25 Beautiful Math Documentaries to Make Students Love Math

25 Beautiful Math Documentaries to Make Students Love Math

Watching math documentaries can be an inspiring way to learn more about math. From the history of math to new developments, math documentaries open up a world of mathematical knowledge and show how math has been used and developed over time. 


Not only will you discover fascinating topics and pick up valuable insights, but you’ll also get an opportunity to observe math in action by learning from experienced mathematicians. Math documentaries are an excellent way to build a greater understanding of math, providing valuable inspiration for anyone looking for innovative ways of thinking about math.


Math documentaries are one of the best tools to reach quality information. In fact, we watch with great curiosity when we watch the subjects in the documentary that many students will fall asleep to while listening to in class.


That’s why mathematics documentaries have great importance in mathematics education. We need to use mathematics documentaries to show the importance of mathematics, examples from the lives of great mathematicians, and daily-life applications of mathematics.


How to Find Good Math Documentaries to Watch?


The problem is that finding a good math documentary is hard. And when you find a good one like The Great Math Mystery, most of them are not free to watch! You are required to have AmazonNetflix, or Vimeo subscriptions.


But don’t worry! I did a huge search for you and curated over 25 great mathematics documentaries for you! These documentaries are very “interesting” because they present either actual mathematics, mathematicians, or mathematics history.


Below, you will find 25 math documentaries that will make your students or children love mathematics.

A Trip to Infinity

Can we experience the infinite? The world's most modern scientists and mathematicians embark on a search for the infinite and its amazing effects on the universe. A Trip to Infinity is a beautiful math documentary that profiles pioneers of math and physics worldwide who are trying to explain infinity....
NOVA leads viewers on a mathematical mystery tour -- a provocative exploration of math's astonishing power across the centuries. We discover math's signature in the swirl of a nautilus shell, the whirlpool of a galaxy and the spiral in the center of a sunflower. Math was essential to everything from the first wireless radio transmissions to the prediction and discovery of the Higgs boson and the successful landing of rovers on Mars. But where does math get its power? Astrophysicist...
Between the Folds chronicles the stories of ten fine artists and intrepid theoretical scientists who have abandoned careers and scoffed at hard–earned graduate degrees—all to forge unconventional lives as modern–day paperfolders....

Secrets of the Surface: The Mathematical Vision of Maryam Mirzakhani

Filmed in Canada, Iran, and the United States, Secrets of the Surface: TheMathematical Vision of Maryam Mirzakhani examines the life and mathematicalwork of Maryam Mirzakhani, an Iranian immigrant to the United States who becamea superstar in her field. In 2014, she was both the first woman and the first Iranianto be honored by mathematics’ highest prize, the Fields Medal....
A Brilliant Madness is a PBS American Experience documentary on the life of mathematician John Nash. It first aired April 28, 2002, and was produced by Randall MacLowry and directed by Mark Samels....

Taking the Long View: The Life of Shiing-shen Chern

Taking the Long View: The Life of Shiing-shen Chern (2011) examines the life of a remarkable mathematician whose formidable mathematical contributions were matched by an approach and vision that helped build bridges between China and the West. The biographical documentary follows Shiing-shen Chern through many of the most dramatic events of the 20th century, portraying a man who dedicated his life to pure mathematics with a classical Chinese sage style....

The Proof

For over 350 years, some of the greatest minds of science struggled to prove what was known as Fermat's Last Theorem—the idea that a certain simple equation had no solutions. Now hear from the man who spent seven years of his life cracking the problem, read the intriguing story of an 18th century woman mathematician who hid her identity in order to work on Fermat's Last Theorem, and demonstrate that a related equation, the Pythagorean Theorem, is true....
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Ali Kaya

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Ali Kaya

This is Ali. Bespectacled and mustachioed father, math blogger, and soccer player. I also do consult for global math and science startups.