Nick Cunningham

“Women named Pauliina is a vital and necessary project because it dives deep into the complex layers of identity, appearance, and societal expectations placed on women,” director Punkki tells BDE ahead of her FFA presentation of the project. “Through the unique and powerful stories of two women [Punkki herself and professional bodybuilder Pauliina Talus] the film addresses issues that are rarely explored in mainstream media, making it essential for both investment and audience engagement.”

The 21st Verzió program, running November 6-13, will dedicate special sections to the themes of decolonization and disinformation, and will also showcase Armenian, Ukrainian, and British selections. The festival's opening film will be the Hungarian-French-Croatian co-production Kix, a film about skateboarder kids, making its Hungarian debut. “Verzió helps us uncover the problems that are often hidden behind false surfaces, bringing us closer to reality,” the festival writes.

Running October 29 to November 1, Industry Days highlights include the New Visions Forum and Market, the Emerging Producers presentation of 18 up-and-coming European film producers, the Festival Identity workshop and creative hub for film festival representatives, and the Matchmaking Accelerator during which 500+ one-on-one meetings will take place. And more…

The inaugural Dokumentale International Documentary and Media Festival Berlin (10-20 October) has announced the ten films selected for its Competition programme. The documentaries, which include 8 German premieres and two international premieres, will compete for the main prize of €20,000, of €10,000 will go directly to the filmmakers while the remainder will support marketing efforts around the film's release.

Short and Youth Competition titles have been announced alongside Signed, Best of Fests and Paradocs selections. Over 100 films have now been added to the IDFA 2024 program, “showcasing a wide selection of works by both critically acclaimed filmmakers and exceptional newcomers,” organisers write. The 37th edition of IDFA runs from November 14 to 24 in Amsterdam.

She works behind the counter at a food market in Connecticut, but nobody knows that single mother Lhakpa Sherpa from Nepal has reached the summit of Mount Everest ten times. Nor that she has been the victim of domestic abuse. In the Netflix doc Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa, Emmy-winning and Oscar-nominated director Lucy Walker tells the eponymous heroine’s story of perseverance, not only as a climber but as an immigrant and survivor. Walker discusses her film with Academy Award-winning James Marsh.

Richard Bachman was the pseudonym that Stephen King used for five novels up to 1985, and two more afterwards. To protect his own identity back then as the secret author of those books, King had to put flesh onto Bachman’s imaginary bones, and create a persuasive but nonetheless fictional narrative to support his invention. In his new film Max Eriksson tells this ‘true’ story of Bachman, in the process going “beyond the fragments, clues, myths, rumours, and hearsay” to build a “compelling visual story.”

Danish producer Kasper Lykke Schultz discusses his feature doc project about a man who has endured more orphanage placements than anyone in Denmark’s history. “Through writing his autobiography and confronting his past, Peer finds new purpose - not being the perpetual victim, but someone who can inspire others, especially past and present children in care, while challenging society to rethink its approach to both trauma healing and foster care,” Lykke Schultz tells BDE.

Karen Stokkendal Poulsen’s third feature tells of the nuclear agreement that Italian diplomat Federica Mogherini brokered between Iran and the West in 2015, only to see it torn up by Trump two years later, setting the world onto a treacherous road towards conflict. “The film addresses the urgency of political dialogue and diplomacy over polarization and ultimately armed conflict,” Danish producer Vibeke Vogel tells BDE.

In their dramatically titled feature doc project, Terese Mörnvik and Caroline Troedsson will take audiences on "a journey down the rabbit hole of involuntary celibates [incels], whose longing for love transforms into hate.”  “They [the incels] are men who normally hide in dark corners of the internet and only communicate in closed forums,” says producer Ove Rishøj Jensen of Malmö-based Auto Images. “But in our film, you get to meet them.”