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Vladlena Sandu’s dramatic and poetic hybrid film tells a deeply personal story of life during the Chechen war as neighbours are murdered, her family is targeted, and the capital Groznyis  turned into a battlefield. The film also seeks an answer to a fundamental question. How can the cycle of violence - that shapes the lives of children and is inevitably passed to the next generation - be broken?

The first All-Inclusive Award (€5,000) will be presented to Patrice: The Movie by Ted Passon. The prize honours documentary film productions in which filmmakers with disabilities play a leading role. DOK.forum also announces Industry Training Talks for 2025, the seven projects selected for this year’s Master’s Pitch and The Baltics as this year’s region in focus.

The 23rd VdR–Industry programme concluded April 9 with an award ceremony during which CHF 80,000 of prizes were distributed to 13 projects. These included the second presentation of the Eurimages Co-production Development Award, a €20,000 cash prize, as well as the CHF 10,000 prize from visions sud est, Switzerland’s national fund designed to encourage independent film production in countries with low production capacity. All awards…

Given annually during Visions du Réel to a film that highlights current issues shaping the future world, The UN Perception Change Award was presented April 9 to Britta Strampe (Bandenfilm) producer of Daniel Abma’s The Family Approach. The film, which also won the ver.di Prize for Solidarity, Humanity and Fairness at DOK Leipzig 2024, focuses on the lives of five teenagers who live together and the social workers who look after them.

Opening with Andres Veiel’s Riefenstahl, this year's program “delves into the continent's past to consider its present and future with a section dedicated to archive, where documentary filmmakers explore the dark folds of the 20th century with found footage,” organisers write of the festival running March 8 to 18. Elsewhere, the new Visions competition section showcases daring films that explore the limits of non-fiction from unusual angles, and 13 Catalan-produced documentaries reaffirm the festival's commitment to the country's talent.

In addition to four new docs world-premiering in official selection at Visions du Réel, the Polish doc industry will be represented in Nyon by a delegation of producers presenting six projects to the international professionals in tow. Polish producers will also be active on a co-production round table with fellow producers from Canada, Norway, Scotland, Switzerland and France.

The Ex Oriente Film documentary laboratory comprises 12 feature-length documentary projects and 5 docuseries projects represented by director-producer or creator-producer teams who will attend 3 residential sessions and additional online sessions. “We Empower ambitious projects that won’t compromise on their story and creative language to fit in. We are always looking for creators who take us on a journey we didn’t even know was possible,“ organisers write. New deadline: April 15.

The dok.incubator rough-cut workshop announced April 3 its final selection of documentaries for 2025. “From the political and environmental changes of today’s world to the shifts happening deep inside us, the films to be developed at this year’s workshop all touch the question of adapting to a new reality,” the organisation writes of the projects from countries as far afield as Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Europe and the US.

DocsBarcelona Industry will take place from May 12 to 16. One of the leading non-fiction markets in Southern Europe, more than 800 accredited professionals from the European, Latin American, and international documentary community will have the opportunity to connect, co-produce, and collaborate on these 33 new and advanced projects. The selected participants will take part in various Forum activities: Public Pitch (14/05), Rough Cut Pitch (15/05), New Tech Pitch (13/05) and Speed Meetings.

Finnish Film Affair has put out the call for documentary and Finnish Weird (aka F-Weird) projects for its 14th edition, running 24 to 26 September 2025. “We accept projects from Finland, as well as projects with Finland as the minority production country. For our F-Weird series, we also accept applications with no connection to Finland, other than a shared flair for the weird,” write organisers. The deadline for applications is 18 May.