This year’s edition of CPH:DOX’s fundraising and co-production event, CPH:Forum, to be held from March 17th to 19th, will feature projects from 101 directors and producers representing 23 countries, who will take to the stage to announce 30 new documentary projects ranging from early to late stage development and production.
The project includes works by directors such as Lee Grob (Apolonia, Apollonia), David Borenstein (Mr. Nobody Against Putin), Goran Hugo Olsson (Israel and Palestine on Swedish Television 1958-1989), Verena Paravel (Fabrica), Beniamino Varese (The Disappearance of My Mother), and Robert Greene. (“Kate Plays Christine”), Hansen Lin and Shiyi Chen (“Always”), Diana El Jeyroudi (“Republic of Silence”), Raanan Alexandrowicz (“The View”) Producers include Alex Pritz and Will N. Miller (The Territory), Aman Mann and Shaunak Sen, as well as Kathryn Ferguson (Nothing Compares). (“All That Breathes”).
The project will be presented to film investors and representatives of streaming platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, and HBO Europe. Broadcasters ARTE, ZDF, VPRO, BBC, France Television, National Geographic, POV, NHK, Al Jazeera, RAI. Film studios such as Sky Studios, Concordia Studio, Wavelength Productions, and Sandbox Films. Distribution companies are IMAX, ROCO Films, and Grasshopper Film. Endowments and foundations such as Field of Vision, Impact Partners, Ford Foundation, Inmart Foundation, Sundance Institute, Doctor Society, Chicken and Egg Pictures, Catapult, and The Wickers.
“The 2026 CPH:Forum selection tells the stories of the times we live in through the lens of filmmakers who challenge the status quo, take risks, and engage in dialogue with the world,” said Mara Gould-Mercado, Head of Industry and Training. We envision this edition as not just a showcase, but an important space in which the transformative power of documentary to protect democracy and promote understanding in these difficult times is once again revealed. We are honored that this group of filmmakers has entrusted us with this.” their project. ”
Selected projects will be presented to investors and representatives of the documentary film industry for a number of awards at the CPH:Forum, which will be held in Copenhagen from March 17th to 19th, with the CPH:ROUGHCUT and CHANGE presentations taking place on March 16th.
CPH:ROUGHCUT Introducing projects nearing completion
As part of the CPH:Forum, the CPH:ROUGHCUT Selection will highlight five upcoming films in the rough cut stage that are seeking distribution, sales, buyers, festival premieres, and other forms of exhibition, with a goal of release in 2026. Each team will present selected scenes from their soon-to-be-completed film on March 16th.
Eastern Europe perspective from the CHANGE project
For the fifth consecutive year, CPH:DOX, IMS (International Media Support) and EAVE (European Audiovisual Entrepreneurs) have brought together the development co-production training program CHANGE to empower documentary projects and filmmakers from the Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine).
Following two overnight workshops in Moldova, the six-month training program will culminate in a final workshop in Copenhagen during CPH:DOX in partnership with the Danish National Film School and the presentation of the eight participating projects at the CHANGE pitch session on March 16th.
Eight awards will be awarded during CPH:Forum 2026
Together with new and long-standing partners, CPH:Forum will award prizes totaling over 100,000 euros. Additionally, CPH:Forum has partnered with leading European public broadcaster ARTE to award two projects a total of €2,500 each in the form of two consultations with Rough Cut Services. Another new award from the Jacob Burns Film Center will award a scholarship and residency, including access to editing and post-production facilities, worth a total of around €8,500 for one project.
The Sandbox Films Science Pitch Award focuses on outstanding science documentary projects that will receive a $25,000 cash prize, along with support from Sandbox Films to make their vision a reality. The Al Jazeera Documentary Channel Co-Production Award (with a prize of €15,000) will be awarded to projects that focus on pressing contemporary issues in or around the MENA region and sub-Saharan Africa.
Eurimages New Lab Awards celebrates innovative projects by unconventional filmmakers and visual artists through two awards. One is a €20,000 Innovation Award for an experimental project in development, the other is a €20,000 Outreach Award for an experimental project in development, and a €30,000 Outreach Award for an experimental project in late-stage or post-production to facilitate audience reach.
In addition, the best planned project with international potential and without a distributor will receive a Rise and Shine Award of €3,000, and the best French film or co-production will receive a Unifrance/Titrafilm Doc Award worth a total of €5,500.
The award will be presented at the CPH:INDUSTRY Happy Hour & Awards Show on March 19th at the Social Cinema in Kunsthal Charlottenborg.
