News

The theatrical distribution of documentaries in Europe has entered a phase of both unprecedented opportunity and increased complexity. At the MIA panel Getting Docs to Theatres: Strategies and Opportunities held on October 9, industry professionals shared insights on marketing, audience engagement, and innovative distribution models that are reshaping the sector. Business Doc Europe reports.

Presented at the Italians Doc It Better showcase, the new documentary by Elisa Motta and Matteo Ferrarini offers a sensorial and poetic journey through sound, while exploring the power of listening as a path to reconnection. “OTO is a film that inverts the traditional hierarchy between sound and image, disrupting the usual grammar of documentary,” the creative team tells Business Doc Europe.

Following its Venice World Premiere (Official Selection Out-of-Competition), and ahead of its UK premiere at BFI London Film Festival, Global Constellation announced it has sold exclusive UK/EIRE distribution rights of Broken English to VUE LUMIÈRE, as well as a raft of other international sales. Directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, and featuring Tilda Swinton, the film offers up a dynamic and experimental career-spanning portrait of the late, great Marianne Faithfull.

Thirteen new US and Asian projects will be presented October 29–31 during the 29th Ji.hlava IDFF. Seven projects are from the United States, while six are from East and South-east Asia. These join the previously announced projects from Europe and Croatia, this year's Ji.hlava Industry guest country. This year’s Ji.hlava IDFF will run October 24 to November 2.

The Lithuanian 4x52’ documentary series Hijacked Life revisits one of the most extraordinary and disturbing true stories of the Cold War era: the first hijacking of a Soviet plane. The project, directed by Andrius Lekavičius, was pitched at this year’s MIA Market. “Blending investigation, cinematic storytelling, and striking visuals, Hijacked Life explores how the dream of freedom can slowly transform into a prison of its own,” Lithuanian producer Jurgita Rakauskaitė explained to the Rome audience.

DOK Leipzig has revealed the competition line-up for its 68th edition, completing the 2025 film programme. A total of 78 films, including 30 world premieres, are competing for Golden and Silver Doves across the four competitions. “Most of the films sent to us in the post-pandemic period have dealt with family situations and inner thoughts. This year, however, numerous documentaries and animated films have returned to looking outward,” says festival director Christoph Terhechte.

The 33rd edition of the festival’s co-production/co-financing market unveils a “compelling” line-up of projects, welcoming an array of newcomers and seasoned filmmakers. “The selection demonstrates how versatile the domain of the documentary filmmaker and new media artist is,” says Adriek van Nieuwenhuijzen, Head of IDFA Industry. “Through the use of inventive cinematic language and formats, these projects bring underexposed stories while also exploring non-narrative expressions, both of which provide context in a society marked by turbulence and uncertainty.”

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.