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I am looking for mathematical documentaries, both technical and non-technical. They should be "interesting" in that they present either actual mathematics, mathematicians or history of mathematics. I am in charge of nourishing our departmental math library (PUCV) and I would like to add this kind of material in order to attract undergraduates toward mathematics. For this reason, I am not looking for videos of conferences or seminar talks, but rather for introductory or "wide public" material.

Here are some good examples.

Are there more examples? Thanks, Ricardo.

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    $\begingroup$ Not exactly a documentary, but appropriate for an undergrad math library: youtube.com/watch?v=wO61D9x6lNY $\endgroup$
    – Aaron Hoffman
    Commented Jun 19, 2012 at 18:57
  • $\begingroup$ Consult this other question mathoverflow.net/questions/1714/best-online-math-videos ... answers include documentaries, perhaps. $\endgroup$
    – Gerald Edgar
    Commented Jun 19, 2012 at 19:10
  • $\begingroup$ Also see this question mathoverflow.net/questions/77279/… They aren't all documentaries. $\endgroup$
    – Zack Wolske
    Commented Jun 19, 2012 at 21:12
  • $\begingroup$ @Guntram: That's the BBC documentary I mentioned in the question. I would like to know how to purchase it, do you have any information about this? Been able to watch it on youtube is of course fine, but the idea is to have it displayed in the library in order to attract potential viewers who wouldn't look for this kind of material on their own initiative. $\endgroup$
    – Ricardo Menares
    Commented Jun 19, 2012 at 21:40
  • $\begingroup$ There's some good stuff (and plenty of lousy stuff) on youtube. $\endgroup$
    – Michael Hardy
    Commented Jul 12, 2022 at 4:50

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Au Bonheur des Maths (it's in French but you can put English subtitles)

Several short interviews of mathematicians around the IHES:
Alain Connes, Misha Gromov, Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, Cédric Villani, Sir Michael Atiyah, Giancarlo Servetto, Carolina Canales Gonzalez, Nicole El Karoui, Don Zagier.

enter image description here

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Something new every day is a great short documentary about Ron Graham by George Csicsery.

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Nova's Mathematical Mystery Tour is a really nice one and is on youtube.

httpS://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbOyXO-JFX8&feature=related

RAMANUJAN: Letters from an Indian Clerk again available on youtube.

httpS://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OARGZ1xXCxs

This question was also asked on math stackexchange sometime back and here is the link to it.

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  • $\begingroup$ Normally, NOVA completely drops the ball when pretending to have an episode on mathematics. It interviews mathematicians, but never explains to viewers what they are talking about. $\endgroup$
    – Daniel Asimov
    Commented Mar 17, 2023 at 22:52
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https://www.math.ru/lib/files/pdf/mehmat/mm3.pdf

Interviews and memories by leading Moscow mathematicians I.R. Shafarevich, V.I. Arnold, S.P. Novikov, B.A. Sevostyanov, A.N. Shiryaev, V.V. Golubev (major-general and dean of mexmat MSU at (1933-1935 и 1944-1952)). Some of them are quite free-spoken.

PS

Sorry it is in Russian.

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This documentary on John Von Neumann produced by the MAA in 1966 is pretty good. Has interviews with Paul Halmos, Stanislaw Ulam, Eugene Wigner, among others.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTS9O0CoVng

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  • $\begingroup$ The link no longer works $\endgroup$
    – David White
    Commented Jan 29 at 0:00
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I enjoyed watching "Great thinkers, great theorems" by William Dunham.

It is a great overview of the history, and still manages to get down to actually proving a lot of non-trivial stuff.

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"With striking images, some mathematical humor, a little drama, and a nice puzzle, this is again a very charming movie from director Ekaterina Eremenko." - John Rognes, Chairman of the Abel Committee

Trailer is here

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The youtube channel of Simons Foundation can be considered as a series of one-shot "documentaries" about puzzles and (auto)biographies of mathematicians: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZVjCmJOQRpAQ_EruAIPqXg

There is also a (rare?) documentary on the life of Grothendieck in french, I saw a trailer here: https://youtu.be/UO5KgnTY_fU

Unfortunately I haven't seen the movie but apparently they are working on an english translation of the movie as well.

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"Between The Folds" is another beautiful documentary about Math. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tE4lqYzS2m0

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    $\begingroup$ The youtube link in the answer seems to be dead. Here is a Wikipedia link about this documentary: Between the Folds. $\endgroup$
    – Martin Sleziak
    Commented Nov 19, 2020 at 7:54
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Apparently nobody mentioned Serre's "How to write mathematics badly".

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    $\begingroup$ Is it a documentary or a lecture? $\endgroup$
    – David Roberts ♦
    Commented Sep 10, 2020 at 23:39
  • $\begingroup$ Oh, you are probably right. Though the difference is not so clear to me, this is a documentary on how to write mathematics... $\endgroup$
    – abx
    Commented Sep 11, 2020 at 7:44
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The Joy of Stats by Hans Rosling.

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  • $\begingroup$ I don't think this is a documentary $\endgroup$
    – David White
    Commented Jun 28, 2022 at 4:36
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Marcus du Sautoy has a number of BBC math specials and short series dealing with concepts of zero, infinity, measurement. Some are done under the Horizon umbrella.

