Al Jazeera English (AJE) is home to some of the best, most diverse and unique documentaries from around the globe. The Internationally aclaimed broadcaster showcases a wide range of stories, storytellers, perspectives and genres, in films which offer insight, understanding, information and empathy, to complement its global news. AJE airs over 300 documentaries a year, in regular strands and stand-alone slots.
AJE’s latest slate premieres several themed series as well as powerful single documentaries. In ‘Bollywood Dreams’ audiences follow some of the thousands of ‘strugglers’ across India, who pin their futures and hopes on Bollywood. In the USA, Colombia, Finland and Australia’s Torres Strait Islands we observe First Nation communities reclaim their heritage, combat environmental disaster and fight to sustain their lives and livelihoods. The award-winning ‘Africa Direct’ returns for a second series, with African filmmakers telling African stories in immersive, first-person short docs. AJE's flagship strand Witness premieres several new films including from Ukraine, India, Iraq, Armenia, South Sudan, Algeria, Spain and Lebanon.
War Bound (Ukraine)
Beyond the premieres, AJE will show some outstanding environmental and football films again in November and December. Witness Australia’s bushfires up close, and experience the permafrost during COP. And while the world is glued to football fields, AJE goes off the pitch to understand six football clubs in the popular series ‘The Fans Who Make Football’.
AJE’s Documentaries unit accounts for around a quarter of the Channel’s total output. From immersive, character-led stories to issue-led exposures, the films prioritise the human lived experiences behind news stories. They aim to challenge prevailing narratives about people, places and power by elevating seldom-heard voices and featuring people telling their own stories.Its documentaries present a range of experiences, lives and views to help viewers think, understand, feel and connect with the world around them.
Our award-winning documentaries provide great range, depth and nuance to our daily news coverage,” said Giles Trendle, Managing Director of Al Jazeera English, “and we are lucky to have a talented and diverse team which works with a wide array of filmmakers from around the world.”
Ingrid Falk, Manager of Programmes said “Stories are hugely important in shaping our understanding of the world, so we in the Documentaries unit focus as much on how we tell stories, and who tells them, as the subject matter itself. We try to shift the power of the storytelling itself towards those who have experience the events – we have the space to move away from presenters and reporters as authoritative voices towards first person narratives. Our philosophy is that when we see and hear from people directly, confidently, centred in their own stories, only then can we reimagine notions of authority and power. And in this very unequal world, that is an important thing to do.”
ABOUT AJE
AJE’s documentaries have won numerous international awards over the years, including RTS, International Emmy, Peabody, Ed Murrow, Japan Prize, New York Festivals, Foreign Press Association, Association of International Broadcasting, Golden Panda and many others. In 2020 Witness’ multi-award winning ‘St Louis Superman’ was nominated for an Academy Award (Oscar).
Al Jazeera English is a news and current affairs channel, broadcasting to over 350 million households around the world. It is also available on our website and many digital platforms. International news bulletins and breaking news are supported by a range of programmes, including documentaries, investigations and discussion shows.
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