Paleontology Documentaries
A list of documentaries that I felt were genuine attempts to educate the audience about ancient life, although some do this better than others.
Notable exclusions include 2014's Bigger than T. Rex and 2017's The Day the Dinosaurs Died, both of which are individual episodes of PBS' Nova and I felt that mentioning that there would be more effective rather than putting the entirety of Nova on the list. I also did not include 2004's T. Rex: Warrior or Wimp because it addresses a lot of the same points as Valley of the T-Rex and you'd be better off just watching Valley of the T-Rex.
Notable exclusions include 2014's Bigger than T. Rex and 2017's The Day the Dinosaurs Died, both of which are individual episodes of PBS' Nova and I felt that mentioning that there would be more effective rather than putting the entirety of Nova on the list. I also did not include 2004's T. Rex: Warrior or Wimp because it addresses a lot of the same points as Valley of the T-Rex and you'd be better off just watching Valley of the T-Rex.
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- StarsNikolay DrozdovKenneth BranaghAvery BrooksDocumentary-style series about the era of the dinosaurs, mixing real locations and CGI.
- StarsKenneth BranaghAvery BrooksThe first half of this special is a recreation of Al's life, from birth through his death in adolescence.
- DirectorPierre de LespinoisStarsJohn GoodmanKaren ChinPhilip CurrieThe life of American dinosaurs is seen in amazing detail. The Feathered Dromeosaurs (Raptors) debut on this film along with the bizarre Therizinosaur. Each story is compelling and well-written. From a Coelophysis exploring the world around him to a teenage Tyrannosaurus learning from his mother how to hunt and even a love story between two Stegosaurus. This film also shows audiences real fossil finds and museum displays to show the researcher's work. This is educational, thrilling, and is a well-executed Discovery Channel response to BBC's ground-breaking "Walking with Dinosaurs" miniseries.
- DirectorReuben AaronsonJames McQuillanPierre de LespinoisStarsJack HornerStephen KembleJimmie WoodPaleontologist Jack Horner questions the assumption that Tyrannosaurus Rex was a predator. He thinks there is a reasonable chance it was a scavenger that had little ability to hunt or even run. He's out in the field looking for evidence to try to settle the debate.
- StarsKenneth BranaghStockard ChanningLarry AgenbroadUsing the latest digital technology, the era between the dinosaurs and man is superbly recreated by the BBC and Discovery Channel in another winning production from the coalition.
- StarsNigel MarvenThis two-part series, a sequel to Walking with Dinosaurs featured Nigel and his "team of fellow explorers" encountering prehistoric life over a large range of time, and seeing creatures not featured in the original series.
- StarsNigel MarvenChristopher CookKaren HayleyAdventurous zoologist Nigel Marven embarks on an underwater expedition through time to explore the seven deadliest seas in Earth's history, coming face to face with strange and dangerous prehistoric sea monsters.
- StarsChristian SlaterScott SampsonBeau van Erven DorensA four-episode animated series charting the adventures of four dinosaurs - each on a different continent in the prehistoric world: a lone female Velociraptor in Asia; a young male Daspletosaurus in North America; a South American female Saltasaur; and a young adult Pyroraptor in Europe. Narrated by Christian Slater and hosted by paleontologist Scott Sampson.
- StarsKenneth BranaghEdward GeroThe final installment in the "Walking with" series is a 90-minute documentary about the evolution of life before the dinosaurs.
- DirectorDavid ClarkBayley SilleckStarsMichael DouglasSterling NesbittAlan H. TurnerThis program presents some of the more recent ideas about dinosaurs that are gaining acceptance while following paleontologists searching for fossils over the decades in the Gobi Desert and New Mexico.
- DirectorMarc FafardStarsDonald SutherlandRodolfo CoriaIf it weren't for a series of cataclysmic events, a comet impact being first on the list, our planet could well still be the domain of dinosaurs. Following Pr Rodolfo Coria, a world-reknown Argentinian paleontologist, we visit sites of major discoveries he has contributed to in Patagonia and travel back in time to see these amazing beasts come to life in 3D. Patagonia has given us the largest living animal to ever walk the Earth: the titanesque plant-eating Argentinosaur, and its nemesis, the Giganotosaur, a bipedal carnivore that could easily challenge the famous T-Rex.
- DirectorSean MacLeod PhillipsStarsLiev SchreiberJennifer AguilarMichael AshcraftBrings to life some of the most bizarre, ferocious and fascinating creatures to ever inhabit the ocean. Combines animation with recreations in a prehistoric adventure. A journey to the bottom of the ancient oceans dramatizes awe-inspiring creatures.
- CreatorKreg LauterbachGeorge BlasingStarsErik ThompsonGeorge BlasingThomas HoltzJurassic Fight Club depicts how prehistoric beasts hunted their prey, dissecting these battles and uncovering a predatory world far more calculated and complex than originally thought.
- StarsKim Do-hyunFollow the journey of a young Tarbosaurus named Patch as he faces the challenges of growing up in what will one day become the Korean Peninsular.
