Movies like Shepherds of the Earth (2022)
The best movies like Shepherds of the Earth (2022) are Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), The Elephant Queen (2019) and Unknown: Cave of Bones (2023). If Shepherds of the Earth hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAfrican Cats (2011)7.4/10 from 268 votes
- NewestGhost Elephants (2026)Released 2026
Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Elephant Queen (2019)
Embark on an epic journey of family, courage, and coming home in this feature-length documentary. Join Athena, the majestic matriarch, as she leads her elephant herd across an unforgiving African landscape filled with vibrant wildlife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUnknown: Cave of Bones (2023)
Scientists examine underground clues from over 250,000 years ago that raise questions about our early relatives — and what it truly means to be human.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like this35 Up (1991)
Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSecrets of the Neanderthals (2024)
This documentary delves into the mysteries surrounding the Neanderthals and what their fossil record tells us about their lives and disappearance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJane (2017)
Drawing from never-before-seen footage that has been tucked away in the National Geographic archives, director Brett Morgen tells the story of Jane Goodall, a woman whose chimpanzee research revolutionized our understanding of the natural world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
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 thisGhost Elephants (2026)
In Angola's mist-shrouded highlands, three KhoiSan master trackers embark on a spiritual quest to rediscover the legendary "ghost elephants" of Lisima, creatures presumed lost but remembered in ancestral trance, ritual, and memory.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like this21 Up (1977)
After another 7 year wait, director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born children from Seven Up! and 7 Plus Seven. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGod Grew Tired of Us (2006)
Filmmaker Christopher Quinn observes the ordeal of three Sudanese refugees -- Jon Bul Dau, Daniel Abul Pach and Panther Bior -- as they try to come to terms with the horrors they experienced in their homeland, while adjusting to their new lives in the United States.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like this28 Up (1985)
Just two years away from turning 30, participants in Michael Apted's documentary series are facing serious questions of identity and purpose, wondering whether they've found their place in the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisElephant (2020)
Disneynature’s Elephant follows African elephant Shani and her spirited son Jomo as their herd make an epic journey hundreds of miles across the vast Kalahari Desert. Led by their great matriarch, Gaia, the family faces brutal heat, dwindling resources and persistent predators, as they follow in their ancestors’ footsteps on a quest to reach a lush, green paradise.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisI Am Ali (2014)
Unprecedented access to Muhammad Ali's personal archive of "audio journals" as well as interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends are used to tell the legend's life story.
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 thisGirl Rising (2013)
Nine filmmakers each profile a young girl from a different part of the world to weave a global tapestry of youth in the 21st century.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDarwin's Nightmare (2005)
Africa in the sixties. The Nile perch, a ravenous predator, is introduced into Lake Victoria as a scientific experiment, causing the extinction of many native species. Its meat is exported everywhere in exchange for weapons, creating a globalized evil alliance on the lake shores. An infernal nightmare in the real world that wipes out Darwin's Theory of Evolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEarth: One Amazing Day (2017)
An astonishing journey revealing the awesome power of the natural world. Over the course of one single day, we track the sun from the highest mountains to the remotest islands to exotic jungles.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAfrican Cats (2011)
African Cats captures the real-life love, humor and determination of the majestic kings of the savanna. The story features Mara, an endearing lion cub who strives to grow up with her mother’s strength, spirit and wisdom; Sita, a fearless cheetah and single mother of five mischievous newborns; and Fang, a proud leader of the pride who must defend his family from a once banished lion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUnknown Number: The High School Catfish (2025)
Vulgar, taunting texts blow up the phones of a teen and her boyfriend. Who's sending them — and why? This twisty documentary reveals the shocking answer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Summers of It - Chapter Two: It Ends (2019)
This documentary focuses on the actors and their journey over two summers to create the remake to the original IT, by Stephen King. The documentary originally released as bonus material, bundled with IT: Chapter Two.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSulawesi - Am Anfang war die Höhlenmalerei (2026)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The White Massai Warrior (2020)
For the first time in history, a white man has been invited to become a Massai Warrior. The Massai of East Africa are one of the last tribes on earth to live as they did hundreds of years ago. Benjamin will live among the tribe, sleeping, hunting, and surviving in the bush. He will get to know their culture, their customs of dancing and playing, and learn how to conquer the dangers of the wilderness. Will he be able to become a true Massai warrior? To become a Massai is a great journey into the unknown.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Night of the Hunt (2011)
Using the latest advances in camera technology, NGC penetrates the nocturnal hunting behaviors of the lion. Often asleep during the day, at night these iconic cats become active predators. With thermal imaging and infrared technology, see how experienced lions use the night to their advantage while stalking their prey
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Antarctica, a legacy mission (2026)
While emptying her grandparents' house, director Jeanne Lefevre discovers the journal kept by her grandfather during a scientific mission to Adélie Land, French Antarctic Territory, in 1960. Atomic engineer Bruno Parlier had never spoken of this trip to his family. With her archives in hand, Jeanne decides to follow in his footsteps, to Antarctica.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
IT IS A SOUL: A Portrait of Hailu Mergia (2021)
A short film documenting Ethiopian musician Hailu Mergia's life as the leader of the Walias Band in the 1970, his immigration to the United States and his subsequent re-emergence as a performer in 2014.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
A Blooming Business (2009)
A documentary about people in Kenya who are imprisoned by the global flower industry. The dilemmas of the industry become painfully clear and a dark world of oppression, sexual abuse and terrible working conditions unfolds. There is only one conclusion possible: the smell of the imported rose is not sweet, but bitter.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Coming of Age (2008)
A woman asks "what's the meaning of democracy?" as she looks back over the politics of Kenya from the 1960s to the 2007 election.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Covid, le secret des origines (2025)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
A Time There Was: Stories from the Last Days of Kenya Colony (2009)
A look at the Mau Mau Rebellion of the 1950s as experienced by filmmaker Donald McWilliams.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Shepherds of the Earth?
The closest matches to Shepherds of the Earth are Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), The Elephant Queen (2019) and Unknown: Cave of Bones (2023). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Shepherds of the Earth?
Start with Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), the closest match to Shepherds of the Earth.
What is the highest-rated movie like Shepherds of the Earth?
African Cats (2011), rated 7.4/10 by 268 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Shepherds of the Earth?
Ghost Elephants (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Shepherds of the Earth?
Yes: Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), The Elephant Queen (2019) and Unknown: Cave of Bones (2023).
How are movies similar to Shepherds of the Earth chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Shepherds of the Earth, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.