# How It's Made (2001)

> A long-running Canadian-made docuseries that walks viewers step by step through how everyday products like apple juice, skateboards and contact lenses are manufactured.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/1647

## Facts

- Seasons: 32
- Episodes: 416
- Episode runtime: 30 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: documentary
- Created by: Gabriel Hoss
- Network: Discovery
- Cast: Lynne Adams, Mark Tewksbury, June Wallack, Lynn Herzeg
- TMDB rating: 7.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0835010/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: subtle
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: none
- Tone: calm, curious, wonderful, hypnotic, unhurried, informative

## What critics say

Audiences widely praise the series as a clear, engaging window into how everyday products are manufactured, with consistently high ratings across its run.

## Synopsis

How It's Made (2001-2019) is a British-produced factual documentary series created by Gabriel Hoss and aired on Discovery, running for thirty seasons of roughly thirteen half-hour episodes each. Rather than following a single protagonist or cast of characters, the show's presenters are represented only by an unseen narrator voiced by Lynne Adams, with additional narration credited to Mark Tewksbury and Lynn Herzeg. Each episode follows a single everyday object, such as apple juice, skateboards, engines or contact lenses, from raw material through every mechanical stage to the finished product. The engine of the series is patient observation: long unbroken shots of conveyors, presses, cutters and robotic arms move in step with a precise voice-over that explains each operation without drama or embellishment. Its tone is calm, curious and quietly wonderful, the kind of documentary that finds satisfaction in ordinary things. Its shape is a long-running case-of-the-week format in which every episode stands alone, so viewers can dip in anywhere. Fans of Modern Marvels, Connections and Dirty Jobs will find a similar appetite for how the physical world is put together.

## Shows like How It's Made

- [The Joy of Painting (1983)](https://ember.film/tv/9643)
- [The Movies That Made Us (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/78865)
- [How Do They Do It? (2006)](https://ember.film/tv/1212)
- [The World According to Jeff Goldblum (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/78528)
- [High Score (2020)](https://ember.film/tv/89178)
- [Modern Marvels (1993)](https://ember.film/tv/5779)
- [The Toys That Made Us (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/65770)
- [The Universe (2007)](https://ember.film/tv/2491)
- [The Imagineering Story (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/80500)
- [This Old House (1979)](https://ember.film/tv/2274)

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