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The imaginary worlds of fantasy irrigate literature, cinema, video and role-playing games. Illustrator John Howe, the concept artist of The Lord of the Rings series, takes us on a wonderful four-part journey to discover the artists who have crafted fantasy.

Over the past twenty years, our views on Fantasy have shifted tremendously. Long reduced to repetitive adventures in comic books or movies with kitschy settings and poor scenarios, Fantasy now faces higher expectations from readers and critics alike, who demand complex heroes, strong female characters, original universes, in tune with more modern issues.
From its distant origins in myths and legends to its emergence into popular culture in the second half of the 20th century, fantasy has gradually taken shape over a history spanning more than a century. From the romantic Germany of the Brothers Grimm to the Texas plains where Robert E. Howard gave birth to the character of Conan, from the socialist utopias of William Morris to the tortured and eccentric mind of HP Lovecraft, John Howe’s travels will be interspersed with animated sequences breathing life into the stories that laid the foundations of the genre. To understand what makes these works so relevant and prevalent today, John Howe will be assisted by renowned experts such as S. T. Joshi, author of a 1200-page biography of Lovecraft, and Patrice Louinet, editor and translator of Robert E. Howard.
 

Every culture has its own rituals for dealing with the different stages that punctuate our lives (being born, growing up, seducing, bonding and dying). Each episode of this series will focus on two different cultures and their distinct or similar ways to deal with these issues. 

Being born, growing up, seducing, bonding, dying: this cycle of life is immutable. It is the very foundation of our condition as human beings, beyond culture. It leads us inexorably towards the end – after all, moving forward in life means moving closer to death, and from that point of view, living becomes a frightening adventure! This is why humans have invented accompanying rituals that help structure life in specific stages: the collective rites of passage from one stage to another provide individuals with a calmer perception of their mortal condition.
 

Meet those who, throughout the world, celebrate these life's transitions. Purification, isolation, pain, transformation of the body: every group has its own practices, beliefs and prohibitions that reveal its identity. By sharing these rituals with them, we gain an insight into their culture, their fears, their desires, their vision of life, their way of responding to “the difficult task that is growing up”.

It allows us to question our own anxieties and perspectives and reflect on the usefulness of these ritualized occasions. Today, our Western societies are becoming more and more emancipated from them: people are free to live out their love with whomever they choose, cremation is secular, and graduating is no longer a widely recognized official entry into adulthood. What do rites of passage teach practitioners? How do they help them move on to the next step? What kind of transformation does one undergo?

Thanks to the Internet which helped spread stand up comedy internationally, this popular form of humor has become the prism through which contemporary issues are seen: in the abundance of identities, a global movement challenges the established order.          
Stand up told by its icons: Jamel Debbouze, Blanche Gardin, Ali Wong, Vir Das, Fary and Hannah Gasby.

The success of stand-up comedy can be measured by the growth of comedy clubs in cities around the world in recent years. It can also be seen through the investments of an international streaming platform like Netflix, which keeps producing and broadcasting shows, while scouting for new local talents. All over the world, young people are picking up just an ordinary microphone to laugh at themselves, society and its morals.
The protest dimension of this comic art is also the instrument of an untimely and sarcastic speech, where the most agitated fringe of a society, its youth, gives itself the right to express its moods on its state of health, its palpitations, its dreams and its disappointments. Stand-up comedy is a way of breaking down minds and fixed opinions, to slip in, through its sense of observation and absurdity, new considerations on our social relationships. When talking about stand-up comedy, we are  talking about the contemporary state of society.

Discover the evolution of modern China, through 150 years of history and key figures like Empress Cixi, Mao Zedong and Jack Ma. The country lost its leadership position, then bounced back to soon become the most powerful country in the world.

This historical and geopolitical investigation explains how China reinvented itself to return to its former greatness, thanks to the action of political key figures but also the help of those who remained in the shadows. Combining exceptional archival images, unique animation and the words of international historians, this documentary overturns the Western view of China.

There is no standard picture that describes the largest and most varied country in Western Europe in terms of wildlife and landscapes. Discover a one-of-a-kind variety of natural wonders populated with  small creatures with stunning never-before-seen images.

The North-West: from Paris along the wild coast, the romantic Normandy and the picturesque Loire
The South-West: the garden of France along the Atlantic Ocean, the wine regions of Burgundy and Bordeaux
The South: where mountains meet the Mediterranean Sea and the blooming Provence
The East: mountain area
Anyone who looks closely will discover something unusual, something never seen before. Especially, some small creatures often show behaviors nobody knows about, like these bioluminescent worms or catfish that hunt pigeons. France is one of those countries you think you know, but when you explore it, it can still surprise you!

The incredible and untold story of the invention, development and improvement of China's surveillance and repression system over the decades. A new light on China’s totalitarian power following the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party.

LAOdong and GAIzao mean "work" and "reform" in Chinese, so LAOGAI is the concept of reform through work. Starting from the present time – the Communist party dealing with Covid – the series will take you back to the origins of the laogai and follow its evolution at the rhythm of the great political caesuras of contemporary China, each period having its share of purges, accumulating one on top of the other, and sparing no sector of Chinese society. A spectacular documentary series that will reveal that China is the greatest totalitarian power of all times.

Since the beginnings of journalism, nothing has beaten people talking about ideas and facts. To bring you current affairs with body and an extra dose of soul, ARTE REPORTS favours encounters with real people.

Every week, ARTE REPORTS reviews in images the events that made the headlines.

Discover the Myths of the Americas, while driving the iconic Route 66 to California, then on to Cuba, a tobacco eldorado. Or take the Hogwarts Express to Scotland for a dose of magic, ending with Isfahan the One Thousand and One Wonders in Iran.

MYTHS OF THE AMERICAS (26') 
To discover the Myths of the Americas, you just have to drive the iconic Route 66, 400km of freedom and wide landscapes, from Chicago to California, then head for Cuba and its tobacco eldorado appreciated for the cigar.

FANTASTIC TRIPS (26') 
Who has never dreamed of taking the Hogwarts Express to the most famous wizarding school in the world? Direction Scotland, land of haunted castles and mysterious mist between heaven and earth. After a good dose of magic, it's time to escape to Isfahan, the One Thousand and One Wonders in Iran. Colorful domes and resplendent cupolas, which arise from the desert!