IDFA Forum 2024 Selects 55 Projects for its 32nd Edition in Amsterdam

International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam

Netherlands

The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) has announced the selection of 55 documentary projects for its 32nd edition of the IDFA Forum, a prestigious co-production and co-financing market. Out of 820 submissions, the chosen projects showcase a broad range of storytelling techniques and cultural perspectives, featuring both seasoned filmmakers and fresh voices in the documentary world. The IDFA Forum will take place from November 17 to 20, 2024, in Amsterdam’s Felix Meritis and Pathé City venues.

This year’s lineup reflects a strong presence of women filmmakers and includes projects from every continent, with European productions leading the charge, followed by entries from Asia, the Americas, and Africa. Adriek van Nieuwenhuijzen, Head of IDFA Industry, expressed pride in the variety of the selection, noting that it captures the “spirit of the times” and represents an array of voices through both thematic and stylistic diversity.

The Forum’s major sections include the Forum Pitch and Producers Connection, featuring 33 projects. Notable participants returning to IDFA include acclaimed directors Aliona van der Horst with "The Return," Eva Mulvad with "House of the Holy Father," and Alexander Mihalkovich with "Transparency Booth: Echoes of the Future." These projects tackle complex themes ranging from personal identity amid conflict to the psychological intricacies of sects and historical retrospectives on the Soviet Union’s final years.

Emerging directors also form a key part of the lineup. Ruoyun Chen’s "People’s Republic of Letters" explores the lives of young Chinese poets, while Bircan Birol’s "Your Honour" offers an intimate look at resistance under authoritarian regimes in Turkey. Another standout, Cécile Allegra’s "The Road," reenacts the harrowing journeys of displaced African migrants, drawing attention to the global refugee crisis.

In the Rough Cut Presentations, seven projects will be featured, including Lana Daher’s much-anticipated archive-based film "Do You Love Me," which delves into Lebanese generational dynamics, and Aleksandar Nikolic’s "The Eternal Soldier," a meditation on war and memory.

The IDFA DocLab Forum will present 15 innovative projects, experimenting with formats like virtual reality and immersive experiences. Highlights include May Abdalla’s "Amorphous," focusing on mental health, and Juul van der Laan’s AI-powered "I M U," which manipulates the viewer’s image in real time.

Running alongside the Forum, IDFA’s market and distribution incubator, Docs for Sale, will take place from November 16 to 20. This event provides further networking and deal-making opportunities for filmmakers and industry professionals.

