German polymath Alexander von Humboldt was welcomed by President Thomas Jefferson and his name is lent to places across the United States. So why does nobody know Humboldt or his radical musings on our interconnected world? G. Anthony Svatek’s astonishingly beautiful essay film will get you up to speed.

You’ll come to mourn the loss of a glacier every bit as much as a family member when you melt into Sara Dosa’s astonishing new film. As narrated by the Icelandic poet Andri Snær Magnason, who pours his family’s soul into it, it’s a spellbinding elegy for a fast-vanishing majesty.

Sweeping mountain winds and distant military explosions shape daily life for Gara and teenage Nada in the potent and transportive To Hold a Mountain. Living beside a NATO military training ground in Montenegro’s mountains, the pair face the threat of displacement as another danger looms: Nada’s father is soon to be released from prison.

Ever-escalating Italian tourism threatens the way of life of Cinque Terre’s blessed locals, who are caught in a possibly toxic codependent relationship with their summer season invaders. Sanitorium (AFF 2025) director Gar O’Rourke’s latest award-winning documentary asks us to ponder if this is sustainable, or if something has to give.