The emergence of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies has changed the way people view money, payments and asset trading. The invention of the first cryptocurrency as well as its subsequent trials and tribulations made the front page of reputable newspapers across the globe and enjoyed prime time broadcast on TV. Likewise, there are already dozens of documentaries and films featuring or making reference to Bitcoin.
A Great Way to Learn About Bitcoin
While some films use Bitcoin as pretext for drama or comedy, others genuinely focus on explaining why cryptocurrencies appeared and how they impact our everyday life. If you want to learn more about digital currency, the latter are a great source of information.
For this reason, we have prepared a list of must watch documentaries:
1. The Bitcoin Story
This documentary, starring Gavin Andresen, Peter Vessens and C. Bennett Hoffman, was made by Janson Media in 2015. It consists of a series of conversations about the creation of Bitcoin, the technology behind it, and its role in the future of finance.
The documentary has a runtime of 35 minutes and you can watch it for free with Amazon for Prime account.
2. Ulterior States (I Am Satoshi Documentary)
You can watch this documentary, prepared and released in 2015 by Tomer Kantor, for free on YouTube. The documentary won the award for the Micro Budget Feature category at the Berlin Independent Film Festival in 2018. It features many thought leaders in the blockchain world and attempts to present an unbiased image of the crypto community.
Ulterior States aims to make a clear distinction between how cryptocurrency works and how the traditional banking system works. Furthermore, it brings forth the key advantages of using BTC and other crypto assets.
3. The Rise and Rise of Bitcoin
This is one of the earliest films about the first cryptocurrency. In 2014, director Nicholas Mross took the helm of this project featuring Gavin Andresen, Brian Armstrong and Vitalik Buterin, among others. In the docudrama, Dan, a computer programmer, discovers Bitcoin and becomes engrossed in the world of blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
The film explores the stories of people and startups that build this new financial universe, the mining market and various political and social viewpoints regarding the digital currency ecosystem.
4. Bitcoin: The End of Money as We Know It
The documentary, released in 2015, is only 60 minutes long. Nevertheless, it is packed with in-depth explanations on how Bitcoin and the blockchain technology will disrupt traditional financial system.
The documentary directed by Torsten Hoffmann and Michael Watchulonis explores the history of money starting with the in kind bartering of ancient times to the daily stock exchange trading on Wall Street. The film does not offer any definite answers. Instead, it raises legitimate questions about the role cryptocurrency will play in the financial world of the future.
5. Life on Bitcoin
Could people survive using only Bitcoin as means of purchasing everyday bare necessities? The movie Life on Bitcoin shows the results of this experiment: a newlywed couple decides to try to pay for everything with cryptocurrency.
This social experiment lasted for 100 days and is captured in the 96-minute film. It allows viewers to make up their mind concerning the possibility of replacing all types of fiat currencies with cryptocurrencies sometime in the future.
6. Banking on Bitcoin
This independent film, available on Netflix, tells the story of Bitcoin since its inception. It focuses on explaining how and why cryptocurrency was created and the technology behind it. It also presents the key actors and crypto pioneers involved in the development of this new monetary system.
With this documentary, the director Christopher Cannucciari attempts to shed some light on the future of BTC and how it may change our world.