Baltic Sea Docs

30/10/2025

Olha Zhurba’s "Songs of Slow Burning Earth" has been shortlisted for the European Film Awards – and we want to join the celebration of this major recognition of Ukrainian cinema on the international stage!

Voting for the nominations is open until 5 November. If you’re a member of the European Film Academy, we encourage voting!

A couple of months ago, "Songs of Slow Burning Earth" was presented to Baltic Sea Docs workshop participants in a masterclass by BSD tutor and the film's producer, Darya Bassel.

17/10/2025

RIGA IFF / Riga International Film Festival has begun! Two films that have participated at Baltic Sea Docs are at the international feature competition:

The festival’s main competition will see the world premiere of Jānis Ābele’s documentary detective "𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥" (Testaments, , BSD 2022). Looking to fulfil the final wish of the poet Anatols Imermanis the film will invite the viewers on a quest through the streets of the red-light districts of Western Europe.

In collaboration between the filmmakers of Ukraine and Lithuania, the documentary by the veteran director Oleksiy Radynski, "𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧" (Spetsialna Operatsiia, Kinotron Group, Kinema, BSD 2023), continues to reveal the more brutal side of humanity by featuring CCTV footage from Chornobyl, which recorded the Russian Federation military forces’ invasion of the nuclear power plant area.

Congratulations and best wishes to the teams!

14/10/2025

Atskaņas no Dokumentālo filmu foruma – šī gada programmas skatītākā filma nu arī LTV1 ēterā / REplay.lv!

Šovakar, 14. oktobrī plkst. 22.00 LTV1 izrādīs somu režisora Artura Franka filmu "Helsinku efekts" (The Helsinki Effect, 52 min) – aizraujošu ieskatu Aukstā kara ēras mītos un varas naratīvos no 1975. g. pasaules līderu konfereces Helsinkos!

Ilgu laiku Helsinku konference tika uzskatīta par nebeidzamu diplomātisku cīņu bez taustāmas jēgas. Solžeņicins to nodēvēja par Austumeiropas bērēm, New York Times par “maldīgu un tukšu”, bet, palūkojoties atpakaļ pagātnē, šī konference mainīja pasauli un kļuva par vienu no agrīnajiem pagrieziena punktiem ceļā uz Padomju Savienības sabrukumu un Eiropu bez Dzelzs priekškara.

Lai gan Helsinku konferences noslēguma aktā netieši atzītas Eiropas pēckara robežas, vienošanās iekļāva arī sadaļu par cilvēktiesībām un brīvībām, kas kļuva par pamatu dažādu Austrumu bloka disidentu organizāciju un cilvēktiesību aizsardzības grupu izveidei Krievijā, Lietuvā, Ukrainā, Gruzijā, Čehoslovākijā u.c. valstīs. Latvijā Helsinki-86 bija pirmā neformālā cilvēktiesību aizstāvju grupa, kas atklāti pauda opozīciju padomju režīmam, 1987. gadā rīkoja ziedu nolikšanu pie Brīvības pieminekļa un citas akcijas, kas aizsāka Trešo atmodu.

Kā šo konferenci vērtēt šodienas acīm un vai varam tajā pausto salīdzināt ar mūsdienu situāciju Ukrainā?
Kādu lomu konferencē ieņēma Latvijas un citu Baltijas valstu trimdas organizācijas? Kāpēc Helsinkos tika arestēts trimdas sabiedriskais darbinieks Uldis Grava? Kādas atbalsis konference raisīja Latvijā?

Portālā Delfi.lv publicēts atskats uz Dokumentālo filmu forumā rīkoto diskusiju pēc filmas "Helsinki efekts" seansa 5. septembrī. Diskusiju vadīja žurnālists Tālis Eipurs, tajā piedalījās kino producents Gints Grūbe, agrākā cilvēktiesību organizācijas "Helsinki-86" dalībniece Anta Bergmane, vēsturnieks un agrākais diplomāts Gints Apals un politoloģe Iveta Kažoka.

Filmas "Helsinku efekts" saīsināto versiju 14. oktobrī izrādīs LTV1, tāpēc piedāvājam diskusijas atšifrējumu.

24/09/2025

East Doc Platform is open for submissions!

East Doc Platform 2026 invites documentary projects from Central and Eastern Europe at all stages – from development to post-production, as well as completed films (short or feature-length). International projects related to the region are also welcome. 🌍 If you have a creative documentary project, this is your chance to showcase it in Prague!

