@abereadsold
documentaries I actually assign vs the ones they beg for
8 items
- 01The Civil War (Ken Burns, 1990)
- 02Eyes on the Prize
- 03The Vietnam War (Burns & Novick, 2017)
- ··5 more entries
13900
🎞️Ken Burns docs, in release order
the filmography start to finish, an extract of the major ones - full list runs longer than this. through 2025's The American Revolution.
Never miss an update
This list changes over time. Get a short email when it does.
At most one short email a week. Unfollow in one click.
01
Brooklyn Bridge (1981)
his first film, made for PBS on a shoestring. still the template
02
The Statue of Liberty (1985)
03
The Civil War (1990)
the one that made him famous. an estimated 40 million watched that week
04
Baseball (1994)
nine 'innings,' one per era. got a tenth added in 2010
05
The West (1996)
Burns produced, Stephen Ives directed - not fully his, worth noting
06
Lewis & Clark (1997)
07
Jazz (2001)
ten episodes, nineteen hours. the Miles Davis chapter argues with itself
08
Mark Twain (2002)
09
The War (2007)
WWII told through four American towns, no top-down generals' narrative
10
The National Parks (2009)
11
Prohibition (2011)
three parts, feels like a warning shot before the Dust Bowl doc
12
The Dust Bowl (2012)
13
The Roosevelts (2014)
seven episodes, three Roosevelts, one dynasty
14
The Vietnam War (2017)
18 hours, took ten years to make. still the hardest one to sit through
15
Country Music (2019)
16
Hemingway (2021)
made with Lynn Novick, same team as Vietnam
17
The American Buffalo (2023)
two parts, ties back into the National Parks doc from 2009
18
The American Revolution (2025)
six parts, timed to the 250th anniversary. primary sources on primary sources
Or start a list of your own. Free, it takes a minute.