FILMS

The Mountain Jews are truly one of Russia’s most enigmatic people. RTDoc sheds light on some of their well-kept ethnic secrets, as well as their oldest customs and traditions.

Tyva: the land where authentic culture and unique nature meet to form an extraordinary combination. Find out more in this fascinating documentary.

Blood-curdling stories of man's ongoing hunt for the elixir of eternal life, the cutting edge of cybernetic implants and secrets of an Abkhazian centenarians village discovered in this new documentary.

Sometimes death is the most merciful solution. However, most countries of the world regard euthanasia as a crime. Is there any way out for those who are tired of suffering? RTDoc finds out.

A stranger in his homeland and a stranger in his adopted country, a former Soviet soldier had to stay in Afghanistan for 29 years after being captured by the Mujahideen and made to fight on the side of his country's enemy. In this film, he finally comes back to his native land, but is he welcomed?

This place in Russia’s Far East is difficult to reach, because in some places there aren’t any roads. Every true traveler dreams of reaching this peninsula. Welcome to Kamchatka’s Kronotsky Nature Reserve!

At Russia's southern border lies a melting pot where 102 nationalities share a strip of land between the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus mountains. Meet the people of Dagestan on RTDoc.

The Pagan tradition of Russia’s republic of Mari El was left untouched by the sweep of Christianity across Europe. Its indigenous population still perform the same rituals and say the same prayers as their forebears nearly a thousand years ago.

Take your wishes and prayers straight to the sky with a charmed blue scarf. Dance to the music of a fiddle strung with horse hairs. Fall asleep to tales of invincible epic heroes. But if you are disrespectful of their holy tokens - don't count on the spirits' mercy.

RT’s crew takes a trip to North and South Dakota to meet the Lakota, a Native American tribe. In this report you'll find out why this nation is unrecognized, what problems and joys these people face in today’s society, and what the word "Lakota" actually means.

The US intelligence analysts were stunned by this mysterious machine when they saw it for the first time. Its high speed manoeuvres, power and enormous size entitled it to a grim nickname - the Caspian Sea Monster.

Leah Ferguson goes for a walk near Moscow's Tchaikovsky Conservatory to teach you a little bit of Russian.

A stranger in his homeland and a stranger in his adopted country, a former Soviet soldier had to stay in Afghanistan for 29 years after being captured by the Mujahideen and made to fight on the side of his country's enemy. In this film, he finally comes back to his native land, but is he welcomed?

It was the most ambitious railway project of the Soviet era. The whole plan was a large-scale battle of Man against Nature. But the war was lost with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Yet, many people continue to live on the land that had been claimed.

The Kalashnikov rifle needs no introduction. In this documentary we show you its origins, how it’s made and tested, who uses it, and many more fascinating facts.

How did the "Friendship Bridge" at the border between Russia and Estonia become a hostile checkpoint and why are WWII veterans banned from wearing their medals while war criminals are honored as fallen heroes? RTDoc finds out.

To modern children, Soviet labor camps are a dull page in a history book, but for Nina Lugovskaya, a girl who lived in Stalin’s Soviet Union, it was a grim reality.

As the city of Sochi prepares for the upcoming 2014 Winter Olympic Games, volunteers across the country are preparing to help the city greet the world. Join RTDoc’s James Brown as he meets the people volunteering their time for an event of international significance. 

They are not afraid to follow their dreams and live to the max. Instead of putting up with the fact their life is inevitably coming to an end, they seem to convince the laws of biology to freeze the time for them. 

Those born with artistic taste and a love of all beauty were doomed if they were born in the Soviet Union. Practicality and uniformity dictated all spheres of life, including fashion. Our heroes begged to differ, becoming the vivid flecks on the Iron Curtain’s drab surface.

The Pagan tradition of Russia’s republic of Mari El was left untouched by the sweep of Christianity across Europe. Its indigenous population still perform the same rituals and say the same prayers as their forebears nearly a thousand years ago.

Father Nikolay Stremsky has built an Orthodox village outside of Orenburg and opened his home to 70 children. We meet the priest and his adopted offspring, who have come from all walks of life and have become the family project of this modern-day miracle-worker.

This Soviet figure was said to know no mercy, no sympathy and no feelings at all. None apart from fear, which was his permanent companion. He was afraid of treason coming from his closest ones, and his fear was not groundless.

Russia's State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg is home to countless pieces of art from around the world. We go behind the scenes of the former imperial palace on the Neva River to meet volunteers of all kinds...including cats.

It's dirty, demanding and highly dangerous, but in Russia coal mining is a multi-billion dollar business. Join James Brown as he travels to the Kuzbass, Russia's coal basin to see what it takes to work in an industry that employs more than 100,000 people, but which still claims lives every year. 

We travel to the Republic of Adygea and meet Syrian refugees in the region. While some yearn for their abandoned homeland, others embrace their cultural roots in this new land and strive to become a part of Russian society. The most important thing is that they are Away from the Bombs.

Becoming a professional ballerina is a journey that begins at a young age and is extremely competitive. We meet young girls devoting their lives to the profession, as well as the women, who end up on the very top, performing on stage at the Mariinsky Theater in St. Petersburg.

We explore Chechnya, a republic of contrasts, and look at how the Chechen people have struck a balance between tradition and modernity.

Don’t mess with Texas. RT travels to the Republic of Texas and meets Texans who are proud of their heritage, embrace self-reliance and are ready to live by what they preach, even if it strays from the norms of mainstream American society.

25 years since scientist Valery Legasov, who was investigating the Chernobyl disaster, was found dead in his apartment. We take a close look at his life and reasons of his death.

Prisoners of a psychiatric ward. They are criminal offenders suffering from mental disorders. Can art therapy relieve their troubled souls and minds? Artist Alexandr Semyonov gives them a chance to change and get better. 

Welcome to Murmansk – the gem of Russia’s North! This place is famous for its harsh climate and naval fleet, which includes nuclear icebreakers. But there are also lots of other interesting things to do and places to visit, including a snow village and reindeer.

In the Caucasian mountains people like tradition, no matter how violent it may be. In the 1990s public executions were common in Chechnya and Ingushetiya. They have their own justice and their own methods. The times are changing, as people seek forgiveness rather than revenge.

An up-close look into the extraordinary life and mysterious death of Boris Berezovsky, once Russia's most influential oligarch.

When people are released from jail they have nowhere to live, no jobs and no opportunities to start over, so they are in danger of ending up behind bars again. Having been in their shoes once, Yury Potapenko knows just how much they need another chance and gives them one.