ARTE.tv Documentary

📆 Today is the final day of campaigning in the US midterms, which take place tomorrow, November 3. 🇺🇸

Voters across the country will decide which party controls Congress, and therefore has the power to shape laws in the country, for the rest of Donald Trump's presidency. 🗳️

Currently, Trump's Republican Party has power in the White House and both chambers of Congress — the House and the Senate. The Democratic Party opposition wants to change that.

The vote's outcome will shape the country’s laws at a time when the cost of living is high, the US is at war, and Trump’s time in office is gradually coming to an end.

📺 To find out more, check out our playlist 'USA 🇺🇸 Midterms 2026', where we're looking at the current state of the US and the things voters are thinking as they head to the polls 👉 www.youtube.com/playlist?list...

5 days ago | [YT] | 17

ARTE.tv Documentary

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the Brazilian president, has won a historic fourth term in power by defeating his far-right opponent, Flávio Bolsonaro. 🇧🇷

His victory comes as one of the most unexpected bounce-backs in modern Brazilian history, following a first-round defeat in early October. In Sunday's election, Lula beat Bolsonaro with 64.2 million votes to Bolsonaro’s 59.8 million — a 51.79% to 48.21% victory. 🗳️

It's the first time, since the return of democracy after the 1964-85 military regime, that the first-round loser has managed to win the second vote.

While Bolsonaro initially refused to concede, his party acknowledged the election results yesterday.

Now, Lula has vowed that dictatorship and fascism will never return to Brazil.

To learn more about the political climate in Brazil, check out the documentaries below. 👇

📺 Brazil: My Uncle the Bolsonaro Supporter 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwzDK...

📺 Brazil: Mothers Against Police Violence 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QB94...

📺 Brazil: Between Violence and Lust for Life 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L0gI...

1 week ago | [YT] | 58

ARTE.tv Documentary

Serbia's 🇷🇸 long-serving leader Aleksandar Vučić has conceded defeat to a student-led protest movement in snap parliamentary elections.

The road to the high-stakes election began in November 2024, when a concrete canopy collapsed at the Novi Sad railway station, killing 16 people. The tragedy set off two years of student protests, after evidence suggested that poor construction, fraud and corruption were the cause.

After mounting pressure from the student movement, Vučić resigned last month to gamble on snap elections. The students then announced 250 candidates for the 250-seat parliament, ranging from academics to athletes and farmers.

Last night, as their victory was revealed, celebrations erupted across the country, especially in Belgrade, Novi Sad and other cities.

To learn more about this historical moment for Serbia, and the events that led to this point, see the documentaries below. ⬇️

📺 Serbia: A Nation in Turmoil 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vi9HP...

📺 Serbia's Anti-Corruption Protests 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHMwn...

1 week ago | [YT] | 50

ARTE.tv Documentary

On Tuesday (27 October), Israeli's head to the polls in what many are calling one of the most pivotal elections in the country's history.

It's the first election since the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel and the subsequent Israeli action in Gaza, which the UN has concluded amounts to genocide, and with Iran, Hezbollah and the Houthis.

In the lead-up to the election, Israel is experiencing a deep political divide. We're exploring the current tension in the country in our new playlist 'Israel's Political Divisions', which you can watch here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xdpP...

The outcome will also impact the lives of Palestinians. One year on from the ceasefire in Gaza, Israel continues to carry out near-daily strikes on the territory.

More than 74,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza since 7 October 2023, according to the Hamas-run health ministry - whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.

For further insight into the situation in Gaza, you can see our playlist 'Gaza: The Never-Ending War?', here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WK3e...

1 week ago (edited) | [YT] | 30

ARTE.tv Documentary

This weekend, protests have continued to sweep France, with an estimated 550,000 people demonstrating on Saturday alone against poor conditions in schools, high living costs and deteriorating public services.

It comes after three weeks of action from French students, who have barricaded entry to high schools and taken to the streets in revolt against the country's political institutions, which they say offer little hope of change.

The protests have even spread across Europe as demonstrations regarding the rising cost of living are now taking place in Portugal, Italy, and Belgium.

📺 We looked into this developing story in this week's episode of ARTE Europe Weekly, 'France's school protests: an education system under strain?', which you can watch here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWjA8...

📺 For further watching, you can also see our explainer 'Why Are French Students So Angry?', here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20XPC...

