Awesome Documentaries

Vitaly Mansky wanted to make a documentary about life in Pyongyang through the eyes of a young girl. But authorities’ constant interference turned it into an scripted satire – a more accurate representation of what Mansky was trying to capture anyway. Playdates here.

Dan Perri has created titles and title sequences for Star Wars IV, Taxi Driver, Gangs of New York and more. He spoke with the Oscars about his career, his tools and his penchant for adapting rather than stamping his own style to the movie he’s working on.

“Yeah maybe they don’t take me seriously, umm you know, why would you take somebody seriously that doesn’t know what day it is?” Meet Jeff Dowd, the Coen Brothers’ main inspiration for Jeff Bridges’ character in The Big Lebowski. Props to Redditor th3rp for the title.

“When you’re done driving the car, you’re really happy, because it’s over.” John Campion spoke with Petrolicious about his rally car collection, particularly the Delta S4, which is the first car to have both a turbocharger and a supercharger.

Carfection spoke with employees of both the original and the current DeLorean Motor Company about their founder, the car maker’s troubled and storied history, and their flawed yet futuristic creation.

A Netflix documentary series about East Mississippi Community College, one of the middle of nowhere schools where many Division I football and NFL hopefuls try and prove themselves once more. Based on Drew Jubera’s eponymous article.

Terence Malick’s long awaited documentary about the birth and death of the universe. Voyage of Time will have two versions: a 40-minute cut narrated by Brad Pitt, and a feature length – and undoubtedly more epic – cut narrated by Cate Blanchett. Premieres 10/2016.

In 1947, a group of young men founded a hot rod club called the Oilers. In 2008, the club was revived as The Race of Gentlemen – a beach race and car show featuring early to mid 20th century American cars and motorcycles.

“Sometimes we’re kinda like the bartenders of a film.” KNB EFX co-founder Howard Berger (The Chronicles of Narnia, The Walking Dead, Breaking Bad) explains the basics of making a prosthetic mask before talking about how makeup artists keep the job fun and exciting.

The Revillagigedo Islands are known as Mexico’s little Galapagos – they’re small yet teeming with life, including dozens of endemic species. The Smithsonian explored the smallest island, Roca Partida, a diving spot known for its congregation of sharks, whales and more.

(SPOILERS, PG-13: Language) The hit TV series Mr. Robot gives itself a well-deserved 40-minute long pat on the back, pointing out that it’s a modern day superhero story that could actually be real, if not already so. Brief season 2 sneak peek at 37:00.

Industrial designer Dieter Rams helped elevate everyday objects with his functionalist approach. Gary Hustwit (Objectified, Helvetica, Urbanized) is currently raising funds to finish a documentary about the designer, made with the help of Rams himself.

“I think creativity is a byproduct of not trying so hard.” Director Jennifer Yuh Nelson (Kung Fu Panda 2 & 3) spoke with the Oscars about her style of filmmaking, making art in her free time to keep her creativity burning and how inspiration can come from anywhere.

Director Ron Howard (Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind) takes us back to the Fab Four’s brief but revolutionary takeover of rock and roll, and music in general. Featuring lots of never-before-seen footage and interviews with Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.

Despite its cluttered interface, Waze is a shining example of crowdsourcing – it turns parts of a problem into parts of a solution. Google employees Nat and Lo visited their co-workers to learn more about the community-based interactive map app.

Basketball is one of New York City’s favorite pastimes, and the city’s Parks Department plays a big role in keeping the sport alive. Great Big Story spoke with one of the city’s blacksmiths, who’s made around a thousand basketball rims for public courts.