ARTE Distribution

Coups, dictatorships, revolutions, civil wars... For decades, Latin America has been a testing ground for a world marked by violent inequalities and growing polarization.

In six emblematic countries - Brazil, Chile, Panama, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Colombia - men and women share their struggles. They recount the tragedy of a fractured continent, constantly subjected to interventions from its powerful neighbor, the United States. They are former ministers, opposition figures, secret service agents, torture survivors, guerrilla fighters, lawyers, investigative journalists, diplomats, police chiefs... They have shaped history. Through their words, we relive this historical saga in both its political and human dimensions.

An international investigation reveals that, on Vladimir Putin’s orders, a system that was set up by oligarchs and closely linked to the Russian oil and gas industry, corrupted global finance. All this was meant to serve his revenge against the West. Discover four decades of Russian economic and financial history, through the rise and fall of the oligarchs.

Featuring testimonies and archival footage, the series shows how a handful of men took control of the Russian economy and established themselves as partners of the major Western powers, not only for their own benefit, but also to serve Vladimir Putin's ambitions. By focusing on their backgrounds, their motivations, methods and ambitions, the series exposes this mafia-like economic system, which reproduces itself like a sprawling octopus and adapts to geopolitical upheavals. This international investigation analyzes four decades of Russian economic and financial history, through the birth and rise of the oligarchs. Like a film noir, this series presents a bitter Russian novel, depicting the homeland of the Tsars and Lenin as a mafia-like petro-monarchy, where cynicism, violence, greed, and the thirst for power seem to have no limit.

A geopolitical journey to the heart of a monumental project, the “Five Seas System”, a network of Russian waterways designed by Putin and based on Russian imperialism, linking Russia to five seas: the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov, the Caspian Sea, the Baltic Sea and the White Sea.

Since coming to power, Vladimir Putin has pursued an ambitious yet little-known goal: restoring Russia’s greatness by reclaiming control over the “Five Seas.” Inspired by Peter the Great and Stalin, this vision aims to make Moscow a maritime power. From the 2008 war in Georgia to the 2014 annexation of Crimea, the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and recent tensions in Nagorno-Karabakh, each conflict follows the same pattern: using maritime regions as tools of reconquest and influence. Putin wages military actions and a hybrid war — blending military action, political and economic control, and digital interference. With exclusive archives, testimonies from experts, and on-the-ground footage from Georgia, Estonia, and Finland, Putin and the Five Seas War unveils a neo-imperial project long underestimated by the West.
 
A crucial documentary for understanding a geopolitical strategy driven by nationalism, trade routes, energy ambitions, and imperial memory.

How did a failed coup d’état carried out by a handful of generals in July 1936 turn into one of the most brutal civil wars in history? Largely because of General Franco’s rallying who joined the insurgents with Hitler’s support.
For its part, the Republic realized that it was being abandoned by the Western democracies and could only count on the International Brigades - and on the limited, yet very interventionist, support of the USSR. 

Brazil, 1964. With support from the United States government, the first military dictatorship, also referred to as the Fifth Brazilian Republic, was established. Many opponents of the regime fled to Chile. But in 1973, with the support of President Nixon, General Pinochet overthrew Salvador Allende. Right-wing dictatorships across South America launched Operation Condor to coordinate their repression. Carter’s rise to power brought hope: he returned control of the Panama Canal to Panama and allowed the Sandinistas to take power in Nicaragua. But Reagan being elected in 1980, marked the beginning of a new era.

Dominating the Romanian Carpathians, Bran Castle stands guard over a land of legends. Associated with the most famous of vampires, Dracula, it attracts crowds in search of artificial thrills. But in the dark woods surrounding the fortress, other wild creatures lurk, far more real than the old count... Bears, lynx and wolves have made these ancient forests their main refuge in Europe. In the shadow of the castle, between flourishing tourism and the need for preservation, a new cohabitation between humans and beasts is taking shape.

China maintains that it is a peaceful power and neutral in other countries’ conflicts. But the country has a long history of aggressive expansion and has also suffered from the belligerence of European powers.

Spring 1939. After 1,000 days of fighting, 400 000 deaths, the guns finally fell silent. But that didn’t mean peace was back in the country. Franco continued his crusade against the Republicans who had dared to oppose his coup. By 1940, over 240 000 prisoners were crammed in concentration camps and between 150 000 and 200 000 people were missing. From then on, state Catholicism governed every aspect of Spanish life. Women were reduced to the roles of wives and mothers, and the babies of Republican women were taken from them. The resistance fighters who had continued the armed struggle against Franco never managed to overthrow him. Franco outlived his allies, Hitler and Mussolini.

In a garrigue bathed in sunshine, the Gardon shapes a wild landscape where life adapts to its whims. 2,000 years ago, the Romans defied this indomitable river by building the Pont du Gard, a veritable masterpiece of engineering. A symbol of human mastery over nature, the edifice has nevertheless blended into its surroundings over time. Little by little, plants and animals have colonized its stones, transforming this ancient monument into an incredible refuge for Mediterranean biodiversity.