Uncategorised

Peter Mettler’s epic two-part documentary comprises a diary shot over three years, commencing just before the pandemic, during which he had to deal both with the death of his parents and a very serious illness of his own. Throughout the 7-hour work, he seeks answers to the question: is the grass always greener on the other side? “It evolved into something quite profound, and led to an appreciation of the cycles of living and dying, and the understanding that I'm completely part of that. We're all part of that. There's no getting around it,” Mettler tells BDE.

At the close of Cannes Docs 2025, section chief Pierre-Alexis Chevit hosted the Docs-in-Progress Awards Ceremony during which this year’s winners were announced. Over the past days, eightshowcases of docs-in-progress from around the world were presented, forming a total of 32 new creative documentary projects. The IEFTA Award went to Asphalt by Hamza Hamideh [Palestine Showcase] while the Al Jazeera Documentary Award went to Everybody to Kenmure Street by Felipe Bustos Sierra [Scotland Showcase]. All awards…

“The world was quite different when we selected the film just a couple of months ago,” Artistic Director Niklas Engstrøm cites CPH:DOX opening film Facing War, about Jens Stoltenberg’s tumultuous final years at the helm of NATO, on the eve of the festival’s 23rd roll-out. “Developments have been so fast that the film looks different today than when we selected it…in some ways, it almost feels like a document from another time period.” CPH:DOX 2025 runs March 19-30.

The English-language East Doc Platform 2025 open programme, which offers free access to lectures, panel discussions and film screenings, takes place primarily at the French Institute in Prague from March 14 to 19. “Attendees will have the chance to explore the art and business of documentary filmmaking from multiple angles,” organisers write. The Platform also unveiled details of this year’s juries, as well as the awards up for grabs.

Exiled Iranian director Farahnaz Sharifi talks to Business Doc Europe about her film which tells a parallel history of Iran since the 1979 revolution, culled from personal archives. “At a time when power structures strive to narrate history in ways that hide important and popular segments, it becomes all the more crucial to share personal details and micro-narratives,” says Farahnaz. Sold by CAT&Docs, My Stolen Planet is long-listed for Best Documentary, European Film Awards, 2024.

Cuba and Alaska are two female paramedics working on the frontline in the war against Russia. Serving in the Ukrainian army is obligatory for men, but not for women. These paramedics are therefore volunteers, determined to serve best their country. “This film is about the experience of war from a female perspective, how to be a woman during the full-scale invasion in Ukraine,” says producer Olha Beskhmelnytsina of 2Brave Productions ahead of the May 18 pitch at Cannes Docs.

At CPH:DOX 2024, BAFTA- and Emmy-nominated director Ursula Macfarlane (The Lost Sons, Untouchable, Charlie Hebdo: 3 Days That Shook Paris) and award-winning producer Mandy Chang pitched their new feature, whose working title is The Second Woman. One of the buzziest projects presented at this year’s edition, it promises to be a radical, provocative documentary built around a legendary 24-hour play starring actor Ruth Wilson.

Paris-based The Party Film Sales is specialised in repping both fiction and documentary films worldwide. “We’re proud to present almost all our main documentaries of the year, among which some are still in the race for Academy Awards,” the firm’s co-head of International Sales Estelle De Araujo told Business Doc Europe at IDFA 2023.

MIA International Audiovisual Market (Rome, October 9-13) has put out the call for applications for this year’s Doc Co-Production Market & Pitching Forum. The Market is committed to providing exposure to documentary projects in development. The event’s international selection committee selects up to 15 projects “with high artistic standing and distribution potential.” The deadline for applications is 5pm CET, July 7.