World Without Sun

The Battle of Midway

1942

The Japanese attack on Midway in June 1942, filmed as it happened. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive, in partnership with Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, in 2006.

Let's Go to the Movies

1949

What goes in to the phrase, "Let's go to the movies"? An off-screen narrator takes us back to the earliest days of film: clips remind us of early stars and blockbusters. He explains how sound came to motion pictures: we see Jolson singing "Mammy" and John Barrymore playing Richard III. Next is a salute to the 30,000 people working in Hollywood at 272 different crafts. A montage shows us some of those jobs. It ends with a look at the physical production of celluloid (cotton and silver) and the many aspects of movie making. The narrator promises more short films about each step in production. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.

Faces of November

1964

Robert Drew shows the sights and sounds from the funeral of President John F. Kennedy in November, 1963. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2002.

Why Man Creates

1968

A 1968 animation/documentary that criticises the industrial system. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive.

One Hand Don’t Clap

1991

Kavery Kaul’s engaging documentary traces the history of calypso and soca music from their birth in the African-East Indian traditions of Trinidad and Tobago through its worldwide diaspora, including its popularization in the 1950s by Harry Belafonte and the new independent distribution networks that arose to serve the expatriate community in the 1980s. North American restoration premiere at To Save and Project: The 19th MoMA International Festival of Film Preservation on January 27 and 31, 2023. Digital restoration by the Academy Film Archive and the Women’s Film Preservation Fund of New York Women in Film & Television; courtesy of Riverfilms.

Most Wanted Sharks

2020

Whether it's the biggest great white, the most photographed tiger shark, or the shark known for jumping 100 feet up out of the water, we're diving into the stories of the greatest shark stars of all time.

Ring of Steel

1942

Documentary short detailing the American soldier's part in preserving the fundamental ideals of this nation. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2012.

Acid Horizon

2018

Acid Horizon follows marine ecologist Dr. Erik Cordes on a harrowing deep-sea expedition to track down the "supercoral", a strain of the deep-water coral Lophelia pertusa that seems to possess the unique genetic capability to thrive in a low-pH ocean.

Hearts and Minds

1974

Many times during his presidency, Lyndon B. Johnson said that ultimate victory in the Vietnam War depended upon the U.S. military winning the "hearts and minds" of the Vietnamese people. Filmmaker Peter Davis uses Johnson's phrase in an ironic context in this anti-war documentary, filmed and released while the Vietnam War was still under way, juxtaposing interviews with military figures like U.S. Army Chief of Staff William C. Westmoreland with shocking scenes of violence and brutality.

Food and Magic

1943

A sideshow barker uses magic and visual aids to alert the public that proper food management is both a resource and a weapon that could be to America's advantage if conserved properly in winning the then current World War. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive, Academy War Film Collection, in 2008.

Deep Sea, Deep Secrets

1998

Documentary exploring the hundreds of species of life that thrive in total darkness at the hydrothermal vents along the Mid-Ocean Ridge, several miles below the ocean surface. Little food filters down from the surface and there is no sunlight to support photosynthesis.

Anticipation of the Night

1958

First person view of a man, seen only in shadow, attempting to connect with the world around him. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2013.

The Wonder Ring

1955

An important early film by Stan Brakhage, which Joseph Cornell commissioned as a record of New York's Third Avenue elevated train before it was torn down. Curiously lacking in people, the film focuses on the rhythms of the ride and reflections in train windows, finding a real-world version of the superimpositions Brakhage would later create in the lab. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2005.

Abysses, la conquête des fonds marins

2021

Operation Deep Sea: Shedding Light in the Darkness

2008

Deep sea: 1000m below the surface no light, immense pressure and icy temperatures. The deep sea encompasses more than 90% of the planets habitat. Yet we know less about these depths than about the moon. This film documents the technical, scientific, and ecological challenges of deep sea researchers. Scientists work worldwide together to collect data on the physical state of the upper ocean. With more than 3000 autonomous floats they monitor the oceans for influences on weather systems like El Nino or the monsoon. Does it affect global climate change? Does the deep sea offer solutions for the CO2 issue? Researchers in the Okinawa Trough are trying to find out. The sea floor harbors enormous amounts of resources: oil, natural gas, methane. Scientists work hard to try and locate these materials. Millions of deep sea dwellers are waiting for their discovery. The Census of Marine Life is trying to catalogue these bizarre ocean creatures before they disappear.