My Netflix obsession began back in 2008 when I was taking a film class in college. Back then there weren’t as many titles available for streaming so I had the subscription that also included hard copy DVDs sent in the mail. Since it’s beginning in 1997, Netflix has grown to become one of the most-used streaming platforms today. In 2013 they started producing original content, and this year they are set to produce 126 original films or series, which is more than any other network. They produce amazing, high-quality, and well-directed documentaries telling a variety of stories that are captivating until the end. Here are a few.

13th

The title of Ava DuVernay’s extraordinary and galvanizing documentary 13TH refers to the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which reads “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States.” The progression from that second qualifying clause to the horrors of mass criminalization and the sprawling American prison industry is laid out by DuVernay with bracing lucidity. With a potent mixture of archival footage and testimony from a dazzling array of activists, politicians, historians, and formerly incarcerated women and men, DuVernay creates a work of grand historical synthesis. Now Streaming on Netflix.

Amanda Knox

Caught in the middle of an international murder of an American college student, and her roommate and friend, Amanda Knox speaks candidly for the first time since her release from the Italian prison. But the question is, who killed Meredith Kercher?

Audrie & Daisy

Two girls sexually assaulted on two different nights in two differnt towns. This documentary takes a hard look at issues faced by American teenagers as they come to age in the new world of social media bullying.

The Witness

In 1964, Kitty Genovese was murdered on the streets of New York. Thirty-eight people watched and did nothing. Decades later, her brother sets to find out what caused this bystanders apathy and what the remaining surviving witnesses have to say for themselves.

Blackfish

A gripping documentary that exposes the truth behind animal captivity at SeaWorld. Tilikum, the male Orca that killed his trainer Dawn Brancheau by pulling her off a platform in front of a live audience and holding her under water, is the focus of this documentary that explores the human relationship with nature, the problems with the sea-park industry, and how little we know about these highly intelligent mammals.

Chasing Coral

Coral reefs around the world are vanishing at an unprecedented rate. Divers, photographers and scientists set out on an ocean adventure to discover why the reefs are disappearing and to reveal the underwater mystery to the world.