Interesting documentary biology films for university students
October 12, 2019 2:31 PM   Subscribe

My department has a Biology Film Series that showcases documentary films on biological topics; we then have a discussion on the ideas presented in the film. We would like some more ideas of different films to screen. Please give me recommendations for films! Caveats inside.

— The film needs to be topic based, instead of a general nature documentary, such as "Our Planet", "Planet Earth", "Life", or "Blue Planet".
— The film needs to lend itself to a convesation afterwards, so larger issues discussed from multiple viewpoits would be best.
— Nothing gory or bloody (such as "The Cove").
— The more recent, the better.

These are examples of films we have previously shown:
Unseen Enemy
The Gene Doctors
Acid Horizon

Thank you for the help!
posted by Peter Petridish to Science & Nature (5 answers total) 6 users marked this as a favorite
 
Leave it to Beaver and Manufactured Landscapes are both good ans very discussable. The discussion wpuld center on land management and whether its a fallacy to believe we can manage landscapes in most of the world in the medium to long term.
posted by fshgrl at 2:49 PM on October 12, 2019


The Bleeding Edge is a documentary about medical devices that is also very much on one topic and will create discussion.
posted by fshgrl at 2:58 PM on October 12, 2019 [2 favorites]


This has been on my "to watch" list
Sunú: Mexican Maize Farmers (2015)
"Sunu serves as both a celebration of our essential relationship with the Earth and a warning that we have ceded food production to corporations. The personal relationship between the people and their homegrown food source is clear and powerful."

p.s. Kanopy streaming platform is a documentary treasure trove and you can search by subject. Your university library may have a subscription and many public libraries do as well.
posted by spamandkimchi at 5:52 PM on October 12, 2019


A few more

Drawing from ancient knowledge and cutting-edge science, SYMPHONY OF THE SOIL (2014) is an artistic exploration of the miraculous substance: soil.

Bluefin: Investigating a Fish Phenomenon (2018) In North Lake, Canada, Local fishermen swear the spectacular Atlantic bluefin tuna are so plentiful they eat out of people's hands. Meanwhile, scientific evidence shows the species is on the brink of collapse. Can both claims be true?

THE MARION LAKE STORY (2013) tells the compelling story of how a community on the east end of Long Island, N.Y. came together to clear their lake of the highly invasive phragmite reed.
posted by spamandkimchi at 6:01 PM on October 12, 2019


Field Biologist What Makes Someone a Scientist? (2014) the story of 22-year-old Tyler Christensen, a remarkably talented but somewhat rudderless high school graduate from New Jersey still trying to figure out what to do with his life. Tyler's great love is being outside, chasing birds and studying wildlife. Brushing aside his lack of a college degree or scientific credential, he decides to drop everything and travel to Costa Rica to start doing his own conservation-oriented research on birds in the tropics.

OK must stop procrastinating for real now.
posted by spamandkimchi at 6:28 PM on October 12, 2019


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