SLICE History

The War in the Pacific was born from a growing struggle between Japan and the United States for influence and control in East Asia. Japan’s rapid industrialisation, lack of natural resources and expansionist ambitions brought it into direct conflict with the American and British colonial powers. As tensions escalated, the American trade embargo left Japan facing a stark choice: accept American demands or go to war. The result was the attack on Pearl Harbor and the opening of a vast conflict across the Pacific and Southeast Asia. The final stages of the war brought another decisive moment: the use of the atomic bomb and Japan’s eventual surrender. But victory did not bring stability. The struggle over who would control the region helped shape the political conflicts that would lead to the Korean, Vietnam and Cambodian wars. Documentary: 1945: The Year That Changed The World EP:4 The War in the Pacific - August and September Directed by: Paul Oremland Production: FulcrumTV, UKTV New Ventures LTD (2005)

The Raft of the Medusa is one of the most famous paintings in the history of art. But behind Géricault’s masterpiece lies a horrifying true story of shipwreck, survival and scandal. In 1816, 148 sailors and one woman were abandoned on a makeshift raft after the French frigate Medusa ran aground off the coast of Africa. Only seven survived. Through a double investigation — following both a contemporary historian and Géricault’s own painstaking research — this documentary reconstructs the tragedy that shocked France and inspired one of the most powerful paintings of the 19th century. The Raft of the Medusa was more than a work of art. It became a lasting testimony to one of the darkest disasters in France’s colonial and maritime history.

World War II transformed the lives of women across Britain and Germany. Amateur films and personal testimony reveal how war changed work, family life, relationships and expectations, as women entered factories, farms, hospitals and military service in unprecedented numbers. In Britain, women faced conscription, bombing and long separations from husbands and children. In Nazi Germany, women were shaped by propaganda, racial ideology and the demands of total war, while others endured persecution, deportation and Auschwitz. Through rare home movies and eyewitness accounts, the film captures how women experienced the conflict from 1939 to 1945 and how profoundly it altered their lives. Documentary: Shooting The War EP:3 Women Directed by: Colin Thomas Production: Available Light Productions Ltd (2009)

After World War II, Japan rose from devastation to become the world’s second-largest economy. Behind that extraordinary transformation stood a financial system in which the Bank of Japan could direct how much commercial banks lent and where the money went. The result was rapid growth, industrial expansion and rising living standards. In the 1980s, the same system helped fuel an enormous asset bubble before Japan entered decades of stagnation. Based on Richard Werner’s Princes of the Yen, the film examines the controversial claim that central bankers used credit creation, crisis and reform to reshape Japan’s economic and political structure. Documentary: Princes Of The Yen Directed by: Michael Oswald Production: Sideways Film (2003)

Along the eastern coast of Africa, the Swahili have built a fascinating civilization shaped by centuries of trade, cultural exchange and the influence of Islam. From the 10th to the 15th centuries, dozens of prosperous stone-built cities flourished along the coast, before disappearing beneath the jungle and fading from history. Today, archaeological excavations at Kilwa, in Tanzania, are helping to uncover this forgotten world. Once one of the most important Swahili city-states, Kilwa offers remarkable clues about the people who built these sophisticated coastal cities. Through archaeology and new discoveries, this documentary explores the lost cities of the Swahili and sheds light on a remarkable chapter of East African history.

Deep in the Cambodian jungle, archaeologists are reconstructing Mahendraparvata, the royal capital founded by Jayavarman II in the 9th century. Temples, a royal palace, roads and an advanced hydraulic network reveal a highly organized city that appears to have established many of the principles later seen at Angkor. Using excavation, historical records and LIDAR mapping, researchers uncover the scale of this forgotten capital and its connection to the rise of the Khmer Empire. From mountain temples to the sacred River of a Thousand Lingas, the film explores how Mahendraparvata became the blueprint for one of the greatest urban centers of the medieval world.

Much of Europe’s prehistoric coastline now lies beneath the sea. The discovery of the Cosquer Cave near Marseille revealed a vanished world where Homo sapiens painted seals and seabirds, collected shells and lived across landscapes that were later submerged as sea levels rose after the Ice Age. From the Mediterranean to northern Spain and Brittany, archaeologists are uncovering new evidence of fishing, shellfish gathering, whale exploitation and long-distance exchange. These discoveries challenge the traditional image of Paleolithic hunter-gatherers as primarily inland nomads and reveal how deeply the sea shaped prehistoric life in Europe.

Erwin Rommel and the Afrika Korps became central figures in the war in North Africa. Sent to support Italian forces in 1941, Rommel led rapid offensives against the British, from Cyrenaica and Tobruk to the advance into Egypt. Alongside the military campaign, Nazi propaganda helped build Rommel’s image as the “Desert Fox.” His victories, setbacks, leadership and growing reputation shaped how he was portrayed in Germany and perceived by his British opponents. Documentary: The Desert War - episode 1 Directed by: Michael Kloft & Andreas Hancke Production: SPIEGEL TV (2022)

In 1933, Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany and rapidly dismantles the country’s democratic institutions. Political opponents are persecuted, civil liberties restricted, and Nazi propaganda helps strengthen the regime’s control. By 1934, Hitler has eliminated key rivals and secured the support of the army. After President von Hindenburg’s death, he combines the roles of president and chancellor, becoming “Fuehrer and Chancellor” with unrestricted powers. Documentary: Chronicle of the Third Reich - Part 1 Directed by: Michael Kloft Production: SPIEGEL TV (2010)