Mark Adams

A fascinating and astutely balanced appraisal of an escalating conflict between Indigenous pastoralist settlers and British-Kenyan ranchers, The Battle for Laikipia, by filmmakers Daphne Matziaraki and Peter Murimi, offers a nuanced look into the two factions involved, but offers no easy answers as cultural differences and climate change accentuate the disconnect between two divergent ways of life in Kenya.

The adventurous decision to make a film following the path of acclaimed Norwegian explorer Helge Ingstad’s 1937 expedition to Mexico in search of a lost Apache tribe gradually morphs into an examination of what is fact and what is fiction, and finally a timely reflection on concerns over cultural appropriation.

A beautiful delve into life and love, the wonderfully titled Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other gently and thoughtfully examines the ups and downs of a long relationship. The film is movingly profound in its simplicity as it tells the story of Maggie and Joel, aged 75 and 84, both very much aware they are in the twilight of their lives but still battling for their love.

After being forced to flee their country after the Taliban takeover of 2021, four charismatic and influential Afghan women are the focus of this immersive, powerful and confrontational documentary. As they adjust to life in a new country away from their culture and the support of their homeland, they fight to place once more the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan at the forefront of world attention.

Being designated as a ‘foreign agent’ can have a terrible impact on journalists and activists in contemporary Russia as Putin looks to curb any kind of criticism or agitation against his special military operations in Ukraine. The provocative documentary Of Caravan and the Dogs, which world-premieres at FIFDH, astutely documents the personal danger, and severe punishment meted out to, those wanting to take a stand and defend the truth.

Blending new concert footage with archival material and interviews, Philipp Fussenegger and Judy Landkammer’s watchable and illuminating documentary tells the transformative journey of Canadian Merrill Nisker from children’s music teacher at the YMCA to dynamic punk performer named Peaches after her relocation to Germany. Filmed during the “Teaches of Peaches Anniversary Tour” in 2022, the film provides an intimate look at the inner workings of the tour and what drives the performer.

A moving, immersive and prescient documentary, No Other Land details the eradication of the villages in the Masafer Yatta area on the Southern West Bank over a period of years, as seen from the perspective of Basel Adra, a young Palestinian activist/journalist brought up in Masafer Yatta, and Yuval, an Israeli journalist who supports him in his efforts to bring attention to what is happening to the community.

Filmmaker Abel Ferrara takes a personal journey into the heart of Ukraine as he attempts to deal with own confusion about what is happening in the country. Blending interviews with those who have experienced the conflict close up, archival footage and material of Patti Smith recording songs and poetry, Ferrara’s Turn in the Wound is a meanderingly personal examination into the nature of war and oppression.

The party atmosphere and spirited pageantry of the 2022 campaign for the Filipino presidency play in stark counterpoint to the vitriol, bitterness and oppression displayed by departing President Rodrigo Duterte as he bluntly and offensively dismisses the chances of his former Vice President Leni Robredo as she bids for the post.

An insightful, generous and supportive reframing of transmasculine sexuality, Jules Rosskam’s Sundance documentary Desire Lines astutely blends first-person interviews (with transmen who are attracted to men) alongside a fictional storyline that poses nuanced questions and helps to deliver a compassionate examination both of the history of transsexuality and private desires.