Last year I had the privilege of watching two really great documentaries:
Connections - James Burke
Century of the Self
It's hard to judge the lasting impact both these docs will have on me, but boy, I can't even remember how I used to think before watching them. Watching Century of the Self and the AMC show Mad Men right after was also a very interesting contrast.
I come from a nation where there's no gradient in quality. Someone who is a "rice expert" is unthinkable, almost laughable. And even if they were really good at rice, it would be meaningless, just a form of hobby.
But in Jiro's world, there are rice specialists, tuna specialists, specialist butcher. Every one a master of their trade. The rice specialist needs the sushi specialist because no other person in the world could cook rice "properly" and so the best rice would be wasted. It tells how one of the chefs spent years learning to cook a type of egg sushi before it's even worthy of being served.
It resonated with me - I always loved this idea of higher quality. In this era of Candy Crush and Clash of Clans being the most profitable software, it's really tempting to stray. Jiro gave me the resolve to focus on that path.
"The Secret" had a major impact on me, in that all of my friends that watched it turned into huge self-centered assholes who thought they could get something for nothing. It also made them think that anyone down on their luck just "wasn't positive enough."
Exit Through the Gift Shop came out when I was in college and changed my relationship with documentaries and films in general. I won't discuss much of the plot here, but it forces you to really change the way you understand documentaries and to be more critical.
Generation Wealth made me really re-consider the world around me and how culture has shifted in the past 10 years. It was quite eye opening and also forced me to think differently about the people around me.
A short documentary on YouTube had the greatest impact on me.
It's called Rule From the Shadows - The Psychology of Power
After watching this, I read the books recommended, and it is completely mind-blowing. It will truly change the way you think about "groups", such as Antifa, the alt-right, etc.
Both focus on death row inmates and their crimes, not perceived innocence or “wrongfully accuses” sort of situations.
Herzog is an absolute master and leaves the viewer thinking, not with a pre-determined narrative.
The other one I’ll mention is 13 years old and is “The Bridge”. Suicide and depression are tough subjects but The Bridge navigates the conversation thoughtfully and powerfully.
Whore's Glory - Extremely raw documentary that gives an inside look into the lives of prostitutes from various countries (Bangladesh, Thailand, Mexico). It was seriously fucked up and eye opening.
It was refreshing to watch a video that didn't subscribe to the dystopian narrative usually accompanying depictions of the future. It led me to discover open-source software and how it can be used to form the foundation of the future envisioned by the documentary, which subsequently made me want to become a software engineer.
Robert Hughes' The Shock of the New and The New Shock of the New
Adam Curtis' All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace
An old documentary on plastic pollution and its possible effects on the endocrine system which I can't remember the name of. I believe it was produced by the BBC and was made before the recent wave of concern over plastic.
Both redefined for me what it means to be mission oriented and committed. And I have a Guinness Record, so I thought I was obsessive already, but I’m nothing compared to the commitment of the two men in these documentaries.
The Venus Project: Future By Design - By Jacque Fresco. Introduced Jacque Fresco's philosophy, R.I.P., and also the empathy we must have in designing something that is good for the planet and for the future. I highly recommend.
Mike Maloney's "Hidden Secrets of Money" is a beautiful set of YouTube documentaries financed by Mike himself. It educated me and millions out there how money really worked in the real world, and how the Federal Reserve and banking manipulates currency. https://goldsilver.com/hidden-secrets/
The Corporation - When Corporations started to get the same rights and treatment as regular citizens, we have created a monster that have changed our world for the worst.
The Cove and Blackfish. Really sad and made me stay away from Sea World and circuses and places that held animals in captivity for entertainment.
Enron: The Smartest Guys In The Room/Inside Job - When corporations are run by sociopaths.
An Inconvenient Truth - Global warming.
Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel/Bill Cunningham New York - Learned so much about creativity and just being true to your unique self regardless of what the world thinks.
This documentary changed the way I see the world. It was great to meet all the people around the world from different chapters and some of them are still my friends today. I really thank it a lot even if most of it is just BS. Still made a huge impact in my life.
There was also this slacklining short doc, maybe not of the same caliber but probably interesting to you if you liked the climbing videos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac_t4pNYr1g
Connections - James Burke
Century of the Self
It's hard to judge the lasting impact both these docs will have on me, but boy, I can't even remember how I used to think before watching them. Watching Century of the Self and the AMC show Mad Men right after was also a very interesting contrast.