Nick Cunningham

When, in November 2022, the great British artist and agitator Banksy stenciled his artworks onto ruined buildings across Ukraine, little did he know that these beautiful, melancholy works would be instrumental to a major new (and quite brilliant) immersive installation world-premiering at Cannes 2023. Or maybe he did, such is the MO of the art world’s most elusive Pimpernel. Directors Artem Ivanenko, Alex Topaller & Daniel Shapiro discuss their Murals with BDE.

The top doc in International Competition programme was named as Thiiird by Karim Kassem. The award for Best Serbian doc went to A Field Guide to Coastal Fortifications by Tijana Petrović, while the Eurimages Audentia Award, valued at €30,000 and earmarked for the development of winning director’s next film, went to Estonian Anna Hints for Smoke Sauna Sisterhood.

The 19th edition of Docu Talents from the East, a presentation of top new doc projects from Central and Eastern Europe, will take place August 13 during the Cinelink Industry Days at Sarajevo FF. “Each year, we discover more and more exceptional documentary projects and daring authors coming from Eastern Europe,” says Marek Hovorka, director of Ji.hlava IDFF. The deadline for submissions is May 31.

Theatre of Violence (Lukasz Konopa & Emil Langballe) picked up the Main Competition award, valued at €10,000. The VIKTOR DOK.deutsch prize prize (€7,500) went to Greta’s Birth by Katja Baumgarten. Cyrielle Raingou’s Le Sectre of Boko Haram won the VIKTOR DOK.horizonte Competition - Cinema of Urgency award (€5,000). The FFF Talent Award (€5,000) went to She Chef by Melanie Liebheit & Gereon Wetzel.

Eight new Polish projects aimed at kids will be presented May 15 as part of the Forum of Documentary Film for Young Audiences, at the 20th Audiences Millennium Docs Against Gravity (Poland). The projects have been developed over the past year within the LET’S DOC. DOCUMENTARY IDEAS LAB organized by Andrzej Wajda Centre For Film Culture. MDAG Industry also announced winners of its first Progress Pitching session.

Eight new Polish projects will be presented May 13 during the Pole Position pitch session of Millennium Docs Against Gravity Industry (Poland). “The films that are in our festival programme and presented at Pole Position tackle complex and difficult subjects with sensitivity, depth, and insight, showcasing a unique perspective on Polish society and culture,” says MDAG Head of Industry Anna Szczypińska.

The 27th Baltic Sea Forum for Documentaries (BSD) takes place in Riga, Latvia 3-10 September 2023. The main focus of the BSD pitch event is full-length creative documentary projects, but cross-media applications are also welcome. Applications are invite from the wider Baltic Sea region countries, Eastern Europe and Caucasus region, and from other countries if the documentary subject relates to the region. Deadline for submission: 12 June.

Beldocs key personnel discuss the 16th edition of the Belgrade doc fest, presented this year in the shadow of two horrendous mass shootings that the country has recently suffered. “In the current deeply sensitive, complex and truly heart-breaking moment our society in Serbia is facing, we believe Beldocs-curated creative documentaries can bring us very close together, guide us to face crises and overcome trauma in a creative way.”

Twelve new projects will be presented May 12 during the first Progress Pitching Session of Millennium Docs Against Gravity Industry (Poland). “Our goal is to create an event that will make a real contribution to the development of documentary cinema in Poland and will be a space for filmmakers to establish contacts and promote Polish films abroad,” says MDAG Head of Industry Anna Szczypińska.

This year, 42 projects from 23 countries will compete for the best pitch across seven thematic pitching sessions all supported by key industry partners. Project holders will present their works before a panel of key industry decision-makers consisting of leading broadcasters, funders, platforms and foundations. #SSD23 will be held 19-22 June, once again in La Rochelle, France.