📅 East Doc Platform: 19-25 March, 2026�
📍 Prague, Czech Republic�
⏰ Submissions are open until 14 November, 2025

East Doc Platform 2026 is organized by the Institute of Documentary Film in association with the Jeden svět / One World Festival.

🔗 For more info and submissions, visit: https://dokweb.net/activities/east-doc-platform/2026/call-for-entries

24/09/2025

Atskaņas pēc Dokumentālo filmu foruma diskusijas par dokumentālā kino veidotāju mentālo veselību kara apstākļos – portālā Kino Raksti publicēta režisores Lienes Lindes un diskusijas vadītājas, psihoterapeites Rebekas Dejas saruna.

„Pierodi nejusties slikti un neatvainoties par to, ka tev nepieciešama psiholoģiskā palīdzība, – tu tāpēc neesi vārgulis vai neprofesionālis! Kinoindust...

23/09/2025

DocsBarcelona is calling for films for the 2026 edition of the festival – submissions are open until 15 November (early bird deadline: 31 October). The film programme features six competitive sections.

• DocsBarcelona Pro will open the call for projects on December 9 (until 31 January).

The 29th edition of DocsBarcelona will be held from May 7 to 17, 2026.

22/09/2025

A look back at this year's edition of Baltic Sea Docs in Modern Times Review "Cats on the Rooftops, Docs in the Villa":

"The scale, again, felt appropriate, rooms close enough for frankness and a city accessible enough for chance encounters. [..] Across the two pitch days, an arc emerged, grief giving way to repair and then to a cautious renewal."

Read the full article 👇

BALTIC SEA DOCS: From war testimonies to playful experiments, BSD 2025 showed why Riga’s compact forum punches above its weight in Europe’s doc market landscape.

19/09/2025

Call for entries to the 12th edition of LAST STOP TRIESTE is open!

Trieste Film Festival and When East Meets West have just opened calls to five different sections of the forum, including the 12th edition of LAST STOP TRIESTE, a work-in-progress section for documentary projects at a stage of FINE CUT.

👉 As a partner platform, Baltic Sea Docs makes projects eligible for Last Stop Trieste — open to works previously developed or presented at BSD or Ex-Oriente Film Workshop, BDC Discoveries, Docu Rough Cut Boutique, ZagrebDox PRO, and When East Meets West.

Selected fine cuts will be screened in Trieste to an exclusive platform of decision makers with the aim of enhancing their potential for finding festival premieres, sales agents and broadcasting slots, and the teams will participate at a moderated feedback session.

Last Stop Trieste will take place on January 18-20, 2026.
📩 Applications are open until 5 November.

More information: https://www.wemw.it/works-in-progress/last-stop-trieste/

18/09/2025

Two more weeks left to submit projects to Fipadoc - International Documentary Festival international pitches!

Submissions are open until 3 October!

📆 Fipadoc dates: 23-31 January, 2026
📍 Biarritz, France

𝟮𝟰 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 will pitch to 60+ international funders from Europe and beyond, followed by individual meetings.

Prior to the pitch, participants take part in an online booster workshop to enhance the presentations of each project.

Filmmakers from the 2026 countries in focus (Spain & Portugal), from LLC (countries with low audiovisual capacities) as well as filmmakers from Ukraine and Palestine benefit from special rates on submission.

🔗 More information:
https://www.fipadoc.com/en/news/fipadoc-international-pitches-2026-call-for-projects

◤𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗠𝗜𝗧 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗝𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗧𝗢 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗙𝗜𝗣𝗔𝗗𝗢𝗖 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗡𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗣𝗜𝗧𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗦

Now you can submit your project to the 2026 edition of the Fipadoc International Pitches, where you can present your next documentary project to a large group of international funders.

🕞𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟯, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱.

Fipadoc has grown to be a hub for international coproduction, gathering key French and international industry profiles and filmmakers. Through its international pitches 𝟮𝟰 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 will pitch to 60+ international funders from Europe and beyond. To strengthen the potential outcome of the pitches, Fipadoc will schedule hundreds of tailor-made individual meetings between the pitch teams and these decision makers.

If you are selected to pitch at Fipadoc, you will participate in an online booster workshop, prior to coming to the pitch. The booster is run by international pitching experts, facilitating pitch strategies and concrete enhancements on the presentations of each project.

The final day to submit your project to the Fipadoc International Pitches is October 3rd, 2025. Filmmakers from the 2026 countries in focus (Spain & Portugal), from LLC (countries with low audiovisual capacities) as well as filmmakers from Ukraine and Palestine benefit from special rates on submission.
The 2025 Fipadoc festival will take place 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟯 𝘁𝗼 𝟯𝟭 𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗶𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘇, 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲.

