Granada’s landmark anthropological series, broadcast over three decades, remains an extraordinary triumph of cutting-edge documentary making. Internationally acclaimed, award-winning films offer intimate portraits of remote communities such as the Cuiva, Embera and Panare Indians of Colombia, the nomadic Tuareg of the Sahara, the Kurdish Dervishes and the Meo of China, while highlighting the fragility of these ancient cultures – many of which had been squeezed to the point of extinction at the time of filming.

Developed from an idea by former World In Action producer Brian Moser, who had witnessed at first hand the relentless and rapid destruction of native Indian tribes in Latin America, Disappearing World displayed an unprecedented foregrounding of its subjects, who spoke freely about their lives and values in their own languages and were filmed engaged in daily activities. A generous budget and much freedom was granted to the production and research team, and the series’ constantly evolving presentation format also acknowledged current concerns within the field about the portrayal of ‘primitive’ societies. The films were made easily accessible to schools and universities, and remain a valuable educational resource.

Disappearing World was groundbreaking television whose aim extended far beyond the remit of ‘serious’ or ‘educational’ television, setting the standard for future investigative programming. This first volume collects 15 documentaries, initially broadcast between 1970 and 1975.


Please note that this DVD contains uncensored footage of primitive societies which features intermittent scenes of nudity, tribal rituals and animal cruelty that form part of their indigenous cultures.