Yes, Maria Sharapova is one of the greatest to ever play the game of tennis. Yes, she is beautiful, poised and articulate. Yes, her marketability among female athletes is unrivaled. Yes, she was embroiled in a controversy that resulted in suspension. Yet, despite all of this, the real Maria Sharapova is widely unknown. Told in her own words, with a raw intimacy never before revealed, the_point. spans the most pivotal year in Maria Sharapova’s life.

Renowned filmmakers D A Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus follow determined animal rights activist Steven Wise into the courtroom for an unprecedented battle that seeks to utilize the writ of habeas corpus to expand legal “personhood” to include certain animals. Wise’s unusual plaintiffs—chimpanzees Tommy and Kiko, once famed showbiz stars—are now living in filth, struggling to survive. Wise and his impassioned legal team take us into the field, revealing gripping evidence of such abuse and plunging us into the intricacies of their case as they probe preconceived notions of what it means to be a non-human animal.

Follow three rocket and satellite companies – Astra Space, Rocket Lab, and Planet Labs – and the quests of their idiosyncratic founders to conquer the burgeoning space industry.

Ardal O’Hanlon explores a 1930s quest to find the first Irish men and women using archaeology, answering his deepest questions about what it means to be Irish.

Billy Connolly was, in the 1970s, a sort of Scottish Lenny Bruce, who, with devastating humour, sliced through the hypocrisies he perceived. This 1976 documentary follows the singer-comic during his 1975 Irish tour. Made in a cinema verité fashion, the performer appears to be completely unaware of the presence of the camera in his off-stage and backstage moments.

Professional skateboarder Amelia Brodka examines the skateboarding industry’s approach to how it markets, promotes and supports women in its sport.

Documentary revealing the inner workings of the world’s most powerful intelligence organization, with unprecedented access to America’s spy network, all 12 living CIA directors and top agency operatives, who talk candidly about torture, secret prisons, drone warfare, alleged assassinations and the constant threat of attack, which begs the question: how far should America go to keep us safe?

Family secrets, lies, high drama and generations of contemporary history unspool in this international story that begins with World War II and concludes with an emotional 21st-century family reunion. Izak was born inside the Bergen-Belsen displaced persons camp in 1945 and sent for adoption in Israel. Secret details of his birth mother, an unknown brother in Canada and his father’s true identity slowly emerge in this extremely personal investigative film.

The moving story of the last generation of Holocaust survivors who travel to Poland with thousands of teenagers from around the world to retrace the Death March from Auschwitz to Birkenau.

For the members of the comedy troupe Asperger’s Are Us, it’s easier to associate with a faceless audience than with their own families. No matter who the crowd, best friends Noah, New Michael, Jack and Ethan have one simple mantra: “We would much rather the audience appreciate us as comedians than people who have overcome adversity.” In this coming-of-age heartfelt documentary, this band of brothers finds themselves at a crossroad. With real life pulling them apart, they decide to plan one ambitious farewell show before they all go their separate ways. People with Asperger’s don’t deal well with uncertainty, and this is the most uncertain time in their lives.

Before the internet. Before social media. Before breaking news. The victims of Thalidomide had to rely on something even more extraordinary to fight their corner: Investigative journalism. This is the story of how Harold Evans fought and won the battle of his and many other lives.

In this extraordinary documentary, we get a glimpse into a world most of us never consider until it’s thrust upon us by bereavement. But, far from morbid or dark, this is a life-affirming story, full of empathy, unexpected revelations and strangely, hope.