To Be Alive!

1964 0h 18m EN

👍

7.4

SOLID

★7.4TMDB · 9

Documentary

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

"To Be Alive!" was designed to celebrate the common ground between different cultures by tracing how children in various parts of the world mature into adulthood.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Robert Fields
Narrator

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Francis Thompson
Writers: Francis Thompson, Edward Field, Alexander Hammid
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 18-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

62 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Gene Forrell. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Alexander Hammid shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0059814 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

Only 9 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Francis Thompson directs. Gene Forrell scores. Alexander Hammid cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 18-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
262 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Original score by Gene Forrell. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Alexander Hammid shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6IMDB entry: tt0059814 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
7Only 9 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Original score: Gene Forrell
Editing: Alexander Hammid
Runtime: 18 min · 0h 18m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: To Be Alive! (1964)

Awards

Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject)

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Francis Thompson

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2026-02-01
★ 7/10
This isn’t so much a documentary as a series of quick-fire portraits of life. Some are single frame and a little more extended, some share the picture with others and are gone in a flash, but all are delivered in a manner I felt had something of the heartbeat to it. From the mundanities of urban existence to those of rural. Older people offer us a perhaps more settled perspective whilst the younger ones - who feature more substantially and optimistically - offer more curious and adventurous ones as we are introduced to people of all ages being photographed from all around the globe using various techniques. Some of this is quite fun to watch, some less so, but whimsical as it can be at times, it really does what it sets out to say on the can and celebrates the myriad of things we and other creatures can do because we are, actually, alive!

Production companies