Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
Diverse, numerous and vital to life on Earth, plankton are microscopic, mostly single-celled organisms that live in sunlit regions of watery environments. Through photosynthesis, these small lifeforms produce half of the world’s oxygen. Over the past several decades, however, the climate crisis has caused worrying disruptions in plankton populations, with their numbers decreasing in open oceans and increasing in near-shore waters, sometimes leading to harmful algal blooms.
The Dutch photographer and filmmaker Jan van IJken’s short film Planktonium uses high-definition microscopy to bring the beauty and wide variety of plankton into view. As he focuses on just one species at a time, some resemble familiar cellular forms, while others appear as if creatures born of an alien planet. Paired with an ethereal ambient composition by the Norwegian artist Jana Winderen, the film offers a stunning perspective on this hidden, essential world. For more awe-inspiring glimpses into nature from van IJken, watch Becoming and The Art of Flying.
Director: Jan van IJken
Composer: Jana Winderen

video
The ancient world
What wine vessels reveal about politics and luxury in ancient Athens and Persia
16 minutes

video
Art
David Goldblatt captured the contradictions of apartheid in stark black and white
15 minutes

video
Space exploration
In the search for life, might alien ocean worlds be a better bet than Earth-like planets?
5 minutes

video
Love and friendship
When drawing your muse hundreds of times becomes an exercise in love
7 minutes

video
Thinkers and theories
Is simulation theory a way to shirk responsibility for the world we’ve created?
13 minutes

video
Biology
A dazzling slice-by-slice exploration of wood exposes hidden patterns and hues
2 minutes

video
Family life
In Rwanda, Sébastien finds traces of personal history in the wake of national tragedy
21 minutes

video
Dance and theatre
Leaf through Shakespeare’s First Folio for a riveting journey into theatre history
13 minutes

video
Architecture
Modern architecture should embrace – not ignore or repel – the nonhuman world
8 minutes