Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival (CPH:DOX, March 19-30) has selected 71 films for its competition sections, including 56 world premieres, 12 international premieres and three European premieres.
World premieres for the festival’s 22nd edition include Ukrainian director Alisa Kovalenko’s My Dear Theo. Few details have been revealed for the film yet; Theo is the name of Kovalenko’s son. The film will be produced by Kasia Kuczynska of Poland’s Haka Films, with Ukrainian production company Moonman Productions, the company behind recent festival titles Songs Of Slow Burning Earth and A House Made Of Splinters.
Kovalenko has previously directed films including 2023’s We Will Not Fade Away, a documentary about teenagers in Ukraine’s conflict-ridden Donbas region.
My Dear Theo will play in the main Dox:Award competition, which consists only of world premieres for the third consecutive year.
Other films among the 12 Dox:Award titles include Monica Stromdahl’s Norwegian feature Flophouse America, about a young boy who grows up in a hotel room shared with his alcoholic parents. The film is produced by Siri Natvik and Beathe Hofseth for Fri Film, with backers including the Norwegian Film Institute.
World premieres in the 17-strong New:Vision competition include Available Light, a feature expanded from a performance piece by UK artist Morgan Quaintance. The film combines interviews with workers at a Tokyo museum, with conversations with renters in London, to consider notions of home in contemporary society.
CPH:DOX has six competition sections: the Dox:Award, New:Vision, Next:Wave, Nordic, F:Act and Human:Rights. It also presents a €10,000 audience award, and will give out €45,000 in prizes across the competitive strands.
“Whether set in Ukraine, Mozambique, America, or China, the nominated films in this year’s program stand as a defense of the role of poetry and art in the world,” said Niklas Engstrom, CPH:DOX artistic director.
Jurors for the 2025 festival include Sara Dosa, director of Bafta- and Oscar-nominated documentary Fire Of Love; and Max Kestner, whose feature Life and Other Problems opened the 2024 festival.
The full festival programme will be unveiled on February 26. The event will open with the world premiere of Tommy Gulliksen’s Facing War, playing in the Dox:Award strand.
CPH:DOX 2025 competition titles
DOX:Award
A demain sur la lune (Fr-US) dir. Thomas Balmes, prod. Thomas Balmes
Agatha’s Almanac (Can) dir. Amalie Atkins, prod. Amalie Atkins
Always (US-Fr-China) dir. Deming Chen, prod. Hansen Lin
Balane 3 (Por-Fr) dir. Ico Costa, prod. Terratreme Filmes
Facing War (Nor-Bel) dir. Tommy Gulliksen, prods. Anne Marte Blindheim, Danielle Turkov Wilson
Flophouse America (Nor-Neth-US) dir. Monica Stromdahl, prod. Breathe Hofseth, Siri Natvik
My Dear Theo (Pol-Czech-Ukr) dir. Alisa Kovalenko, prod. Kasia Kuczynska
Sanatorium (Ire-Ukr-Fr) dir. Gary O’Rourke, prods. Andrew Freedman, Samantha Corr, Ken Wardrop
The Castle (Fr-It) dirs. Danny Biancardi, Virginia Nardelli, Stefano Giuseppe La Rosa, prods. Nadege Labe, Giulia Campagna, Stefano Collizzolli
The Father, The Sons and The Holy Spirit (Den) dir. Christian Sonderby Jepsen, prod. Mira Jargil
The Helsinki Effect (Fin) dir. Arthur Franck, prod. Sandra Enkvist
We Live Here (Kaz) dir. Zhanana Kurmasheva, prod. Banu Ramazanova
New:Vision award
All These Summers (UK-Den) dir. Therese Henningsen, prod. Therese Henningsen
Available Light (UK) dir. Morgan Quaintance, prod. Morgan Quaintance
City Child (US-Ger) dir. Austin Lynch, prods. Austin Lynch, Andro Steinbron
Fear Fokol (Swe) dir. Tuva Bjork, prods. Dennis Harvey, Melissa Lindgren, Tobias Janson
Green Grey Black Brown (S Kor) dir. Yuyan Wang, prod. Yuyan Wang
Illiyeen (Den) dirs. Eliyah Mesayer, Nanna Rebekka, prod. Rebekka Laugesen
Images de Tunisie (UK-Tun) dir. Younes Ben Slimane, prods. Jane Pavitt, Younes Ben Slimane
International Satan’s Day (Leb) dir. Raed Yassin, prod. Raed Yassin
Melted Into The Sun (It-Uz) dir. Saodat Ismailova, prod. Leonardo Bigazzi
Perishable Idol (Fr-Kuw-Qat) dir. Majid Al-Remaihi, prods. Luc-Jerome Bailleul, Elodie Wattiaux
Ramallah, Palestine, December 2018 (Bel) dir. Juliette Le Monnyer, prods. Juliette Le Monnyer, Ellen Meiresonne
Scrap (Fr) dir. Noamie Lobry, prod. Marion Darrieux
