Nick Cunningham

The DOK Leipzig Head of Industry talks to Business Doc Europe about her professional pro-gramme which commences October 28, running through to November 1. "We are an international co-production platform, so we are looking for projects that connect with international audiences who are keen on auteur-driven, visually and formally interesting creative documentaries,“ she underlines.

Michaela Cajkova of Prague-based Filmotor announced the acquisition on the eve of the 67th DOK Leipzig. Directed by Chris Gude and produced by mutikino, the US/Colombian doc follows a fictitious explorer who is reporting on gold-mining and its commercialization in Venezuela. Paradoxically, the gold diggers both live off nature and destroy it at the same time. (Exclusive trailer)

Running November 13 to 17, Irish Film Festival London will showcase a mix of feature narrative, documentaries and short films shedding fresh light on the country’s culturally dynamic past, present and future. The festival opens with Aoife Kelleher’s feature documentary about Ireland’s first female president Mary Robinson.

The 14th edition of East Doc Platform, a tailor-made production, funding and distribution platform for Central and East European documentaries and organized by the Institute of Documentary Film in association with the One World Film Festival, will take place in Prague March 13-19. The application deadline for submissions is November 15.

Marek Hovorka has no qualms about his festival, arguably the most important doc event in the CEE, situated nearly two hours drive from the Czech capital of Prague. “People are meeting in Jihlava because it's not the capital. It’s like a documentary Woodstock for them. They really are focused on films and talks and meetings inspired by cinema - and by the festival itself,” he tells Business Doc Europe on the eve of Ji.hlava IDFF’s 28th roll-out.

Ten films were nominated for the main prize of €20,000, which was awarded at the close of the Berlin-based fest’s inaugural edition. "Searching for Amani (by Nicole Gormley and Debra Aroko) is a multi-layered film that begins with journalistic investigations into the death of Simon Ali's father and then seamlessly transitions into a story that addresses culture, tradition, identity, and the climate crisis, which affects all of us – though some more directly than others,” said the jury.

Alys Tomlinson and Cécile Embleton’s highly cinematic documentary feature concerns a charismatic former heroin addict who has lived in an Orthodox monastery in Belarus for 20 years. The Short Film Award went to Rehab Nazzal for her documentary Vibrations from Gaza, about the resilience of deaf Palestinian children in Gaza as they live with Israel’s military attacks.

The Kyiv festival’s Documentary Competition, first held in 2020, includes ten international titles, including Adelina Borets’ Flowers of Ukraine and Ride the Line by Ihor Volochii, about two men who cycle along 1,500 km front line in Ukraine through liberated villages and towns. The Molodist Kyiv International FF runs October 26 to November 3.

Over 2800 audiovisual professionals took part in the tenth edition of the Market, marking a 10% increase in attendance over 2023. “Thanks to its strong identity and credibility, MIA has now earned an important place in the agendas of international operators. It is a unique curatorial market, a strategic player in the co-production market and a fundamental engine for the financing, distribution and circulation of works and talents,” commented Gaia Tridente, MIA Director.

15 new European documentary projects will be presented at the 4th edition of New Visions Forum on October 30-31, held as part of the 28th Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival. The Forum will feature projects in development as well as in production and post-production, and will include documentary features, series, hybrid, experimental, and shorts. Ji.hlava IDFF runs October 25 to November 3.