- DirectorJenny KuboStarsJack HornerPaul SerenoGregory EricksonAs dinosaurs grew into the behemoths of the Cretaceous period they evolved many extraordinary but apparently useless features including spikes, sails horns, crests and the tiny "arms" of tyrannosaurs. The program reviews these unusual features and discusses theories of why they exist.
- StarsJ.V. MartinThomas HoltzAndrea LeanzaLong-extinct giant beasts and the strange world they once inhabited areresurrected through fossil evidence and other scientific data in this Discovery Channel program that reveals how these creatures once lived and flourished.
- StarsJason HildebrandtRichard CoyleKen CarpenterDinosaurs were the ultimate prehistoric survival machines, ruling the earth for 120 Million years. Until now we've seen them as skeletons and robotic models. Dino Body takes a new look at dinosaurs -- from the inside out. Combining cinematic photo-real 3D graphics and leading-edge anatomy and paleontology, we peel back their skin, their muscles, even their brains to reveal the unique inner workings of the greatest beasts that ever lived. Hidden inside dino bodies are the anatomical secrets to surviving prehistoric Planet Earth for millions of years.
- DirectorMatthew ThompsonStarsStephen FrySimon KerrSet 70 million years ago in the Cretaceous period in North America, this animated documentation/drama follows the journey of a young Edmontosaurus named Scar and his herd as they migrate south for the winter. This film depicts recent findings about Dinosaurs, such as Tyrannosaurs with feathers.
- StarsRick RoblesThomas HoltzScott HartmanA documentary series following various prehistoric creatures, depicting their way of lives as well as their lust for survival.
- StarsJohn HurtBased on the latest paleontological discoveries from all continents, veteran actor John Hurt narrates the gory, bleak stories of the brutal relationship between the ancient apex predators and their gigantic herbivorous prey.
- DirectorMatthew DyasStarsDavid AttenboroughDouglas A. LawsonFamous naturalist David Attenborough explains the rise and fall of pterosaurs, mistakenly known as flying dinosaurs. He also flies a glider to show how big the Quetzalcoatlus, at the time the largest known pterosaur species, really was.
- DirectorMartin KempMeet Titanoboa: She's longer than a bus, eats crocodiles for breakfast and makes the anaconda look like a garter snake.
- DirectorTodd Douglas MillerStarsStan AdelsteinLanice ArcherRobert BakkerA documentary about the discovery of the largest Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil ever found.
- StarsLaurent C. LucasCohen DayDarren NaishThis two-part British documentary on ITV tells the story of many of the dinosaurs that once roamed Great Britain, revealing how they hunted, what they ate and how they died from the evidence revealed from their bones. Presenter Ellie Harrison teams up with young paleontologist Dean Lomax in order to depict different species of dinosaurs set to the backdrop of modern Britain.
- DirectorKeimei YamazakiStarsKarl BatesSteve BrusatteSeiko ChujoDocumentary exploring the evolutionary path of the Tyrannosaurus, following the journey of two dinosaur brothers and theoretical evolution from smaller dinosaurs originating in Asia based on new fossil findings in China.
- DirectorNik WansbroughStarsKelly StrzepekDinosaurs in the Outback features the often dramatic evidence which proves that Australia was once a place where dinosaurs roamed in vast numbers.
- StarsSalvatore VecchioKirk JohnsonMichael RampinoThis original CuriosityStream 3-part documentary series features stunning animations in Ultra HD 4K quality and sheds light on the kind of life that existed in the Permian, Triassic and Cretaceous periods beginning 250 million years ago.
- DirectorFrancesco InvernizziStarsJ.P. CavigelliPeter L. LarsonWhere do dinosaur skeletons come from? Who are the scientists that find and study them? Who is interested in buying them and how much are they worth?
- StarsMone KamishiraishiSalvatore VecchioDean LomaxNew fossil discoveries are revolutionizing the way we view these ancient reptiles. Marvel at these scientifically accurate, beautifully-rendered CG dinosaurs as we examine what years of hard science has shown us about how they once lived.
- DirectorMatthew ThompsonStarsDavid AttenboroughRobert DePalmaPhillip ManningSir David Attenborough presents this landmark documentary which brings to life, in unprecedented detail, the lost world of the very last days of the dinosaurs. Searching in the hills of North Dakota, palaeontologist Robert DePalma makes an incredible discovery in a prehistoric graveyard known as Tanis - fossilised creatures, astonishingly well preserved like the bodies found at Pompeii. Whilst DePalma hunts for the evidence that can shed light on the final days of the dinosaurs, state-of-the-art VFX transports Sir David back in time to the Late Cretaceous to witness the creatures who lived at Tanis at the end of the Age of Dinosaurs. Meanwhile, cutting edge scanning techniques reveal fossilised secrets that could change our understanding of the dinosaurs' extinction once and for all.
- StarsDavid AttenboroughTravel back 66 million years to when majestic dinosaurs and extraordinary creatures roamed the lands, seas, and skies.