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Between 9-13 September the Sarajevo-based doc fest will present 25 films across four themed sections. As importantly the inaugural Industry Days platform is designed “to support the development of documentary films from across the world, including international and regional (SEE, MENA, Caucasus) productions.” 34 new projects will be presented within 3 pitch categories, with prizes valued at over $80,000. Producer Nejra Kozarić discusses the festival’s new offer to industry professionals.

The prodigious talent of jazz legend Louis Armstrong is beautifully celebrated by filmmaker Sacha Jenkins (director of Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men) who revisits the music, the man and his legacy, and reappraises the politics of the legendary jazz trumpeter and singer.

TDF has four competition sections: Feature Length International Competition, Newcomers International Competition, >>Film Forward International Competition and VR International Competition. Thessaloniki Doc Fest is an Oscar® documentary feature qualifying festival. The deadline for submissions is December 8, 2022.

VICE has signed a worldwide license deal on Jason Loftus' Eternal Spring (長春): The Heist of China’s Airwaves. London/Paris/Barcelona-based Sideways Film is repping world sales on the Canadian production on behalf of Lofty Sky Entertainment and director/producer Jason Loftus. Domestic deals with ARTE France/Germany, RTS Switzerland, VG Norway, Current Time (Russian-language, European Territories), and Al Jazeera Doc Channel (MENA), with more announcements to follow.

Visions du Réel has put out the call for non-fiction films and projects for the next edition of the festival running 21-30 April 2023 in Nyon, Switzerland. The film call covers four competition sections (including International and National) and four non-competitive sections, while VdR Industry (April 23-27) requests submissions for early pitches and work-in-progress, plus two development labs.

A heartfelt and memorably tuneful tribute to jazz and jazz musicians, Music for Black Pigeons poses a series of existential questions to a series of influential players about how it feels to play, and what it means to listen.

With films by Helke Misselwitz, Tamara Trampe, Petra Tschörtner and Angelika Andrees, as well as newly discovered and rediscovered works of GDR film history, the Retrospective includes portraits of institutions, essays and observations of everyday life – including DEFA, university and TV productions dating from the founding of the GDR in 1949 to the year the Wall fell. The 65th DOK Leipzig runs 17-23 October.

Three works by the late, great European filmmaker are presented from September 5 on DAFilms.com. The works have been restored by the EYE Filmmuseum, Netherlands. The presentation includes van der Keuken’s most celebrated work, the four-hour Amsterdam Global Village (1996), as well as Brass Unbound (1993) and The Long Holiday (2000).

Industry Days is a new platform created in co-operation with the Al Jazeera Documentary channel with a goal “to support the development of production of documentary films from across the world, including international and regional productions.” The program will take place from September 10 - 12 during the 5th edition of AJB Doc, and offers up 30 new projects within three pitch categories. Co-production awards worth $60,000+ are up for grabs.

The specialist documentary distributor has sold the 1 x 52’ documentary Musk vs Bezos: The New Star Wars to RTBF, ZDFinfo, TVE, SIC, and HRT Croatia, with more sales in the offing. The France 5 commission from Magneto tells the story of the vicious ongoing space race between two of the richest men in the world. Java Films is this week attending attending Le Rendez-Vous in Biarritz with 20 new docs.