The Docs for Sale catalogue 2024-2025 is now live

Several distinct themes and approaches emerge in the lineup, including the complicated relationship between man and nature, the fragility of ecosystems, and the effects of climate change. Reflecting a shift toward introspection and personal storytelling, many filmmakers also turn to family archives and personal histories to unearth deeper truths and explore nuanced themes, such as identity, belonging, memory, and self-discovery.

The lineup boasts a roster of distinguished filmmakers, including Ruth Beckermann (Favoriten), Claire Simon (Elementary), Albert Serra (Afternoons of Solitude), Ramona S. Diaz (And So It Begins), and Asif Kapadia (2073), as well as promising new voices, including Myrid Carten (A Want in Her), Suhel Banerjee (CycleMahesh), Laurent Pantaleon (Garanti 100% Kréol), and Zainab Entezar (Shot the Voice of Freedom), among others.

This year sees a wide geographic spread, including a first-ever submission from Réunion. The presence of women directors and producers is significant in this year’s crop of films, with a total of 166 films directed or co-directed by women and 257 films produced by women, including 95 titles where women filmmakers took on both roles. Roughly one-third of the entries are IDFA-selected films, another third come from sales agents, and the rest have been meticulously curated from submissions.

Many exciting titles in the slate are poised for their world premieres. Of these, 64 titles have yet to secure sales representation, while 98 have a sales agent on board and are seeking world premieres. Poignant personal stories emerge in Marko Kumer’s The Other Side of the Pipe, as a Greek farmer, a retired Italian teacher, and an activist join forces against Europe's monumental energy endeavor: the Southern Gas Corridor, which spans 3,500 kilometers from Azerbaijan to southern Italy. A tonally opposing film comes from Guillermo F. Flórez. In his playfully offbeat documentary comedy Lord, Take Me Soon, the filmmaker injects a humorous twist into the conversation about aging and death, capturing the Quixotic spirit of an 86-year-old woman resolved to exit on her own terms after a lifetime of adventures. Confronting familial myths and motifs, along with enduring colonial ties, Dario Aguirre Guevara’s We the Wolfs zeroes in on a family in Ecuador that questions the legacy of their German ancestor, Theodor Wolf, and his once-heroic image. Meanwhile, Sara Chitambo-Hatira’s richly layered observational film, Black People Don’t Get Depressed, unpacks the complexities of generational trauma, racism, and oppression, interlacing poetic elements into its exploration of mental health issues among creatives in South Africa and the diaspora in Canada.

Some short films, still seeking their world or European premieres, explore a tapestry of diverse stories from across the world. Andy Ball and Marta Kasztelan’s The Clearing centers on the youths of the Mother Nature group as they defend Cambodia’s dwindling forests amid a government crackdown on civil society. Several short films also explore the themes of identity and belonging through an intimate lens. In a moving exploration of her Kurdish identity and a homeland that has faded from maps, Yara Khalil blends her voice-over with her father's archival footage in Us in Whom. Similarly, in Madre, helmed by Talita Carvalho, the world of Ambar, a Venezuelan refugee in Brasília, is steeped in nostalgia as she navigates the contrasting landscapes of memory, longing, loss, and the realities of a foreign land. The theme of personal discovery also resonates in Mipham Chhowing’s The Feeling of Emptiness, which traces the filmmaker’s path as he unravels the deeper meaning behind his Bhutanese father’s farewell letter written on an old guitar.

The slate also features series that have been carefully picked from submissions or sourced from distributors and sales agents. The harrowing documentary series Unmuted by Dena Hysell-Cornejo delves into pressing social issues, including female genital mutilation in rural Kenya and child marriage in India. Another noteworthy non-fiction series, The Butlers by Marlies Smeenge, centers on students from diverse backgrounds who learn the art of butlering in a quaint Dutch village in South Limburg, highlighting the significance of tradition and the fulfillment that is derived from serving others. In a different realm entirely, Sujith Aradhya’s Breaking the Barriers - India's Race to Glory unveils how dedicated petrolheads drove Indian motorsports to new heights.

Many of the Docs for Sale entries selected for IDFA explore the intricate interplay between the personal and the political. Among the world premieres in the International Competition is Light Memories, an assured debut film by photographer-turned filmmaker Misha Vallejo Prut, who draws upon a collection of photographs and slides to craft a visually evocative exploration of his family tree, punctuated by absent father figures.

