The Yann Arthus-Bertrand Collection
Over 15 years of aerial filming around the world — rushes from the films available for licensing
For over fifteen years, filmmaker and photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand has travelled the planet to capture the most beautiful and most significant aerial images in the world. A committed environmental activist and author of the photographic series The Earth from Above — sold in over three million copies worldwide —, Yann Arthus-Bertrand has made the aerial camera the instrument of a global awakening to the state of the Earth and the diversity of human societies.
His documentary films, broadcast worldwide, have been seen by hundreds of millions of viewers. Each one is a cinematic and media event in its own right — and the rushes they have generated now form one of the most valuable and diverse aerial collections in existence.
Papa Sierra is his long-standing partner for gyro-stabilised aerial cinematography. It is through this historic collaboration that Aerialcollection distributes the rushes from his films — images available for licensing for your documentary, institutional, advertising or cinematic productions.
HUMAN (2015) — Released simultaneously in 150 countries on YouTube on the same day, HUMAN is one of the most ambitious documentaries ever made. It weaves together testimonies from 2,020 people in 60 countries with aerial footage of exceptional beauty — natural landscapes, cities, crowds, architecture seen from the air — to paint a universal portrait of humanity. The aerial rushes from the film HUMAN constitute one of the richest selections in our catalogue.
TERRA (2015) — Co-directed with Michael Pitiot, TERRA explores the relationship between humans, nature and animals, from prehistory to the present day. The aerial footage from the film TERRA covers many countries and themes — traditional farming, livestock, deforestation, biodiversity.
Planet Ocean (2012) — Co-directed with Michael Pitiot, Planet Ocean is an aerial and underwater journey around the world's oceans. The Planet Ocean rushes offer exceptional aerial views of coastlines, coral reefs, deltas and coastal zones from around the world.
The Thirst for Water (2012) — Dedicated to the global water crisis, this film co-directed with Michael Pitiot documents from the air the great rivers, irrigation zones, droughts and floods across the four corners of the planet. The rushes from The Thirst for Water are particularly relevant for productions addressing climate change and natural resources.
LEGACY (2022) — Yann Arthus-Bertrand's latest major film, LEGACY takes stock of the state of the planet thirty years after the Rio Earth Summit. The LEGACY rushes benefit from the very latest capture technologies — gyro-stabilised 4K and 8K cameras.
The "From Above" films — The series of 90-minute documentaries produced for France 2 covers several countries with the same exacting visual standards : Algeria from Above, Morocco from Above, Egypt from Above, Switzerland from Above. Each film was made in close collaboration with local authorities, allowing exceptional access and overflights rarely granted to other productions.
Al Ula (2021) — An institutional film produced for the Royal Commission for AlUla, in Saudi Arabia, on the exceptional archaeological site of AlUla and Hegra — the "Petra of the desert". The
The films
Yann Arthus-Bertrand has always placed visual excellence at the heart of his approach. For many years, only the heavy gyro-stabilised camera — Cineflex or GSS — mounted in a helicopter could deliver the cinema-grade quality he demanded : perfect stability, wide-range optics, total freedom of movement. But this approach was in deep contradiction with his environmental convictions — the helicopter is one of the most carbon-intensive modes of transport per hour of flight.
As soon as the quality of sensors and stabilisation systems on drones reached a sufficient level — which happened progressively between 2015 and 2020 — he deliberately moved away from helicopters in favour of 4K and 8K drones operated by local crews. His most recent films, including LEGACY (2022), were produced entirely or predominantly in this way : reduced carbon footprint, local teams empowered, lighter logistics — without any compromise on visual quality.
Our catalogue reflects this evolution : rushes from the earlier films (HUMAN, TERRA, Planet Ocean) are in HD Cineflex helicopter format, while the most recent productions are available in 4K and 8K drone.
Yann Arthus-Bertrand has always placed visual excellence at the heart of his approach. For many years, only the heavy gyro-stabilised camera — Cineflex or GSS — mounted in a helicopter could deliver the cinema-grade quality he demanded : perfect stability, wide-range optics, total freedom of movement. But this approach was in deep contradiction with his environmental convictions — the helicopter is one of the most carbon-intensive modes of transport per hour of flight.
As soon as the quality of sensors and stabilisation systems on drones reached a sufficient level — which happened progressively between 2015 and 2020 — he deliberately moved away from helicopters in favour of 4K and 8K drones operated by local crews. His most recent films, including LEGACY (2022), were produced entirely or predominantly in this way : reduced carbon footprint, local teams empowered, lighter logistics — without any compromise on visual quality.
Our catalogue reflects this evolution : rushes from the earlier films (HUMAN, TERRA, Planet Ocean) are in HD Cineflex helicopter format, while the most recent productions are available in 4K and 8K drone.