Selected CPH:Forum Projects:
“Relics of War” (Spain, Chile)
Directed by Jorge Caballero. Produced by: Anna Giralt Gris, Diego Pino Anguita
“Blackest Ever Black” (Ireland, UK)
Directed by Roisin Agnew. Produced by: Alison Miller, Jack O’Brien, Roisin Agnew
“Bromansky” (Finland, France, Denmark, Norway)
Directed by Arthur Frank. Produced by: Sandra Enqvist, Anders Lindström, Remi Gretti, Sara Sklotzka, Torvald Nilsen, Esther Nissen
“Children of the Moon” (Slovakia, Czech Republic, France)
Directed by Romain Jurisch. Produced by: Richard Simechek, Michal Sikora, Alvin Bourgeois
“Cosmophonia” (France)
Directed by Verena Paravel. Produced by Florence Cohen
“Dark Horse” (Sweden, Kenya, USA)
Directed by Lauren DeFilippo and Sam Soko. Produced by Amanda Pollack
“Director’s Cut” (WT) (Romania, Denmark)
Directed by Radu Chornichuk. Produced by Tereza Simikova
“Everything is red and gray” (Palestine, Canada)
Director: Shurouk Alaira, Shoride C. Molavi. Produced by: Shuride C. Molavi, Henry Pravidal, Laura Poitras
“Face value” (USA)
Directed by Faye Tsakas. Produced by Riel Rock Decter
“The God in the Middle” (India, America)
Directed by Archana Phadke. Produced by: Aman Mann, Shaunak Sen, Jim Wilson
“Green Gold” (France, America)
Directed by Yvonne Serna and Selim Benzegia. Produced by: Jeffrey Livolsi, Alex Pritz, Will N. Miller, Selim Benzegia
“Joud” (Denmark, Netherlands)
Directed by Diana El Jeiroudi. Produced by: Diana El Jeiroudi, Oluwa Nirabia
“Last Standing Women” (Denmark)
Directed by Talal Daaki. Produced by: Charlotte Reekers, Talal Daaki
“The last weekend of October” (USA, Nigeria)
Directed by Nosariem Garrick. Produced by Chioma Onyenwe
“Letter to Alvin” (Sweden)
Directed by Hilton Ars and Goran Hugo Olsson. Produced by Tobias Jansson, Melissa Lindgren
“Letter of Hope” (Denmark, Germany, America)
Directed by Lee Grob. Produced by: Sigrid Dijkjar, Eric Holland, Constanze Speidel, Mstislav Chernov
“Living in Our Heads (Confidential)” (Denmark)
Directed by David Borenstein. Produced by Helle Faber
“Matrescence” (UK)
Directed by Kathryn Ferguson. Produced by: Eleanor Emptage, Rosie Crerar
“My Father the Iceman” (Poland, Denmark)
Directed by Łukasz Kowalski. Produced by: Anna Magellanto, Łukasz Kowalski, Signe Bilge Sørensen
“Queen’s Ballroom” (USA, France, Belgium)
Director: Hansen Lin, Shiyi Chen. Produced by: Hansen Lin, Shiyi Chen, Clara Vielmoz, Lawrence Burens
Skeptics (USA)
Directed by Raanan Alexandrowicz. Produced by: James Doolittle, Thomas Lennon
“State of Immortality” (Denmark, USA)
Directed by Piotr Vignevich. Produced by Henrik Underbjörk
“Sweet Mystery of Life” (USA)
Directed by Robert Green. Produced by: Bennett Elliott, Susan Beduza, Douglas Tirola
“The Calling” (Denmark)
Directed by Beniamino Varese. Produced by: Harry Vaughan, Benimiano Varese
“The Day After” (France, Israel)
Directed by Yuval Orr and Aziz Abu Sala. Produced by: Margaux Misika, Riel Maggen
“The Elephant in the Room” (USA)
Directed by Marley McDonald. Produced by John Cardellino
“Niki de Saint Phalle Documentary Project” (France)
Directed by Matt Wolff and Svetlana Gil. Produced by Emma Leepers
“Silent Network” (Denmark, Norway)
Director: Pernille Rose Gronckjær, Noah Agnete Metz. Produced by: Wibeke Vogel, Nina Leidersdorf, Malte Koch
“Untitled UNRWA Archive Documentary” (Canada)
Directed by Benedict Moran and Ramsey Haddad. Producer: Benedict Moran, Ramsey Haddad
“We Are Volcanoes” (Hong Kong, Norway)
Director: Sharon Yong, Natalie Chao. Produced by: Sharon Yang, Gillian Schlesinger
Selected CPH:ROUGHCUT project:
“Don’t Let the Sun Go Up on Me” (Macau, France, Denmark, Norway, Chile)
Directed by Asmae El Moudir. Produced by: Emma Lepers, Monika Helström, Asmae El Moudir
“Rescue” (Denmark, Italy, Iceland, Germany)
Directed by Cine Plambeck. Produced by: Sophie Husum Johannessen, Andreas Dalsgaard, Tereza Simiková
“Dawn of the Post-Plantation” (Netherlands, Belgium, UK, Congo, USA, Italy, Indonesia)
Directed by Sedar Tamasara and Renzo Martens. Produced by: Lee Fells, Isidore Rovers
“The Siege of Paradise” (Ireland, Switzerland)
Directed by Gar O’Rourke. Produced by: Andrew Friedman, Ken Wardrop, Jesse Haden, Lusius Fisher, Philip Littler
“War on Women” (Spain, Romania, Germany)
Directed by Maris Salumetz. Produced by: Elina Litvinova, Monika Razlian-Goguin, Gregor Streiber, Maris Salumetz
Selected CHANGE project:
“10 Things” (WT) (Georgia, France)
Directed by Niniko Rekishvili. Produced by: Anna Kvisidze, Irina Gerashvili, Esther Robin Yu
“Three Daughters” (Moldova)
Directed by Ana Gersiu. Produced by Ana Gersiu
“Life on Mars” (Armenia)
Directed by Mary Agahayan. Produced by Karina Simonian
“My Home” (Azerbaijan)
The director is Urbiya Ahmadova. Produced by Nijat Dadashov
“My school was occupied” (Ukraine)
Directed by Halina Lavrinets. Produced by Oleksandr Ivanov
“Sounds of Revolution” (Georgia, France)
Directed by Nikoloz Bezhanishvili. Produced by: Nikoloz Bezhanishvili, Victor Ede
“Total Mess” (Sweden, Ukraine)
The director is Oleksandra Horiyenko. Produced by: Alex Siliayev, Katerina Yahotka
“UXXR: Will there be sex after the USSR?” (Armenia)
Directed by Lilit Mohsyan. Produced by Sona Margaryan
