Nick Cunningham

The Danish documentary Life and Other Problems has been selected as the opening film at the 21st edition of CPH:DOX. The opening gala will be held on March 12 in Copenhagen at the Conservatory's Concert Hall, where director Max Kestner and a number of the film's participants will be present. The next edition of CPH:DOX runs March 13-24.

Mancini joins DocFest January 2024 to lead the festival’s industry strategy and activity including Marketplace, with oversight of the festival’s Industry programme and year-round activity. Other new appointments are Sophie Duncan as Marketplace & Talent Programmes Producer, Lisa Marie Russo as Marketplace Consultant, Vanessa Lobón Garcia as Talks and Sessions Senior Producer, and Lieven Heeremans (Podcast Programme Producer).

In Island In Between, nominated for an Oscar in the Short Doc category, S. Leo Chiang reflects on his relationship with Taiwan, China and the US from the islands of Kinmen, just a few miles from mainland China. “Kinmen connects Taiwan to China but also keeps them apart. Maybe that’s why I’m drawn to this place. I want to make sense of it. Growing up, this channel of water was the edge of our universe, separating good from evil,” the director underlines.

The 2024 Panorama programme comprises 31 titles, ten of which are documentaries (all world premieres). “Essentially, it’s about communicating experiences and realities of life, history, understanding and empathy,” says section head Michael Stütz. “The films in this year’s programme express their attitudes in many voices, building bridges between lived experiences and cinematic possibilities that inspire us to look to the future.”

Dutch filmmaker Chris Teerink takes on one of the undoubted masterpieces of 20th Century literature in his latest creative documentary, which world-premieres in Rotterdam. “It's like being on a carpet that's constantly pulled from underneath you,’ he says of T.S. Eliot’s epic poem. “That feeling, that sensation, that was the real meaning of the poem for me, and became the focus of the film.”

Norway came up trumps at Sundance 2024 where A New Kind of Wilderness won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary, while Ibelin received The Directing Award and The Audience Award in the same section. The U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Doc went to Porcelain War, while Daughters won the Festival Favourite Award and US Doc Audience Award. The Belgian doc Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat won the World Cinema Doc Special Jury Award for Cinematic Innovation.

The International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk issued a statement January 24 demanding the immediate release of pioneering Myanmar documentary filmmaker Shin Daewe who was sentenced to life in prison January 10 for violating counter-terrorism law following her arrest for possessing a drone. “[We] call on the Myanmar authorities to release her immediately and unconditionally,” ICFR underlined.

CIRCLE Women Doc Accelerator is seeking 10 women and non-binary filmmakers (directors or producers) with creative documentary projects at any stage of development to apply for the upcoming seventh edition of the program. Focusing on both professional and personal growth, CIRCLE is an initiative crafted by filmmakers, for filmmakers, which guides them through their creative journeys and connects them to the European and international documentary film landscape.

Nathalie Mierop has been appointed new director of SEE NL, replacing Ido Abram. SEE NL is a collaboration between Eye Filmmuseum and the Netherlands Film Fund, dedicated to the international promotion of Dutch films, film industry and film culture. Mierop commences her new role January 25. “I am very much looking forward to working with the rest of the SEE NL team to bring Dutch cinema and the Dutch film industry even more to the international spotlight,” she says.

Five feature docs and five short docs have advanced to the final round of Oscar voting. The winners will be announced March 10 during the 96th Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood. Within the feature doc category, nominee originating countries are diverse: Bobi Wine: The People’s President (UK/Uganda/US), The Eternal Memory (Chile), Four Daughters (France/Tunisia/Germany/Saudi Arabia/Cyprus), To Kill a Tiger (Canada), 20 Days in Mariupol (Ukraine).