

Girt By Sea is a cinematic love letter to the coastline of Australia - a poetic celebration of our connection to the sea as documented through archival footage over the past 100 years.

Le clan des cachalots

November 2019 •French

Long massacred by whaling ships, sperm whales were almost driven to extinction. Saved when whale hunting ceased in the 1980s, the largest predators on the planet had, until then, always been studied from the surface, allowing their life beneath the seas to remain a mystery. For the first time, a team of scientific divers has literally become immersed in the day to day life of a clan.

Whales in a Changing Ocean

February 2021 •English

Wildlife photographer Richard Sidey joins an international team of whale research scientists in Antarctica to document their work on how Humpback Whales are adapting to a changing ocean.

Ocean Odyssey

May 2021 •English

Follow a three-month-old baby whale on a magical journey down one of the Earth’s great ocean highways to discover the incredible world of ocean currents. She will never know it, but as she swims with the flow of the current, her story becomes inexorably connected to our own. Ocean currents are hidden marine rivers that flow around the Earth. They are responsible for the fish we eat, the rain that feeds our crops, the snow that covers our mountains - even the air we breathe, and they have been helping to keep the temperature of our planet just right for life for millions of years. As our young whale goes with the flow of the current on a great migration from the warm tropics to the frozen ice floes of Antarctica, she meets the curious creatures that call the current home.

Patrick and the Whale

April 2024 •English

Marine videographer Patrick Dykstra explores the wondrous world of whales in this breathtaking and revealing documentary.

The Journey: Mother Ocean

May 2016 •French

Famous and talented feature film director and scriptwriter Jan Kounen plunges the viewer into a unique and thrilling adventure of pregnancy, birth, and baby’s first swim, alongside marine creatures. Leina Sato is a Japanese professional free diver and is expecting her first child. Her partner, Jean-Marie Ghislain is a famous underwater photographer. They share a passion for the oceans, and believe that a strong bond between a mother-to-be and cetaceans exists. And they want to prove it. Leina will be multiplying her encounters with whales, dolphins and other underwater mammals. Mother Ocean is the incredible encounter between humans and under water species, around the universal question of giving birth and the power of creating life.

Life in the Blue

December 2016 •English

This films reveals the extraordinary variety of life found in the vast blue expanses of the
open ocean. Here, all the action takes place in a 10 metre deep band of water, just under the surface. Many species use this section of water to migrate and hunt while others use ingenious ways to stay hidden where there appears to be no shelter.

The Cradle of Whales

May 2015 •English

Thanks to sophisticated equipment, marine biologists have managed to capture unprecedented scenes of the intimate life of humpback whales off the Australian coast. A spectacular immersion in the intimate life of this mysterious species. Off the coast of the Kimberley in northwestern Australia is a major breeding ground for humpback whales. Thanks to sophisticated equipment, such as aerial cameras on board quadrotors or innovative night vision technologies, Curt and Micheline Jenner, whale researchers, capture unprecedented scenes revealing the behavior of cetaceans.