28/06/2024 - European productions triumph in five of the seven categories featuring in La Rochelle’s international documentary pitching market

At the close of the 35th edition of La Rochelle’s four-day-long Sunny Side of the Doc event, which attracted 2,100 participants from 68 countries (namely 1,000 companies, 90 exhibitors, 250 international decision-makers - including leading broadcasters, streamers, foundations, distributors and funders - and 40 delegations notably from Australia, Spain, Brazil, Canada and China), the international documentary market has unveiled the full list of winning projects from across its seven pitching sessions.

European production did particularly well this year, claiming victory in five separate categories, notably in the Global Issues line-up by way of French project Inside Gaza, which is directed by Hélène Lam Trong and produced by Factstory and l’Agence France Presse. This documentary will tell the inside story of a war which the vast majority of international media outlets haven’t been allowed to cover, and about journalists reporting with rocket fire and propaganda coming at them from all directions, baring witness to human despair whilst also orchestrating their own survival as well as that of their relatives and friends.

This category also saw a Special Mention awarded to the Irish project Silence of The Lams by Ciaran Deeney.

Germany triumphed in the History pitch thanks to the project Our Sister Angela – Back Power in the GDR, which will be directed by Jascha Hannover and Katharina Warda, and steered by Florianfilm GmbH in co-production with the USA, while a Special Mention went to Mathilde Damoisel’s French project, The Curse of Sugar, steered by Hauteville Productions in co-production with Portugal (Wonder Maria Films) and Spain (Inicia Films).

European producers were also placed centre stage in the Sciences category, with the victory of Randall Wood’s The Brain Garden, which is produced by the UK (Storyland Pty) in co-production with France (Yuzu Productions), the USA and Australia. And in the New Voices section, Spain (Lukimedia) and France (Avant la nuit) were the partners behind the winning project produced by Iran and directed by Marjan Khosravi.

The remainder of the major awards were won by Malaysia (The Myths of Monsters, which triumphed in the Impactful Campaigns category), Kenya (Empalikino, which came out on top in the Nature & Conservation pitches) and Canada (The Shape of Blue, singled out within the Arts & Culture section).

The 36th edition of Sunny Side of the Doc is set to unspool between 23 and 26 June 2025.

The list of winners is as follows:

Global Issues 

Best Pitch
Inside Gaza – Hélène Lam Trong
Production: Factstory, Agence France Presse (France)

Special Mention
Silence of The Lams – Ciaran Deeney
Production: EZ Films (Ireland)

Nature & Conservation

Best Pitch
Empalikino –Eric Mwangi
Production: Ripple Productions Ltd, WildlifeDirect (Kenya)

Sciences

Best Pitch
The Brain Garden – Randall Wood
Production: Storyland Pty Ltd (UK), Windfall Films (USA), Yuzu Productions (France), Genepool Productions (Australia)

History 

Best Pitch
Our Sister Angela – Back Power in the GDR – Jascha Hannover and Katharina Warda
Production: Florianfilm GmbH (Germany), Dare Pictures (USA), La Lutta (USA)

Special Mention
The Curse of Sugar – Mathilde Damoisel
Production: Hauteville Productions (France), Wonder Maria Films (Portugal), Inicia Films (Spain)

Arts & Culture

Best Pitch
The Shape of Blue – Sybilla Patrizia
Production: Intuitive Pictures inc. (Canada)

Impactful Campaigns 

Best Pitch
The Myths of Monsters – Beatrice Leong
Production: Gather Together (Malaysia)

New Voices 

Best Pitch
Dreams of The Wild Oaks  
Production: Seven Springs Pictures (Iran), Lukimedia (Spain), Avant la nuit (France)

Other awards

AIDC Prize
Dreams of The Wild Oaks – Marjan Khosravi

Pitch the Doc Prize
A Satellite For Buru Laï – Antonin Lechat and Suium Sulaimanova
Production: Gedeon Programmes (France), Dreampixies (Switzerland)

Special Student Prize
Ba’s Book – Ashley Duong
Production: Ina Fichman (Canada)

IMZ Prize
Niemeyer 4 Ever – Aurélia Makdessi
Production: Special Touch Studios (France), The Attic Productions (Lebanon), Mayana Films (Germany)

Roch Bozino Social Engagement Prize
Tales and Sentences – Alexandre Donot
Production: Little Big Story (France)

Impact Social Club Prize
Every Other Girl – Abdoulie B. Jarju
Production: Cinatrix Media (Gambia), Iamnativ (Uganda)

Best Impact Movie Prize
Unwelcomed – Sebastian Gónzalez Méndez and Amilcar Infante
Production: Amilcar Films (Chile)

Institute of Documentary Film Prize
A Satellite For Buru Laï – Antonin Lechat and Suium Sulaimanova

Doc Edge Prize
Yurlu Country - Yaara Bou Melhe
Production: Illuminate Films (Australia)

Movies That Matter Prize
Yurlu Country - Yaara Bou Melhe

Al Jazeera Documentary Industry Days Prize
Inside Gaza – Hélène Lam Trong

(Translated from French)