✍Here you will find further information about the 2026 Fipadoc International Pitches: https://fipadoc.com/en/actualites/les-pitchs-internationaux-du-fipadoc-2026-appel-a-projets-documentaires
_______

◤𝙋𝙄𝙏𝘾𝙃𝙎 𝙄𝙉𝙏𝙀𝙍𝙉𝘼𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉𝘼𝙐𝙓 2026 : 𝘼𝙋𝙋𝙀𝙇 𝘼̀ 𝙋𝙍𝙊𝙅𝙀𝙏𝙎 𝘿𝙊𝘾𝙐𝙈𝙀𝙉𝙏𝘼𝙄𝙍𝙀𝙎

Vous pouvez dès maintenant soumettre vos projets documentaires pour les Pitchs internationaux du Fipadoc. Vous pourrez ainsi faire partie des 24 𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙫𝙚𝙖𝙪𝙭 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙟𝙚𝙩𝙨 𝙙𝙤𝙘𝙪𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙨 qui seront présentés devant un large panel de décisionnaires et fonds internationaux. Les sessions des Pitchs internationaux se tiendront 𝙡𝙚𝙨 28 𝙚𝙩 29 𝙟𝙖𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙧 2026, 𝙖̀ 𝘽𝙞𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙯.

✍Les inscriptions sont ouvertes jusqu'aux 3 octobre 2025 : https://fipadoc.com/fr/actualites/les-pitchs-internationaux-du-fipadoc-2026-appel-a-projets-documentaires

23-31 Janvier 2026
Biarritz, France

17/09/2025

It's the very last days to submit films and projects to FIFDH Genève!

Applications are open until 19 September, midnight CET!
​
FIFDH is calling for:
▪️Projects in production or post-production with a strong potential for impact
▪️Completed films with an impact campaign
​
Submission is FREE + selected teams from DDC priority countries may have their costs covered.

More info 👇

💥 LAST CALL FOR PROJECTS 💥
​
⏳ Deadline approaching : Friday 19 September 2025 at midnight CET!
Are you a filmmaker or producer working on a documentary with strong impact potential? Don’t miss the chance to take part in the Geneva FIFDH 2026.
​
We're looking for:
▪️Projects in production or post-production with a strong potential for impact
▪️Completed films with an impact campaign
​
Submission is FREE + selected teams from DDC priority countries may have their costs covered.
​
👉More info: https://fifdh.org/en/pro/news/2026-call-for-impact-films-and-projects/
📆 FIFDH Impact Days: 8 – 10 March /// FIFDH Festival: 6 - 15 March 2026
​

07/09/2025

Diskusija pēc filmas "Helsinku efekts" (Helsinki Effect), iezīmējot konferences kontekstu Latvijā, iespējamās paralēles ar mūsdienu situāciju un komentējot filmā izmantotās stāstniecības metodes.

Diskusiju vadīja Tālis Eipurs, piedalījās kino producents Gints Grūbe, cilvēktiesību organizācijas "Helsinki-86" agrākā biedre Anta Bergmane, vēsturnieks Gints Apals un politoloģe Iveta Kažoka.

"Helsinku efekts" šovakar būs noslēdzošā Dokumentālo filmu foruma programmas filma – seanss Kino "Splendid Palace" 7. septembrī plkst. 19.00. Pilsētā runā, ka jāredz :)

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Discussion after the screening of "Helsinki effect" about the Latvian context to the Helsinki accords, possible contemporary parallels and the storytelling methods of the film. Last chance to see "Helsink Effect" at the forum – tonight at 19.00!

📸 Agnese Zeltiņa

07/09/2025

Filmu veidotāju tikšanās ar skatītājiem Dokumentālo filmu foruma (Baltic Sea Docs) filmu programmas seansos – filmas "Meitenes neraud" režisore sarunā ar Ingu Oliņu (fonds "Plecs") un filmas "Līgums uz deviņiem mēnešiem" režisore Ketevana Vašagašvili sarunā ar žurnālisti Zani Ozoliņu. ✨

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Filmmakers meeting the audience at Baltic Sea Docs – lively Q&As with Sigrid Klausmann (Girls Don't Cry), and Ketevan Vashagashvili (9-Month Contract), where viewers had the chance to connect directly with the stories behind the films.

📸 Agnese Zeltiņa