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"Counting From Infinity" is a recent (nontechnical) documentary about Yitang Zhang's work on bounded gaps between primes: http://www.zalafilms.com/films/countingindex.html

Some description of the documentary is also included in the New Yorker profile about Zhang: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/02/02/pursuit-beauty

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There is a document "Banach spaces" about S.Banach and other polish mathematicians from Lviv ( S.Ulam, J.P.Schauder)

Unfortunetelly I don't know about any translation to english.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJgl_Z9Yz1Q

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The best I have ever seen is "The Proof". It is a Nova documentary on Sir Andrew Wiles and his proof of Fermat's last theorem. I can always find something interesting to talk about with my students who range from algebra one level to calculus.

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You can find a selection of open source maths films on the IMAGINARY platform: http://www.imaginary.org/films

Many of the already mentioned films are there (like Dimensions, Chaos, Braids, etc.), but also some really good new ones, like "The Future of Glaciers", etc. The platform is also open for contributions from outside, so you can come back and find a growing repository of free licensed maths films.

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  • $\begingroup$ Woah, this is really cool. $\endgroup$
    – user40887
    Commented Dec 20, 2016 at 2:58
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Although not a video series, the podcast series Relatively Prime by Samuel Hansen is a superbly produced series of 8 podcasts including interviews with eminent mathematicians and covering a wide range of topics. Perfect listening material for long commutes I've found.

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Genius and villains: Kolmogorov (Russian)

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PBS NOVA from April 15 2015 The Great Math Mystery

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  • $\begingroup$ This does not sound like a documentary $\endgroup$
    – David White
    Commented Jun 28, 2022 at 4:41
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I can highly recommend MESH - A Journey Through Discrete Geometry by Beau Janzen and Konrad Polthier. Old and new are nicely linked together and the computer animations are great. The film won many prizes.

Then there is a feature about Yuri Manin by Agnes Handwerk and Harrie Willems called Late Style.

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Well, you may want to check out some short documentaries about beautiful minds. For example, my mathematical idol Kurt Gödel, here is the clip https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2KP1vWkQ6Y There can be many more examples, just to give the students a taste of what it is like to be a mathematician.

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  • $\begingroup$ This does not sound like a documentary. It looks more like a lecture about Godel. $\endgroup$
    – David White
    Commented Jun 28, 2022 at 4:44
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NOVA's Hunting the Hidden Dimension

Mysteriously beautiful fractals are shaking up the world of mathematics and deepening our understanding of nature.

Program Description

You may not know it, but fractals, like the air you breathe, are all around you. Their irregular, repeating shapes are found in cloud formations and tree limbs, in stalks of broccoli and craggy mountain ranges, even in the rhythm of the human heart. In this film, NOVA takes viewers on a fascinating quest with a group of maverick mathematicians determined to decipher the rules that govern fractal geometry.

For centuries, fractal-like irregular shapes were considered beyond the boundaries of mathematical understanding. Now, mathematicians have finally begun mapping this uncharted territory. Their remarkable findings are deepening our understanding of nature and stimulating a new wave of scientific, medical, and artistic innovation stretching from the ecology of the rain forest to fashion design. The documentary highlights a host of filmmakers, fashion designers, physicians, and researchers who are using fractal geometry to innovate and inspire. Aired August 24, 2011 on PBS

See the following site for program information and to order the DVD: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/hunting-hidden-dimension.html

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  • $\begingroup$ This does not sound like a documentary $\endgroup$
    – David White
    Commented Jun 28, 2022 at 4:40
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Two good ones that were recently uploaded to youtube:

Paul Halmos (teaching): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KWaBikjnYw

Yitang Zhang (bounded gaps between primes): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIIyKWxGhEA

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  • $\begingroup$ both were recently removed due to copyright. major bummer $\endgroup$
    – Forever Mozart
    Commented May 6, 2017 at 7:15
  • $\begingroup$ Are they documentaries? $\endgroup$
    – C.F.G
    Commented Nov 19, 2020 at 8:04
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The mathematics of love, by Hanna Fry

https://www.ted.com/talks/hannah_fry_the_mathematics_of_love/transcript#t-21495

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There's Mathematics Illuminated, see https://www.learner.org/series/mathematics-illuminated/ These were intended as professional development for teachers.

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Here is a short film on Paul Halmos.

  • The 44-minute film contains a rare interview with Paul Halmos by Peter Renz, revealing his thoughts on mathematics, and how to teach it and write about it. Five bonus features include comments by mathematicians Robert Bekes, David Eisenbud, Jean Pedersen, and Donald Sarason about their experiences with Halmos. Interviews with Halmos by Don Albers and Halmos's own writings are included as PDF documents
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    $\begingroup$ This is just a link to the Wikipedia page? $\endgroup$
    – Steve D
    Commented Mar 27, 2013 at 2:27
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    $\begingroup$ @Steve D: The [home page of the film] (zalafilms.com/films/halmospsynopsis.html), has an order form for ordering a copy; you get a $10 discount for AMA membership. $\endgroup$
    – Danny Ruberman
    Commented Jan 17, 2014 at 13:54
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