Atonement

Making An Ancient Forest - Kalkalpen National Park

May 2015 •German

This film, three years in the making, The remote forests of Kalkalpen National Park in Austria, the largest area of wilderness in the European Alps, have been left untouched by humans for nearly a quarter of a century in order to return to their natural, primeval state. The landscape regenerates itself in dramatic cycles of growth and decay, and this bold hands-off method of conservation yields salient results: the lynx, absent from the area for 115 years, has returned.

Best of Worlds: Life at its Alpine Limits

August 2014 •English

For 5000 years, man has sought to inhabit the more accessible areas of Europe, but at its very heart, in the high zones of the Alps, there exists a world parallel to ours. This is a world in which species have survived dramatic climatic upheavals, human exploitation of the land, and now the pressures of mass tourism. The Alps are home to plants and animals that owe their success to an amazing capacity to live in conditions that, for other species–humans included–would be barely tolerable. For them, however, this is everyday life.

Careless Reef part 2: Abu Kiffan

July 2005 •English

Abu Kiffan is the name of a reef near Safaga in Egypt. In the film we are drowned in sound, time slows down and we are given a closer look at what’s going on. Part two of Holthuis’ series Careless Reef, four films about the world under water.

Deutschlands wilde Vögel

October 2013 •German

Time is the Thief of Memory

March 2024 •English

A meditation on memory around Iceland's famous Ring Road.

Grizzly Man

July 2005 •English

Werner Herzog's documentary film about the "Grizzly Man" Timothy Treadwell and what the thirteen summers in a National Park in Alaska were like in one man's attempt to protect the grizzly bears. The film is full of unique images and a look into the spirit of a man who sacrificed himself for nature.

An Inconvenient Truth

May 2006 •English

A documentary on Al Gore's campaign to make the issue of global warming a recognized problem worldwide.

March of the Penguins

January 2005 •French

Every year, thousands of Antarctica's emperor penguins make an astonishing journey to breed their young. They walk, marching day and night in single file 70 miles into the darkest, driest and coldest continent on Earth. This amazing, true-life tale is touched with humour and alive with thrills. Breathtaking photography captures the transcendent beauty and staggering drama of devoted parent penguins who, in the fierce polar winter, take turns guarding their egg and trekking to the ocean in search of food. Predators hunt them, storms lash them. But the safety of their adorable chicks makes it all worthwhile. So follow the leader... to adventure!!

Microcosmos

September 1996 •French

A documentary of insect life in meadows and ponds, using incredible close-ups, slow motion, and time-lapse photography. It includes bees collecting nectar, ladybugs eating mites, snails mating, spiders wrapping their catch, a scarab beetle relentlessly pushing its ball of dung uphill, endless lines of caterpillars, an underwater spider creating an air bubble to live in, and a mosquito hatching.

AN 27

July 2015 •French

Last of the Longnecks

Invalid date •English

Last of the Longnecks is a documentary exploring the plight of giraffes and the implications of their demise in our rapidly changing world. With the energy of VIRUNGA, the film celebrates what makes these majestic animals so unique, sheds light on their struggle, and further explores what hope can be found in the tangled relationship between humanity and nature.

Bloodsuckers

October 2000 •English

Documentary about creatures that have vampire tendencies, including bloodsucking moths in South America, vampire finches that drink the blood of other birds, and mosquitos.

Mabu: Saving the Secret Forest

July 2024 •English

We follow a team of scientists on a gruelling expedition into a remote rainforest in Mozambique. They're hoping to prove that Mount Mabu's animals and insects are unique and in need of official protection.

A Place of Our Own

March 2014 •Italian

Balance of Life

October 2012 •English

“Balance of Life” is a film about life’s and human kinds’ fight to find the balance between our own evolving life style and the nature of the planet we inhabit. The human race is drifting further and further away from its real roots and from what being a human is really about. The speed of development has increased to a state where humans have a hard time keeping up. We find ourselves in a situation where both our own and the planets’ wellbeing is severely threatened. As a last resort human is relying on faith to find the balance. Is faith the last defense of man or is this world guided by forces greater than us? Is this force God, evolution or just the mere sum of coincidences that formed the universe, the natural order and laws of physics?’ Watch it here (https://vimeo.com/51203265)

My Tiger Family

August 2024 •English

In the jungles of north west India, there lives a remarkable wild tiger family. Now, using 50 years of footage, the story of their matriarchal clan is pieced together.

Wild Lapland

December 2020 •English

Snow blankets the trees and green lights dance in a star-filled sky. For a brief time during the festive season, our thoughts turn to a winter wonderland, far to the north. It’s a place best known to outsiders as Lapland, the magical home of Santa Claus. But far from the festive lights, Santa’s home is even more enchanting than you may realise.

The Undamaged

October 2018 •Slovenian

The Balkans cradles Europe's last wild rivers and supports abundant wildlife and healthy, intact ecosystems. These rivers are "The Undamaged" – clean, pristine, and undammed. With over 2,700 small and large hydro power plants planned or under construction in the Balkans, corruption and greed are destroying the last free-flowing rivers of Europe. Follow the Balkan Rivers Tour, a rowdy crew of whitewater kayakers, filmers, photographers and friends who decided to stand up for the rivers, travelling from Slovenia to Albania for 36 days, kayaking 23 rivers in 6 countries to protest the dams and show the world the secret wild rivers of the Balkans. The film honours everyday people and local activists who are fighting to defend rivers and aims to spread the word of the plight of these rivers, showing a new style of nature conservation that is fun, energetic and effective.

Animal Olympians

July 1980 •English

Animal Olympians examines the extraordinary athletic prowess of the animal kingdom, comparing and contrasting the beauty, endurance and sheer power of a variety of creatures with that of human sportsmen.

Quest for the Giant Squid

July 2003 •English

The quest led by well respected scientists to record the Giant Squid.