Business Doc Europe

In The Match, Juan Cabral and Santiago Franco revisit one of the greatest, and most controversial, games of football ever played, the 1986 World Cup quarter-final between Argentina and England. The match took place just a few years after the two countries went to war over the Malvinas (the Falklands) “We wanted to tell a balanced story about these two nations. It’s beyond football,” co-director Cabral tells BDE.

Before the May 17 Ji.hlava IDFF/J-Docs Hub reception at Cannes Marché, Yamagata IDFF’s Asako Fujioka sat down with BDE to discuss the new J-DocsHub initiative, whose goal is to create “a structured pathway for Japanese documentary makers to engage with the global market, develop internationally competitive projects, and build long-term partnerships with overseas producers, broadcasters, and distributors.” The Yamagata docfest is partnering with Cannes Docs this year, in line with Marché du Film’s choice of Japan as Country of Honour.

During the European Film Promotion event, Dutch doc producer Olivia Sophie van Leeuwen will be presenting Willemiek Kluijfhout’s new doc project The Woman Who Made Van Gogh Famous, which tells the story of Jo van Gogh-Bonger, Vincent’s sister-in-law who changed art history by safeguarding his legacy after his death. “It's a brilliant story that needs to be told and it stands for so many more stories that are not in the history books,” says van Leeuwen. “Without her, nobody would know of Van Gogh.”

Christophe Dimitri Réveille’s partly-animated new feature doc tells the remarkable story of three of Che Guevara’s trusted followers who made a remarkable 2600-mile trek to safety after Che’s execution in Bolivia. Réveille, 48, has an intriguing background for a documentary maker. He’s an actor and acting coach. “What’s the connection between an acting coach in New York and the survivors of Che Guevara?” he muses to BDE. “It’s that they were hiding in the shadows of well-known people.”

In Gabin, director Maxence Voiseux follows his eponymous character, a precocious and sensitive boy from a rural background in northern France, over an entire decade of his life, from 8 to 18. On the one hand, the boy is fiercely proud of his roots and very loyal to his family’s way of life. On the other, he wants to “do something different” and this quickly puts him in conflict with his father. “For me, he [Gabin] is a strong cinema character because has to deal with these two sides of his life,” Voiseux tells BDE.

“I’m stating the obvious by saying that filmmakers and film festivals have a crucial role to play in preserving democracy, free speech, critical thinking, and in resisting reactionary ideologies,” a candid Pierre-Alexis Chevit, Head of Cannes Docs, tells BDE before doors open on the 2026 edition. The event kicks off May 14, and will culminate May 19 with Doc Day, which this year will include top-level contributions from the likes of Mstyslav Chernov, Mark Cousins, Ema Ryan Yamazaki and David Greaves, as well as the Docs-in-Progress Awards Ceremony.

CIRCLE, the training initiative dedicated to women and gender-expansive filmmakers, announced May 18 at Cannes Docs the launch of CIRCLE Expanded Orbit: a new international programme focused on immersive storytelling and XR-based practices. The programme is co-organised with Onassis ONX, the Onassis Foundation’s global platform for art and advanced technologies. Emmy and Peabody Award-winning documentarian Katerina Cizek appointed as Head of Studies.

Belgrade-based Neda Lukić, recently of Taskovski Films, announced May 18 the launch of Films Mundi, a new boutique world sales and distribution company focused on carefully curated creative documentaries. “I wanted to create a space for projects that resonate with me personally — where, beyond experience and strategy, I can also invest genuine care and heart,” Lukić told Business Doc Europe.

The Spanish Docs-in-Progress showcase featured four documentary projects at different stages of development, highlighting the diversity of contemporary Spanish non-fiction filmmaking through stories rooted in identity, environmental collapse, social control and collective healing. Organised with the support of ICEX, ICAA and Zinebi, the presentation took place on May 17 as part of the Marché du Film’s industry programme.

Amazomania, Nathan Grossman’s indictment of the colonial legacy, won the Best Film Award while The Travelers by David Bingong took home the award for Best Catalan Film at the 29th edition of the festival. The Audience Award – Moritz went to Corren las liebres by Lorena Ros, while the Jury Prize – Antaviana was won by Manuel Correa for Atlas de la desaparición. The festival closed with a record-breaking 12.300 attendees, 28 sold-out screenings, and 70% occupancy of theaters. All awards…

Chilean doccers are out in force at Cannes Docs 2026, where they will, for the first time, partner with Colombian counterparts during the May 18 Docs-in-Progress Chile & Colombia Showcase. Meanwhile, at the Marché, a diverse slate of Chilean doc product — including animated series, feature films, and emerging auteur voices — looks set to entice international buyers and investors. “Our documentary films generate high expectations in international markets,” says Paula Ossandón, Director of Chiledoc. “Proof of this are the sold-out presentations we have held at the Marché du Film and the awards received for five consecutive years at Cannes Docs.”

For the 7th year, CIRCLE Doc Accelerator has selected four alumni who will present their works-in-progress May 18 during Cannes Docs. The training programme for women and gender-expansive filmmakers has been a consistent source of films that go on to make their mark on the international festival circuit. “Each work in progress reflects the richness and diversity of our community — distinct voices, bold perspectives, and nuanced storytelling,” says CIRCLE programme director Biljana Tutorov who, together with Petar Glomazić, this year won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary for To Hold a Mountain.