As CPH:DOX gears up for its 2025 edition, organizers have unveiled an audacious program of more than 200 films with a sharp focus on human rights under the theme “Right Here, Right Now.”
With 94 world premieres – 68 of them feature-length, the highest number in the festival’s history – CPH:DOX continues to expand its global footprint.
For the third consecutive year, all main competition titles are world premieres. While this is not a formal selection criterion, artistic director Niklas Engstrøm tells Variety, “The fact that top directors chose to premiere their films with us speaks volumes about how the festival has grown.” He adds that shifting the festival from November to March in 2017 strengthened its global standing, positioning it as the go-to European launchpad for U.S. filmmakers after Sundance.
Niklas Engstrom
Courtesy of CPH:DOX
Hot Sundance titles heading to CPH:DOX include “Mr Nobody against Putin,” “The Dating Game” and “Zodiac Killer Project.”
Among the world premieres screening out of competition are Ai Weiwei’s “Animality,” Ian Cheney’s “Observer,” Hannah Papacek Harper’s “Lost for Words,” Jereme Watt’s “Everest Dark” and Nathan Grossman’s “Climate in Therapy.”
The decision to spotlight human rights this year was not incidental: a recent survey reveals that over half of Danes could not name a single specific human right – a startling statistic in today’s volatile geopolitical landscape.
Engstrøm says human rights have always been integral to documentary filmmaking, but the increasing instability of global politics makes it ever more important to explore these issues beyond individual rights.
“Given how great powers are moving both in the East and the West, it was time to focus on rights – not just individual ones, but also the rights of nations and states that are the building blocks of our international system.
“Ai Weiwei’s Turandot”
Courtesy of CPH:DOX
“We are likely heading into a world that is less inclined to uphold the international legal system that was built after World War II and especially after the Cold War,” says Engstrøm, adding: “Whether we are talking about Greenland, Panama or Gaza, I think it’s been eye-opening for many people to see how the new U.S. administration has shown a lack of respect for international law.”
This political lens is reflected in selections like “The Helsinki Effect” by Arthur Franck (“The Hypnotist”), which sheds new light on events leading up to the end of the Cold War, and the festival’s opening film, Tommy Gulliksen’s “Facing War,” an epic drama about the role of NATO in the Russia-Ukraine war through the work of its secretary general Jens Stoltenberg.
The festival also returns with its new Human:Rights Award category, whose 2024 winner, Shiori Itō, is now an Oscar nominee for “Black Box Diaries.”
This year’s guest list is stacked with some of the most visionary figures in contemporary culture, including renowned Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei, Ukrainian feminist Inna Shevchenko, Bulgarian investigative journalist Christo Grozev and Republican Trump critic Adam Kinzinger.
Ai will take the stage for a human rights panel and will introduce the world premiere of his new doc “Animality,” a harrowing account of animal cruelty co-created with filmmakers around the world. The festival will also screen Maxim Derevianko’s “Ai Weiwei’s Turandot,” which captures the Chinese artist’s debut as an opera director in Rome.
Another highly anticipated guest, Israeli architect and researcher Eyal Weizman, famous for using spatial analysis and technology to expose human rights violations and state violence, will participate in a talk following the premiere of Danae Elon’s “Rule of Stone,” which examines architecture’s role in segregation and human rights violations.
CPH:DOX’s star power extends to comedian and filmmaker Jerrod Carmichael, who will make an appearance through the festival’s ongoing collaboration with HBO, and 1960s fashion icon Twiggy – the world’s first supermodel – who will be in Copenhagen for the premiere of Sadie Frost’s doc named after her.
This year’s lineup also includes a remarkable selection of music documentaries in the Sound & Vision section, that not only celebrate music but examine the cultural and political forces shaping the artists’ careers. One of Engstrøm’s personal highlights is “It’s Never Over: Jeff Buckley,” directed and produced by Amy Berg, an intimate portrait of the late singer-songwriter’s life and legacy.
Nick Cave’s longtime collaborator Warren Ellis will present Justin Kurzel’s “Ellis Park,” about his animal sanctuary in Sumatra. Ellis will also perform a live concert, with organizers working to add a second event due to overwhelming demand.
Other standout music docs range from “Becoming Madonna” by Michael Ogden, which examines the Material Girl’s stratospheric rise to fame, to Grace Lee and Patty Ahn’s docu dedicated to K-pop powerhouse BTS, “Forever We Are Young,” and Niloufar Taghizadeh’s “Googoosh: Made of Fire,” chronicling the career of the famous Iranian singer.
Reflecting on his 2023 statement to make CPH:DOX the world’s most important documentary festival, Engstrøm acknowledges the event’s remarkable growth but remains focused on preserving its signature intimacy.
“One of the biggest challenges is: how can we grow in a sustainable way, and make sure attendees and filmmakers feel valued and connected. Because without them, we are nothing,” he says.
This year’s full competition lineup and the juries are here.
CPH:DOX kicks off on March 19 and runs through 30.
