Documen.tv is the result of encounters and discussions between individuals for whom observing the world, trying to understand it, and sharing the fruit of their reflections is as much a passion as a profession. Documenting societies, recording them in sounds and images, filming history in the making, offering an independent view permits us to stop for a moment and reflect, to act, and get involved in today’s and tomorrow's realities. This, in our opinion, is essential. And our mission.

At a time in our history where the mass media are under increasing pressure from political and economic interests, where information and opinions are, at best, toned down, or, at worst, manipulated by fewer and fewer agenda-driven conglomerates, we have the conviction that a just world can only emerge from a diversified way of observing it.

Realities are complex and we do not espouse the promotion of a monolithic Truth, but for tolerance and a diversity of points of view, because only from this diversity will the real intelligence of our world emerge. Therefore, this site is intended to be a place of meeting and exchange as well as a source of reflection.

Technical equipment for audiovisual production has never been so available, but the means of broadcasting have never been so subjugated to the rules of “audience ratings”. In many countries the documentary film is still struggling to find its place in the flux of programs of the major television channels, who nevertheless remain the principal means of diffusion for the documentary genre. The declared objective of these channels, public or private, is to maximize their “audience”. However, a documentary film is rarely made for the largest common denominator audience, indiscernible and vague, but is aimed at a public curious and hungry for precise, complex and sometimes difficult problems and issues. This public exists, is numerous, and growing.

If we make a analogy to print media, we could find ourselves in a situation where our readers would have access essentially to a small choice of magazines and newspapers, maybe a few best-sellers, and only 3% of books in print; books that would be available only once or twice, in a very precise area and for a very limited time. With regard to documentary films, we still don’t have a “library” or “bookshop”; hence we have no permanent access to the vast quantity of existing films. Documentary films are neither ephemeral nor perishable, only the present state of the audiovisual market gives them this appearance.

Documen.tv has the objective of changing this situation, of making permanently available to all audiences the largest possible number of independent audiovisual documents about current affairs, history, social and cultural geography, to name only a few subject areas possible. Documen.tv is a permanent source of information free from any powers, political or financial, free from any constraints of time, territory or audience.

Our role is to put into direct and permanent contact independent producers and what we hope will be a growing number of people interested in alternative points of view. Our revenues come essentially from our end-users. Our freedom will depend upon them, on their curiosity and commitment. Our pertinence will depend on the authors and producers who choose to confide their work to us. Between the filmmakers and spectators we hope to create a new space of freedom and contact, to open a multitude of windows to the real complexities of a planet, whose dangers and diversity also create its beauty.