Forum Pitch: Selected Projects

• Burning Daddy, dir. Tana Gilbert, prod. Paola Castillo/Errante (Chile), co-prod. Dirk Manthey/Dirk Manthey Film (Germany) 
• Untitled Chilean Documentary, dir. Carola Fuentes, prod. Rafael Valdeavellano/La Ventana Cine (Chile), pro. Ina Fichman/Intuitive Pictures Inc. (Canada) 
• Concrete Land, dir. Asmahan Bkerat, prod. Asmahan Bkerat, Ban Maraqa (Jordan), co-prod. Sam Soko (Kenya) 
• Dry Sky, dir. Ibrahim Omar, prod. Ibrahim Omar, Sudan Film Institute (Sudan), Aya Yusuf/Shogl Cairo Pictures (Egypt), co-prod. Nadim Cheikhrouha/Tanit Films (France) 
• Home Movie, dir. Anu Czerwiński, prod. Anna Stylińska, Katarzyna Slesicka/My Way Studio (Poland), co-prod. Alex Tondowski/Tondowski Films (Germany) 
• House of the Holy Father, dir. Eva Mulvad, Andreas Koefoed, prod. Pernille Rose Grønkjær/Danish Documentary Production, Emil Wergeland/Danish Documentary Production (Denmark) 
• Nanyang, dir. Enrico Parenti, prod. Susanna Trojano/Elliot Films (Italy), co-prod. Signe Byrge Sørensen/Final Cut for Real (Denmark) 
• Queen of the Stone Age, dir. David Bernet, prod. Sarah Born/Catpics (Switzerland), Katharina Bergfeld/Ma.ja.de. Filmproduktions (Germany), co-prod. Rajko Jazbec/Catpics, Dario Schoch/Catpics 
• Replica, dir. Chouwa Liang, prod. Andy Huang/Axel Rise Films (Australia) 
• The Apologist, dir. Kristof Bilsen, prod. Kristof Bilsen/Limerick Films, co-prod. Rémi Grellety/Warboys Films, Sara Skrodzka/Warboys Films (France), Nienke Korthof/Tangerine Tree (The Netherlands), Benoît Roland/Wrong Men North (Belgium) 
• The Beauty of Errors, dir. Jukka Kärkkäinen, prod. Juha Löppönen/Mouka Filmi, Sami Jahnukainen/Mouka Filmi (Finland), co-prod. Ove Rishøj Jensen/Auto Images, Magnus Gertten/Auto Images, Carsten Aanonsen/Indie Film (Sweden, Norway) 
• The Eighth Continent, dir. Luuk Bouwman, Tomas Kaan, prod. Lea Fels/Scenery, Nanneke Landman/Scenery (The Netherlands) 
• Confidential project, dir. a collective of filmmakers from Afghanistan 
• In Front of Us, dir. Inna Sahakyan, prod. Vardan Hovhannisyan/Bars Media Documentary Film Studio (Armenia), co-prod. Inna Sahakyan/Bars Media Films (United States) 
• The Return, dir. Aliona van der Horst, prod. Ilja Roomans/Docmakers (The Netherlands) 
• The Road, dir. Cécile Allegra, Antarès Bassis, prod. Estelle Robin You/Grande Ourse Films (France) 
• The Way We Move, dir. Nicolas Davenel, Vanessa Dumont, prod. Matthieu Belghiti/What's Up Films (France), co-prod. Arnaud Le Guilcher/Wagram Productions, Hubert Cornet/Wagram Productions 
• Transparency Booth: Echoes of the Future, dir. Anna Kapustina, Alexander Mihalkovich, prod. Anna Kapustina/Albatros Communicos Film Production, Alexander Mihalkovich/Albatros Communicos Film Production (Ukraine) 
• The West Bank Project, dir. Francesca Tosarelli and Kamal Al Azraq, prod. Kamal Al Azraq/Voirex Production Company, Francesca Tosarelli (State of Palestine, Italy) 
• Your Honour, dir. Bircan Birol, prod. Reece Cargan/Bombito Productions (United Kingdom) 
   

Producers Connection: Selected Projects

• As Red as Water, dir. Fabrizio Albertini, prod. Giorgio Viscardini/Studio x01, co-prod. Gabriele Rossi/ Studio x01 (Italy)  
• Chunyu: A Death Foretold, dir. Fan Yang, prod. Yiqian Zhang/Electric Shadow (Canada), co-prod. Fan Yang (China) 
• Clones In Heat, dir. Andrew Moir, prod. Jessica Adams/Hands Up Films (Canada) 
• Emptiness, dir. Viesturs Kairišs, prod. Gints Grūbe/Mistrus Media, Elīna Gedina-Ducena/Mistrus Media (Latvia), co-prod. Livia Radulescu/Dash Film (Romania) 
• Expelled, dir. Tudor Platon, prod. Carla Fotea/microFILM, Ada Solomon/microFILM (Romania) 
• For Those Who Will Inherit The Earth, dir. Sara Hatira, prod. Sophie Haikali/Joe Vision Production (Namibia), co-prod. Tiny Mungwe/STEPS, Don Edkins/STEPS (South Africa)  
• Green Gold, dir. Selim Benzeghia, Ivonne Serna, prod. Geoffrey Livolsi/Tati Films (France) 
• How Love Moves, dir. Pallavi Paul, prod. Aman Mann/KiteRabbit Films (India) 
• Looking for the Mermaid, dir. Yara Costa, prod. Yara Costa/YC Films (Mozambique), co-prod. Tiny Mungwe (South Africa) 
• Matriarchy, dir. Zara Arrehed, prod. Malcolm Dixelius/Dixit International, Ilja Stenberg/Dixit International (Sweden), co-prod. Esther van Messel/First Hand Films, Daniel Schneider/First Hand Films (Switzerland) 
• People's Republic of Letters, dir. Ruoyun Chen, prod. Ruoyun Chen/9BULAS (United States), co-prod. Kayo Zhang 
• The Long Rescue, dir. Jennifer Huang, prod. Jennifer Huang/Treeclimber Media, Jethro Patalinghug (United States), co-prod. Hanz Florentino/ Studio Inspiro (Philippines) 
• Untitled KQT Project, dir. Patrick Lee, prod. Patrick Lee/Patrick G. Lee LLC, Pulkit Datta (United States) 
   