The first-ever submission from Réunion, Garanti 100% Kréol, which will celebrate its world premiere in the Envision Competition, follows director Laurent Pantaléon. Wishing to ensure the success of his film, he embarks on a search for garanti talismans, which double as “magical insurance policies”, protective symbols, and markers of identity on the island. Another Envision title comes from Suhel Banerjee’s CycleMahesh, whose inventive meta-documentary peels back the story of Mahesh, an Indian plumber who briefly became a national media sensation after cycling 2,000 kilometers to reach home during a lockdown, yet ultimately remained trapped by his circumstances once the spotlight dimmed. Largely filmed clandestinely, Shot the Voice of Freedom by Zainab Entezar, which will premiere in the Frontlight section, portrays a group of women in Afghanistan rising against Taliban oppression. Another Frontlight-selected title, Blowing in the Wind by Eyad Aljarod, gently pulls us into the experiences of a group of civilian Syrian fighters in 2013. In the absence of commentary or interviews, this contemplative, behind-the-scenes film unfolds, capturing both the precarious and tension-filled episodes of the combatants’ lives and the everyday mundanity of war.

Among the Luminous titles in the slate is Raha Faridi’s Please Step Aside!, an experimental short film that juxtaposes the filmmaker’s stream of consciousness in Berlin—where she has fled after being targeted by security forces in Tehran—with social media images from the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ movement. In another short film, Echoes Within, which will premiere in the IDFA Competition for Short Documentary, debut filmmaker Pranami Koch immerses herself in the Koch community—a minority ethnic group in India to which her late grandmother belonged—focusing her lens almost exclusively on the women of this matrilineal community. In a similar vein, recognizing the diverse ways of inhabiting the land, Gabriela Domínguez Ruvalcaba’s Ways to Traverse a Territory embeds us into the lives of indigenous Tsotsil women, who are shepherds and wool weavers in their ancestral mountains in southern Mexico. The documentary will screen as part of this year’s Best of Fests.

One of the standout themes in this year’s crop of films is the nuanced portrayal of women in their fight for rights and justice. Aya Tallah Yusuf Ellboudy’s samar..Before The Final Picture traverses Cairo and Dubai, chronicling the healing journey of 32-year-old Samar, who seeks to rebuild her life after an acid attack all the while aiding another woman in her recovery. Bringing forth the narrative of collective struggle, Julie Lunde Lillesæter’s An Army of Women follows a group of women in Austin, Texas, whose individual sexual assault cases have been dismissed by the police. United in their fight for justice, they confront a legal system that has failed them and launch a historic federal class-action lawsuit.

Capturing the indomitable spirit of women's resistance, Roya Sadat's The Sharp Edge of Peace unfolds as a gripping political thriller, highlighting the experiences of four women on the Afghan government’s negotiating team as they navigate the nation's hard road to peace. Adding another layer to the discourse on women's rights, Godisamang Khunou's Black Women and Sex probes the tension between black womanhood and the politics of sex through the sexual realities of a South African trans woman, a Nigerian woman raised in a Polygamous home, and a Zambian woman imprisoned for a sex tape.

A number of films in the slate offer captivating artist profiles, providing a glimpse into their inner lives and creative journeys. In She Painter, Fabiana Sargentini brings an intimate and playful lens to her mother, Anna Paparatti, an Italian artist known for her vibrant artworks that often reflect on the absurdities of life. Now aged 87, Paparatti is enjoying a revival in the art scene after a span of obscurity. Richard Moore’s Stelarc - Suspending Disbelief presents a biopic of the Australian performance artist Stelarc, celebrated for his radical bodily experiments—such as a third hand and an ear on his arm—and his quest for innovative body architectures, informed by prosthetics, the world of insects, and flying.

Expanding on the themes of artistic ambition and cultural and personal loss, David Kew’s intriguing documentary, The Artist Who Disappeared, set on the remote Scottish island of Papa Westray, centers on Soviet émigré artist Sergei Ivanov before he vanishes into thin air. Meanwhile, Janne Tanskanen’s Savage Beauty - The World's Greatest Light Installation follows underdog Finnish light artist Kari Kola, who, fueled by his wildest dreams, ventures to build the world's largest light installation on an Irish mountain.

Docs for Sale's key partners, the sales agents, are once again presenting their most significant titles of the year, which can be easily filtered in the catalogue. Among them are Andana Films, Autlook Filmsales, Cinephil, Juno Films, Java Films, The Party Film Sales, Neon, Films Boutique, Magnetfilm, Go2Films, JMT Films, Dogwoof, Rise and Shine World Sales, and Taskovski Films. Among the national distributors that are showcasing their titles are Dutch CORE, RSI - Radiotelevisione Svizzera, and National Film Board of Canada.

During the festival, Docs for Sale will once again take place at Felix Meritis from November 16 to 20. Accredited professionals will have the opportunity to network with all Markets accredited passholders in the Docs for Sale lounge and the shared Markets lounges. Further networking opportunities will be available through Consultancies and Industry Talks, accessible with a PLUS pass (find all Industry events here). Acquisition passholders can also access booths to preview films during the festival. The catalogue will be accessible for the entire year to the Docs for Sale Acquisition passholders.