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In a remote Moldovan village, 42-year-old Elena defies social norms and family duties, embarking on a transformative journey to gain control of her life and pursue her dreams, even if it means leaving everything behind. “It is not just a documentary about one woman's journey; it is a testament to the human spirit and the quest for self-fulfilment,” producer Ion Gnatiuc tells BDE.

In conservative Bulgaria, a queer artist embarks on a journey of intimate home concerts before returning home to confront his past abuse by performing one final concert for his parents. “Our story is about all that can happen when you pursue your dreams against all fears, and society's opinion holding you back,” producer/director Kristina Nikolova tells BDE.

Eight new projects from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine will be presented during the CineLink Industry Days on Sunday August 18. Ji.hlava IDFF will also announce the next cohort of Emerging Producers 2025, and further reminds the doc industry of the August 15 deadline for European and East & Southeast Asian projects applying to Ji.hlava New Visions Forum & Market, as well as for filmmakers from the Caucasus who can have travel/accommodation covered at Ji.hlava.

The Toronto sidebar presents North American premieres of four docs, which includes Chapters two and three of Wang Bing’s Youth trilogy. Additionally, seven documentaries are selected for Wavelengths Shorts. TIFF Classics presents the 4K restoration world premiere of Frederick Wiseman’s Essene (1972) which follows daily life in a Benedictine monastery.

Grasshopper Film announced August 8 the acquisition of North American distribution rights to Nocturnes by Anirban Dutta and Anupama Srinivasan. The film, produced by Academy Award®-nominated Sandbox Films (Fire of Love, All Light, Everywhere, Fireball) and Metamorphosis Film Junction, is about the secret lives of moths in the mountains of northern India.

Finnish Weird (aka F-Weird) is Finnish Film Affair's new pitching session, which will showcase up-and-coming talent presenting the most daring and unexplored ideas across a wide range of formats, including docs. "We want FFA to be known worldwide as the event where the most unique and pioneering film, TV and transmedia projects are pitched; the projects that you won't come across elsewhere,” says Alisha Hasan, Head of Industry. FFA runs September 25-27.

Comprising twenty-one titles from 24 countries, the TIFF Docs programme features “candid and unscripted stories, and the best in non-fiction cinema from around the world.” The programme will open with Eddie Huang’s Vice is Broke, in which the former Vice contributor investigates the media company’s rise and fall. The 49th edition of TIFF will run September 5-15. (Still: Vice is Broke by Eddie Huang)

Industry professionals can now register for the 67th DOK Leipzig (International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film). Accreditation grants exclusive access to the DOK Industry Programme activities and networking events, the festival film programme, masterclasses and talks. DOK Leipzig takes place 28 October to 3 November.

The International Factual Forum enables TV or digital content producers to present and promote their ideas for factual formats and programs to potential stakeholders at MIA (October 14-18 2024). Italians Doc It Better is an initiative aimed at presenting Italian documentaries in post-production, or documentaries completed but not yet released outside Italy.

Documentary films can be submitted from September 16 to November 15, and projects from Dec 10 to Jan 27 2025. The Barcelona International Documentary Film Festival will take place May 8 to 18 2025. The associated DocsBarcelona Industry (May 12-16) is a key meeting point for the professional non-fiction sector in Southern Europe.