Movies like Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story (2017)
The best movies like Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story (2017) are Visions of Light (1992), Inside Deep Throat (2005) and Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019). If Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story hooked you with its documentary and history, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedKaty Perry: Part of Me (2012)7.1/10 from 295 votes
- NewestS4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)Released 2026
Visions of Light (1992)
Cameramen and women discuss the craft and art of cinematography and of the "DP" (the director of photography), illustrating their points with clips from 100 films, from Birth of a Nation to Do the Right Thing. Themes: the DP tells people where to look; changes in movies (the arrival of sound, color, and wide screens) required creative responses from DPs; and, these artisans constantly invent new equipment and try new things, with wonderful results. The narration takes us through the identifiable studio styles of the 30s, the emergence of noir, the New York look, and the impact of Europeans. Citizen Kane, The Conformist, and Gordon Willis get special attention.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisInside Deep Throat (2005)
In 1972, a seemingly typical shoestring budget pornographic film was made in a Florida hotel: "Deep Throat," starring Linda Lovelace. This film would surpass the wildest expectation of everyone involved to become one of the most successful independent films of all time. It caught the public imagination which met the spirit of the times, even as the self-appointed guardians of public morality struggled to suppress it, and created, for a brief moment, a possible future where sexuality in film had a bold artistic potential. This film covers the story of the making of this controversial film, its stunning success, its hysterical opposition along with its dark side of mob influence and allegations of the on set mistreatment of the film's star.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaking Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019)
The history of cinematic sound, told by legendary sound designers and visionary filmmakers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004)
Documentary about the art of film editing. Clips are shown from many groundbreaking films with innovative editing styles.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisI Called Him Morgan (2016)
Part jazz history, part true-crime tale, Kasper Collin’s new documentary employs extensive archival footage and new interviews to tell the tragic story of the magnificently talented trumpeter Lee Morgan and his common-law wife Helen, who murdered him in a New York bar in 1972.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCome See Me in the Good Light (2025)
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBiggie: I Got a Story to Tell (2021)
Christopher Wallace, AKA The Notorious B.I.G., remains one of Hip-Hop’s icons, renowned for his distinctive flow and autobiographical lyrics. This documentary celebrates his life via rare behind-the-scenes footage and the testimonies of his closest friends and family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWho Are You, Charlie Brown? (2021)
Lupita Nyong'o narrates a documentary about Peanuts and its creator, Charles M. Schulz. Famous fans—including Drew Barrymore, Kevin Smith, and Al Roker—share its influence on them, and a new animated story finds Charlie Brown on a quest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKaty Perry: Part of Me (2012)
Giving fans unprecedented access to the real life of the music sensation, Katy Perry: Part of Me exposes the hard work, dedication and phenomenal talent of a girl who remained true to herself and her vision in order to achieve her dreams. Featuring rare behind-the-scenes interviews, personal moments between Katy and her friends, and all-access footage of rehearsals, choreography, Katy’s signature style and more, Katy Perry: Part of Me reveals the singer’s unwavering belief that if you can be yourself, then you can be anything.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCasting By (2012)
This essential new documentary pays tribute to the legacy of the late, legendary casting director Marion Dougherty and shines a light on one of the most overlooked and least understood crafts in filmmaking.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFuck (2006)
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLooking for Richard (1996)
Al Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Mom Jayne (2025)
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAs I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDavid Bowie: Five Years (2013)
Featuring a wealth of previously unseen archive, this film looks at how Bowie continually evolved: from Ziggy Stardust to the Soul Star of Young Americans, to the ‘Thin White Duke’. It explores his regeneration in Berlin with the critically acclaimed album Heroes, his triumph with Scary Monsters and his global success with Let’s Dance. With interviews with all his closest collaborators, David Bowie - Five Years presents a unique account of why Bowie has become an ‘icon of our times’.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNothing Like a Dame (2018)
BBC Arena's documentary on the Dames of British Theatre and film featuring Maggie Smith, Eileen Atkins, Judi Dench and Joan Plowright on screen together for the first time as they reminisce over a long summer weekend in a house Joan once shared with Sir Laurence Olivier.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDrew: The Man Behind the Poster (2013)
A documentary on legendary movie-poster artist Drew Struzan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNaqoyqatsi (2002)
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia (2009)
