Journey Along the Silk Road

Mysterious China: Marco Polo's Silk Road

February 2007 •English

Part two of the Mysterious China series chronicles Marco Polo's adventures and discoveries along the Silk Road as he heads toward the Mongol Empire in China. This documentary reveals the pivotal trade route as experienced and written about by the 13th-century explorer. Follow the tracks of the Venetian adventurer -- one of the first Westerners to journey into China -- and uncover the mysteries of the Silk Road.

Silk Road Ghosts

September 2014 •English

Silk Road Ghosts takes the viewer off the beaten path as I ply a circuit, following in the footsteps of the ancient conquerors, passing through some of the more remarkable parts of Central Asia's Silk Road. From Almaty in Kazakhstan, I set out towards a daunting rendezvous with the Darvasa Gas Crater in Turkmenistan. Along the way I dot many of the road's pivotal locations, bearing witness to its myriad ghosts which served to glorify the annals of our planet's history.

The Yellow Cruise

March 1934 •French

The Yellow Cruise is a French documentary film initially directed by André Sauvage and taken over by Léon Poirier following the intervention of André Citroën. The film was presented in Paris in 1934. André Sauvage was hired by the Pathé-Natan company to follow the yellow cruise through Asia. In 1931 and 1932, forty-two men, including Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, scholars and doctors traveled thirty thousand kilometers on the Silk Road through the Middle and Far East, in caterpillar propellants. Together, despite the bad weather, the difficulties of the terrain, the mechanical failures and the political conflicts, they reached Beijing on February 12, 1932. André Citroën who asked to see the film, dissatisfied with the result, bought it from Bernard Natan and entrusted the editing by Léon Poirier, who had filmed La Croisière Noire in Africa in 1926. This film will mark the break in the film career of André Sauvage.

The Silk Road

April 1980 •English

The NHK Tokushu and China's CCTV documentary series The Silk Road began on April 7, 1980. The program started with the memorable scene of a camel caravan crossing the desert against the setting sun, with Kitaro's music and a sense of timelessness. It was the start of an epic televisual poem. The first journey described in the series began in Chang'an (now Xi'an), at the eastern end of the ancient route. On 450,000 feet of film, the NHK crew recorded the path westward to the Pamir Heights at the Pakistan border and this material was edited to make 12 monthly broadcasts. In response to viewers' requests that the series be extended to cover the Silk Road all the way to Rome, sequels were made over the next 10 years. Seventeen years after the program was conceived, the project was completed.

A Rota: Silk Road

November 2023 •Portuguese

Internet Urban Legend

June 2014 •Japanese

A collection of 11 various urban legends from the internet.

Silk Road

February 2021 •English

Philosophical twenty-something Ross Ulbricht creates Silk Road, a dark net website that sells drugs, while DEA agent Rick Bowden goes undercover to bring him down.

Secrets of the Silk Road

Invalid date •English

The Silk Road, one of history's most famed trade routes, linked China to Europe, the Middle East and India and was traveled by such legends as Alexander the Great, Marco Polo and Genghis Khan's Mongol warriors. Follow in the footsteps of the iconic figures and see how the road's ancient past is wrapped up in the fast-changing world of modern China, particularly the country's remote western region.

Niñato

April 2017 •Spanish

Jobless and with no prospects, Niñato (Brat) lives with his parents and does hip-hop music. He lives the life of the outskirts, it's the Madrid of the chronic crisis. But he is 34 years old and has three children to bring up. Time goes by, the kids are growing up and Niñato carries on, making music and looking after the children, without worrying too much about his future. Oro, the smallest one, not too motivated at school, will demand more attention and drive Niñato to face his own conflicts.

Long Echo

April 2020 •German

Dobropillia is a town located in Eastern Ukraine: 70 km from the border where conflicts with the breakaway republics are raging on and people feel always like being on the verge of total war. The sheer uncertainty about the future pushes folks to cling on to their daily habits while trying to get along with the ever-shifting political landscape. A wide array of wildly diversified characters try to cope as good as they can with the hardships in their town. A death metal band keeps rehearsing daily. A teacher guides visitors through the story of the city. The wonders of a vibrating armchair are tested as a tool against stress and anxiety. An elderly lady who has lost her son tries to talk some sense into her fellow citizens urging them to accept peace.

Cassini's Grand Finale

April 2017 •English

To help visualize the dramatic final chapter in Cassini's remarkable story, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this short film that features beautiful computer-generated animation, thoughtful narration and a rousing score. Producers at JPL worked with filmmaker Erik Wernquist, known for his 2014 short film "Wanderers," to create a stirring finale video befitting one of NASA's most successful missions of exploration.

Encyclopedia

July 1998 •Spanish

Hollywood - The Second Step

June 1936 •English

This short follows the early career of actress Jane Barnes. She starts by doing extra work. After several months she is offered a studio contract (the "first step"). However, her work consists mostly of fashion shoots and bit parts that end up on the cutting room floor. She is even used as a stand-in for Maureen O'Sullivan on the set of a Tarzan movie when camera angles and lighting must be set up.

Wasted! The Story of Food Waste

July 2017 •English

See how the world’s most influential chefs battle food waste through the eyes of chef-heroes like Massimo Bottura, Dan Barber and Danny Bowien.

The Last Animals

May 2017 •English

The Last Animals is a story about an extraordinary group of people who go to incredible lengths to save the planet's last animals. The documentary follows the conservationists, scientists and activists battling poachers and transnational trafficking syndicates to protect elephants and rhinos from extinction. From Africa's front lines to behind the scenes of Asian markets, the film takes an intense look at the global response to this slaughter and the desperate measures to genetically rescue the Northern White rhinos who are on the edge of extinction.

A River Below

April 2017 •English

Deep in the Amazon, the population of the indigenous pink river dolphin is dwindling. Docile and easy to catch, this near-mythical animal is being hunted to extinction and used as bait for scavenger fish. But two activists are each working tirelessly to raise awareness and protect the species. On the one hand a marine biologist and on the other a famous TV star, each has their own very different approach to their one common goal.

Motherland

February 2010 •English

Fusing history, culture, politics, and contemporary issues, Motherland sweeps across Africa to tell a new story of a dynamic continent. From the glory and majesty of Africa's past through its complex history. Africa as you have never seen it.

Jekyll Island, The Truth Behind The Federal Reserve

October 2013 •English

This film is about the greatest rip-off in history - the very way money and debt are created and controlled. This affects everyone on the planet, and is the basic cause of all of our economic problems today. Until we all recognize this - in every nation - there is nothing any national government does will fix the problem, and all of us will see mounting debts and sinking standards of living. Our children will inherit this mess, and it will get worse every single year. The truth is that depressions are NOT normal. They are contrived. The truth is that nations don't need a national debt. The truth is that nations don't have to borrow. Why would you borrow when you can create the money you need? The truth is that governments generally aren't PRINTING money wildly; governments are BORROWING money wildly. The good news is we CAN fix this. It won't take a war or a revolution; it only takes a simple understanding of the problem, and its simple solution. The truth is that ANYONE can

The L.A. Riots: 25 Years Later

April 2017 •English

HISTORY brings you an all-encompassing documentary event cantered around the 25th anniversary of the LA Riots, the most destructive riot in American history that left 53 people dead and caused over a billion dollars in damage.

From the Ashes

April 2017 •English

Capturing Americans in communities across the country as they wrestle with the legacy of the coal industry and what its future should be under the Trump Administration. From Appalachia to the West’s Powder River Basin, the film goes beyond the rhetoric of the “war on coal” to present compelling and often heartbreaking stories about what’s at stake for our economy, health, and climate.