Solar Town USA

Catching the Sun

June 2015 •English

An unemployed American worker, a Tea Party activist, and a Chinese solar entrepreneur. But who wins and who loses the battle for power in the 21st century? Through interwoven character dramas spanning the U.S. and China, Catching the Sun explores the global economic race to lead the clean energy future.

The Power Reset

November 2021 •German

20 years ago the small town of Wunsiedel was at the edge: businesses had to close, jobs were lost, locals left for good. When a bunch of idealists decided to stop this race to the bottom. They developed a plan not only to put the region's energy supply on a completely new foundation, but also to create new prospects.

The Secret of Trees

January 2013 •English

13-year-old inventor Aidan has discovered that trees use a mathematical formula to gather sunlight in crowded forests. Now he wonders why we don't collect solar energy the same way.

The Sun Queen

April 2023 •English

Chemical engineer and inventor Maria Telkes worked for nearly 50 years to harness the power of the sun, designing and building the world's first successful solar-heated modern residence and identifying a new chemical that could store solar heat like a battery. Telkes was undercut and thwarted by her (male) boss and colleagues at MIT, but she persevered. Upon her death in 1995 Telkes held more than 20 patents, and now she is recognized as a visionary pioneer in the field of sustainable energy whose work continues to shape how we power our lives today.

But Beautiful

November 2019 •German

In his new film, Erwin Wagenhofer is looking for the good and beautiful in this world.

Sonnenstürme - Die rätselhafte Gefahr

August 2020 •German

The sun sends us light and energy, enabling life and growth. But it also causes scientists great concern: gigantic, unpredictable solar storms are increasingly threatening our power supply and networks. The US space agency NASA has built a space probe to investigate the causes of these mysterious storm phenomena.

The Solar Film

October 1980 •English

Educational film about solar energy, told with striking imagery and animation.

Rafea: Solar Mama

September 2012 •English

Rafea: Solar Mama follows the groundbreaking journey of one Bedouin mother living on the Jordan-Iraq border who, along with thirty illiterate grandmothers from around the world, will travel to The Barefoot College in India to become Solar Engineers. (TIFF)

Energia Rinnovabile

Invalid date •Italian

Leben mit der Energiewende 3 - Selber machen

April 2015 •German

Leben mit der Energiewende - Der Film

November 2012 •German

Theory of Light

March 2022 •English

Theory of Light is a documentary centred on the climate emergency through a climate justice lens. It's committed to uplifting the perspectives of communities already being impacted by climate change and representing those who feel excluded from the climate movement.

Bauen mit der Energiewende

January 2017 •German

Unstoppable Solar Cycles

Invalid date •English

Concern over global climate change may be at an all-time high, but climate change is nothing new - the earth's climate always followed natural cycles of warming and cooling. In Unstoppable Solar Cycles, Dr. Willie Soon and Dr. David Legates challenge the popular idea that human-generated CO2, is causing catastrophic global warming. These scientists propose an alterantive theory - that the current warming has more to do with solar activity than with human activity.

AUTARK - Leben mit der Energiewende 4

September 2018 •German

Orbit

January 2019 •

The sun’s energy circulates throughout the earth, feeding the cycle of life. Everything is connected in a natural loop, which repeats, like the circular discs of magical optical toys. This perfectly balanced rhythm is disrupted by human excess, throwing the cycle out of orbit and temporarily stopping the circulation of energy in nature.

Purgatory Station

November 2024 •English

When a crooked lawyer wakes up in a large, pitch-dark container, he learns he has eight hours to scuttle a corporate land grab or see everyone he loves die horribly.

Sunshine

April 2007 •English

Fifty years into the future, the sun is dying, and Earth is threatened by arctic temperatures. A team of astronauts is sent to revive the Sun — but the mission fails. Seven years later, a new team is sent to finish the mission as mankind’s last hope.

Last Sunrise

February 2019 •Chinese

A future reliant on solar energy falls into chaos after the sun disappears, forcing a reclusive astronomer and his bubbly neighbor out of the city in search of light in the perpetual darkness.

The Cross of North Gando

October 2019 •Korean

The Christians of North Gando lose their country and leave their hometown, but gain the Gospel. The cross they hold in their hands is the symbol of daring for independence and a royal summon of the generation they have to endure. Historian Sim Yo Han retraces the footsteps of the late Father Moon Dong Hwan and finds meanings of the anti-Japanese independence movement hidden in various parts of North Gando.