Rough Cut Presentations: Selected Projects

• Between Brothers, dir. Tom Fassaert, prod. Renko Douze/Een van de jongens (the Netherlands), co-prod. Hasse van Nunen for Een van de jongens (the Netherlands), Hanne Phlypo/Clin d'oeil films (Belgium) 
• Copan, dir. Carine Wallauer, prod. Camilo Cavalcanti/Clariô Filmes, Viviane Mendonça/MVM Movimentos Culturais (Brazil), co-prod. Justin Pechberty/Les Valseurs, Nabil Bellahsene/Les Valseurs (France), Lea Fels/Scenery (the Netherlands) 
• Crocodile, dir. Pietra Brettkelly, The Critics/Clan Yujo, prod. Pietra Brettkelly (New Zealand), The Critics/Clan Yujo (Nigeria) 
• Do You Love Me, dir. Lana Daher, prod. prod. Jean-Laurent Csinidis/Films de Force Majeure (France), Lana Daher/My Little Films (Lebanon), co-prod. Jasper Mielke/Wood Water Films (Germany) 
• The Eternal Soldier, dir. Aleksandar Nikolic, prod. Miloš Ivanović/Set Sail Films (Serbia), Friedemann Hottenbacher/Inselfilm Produktion (Germany), co-prod. Monica Lăzurean-Gorgan/Manifest Film (Romania), Jure Pavlovic/Sekvenca (Croatia), Mandy Chang/Undeniable Productions (United Kingdom) 
• Issa's House, dir. Tomer Heymann, prod. Tomer Heymann/Heymann Brothers Films, Ahmad Amro (State of Palestine), Leigh Heiman/Heymann Brothers Films (Israel), co-prod. Estelle Fialon/Les Films du Poisson (France) 
• Whispers in May, dir. Dongnan Chen, prod. Jia Zhao/Muyi Film (China, the Netherlands), co-prod. Heejung Oh/Seesaw Films (South Korea) 
   

IDFA DocLab Forum: Selected Projects

• Amorphous, dir. May Abdalla, prod. Kirsty Jennings/Anagram (United Kingdom), co-prod. Katayoun Dibamehr/Floreal Films (France) 
• Atomic Paradise: The Unseen Horizon, dir. John Harvey, prod. Sally Aitken/SAM Content (Australia) 
• Battlefield of Dreams, dir. Floor Houwink ten Cate, prod. Anne Breure/Theater Utrecht (the Netherlands), co-prod. (United Kingdom) 
• Beyond?, dir. Yango González, prod. Yango González (Germany) 
• From Memory, dir. John Nathan, Damian Hale, prod. Toby Coffey (United Kingdom), co-prod. Alex Eckford 
• Homeing: Lost&Found Bureau, dir. Maria Kremer, prod. Maria Kremer/zvon studio/Homeing platform (Armenia), co-prod. Alina Mikhaleva Savelyeva/Less Media Group (Georgia) 
• I M U, dir. Juul van der Laan, prod. Juul van der Laan/studio thnkthnk (the Netherlands), co-prod. V2_ (the Netherlands) 
• Lady Lazarus, dir. Willemiek Kluijfhout, prod. Nienke Huitenga/Studio ZZZAP (the Netherlands) 
• Normandie: A Documentary Video Game, dir. Sam Butin, prod. Nicolás Escarpentier/On The March (United States) 
• Slipstreaming, dir. Giuseppe Chico, prod. Barbara Matijević (France, Croatia) 
• The Four Floors of Faneuil Hall, dir. Simon Wood, Meghna Singh, prod. Simon Wood, Meghna Singh (South Africa, United States) 
• The Library of All Possible Things, dir. Maria Laura Ruggiero, Ana Fraile, prod. Ana Fraile/Pulpo Films, Maria Laura Ruggiero/SeirenFilms (Argentina), co-prod. (United Kingdom) 
• The Time of a Moment, dir. Kate Voet, Victor Maes, prod. Emmy Oost/Cassette for timescapes, An Oost/Cassette for timescapes (Belgium), co-prod. (Luxembourg, the Netherlands) 
• to the other side… dir. Oliver Czeslik, prod. Kathrin Brunner/mYndstorm productions (Germany) 
• Trolls vs Elves, dir. Aleks Rydzkowska, prod. Aleks Rydzkowska (Poland, United Kingdom)