Produced by Johnny Knoxville and Jeff Tremaine for MTV and Dickhouse Productions, The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia is a documentary about the renowned West Virginia outlaw Jesco White and his eccentric backwoods family. In addition to getting in trouble with the law, the Whites, who live deep within Appalachia, uphold a time-honored dancing style, even as they contend with poverty, drugs and other issues. Alternately humorous and sad, the movie is an unflinching look at life on the criminal margins of rural mountain culture.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisS4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)
Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMadonna: Truth or Dare (1991)
From the rains of Japan, through threats of arrest for 'public indecency' in Canada, and a birthday tribute to her father in Detroit, this documentary follows Madonna on her 1990 'Blond Ambition' concert tour. Filmed in black and white, with the concert pieces in glittering MTV color, it is an intimate look at the work of the icon, from a prayer circle before each performance to bed games with the dance troupe afterwards.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLife in Progress (2015)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Martha Graham: The Dancer Revealed (1994)
Released on DVD as part of The Criterion Collection's "Martha Graham: Dance on Film" collection.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Back To Africa (2008)
An Austrian director followed five successful African music and dance artists with his camera and followed their lives for a year. The artists, from villages in Ghana, Gambia and Congo, were the subjects of Africa! Africa! touring across Europe, but they have unbreakable roots to their homeland and their families. Schmiderer lovingly portrays his heroes, who tell their stories about themselves, their art and what it means to them to be African with captivating honesty. The interviews are interwoven with dance scenes and colourful vignettes set to authentic music.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Ata Kak: Time Bomb (2017)
After Awesome Tapes From Africa's Brian Shimkovitz found the energetic, ecstatic music of Ghanaian musician Ata Kak, the tunes became beloved around the world. It was all unbeknownst to the artist himself -- his music was even unknown to those living in his hometown in Ghana. Years of tireless searching ensued, and eventually the Los Angeles-based label owner found a lead. Ata Kak - Time Bomb follows the search that Shimkovitz undertook as well as the visit to Ghana that took place once he found him. It is a celebration of great tunes and how, when it hits the right audience at the right time, music can touch people in a way that you never imagined.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Flamenco (1995)
The film presents thirteen rhythms of flamenco, each with song, guitar, and dance: the up-tempo bularías, a brooding farruca, an anguished martinete, and a satiric fandango de huelva. There are tangos, a taranta, alegrías, siguiriyas, soleás, a guajira of patrician women, a petenera about a sentence to death, villancicos, and a final rumba.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
How Can You Stay In The House All Day And Not Go Anywhere? (2010)
A multimedia performance including film, live narration and dance, How Can You Stay in the House All Day and Not Go Anywhere? explores loss and transcendence experienced in human partnerships. Reflecting on his relationship with 102-year-old former sharecropper, carpenter and gardener Walter Carter as well as Andrei Tarkovsky’s science fiction classic, Solaris, Lemon and 6 dancers create a performance which arcs from turbulent physicality to restorative grace.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Pas d'excuses, pas de limites (2016)
Luca Patuelli is an internationally renown Bboy dancer known as LazyLegz. He born with Arthrogryposis, a disorder that makes the use of his legs almost impossible. For the past few years, he has been the head of a Hip Hop dance program: Projet RAD, an urban dance program in which he gives people with disabilities a chance to follow inclusive classes in a safe environment adapted to their needs.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Portrait of A Dancer (TBA)
The Finnish modern dancer Noora Hannula dances through this documentary film in her own explosive style. Noora’s life has always been very connected to the artist environment with her grandfather, Simo Hannula, who throughout his entire life dedicated him fully to his art. Noora and her grandfather crossed paths when Noora used a picture of his dead body in her show and now we meet Noora working on her newest show: The Era of No Talent Rising, while she is trying to figure out where her own limits are.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Премьера (2024)
One of the most famous and significant works of Russian literature will be retold in the language of Dance, Music and Light.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story?
The closest matches to Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story are Visions of Light (1992), Inside Deep Throat (2005) and Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story?
Start with Visions of Light (1992), the closest match to Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story.
What is the highest-rated movie like Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story?
Katy Perry: Part of Me (2012), rated 7.1/10 by 295 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story?
S4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story?
Yes: Visions of Light (1992), Inside Deep Throat (2005) and Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019).
How are movies similar to Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Dancing Through Life: The Dorothy Toy Story, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.