The complex and beautiful Maya hieroglyphic script was until recently the world's last major undeciphered writing system. Its decoding has unlocked the secrets of one of mankind's greatest civilizations.

Breaking the Maya Code tells the story of the Maya decipherment from the sixteenth century to the present. The feature documentary film is based in large part on the book of the same title by Dr. Michael D. Coe, called by the New York Times “one of the great stories of twentieth century scientific discovery.”

The 2-hour director’s cut of Breaking the Maya Code was released in March 2008 by Night Fire Films. For exhibition information, go to Screening Schedule. To be notified of our upcoming DVD release, go to Contact Us.

A 90 minute adaptation of Breaking the Maya Code is being released on European television by ARTE France. A 50-minute adaptation has been produced for U.S. national broadcast on the PBS series NOVA, under the title “Cracking the Maya Code”.

The final step of the project is an outreach campaign including screenings and hieroglyphic writing workshops in Maya communities. Check back to the Screening Schedule for updates on the outreach campaign, film festivals and other screenings.