Sinking Latitude (Den-China) dir. Jiawei Zheng, prod. Jiawei Zheng
Songbook (US) dir. Mariah Garnett, prods. Mariah Garnett, Jibz Cameron
Siticulosa (UK-Den) dir. Maeve Brennan, prods. Maeve Brennan
Time Paradox (S Kor) dir. Minha Park, prod. Minha Park
Unstable Rocks (Ger-Por) dir. Ewelina Rosinska, prods. Ewelina Rosinska, Nuno Barroso
Next:Wave
50 Meters (Egy-Den) dir. Yomna Khattab, prods. Ahmed Amer, Patricia Drati
Abode of Dawn (Ger) dir. Kristina Shtubert, prod. Kristina Shtubert
Copan (Braz-Fr) dir. Carine Wallauer, prods. Viviane Mendonça, Camilo Cavalcanti, Nabil Bellahsene, Justin Pechberty
Fantastic Family (Den) dir. Nicoline Skotte, prod. Vibeke Vogel
I am Night at Noonday (Fr) dir. Gaspard Hirchi, prod. Quentin Laurent
ILOVERUSS (Swe) dir. Tova Mozard, prods. Daniel Pynnoonen, Alice Sunnelius Alden
Latina, Latina (Ire) dir. Adrian Duncan, prod. Adrian Duncan
Open Call (Nor) dir. Sille Storihle, prod. Sille Storihle
The Golden Spurtle (UK-Australia) dir. Constantine Costi, prods. Rebecca Lamond, John Archer
Red Forest (Fr) dir. Laurie Lassalle, prod. Frederic Feraud
Unanimal (Swe-Fr) dirs. Sally Jacobsen, Tuva Bjork, prods. Victor Ede, Melissa Lindgren
Who Witnessed The Temples Fall (Sp) dir. Lucia Alonso Santos, prods. Guillem Mula Blanch, Alejandro Gonzalez Clemente, Daniel Pena, Irene M. Borrego
Nordic:Dox award
Fighter (Nor) dirs. Sunniva Sundby, Mari Bakke Riise, prod. Mari Bakke Riise
If I Die Today (Den) dir. Camilla Arlien, prod. Marie Schmidt Olesen
The Nicest Men On Earth (Den) dirs. Josefine Exner, Sebastian Gerdes, prod. Mathilde Hvid Lippman
Portrait of a Confused Father (Nor) dir. Gunnar Hall Jensen, prods. Christian Aune Falch, Torstein Parelius
Lowland Kids (Den-Us) dir. Sandra Winther, prods. Sigrid Dyekjaer, Darren Aronofsky
The Ground Beneath Our Feet (Ice) dir. Yrsa Roca Fannberg, prod. Hanna Bjork Valsdottir
The Last Misfits By The Golden River (Fin) dir. Juho-Pekka Tanskanen, prod. Isabella Karhu
The Sequel to Summer Rain (Swe) dir. Viktor Johansson, prod. Linus Andersson
Walls – Akinni Inuk (Greenland) dir. Nina Paninnguaq Skydsbjerg, Sofie Rordam, prod. Emile Hertling Peronard
Witch (Den) dir. Emil Norgaard Munk, prods. Thor Hampus Bank, Emil Lynge Johnsen
Zlatan’s Nose (Swe) dirs. Nils Toftenow, Mathias Rosberg, Olle Toftenow, prod. Olle Toftenow
F:Act award
2000 Meters to Andriivka (Ukr) dir. Mstyslav Chernov, prods. Mstyslav Chernov, Michelle Mizner, Raney Aronson-Rath
Antidote (UK) dir. James Jones, prod. James Jones
K-Number (S Kor) dir. Seyoung Jo, prod. Dukjoong Kim
Men of War (US-Can) dirs. Jen Gatien, Billy Corben, prods. Alfred Spellman, Jen Gatien, Billy Corben
Predators (US) dir. David Osit, prods. Kellen Quinn, Jamie Goncalves
The End of the Internet (Can) dir. Dylan Reibling, prod. Dylan Reibling
The Eukrainian (Swe-Fr-Ukr-Bel) dir. Viktor Nordenskiold, prods. Christian Popp, Malcolm Dixelius, Olha Beskhmelnytsina, Sergio Ghizzardi
The Gardender, the Buddhist & the Spy (Nor-Ger-UK) dir. Havard Bustnes, prods. Carsten Aanonsen, Havard Bustnes
The Last Ambassador (Austria) dir. Natalie Halla, prods. Peter Drossler, Arash T. Riahi, Sabine Gruber
The Perfect Neighbor (US) dir. Geeta Gandbhir, prods. Geeta Gandbhir, Nikon Kwantu, Alisa Payne, Sam Bisbee
Human:Rights award
9-Month Contract (Geo-Bul-Ger) dir. Ketevan Vashagashvili, prods. Anna Khazaradze, Nino Chichua, Martichka Bozhilova, Sylvia Nagel
2000 Meters to Andriivka (Ukr) dir. Mstyslav Chernov, prods. Mstyslav Chernov, Michelle Mizner, Raney Aronson-Rath
Black Water (Sp) dir. Natxo Leuza, prod. Lucia Benito
Girls & Gods (Austria) dirs. Verez Soltiz, Arash T. Riahi, prods. Arash T. Riahi, Peter Drössler, Sabine Gruber, Sarah Schiesser, Rhea Plangg, Amel Soudani
Little Syria (Por-Rom-Ger) dirs. Madalina Rosca, Reem Karssli, prods. Paul Arne Wagner, Madalina Rosca
Matabeleland (Zim-Ken-Bot) dir. Nyasha Kadandara, prod. Sam Soko
Moria Six (Ger) dir. Jennifer Mallmann, prod. Matthias Drescher
The Dialogue Police (Swe) dir. Susanna Edwards, prod. Susanna Edwards
The Encampments (US) dirs. Michael T. Workman, Kei Pritsker, prods. Matthew Belen, Munir Atalla, Kei Pritsker, Michael T. Workman
The Lions By The River Tigris (Nor-Neth) dir. Zaradasht Ahmed, prods. Thorvald Nilsen, Harmen Jalvingh, Hester Breunissen
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