Nick Cunningham

Open to UK-based story-tellers, four shortlisted ideas will be pitched live during Sheffield DocFest in June 2026. The winner will receive £10,000 and expert narrative support from climate spring to produce their chosen idea. “With this year's pitch, we encourage creatives to explore innovative and timely unscripted ideas that entertain broad digital audiences, centre the power of community, and offer visions of a future where system change is possible,” comments David Leach, Head of Unscripted at Climate Spring.

Running May 9 to 14, DocsBarcelona Pro will present 63 projects within its Forum and Training programmes. “With a clear commitment to diversity in perspectives, narratives and formats, the selection brings together documentaries from nearly 40 countries at different stages of development and production, which will receive tailored support and guidance according to their status and needs,” organisers underline.

The leading UK documentary festival and market announced March 31 the return of its Filmmaker  Challenge, which is supported by principal sponsor Prime Video Pathway. Applications are now open and the deadline to apply is Wednesday 22 April. The new expanded format will support twice as many filmmakers than ever before, and the completed short films will screen June 13. Sheffield DocFest returns to the city from 10 - 15 June with initial programming due to be announced in April 2026.

The maverick US filmmaker will return to the festival to present the Spanish premiere of his feature doc debut on May 12 with a Q&A. The 29th edition of the festival also focuses on the ‘contemporary city’ with Docs&City, a mosaic of perspectives on Gaza, Barcelona, Granada, Tokyo and Damascus. DocsBarcelona runs May 7 to 17, opening with A Fox Under a Pink Moon by Iranian Mehrdad Oskouei.

Swiss filmmaker Moris Freiburghaus received the award March 27 for Best Documentary Film. In the film, Swiss musician Dino Brandão travels to Angola to give a concert in his father's home country. Brandão also won the award for Best Film Score. The film celebrated its world premiere at the Zurich Film Festival 2025 and was honoured with both the Best Documentary Film Award and the Audience Award.

The awards of the 48th Cinéma du Réel 2026 were handed out March 28 with the Grand Prix Cinéma going to London by Sebastian Brameshuber. The Cinéma du réel International Award was handed to Levers by Rhayne Vermette, while the Cnap Award for a French Film went to A Blind Song by Stefano Canapa and Natacha Muslera. Among the professional ParisDOC Awards, the Coup de cœur Orlando x Culori went to L'Île by Sara Rastegar and Simone Pozzi. All awards…

The panel, moderated by FIFDH Impact Days’ Sophie Mulphin, sought to explore innovative models of storytelling collaboration, determine what drives interest from media funders, and investigate how strategic media engagement can elevate campaigns to greater levels of visibility and effectiveness. Panelists were Lindsay Poulton, Editorial Director and Head of Documentaries, The Guardian; Impact strategist Leni Velasco, and Abby Rapoport, Director of Media Impact Funders. BDE reports.

The winners of the East Doc Platform 2026 were announced on March 24 at the French Institute in Prague, where a total of 16 awards were presented across the programme, recognizing outstanding documentary projects at various stages of development. “The winning projects showcase a compelling and diverse slate defined by bold artistic vision, urgent social themes, and strong international potential,” write organisers.

The Central European Documentary Co-production Market (June 3 – 5) is held every year during the Krakow Film Festival in Poland. Building on its Central European location, CEDOC nurtures a cooperation between East and West, North and South with a special focus on Central European projects and talents. The event, organized since 2015, is part of the DOC LAB POLAND and KFF INDUSTRY program, which consists of workshops, consultations and pitchings of Polish documentary projects (DOCS TO START and DOCS TO GO).

Ji.hlava IDFF has repeated its call for the next Emerging Producers programme that will run 2026 through 2027. Every year the festival selects 18 talented producers (17 European and one representing a guest country, this year Japan), which it provides with educational, networking and promotional support. The applications deadline is March 31.