The Story of Documentary Film

Mark Cousins is back to tracking the history of cinema, this time focusing his eye on documentary. He looks at documentaries from all corners of the world that take on power, uncover lies or veil the truth.

Spanning 16 hours, this epic documentary traces the global evolution of nonfiction film, revealing the filmmakers who discovered, innovated, and shaped documentary cinema into a dynamic lens for life.

The Story of Documentary Film premiered Chapter 1: Travelogues, Power and People at Sundance Film Festival 2026. Other chapters have since screened at Berlinale, Festival de Cannes, Sheffield DocFest and Karlovy Vary.

Directed by Mark Cousins

Produced by John Archer

Edited by Timo Langer

Distributed by Dogwoof