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 49

ARTE.tv Documentary

We're thrilled to announce that the ARTE documentary "India: Rape, Caste and Injustice" has been nominated for an International Emmy Award 🏆

The film is a finalist in the Current Affairs category for this year's awards, which will take place on November 23 in New York City. 🏙️
 
This acclaimed documentary tells the story of an India plagued by rape and follows 17-year-old Kinjal on her quest for justice. Three years prior to filming, Kinjal – who belongs to the Dalit community, the “Untouchables” at the very bottom of the caste system – was raped by the son of a landowner from a higher caste.

To cover up the incident, the rapist’s family offered Kinjal’s parents land and 100,000 euros – a fortune. But. her father refused the settlement and chose instead to take the case to court in a rare act of courage, yet an affront to the higher castes. As a symbol of his struggle, the father of the victim decided to let his hair grow and not cut it until his daughter had obtained justice.
 
The producers have said of the nomination: "Our presence in New York won’t do Kinjal justice, but we hope that this nomination and the new visibility for the film will give her the courage to face the long legal battle that now awaits her before the High Court of Justice."

📺 Watch the documentary here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnGjW...

3 weeks ago | [YT] | 57

ARTE.tv Documentary

🖼️ This week on ARTE.tv Culture 🖼️

Check out some of our current favourites 💗 from ARTE.tv Culture below 👇 and browse the full channel here 👉 youtube.com/@artetvculture

📺 100 Years of Route 66 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvKYg...

Route 66 features on many people’s bucket lists: to drive from Chicago to Los Angeles through the vastness of the Plains and the deserts, whilst experiencing small-town America on the way. 🛣️

Even after 100 years, Route 66 still symbolises freedom and the American dream. It also tells the story of people who lie outside this narrative, and of the contradictions within the USA. 🇺🇸

📺 Africa Riding - full series 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zC3Pt...

Our new series 'Africa Riding' goes to Rwanda 🇷🇼, Senegal 🇸🇳, Ghana 🇬🇭 and Uganda 🇺🇬 to meet young Africans who mix their passion for skateboarding, cycling, BMX and rollerblading with social activism and creative pursuits.

From meeting Ghana's only women skater to exploring DIY BMX culture in Uganda, the series spotlights the social impact hobbies can have ❤️

📺 Japan's Tattooed Heroes 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CY_b7...

Japan 🇯🇵 is admired worldwide for its traditions and arts. From opulent fabrics to impressive wood carvings and calligraphy. 🖌️

But one art form has almost been forgotten: the Horimono, Japan's traditional tattoo.

Once highly popular, it has now become the symbol of the criminal yakuza, and its true history is barely known.

📺 Francis of Assisi - A Christian Trailblazer 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxsF3...

If there's a pop star among Christian saints, it's surely Francis of Assisi. ⭐️

2026 marks 800 years since his death. To mark the anniversary, we're looking into how this humble young man transformed Christianity through compassion, simplicity and radical empathy, ideas that feel just as urgent today.

Our sister channel is home to web series'💻, exclusive interviews 🎙️, music programs 🎶, the best of European cinema 🎞️ and long-form culture documentaries 🎥 that explore art 🎨 from every angle.

3 weeks ago | [YT] | 29

ARTE.tv Documentary

📺 Watch next: Japan: Toyoko Kids 📺

Hanging out in the most infamous neighbourhood in Tokyo 🇯🇵 are the 'Toyoko Kids'.

They are children who have fallen through the cracks of society, outcasts who have run away or been thrown out of their homes.

In recent years, they have formed a unique youth subculture which has garnered attention online.

👀 Find out more in our new documentary, here 👉https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z68Qa...

1 month ago | [YT] | 84

ARTE.tv Documentary

Summer 2026 was the hottest ever in Europe, with temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius in Paris, Berlin and Vienna.

Many homes and offices are poorly adapted to extreme weather, and overheating leads to health issues.

What measures need to be taken to make sure everyone is protected from extreme heat?

📺Find out more in our new documentary '40 Degrees in the Shade' here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvFRs...

📺 For further information, you can also see our playlist 'Climate Emergency Worldwide ♻️', here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3DrV...

1 month ago | [YT] | 44

ARTE.tv Documentary

📺 Watch next: The Village with One Million Chickens 📺

One in five chickens 🐓 eaten in the European Union 🇪🇺 comes from Poland. 🇵🇱

As Europe’s leading poultry producer, the country relies on large-scale intensive farming methods.

In the village of Kodeń, nearly a million chickens are reared simultaneously next to Barbara Bil’s property, who opposes the chicken farm and its foul odours. Can we supply Europe’s appetite for poultry without factory farming?

👀 See the documentary here 👉 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsvPP...

1 month ago | [YT] | 30