An Artisan's Legacy: Tsunekazu Nishioka

In-depth look at the twilight years, spent training apprentices, of temple builder Nishioka Tsunekazu, who was called the "devil" as he devoted his life to temple architecture. His insistence on the gargantuan timescale of linking life to the next millennium emerges from people who knew him. Remarkable as well for showing the unknown backstage of temple architecture. Nishioka, known as "the last temple carpenter," handled the major Showa-era repairs of Horyuji temple, and in 1990 was at the scene of the reconstruction work for Yakushi temple.

2012-02-04 | ja

Manufactured Landscapes

MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES is the striking new documentary on the world and work of renowned artist Edward Burtynsky. Internationally acclaimed for his large-scale photographs of “manufactured landscapes”—quarries, recycling yards, factories, mines and dams—Burtynsky creates stunningly beautiful art from civilization’s materials and debris.

2006-09-09 | en

Flood in the Desert

Explore the 1928 collapse of the St. Francis Dam, the second deadliest disaster in California history. A colossal engineering and human failure, the dam was built by William Mulholland, a self-taught engineer who ensured the growth of Los Angeles by bringing the city water via aqueduct. The catastrophe killed more than 400 people and destroyed millions of dollars of property.

2022-05-03 | en

Jongens van de Bouw

Filmmaker Geertjan Lassche follows a construction project in the heart of Rotterdam, from the first foundation pile up until completion.

2019-12-15 | nl

Cutting Corners

With building collapses happening around the country, activists band together to confront the real estate developers and hold them accountable for the construction destruction, lives they have destroyed, and deaths they have caused.

2021-07-01 | en

Secrets of the Empire State Building

2019-12-05 | en

Titanic's Achilles Heel

An expedition looks into whether Titanic's hull had a construction design flaw that caused her to break apart. Featuring advanced CGI technology, archive documents and photographs, as well as footage from the modern-day History(R) expeditions, "Titanic's Achilles Heel" is a remarkable journey into the ongoing legacy of a ship that continues to capture the world's attention.

2007-06-17 | en

Blue Vinyl

With humor, chutzpah and a piece of vinyl siding firmly in hand, Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Judith Helfand and co-director and award-winning cinematographer Daniel B. Gold set out in search of the truth about polyvinyl chloride (PVC), America's most popular plastic. From Long Island to Louisiana to Italy, they unearth the facts about PVC and its effects on human health and the environment.

2002-01-10 | en

Brooklyn Bridge

Today it's a symbol of strength and vitality. 135 years ago, it was a source of controversy. This documentary examines the great problems and ingenious solutions that marked the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. From conception to construction, it traces the bridge's transformation from a spectacular feat of heroic engineering to an honored symbol in American culture.

1981-11-08 | en

Walt Builds a Family Fallout Shelter

A man named Walt who has recently completed building a fallout shelter in his home, a project initiated due to the threat of nuclear war during the Cold War era. Walt demonstrates to his friends the multi-functionality of the shelter, which can also serve as a darkroom, an extra bedroom, or a safe space during tornadoes. He explains the construction process in detail, emphasizing the need for precise measurements, proper leveling, and the use of concrete blocks for radiation protection. The shelter includes a stock of essentials like a radio, batteries, and a fire extinguisher. Walt’s narrative is interspersed with advice on obtaining official bulletins for guidance and the importance of building shelters correctly. The film concludes with a message from the Director of the Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, advocating for the construction of family fallout shelters across America as a means of personal safety and national security in the nuclear age.

1960-02-01 | en

Dans les coulisses du métro de Paris

2016-10-20 | fr

The Making of Jurassic World VelociCoaster

An inside look at the creation of Universal Orlando Resort's new Jurassic World VelociCoaster.

2021-12-02 | en

Work in Progress

An author spends a year and a half filming what happens as a new apartment building is built in a neighborhood of Barcelona.

2001-10-19 | es

Three Gorges: The Biggest Dam in the World

Explores the plans for the construction of the monumental dam on China's Yangtze River, the structure that when completed in 2009 will become the Three Gorges Dam. It is slated to be 610 feet high, 1.3 miles across, creating a reservoir 400 miles and the largest power plant in the world.

1998-01-01 | en

Tour Eiffel : La Grande Épopée

2014-12-09 | fr

15 Miles On The Erie Canal (Part 2)

Highlighting the canal’s quiet beauty and fascinating people, Part 2 travels from the Genesee Waterways to Spencerport, Brockport, Holley, and Lockport– taking to the trails and the water, on everything from the historic Sam Patch tour boat to Luxury cabin cruisers. Dr. William Hullfish, a SUNY Brockport associate professor, musician and the expert in Erie Canal Songs.

2006-08-06 | en

Cadillac Desert: Water and the Transformation of Nature

Documentary on water usage, money, politics, the transformation of nature, and the growth of the American west, shown on PBS as a four-part miniseries.

1997-06-24 | en

Grand Coulee Dam

During the darkest days of the Depression when construction was started on Grand Coulee Dam, everything about it was described in superlatives. It would be the "Biggest Thing on Earth," the salvation of the common man, a dam and irrigation project that would make the desert bloom, a source of cheap power that would boost an entire region of the country. Of the many public works projects of the New Deal, Grand Coulee Dam loomed largest in America's imagination, promising to fulfill President Franklin Roosevelt's vision for a "planned promised land" where hard-working farm families would finally be free from the drought and dislocation caused by the elements.

2017-04-18 | en

David Macaulay: Pyramid

How did ancient Egyptians build the Great Pyramid at Giza, joining two million blocks of heavy stone with amazing precision? Who were the leaders who built these enormous structures, and what did these tombs signify? Host David Macaulay explores the history, mythology, and religions of Egypt's people, combining live footage and animation. Take a rare look at the mummy of Ramses II and buried treasure in the sacred Valley of the Kings.

1989-01-04 | en

If You Build It

A year in the life of one of America's most innovative classrooms where students design & build to transform their hometown community. The film follows Emily Pilloton and Matt Miller as they teach the fundamentals of design, architecture and construction to a class of high school juniors in rural North Carolina.

2013-04-06 | en