Business Doc Europe

The Soviet Union is revealed in all its contradictions in Sergei Loznitsa’s sprawling new archive-based documentary Imperium (screening this week in Venice Open - Out of Competition). The footage he uses was shot by Italian filmmakers in the early 1970s. They travelled to every corner of the Soviet empire, from major cities like Moscow and St Petersburg to far flung towns in central Asia; from Ukraine to the Baltics, from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan. The Ukrainian director talks to Business Doc Europe.

Laura Poitras and Rachel Lauren Mueller’s 25-minute ‘horror’ film, which started shooting in January this year, shows ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents terrorising the residents of Minneapolis. “We knew it had to be filmed then,” Poitras tells BDE. “It [the US] is a country that has violence at its core; it has empire at its core, and it is engaging in violence [all the time],” she adds.

In Luke Lorentzen’s sublime meditation both on community and competence, we meet some of the workers at the 60-strong Brooklin boatyard who, over four seasons, are tasked with building a 56-foot luxury sailboat. It is a film populated almost exclusively by men. “I think it just emerged...how they treat one another, and how they are men who are both very strong and very sensitive,” Lorentzen tells BDE. “They just have a spirit to them that I really enjoyed being with, and that felt different from the [male] ego or power or dominance that we often see in our culture.”

In Bibiana Rojas Gómez and Juan David Cárdenas’ hybrid doc world-premiering in Venice, Salomé sifts through five decades of Cardenas family footage in search of the reasons behind her mother’s depression. Co-director Gómez was able to bring a detached eye to over 70 hours of family footage that was so personal for Cárdenas. “I am so close to it that I am not seeing the creative possibilities, because I am seeing mainly my family,” Cárdenas recalls the dilemma that his partner was able to solve.

As Derek Jarman was shooting his acclaimed 1991 feature Edward II, young cinematographer Seamus McGarvey was chronicling the whole production process verité-style. Thirty years on, the footage that McGarvey shot forms the spine of Queer Edward II, UK director Theo Rollason’s feature documentary which has been screening to acclaim this week in Venice. Rollason discusses his new work - as well as the late, great Jarman - with BDE.

Julia Loktev’s new film begins just two days after its predecessor (My Undesirable Friends: Part I - Last Air in Moscow) ended, the point at which the last remaining independent media outfits in Russia were shut down. Some of the journalists head to Istanbul, others to Israel or Georgia. Some ended up in Prague or Vienna. “History happened and I kept shooting directly, when everybody fled Russia. I followed them and I just kept shooting,” Loktev tells BDE. “I had this incredible opportunity to capture this historic moment as it was happening.”

During the Fipadoc International Pitch session (Biarritz) the 24 selected project teams will pitch to 60+ international funders from Europe and beyond. Decision makers from France TV, ARTE, RTBF, RTS, SVT, Al Jazeera, ZDF, HBO and many other broadcasters will be present together with distributors, sales agents, festival programmers and film funds. Application deadline: October 2 2026. Fipadoc Industry Days will run January 25-28, 2027.

The deadline for submissions of projects to MIA’s Italians Doc It Better showcase is September 6. Italians Doc It Better looks to facilitate the circulation of new Italian documentaries by providing producers with a platform to present their projects and secure international distribution. Eligible titles must be 100% Italian productions or co-productions in which Italy holds a majority share.

Diana Sanchez has been elevated to President of Hot Docs, with immediate effect. Restructuring the executive leadership team “to better accomplish the organization’s long-term strategic goals and growth,” Sanchez has appointed Mara Gourd-Mercado (currently at CPH:DOX) to the position of Executive Director. Gourd-Mercado begins her new role on October 19, 2026, and will report to Sanchez.

Cinéma du réel competition comprises up to 30 international and French documentary films of any length, many of which will be looking to kickstart their career at the Paris-based festival. “Such a carefully curated selection of international and French documentary films within the production of an entire year commits us, and we thank all the professionals who entrust us with their films and trust us to defend them,” says Catherine Bizern, Artistic Director. The 49th edition of Cinéma du reel will run March 19-27 2027.

Organisers of the 69th DOK Leipzig (26 Oct to Nov 1) have announced first details of this year’s programme, which include the new ‘Positions’ section which is designed to create more space for exchange and debate. “The selection of films is intended as a starting point and catalyst for dialogue and exchange – listening to one another, having conversations, accommodating differing views and contradictions, and questioning our own convictions,” the festival writes.

Press accreditation for the 12th edition of MIA | Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo - one of the leading global audiovisual markets, bringing together the international film, drama, documentary, animation, and entertainment industries on a single international platform for business and networking - is now open. MIA will take place from Monday, October 19 to Friday, October 23, 2026, in Rome and on the MIA Digital platform.