MIA 2025

Presented this week at Rome’s MIA Market (6–10 October), The Eighth Day is a 75-minute feature documentary directed by Sabrina Varani and produced by Tv2000. Set during the Catholic Jubilee Year of 2025, the protagonists of this story are the homeless men and women living on the margins. “The relationship nurtured with the protagonists profoundly changed [Varani’s] perspective, allowing the director to see them not as figures on the margins, but as the center of a ceaseless galaxy of ordinary human activity,” comments Tv2000 exec Anna De Simone.

At a time when historical narratives are increasingly contested, the October 7 MIA panel “What’s the Future of History” gathered broadcasters and commissioning editors to reflect on the place of factual history programming in today’s fractured media landscape. Moderated by Krishan Arora, UK producer and consultant at Mixing Media, the session featured Laurent Filliung (ARTE GEIE), Elisabeth Hagstedt (Histoire TV), Caroline Haidacher (ORF), Sergiy Nadzelskyy (Suspilne, Ukraine), Proinsias Ní Ghrainne (TG4), and Mikael Österby (SVT International).

At this year’s MIA Market, Warsaw-based production powerhouse Madants is pitching The Lawyer, a feature documentary that explores one of the most unbelievable – yet entirely true – stories to come out of Kenya in recent years, that of a top lawyer who had forged his credentials, and taught himself law via YouTube and episodes of Boston Legal. “Our goal is to make The Lawyer a story that resonates far beyond Kenya — a reflection on how ambition, opportunity, and moral boundaries intertwine in today’s world,” says producer Kinga Tasarek of Warsaw-based Madants.

An Italian philanthropist, an enigmatic painting signed ‘P. Gauguin,’ and a decades-long battle for truth: Reflections of Gauguin unfolds like a cinematic thriller set against the labyrinthine world of art authentication. Directed by Heidi Richert and penned together with Carlos Marroquín, the Finnish documentary is being pitched this week at Rome’s MIA Market by Helsinki-based firm Pig and Horse Oy.

For the Caribbean island of Curaçao, baseball is more than just a game — it’s an identity, a lifeline, and a dream. In Baseball Island, an upcoming documentary helmed by Lyangelo Vasquez and pitched at MIA 2025, the national passion for baseball becomes a vivid lens through which to explore the island’s collective spirit, postcolonial legacy, and sense of belonging. “It tells a heart-warming story about a devoted community determined to win the prestigious Little League world championship in the US,” says Dutch producer Thomas den Drijver.

The upcoming edition of Rome’s MIA (6–10 October) is set to reinforce its role as a key meeting point for the non-fiction industry. Speaking to Business Doc Europe, MIA’s Head of Doc & Factual and Deputy Director, Marco Spagnoli, and Head of the Doc Co-Production Market, Ben Pace, outlined an event focused on coproduction and internationalisation, fostering connections that bring documentary and factual stories to global audiences.

“The selection unfolds as a true journey of world premieres, presenting stories that will come to light at MIA for the very first time,” write organisers of the Forum’s 15 documentary selections. “These are bold stories, capable of engaging with current affairs, memory, and imagination, while crossing genres and continents.” The 11th Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo (Rome) runs October 6-10.

The International Factual Forum is a pitch event dedicated to “celebrating and advancing talent and original international factual formats,” while Italians Doc It Better is dedicated to Italian documentaries in post-production, rough cut or completed, but not yet presented or screened at markets, festivals, showcases, cinemas, TV or platforms. Deadline for submission: August 10. The ninth edition of MIA will take place in Rome October 6 to 10.

The International Factual Forum is a premier event dedicated to “celebrating and advancing talent and original international factual formats,” while Italians Doc It Better is dedicated to Italian documentaries in post-production, rough cut or completed, but not yet presented or screened at markets, festivals, showcases, cinemas, TV or platforms. Deadline for submission: August 10. The ninth edition of MIA will take place in Rome October 6 to 10.

This week, MIA (Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo) unveiled new partnerships and programmes for its 11th edition, to be held in Rome, October 6 to 10 2025. Core to proceedings was a discussion on Scenari Transalpini - an initiative of Institut Français Italia in partnership with MIA, Villa Medici and Cinecittà. Documentary and non-fiction at MIA revolve around the Doc Co-production Market & Pitching Forum (deadline for submissions June 19) and the Italians Doc It Better programme.