IDFA Unveils 253 Films From 80 Countries for 39th Edition

By Elena Vasquez

The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) will screen 253 films from 80 countries at its 39th edition, running Nov. 12–22.

"White Tiger Column" by Robert Mentov, Dwight Jantzi and Bryan Dickie opens the festival. The 95-minute Canadian film follows recruits through 45 days of training with Myanmar's resistance movement in a jungle camp. The directors captured daily life as young volunteers prepared to fight.

What does the main competition offer?

The International Competition fields 13 titles. Twelve are world or international premieres, IDFA announced Tuesday. The lineup pairs veteran filmmakers with first-time directors, including Tala Hadid's Morocco-set "Bardi" and Salomé Jashi's "An Incomplete Day in the History of Georgia 10.06.93."

IDFA said the section invites "curiosity and critical reflection on our world today."

The Envision Competition matches with 13 "stylistically arresting" titles. The festival's curatorial statement: "Through distinctive visual approaches and formal choices, the filmmakers deconstruct and reframe the complexities of our world." The selection includes Alejandro Alonso Estrella's Cuba-Norway co-production "Bahía Honda" and wendelien van oldenborgh's "Lyrical Vengeance" from the Netherlands.

Takeaway: With 12 of 13 International titles premiering, debuts dominate the marquee race.

What does Luminous bring to the program?

Luminous screens 21 films. Nineteen are world or international premieres, IDFA said. Nine of the 21 are debut features. Among the highlights: "Where the Sun Is Born" by Laura Bermúdez and Jorge García follows a Honduran dancer returning to his Garifuna roots. Hussein Al-asadi's "She Was Not Alone" profiles Zaira, an elderly woman in Iraq's southern marshlands.

IDFA described Luminous as offering "deeply personal, lived experiences" across observational, personal, and experimental modes.

Takeaway: Nine debut features inside a 21-film slate signal IDFA's continued bet on emerging directors.

How does Frontlight address current events?

Frontlight programs 16 films, with 15 world or international premieres. Several titles respond directly to current crises. Gabriel Tejedor's "The Big Boom!" examines a Bulgarian arms maker whose weapons head to Ukraine while many employees back Putin. Serene Husni's "Jenin & the Nakba Between Us" returns to the occupied West Bank.

The festival stated the section covers "critical current events" alongside "the social realities and challenges shaping people's lives."

Takeaway: Frontlight mixes war, beauty standards, and memory, testing how one section can hold them.

What immersive works headline DocLab?

The IDFA DocLab Competition for Immersive Non-Fiction fields 10 titles spanning VR, live theater, and multisensory formats. The Digital Storytelling competition adds 9 more.

For DocLab's 20th anniversary, Darren Emerson's 2022 VR work "In Pursuit of Repetitive Beats" returns in a new collective, multi-user format. The festival called DocLab's slate one that "explores how immersive art can alter the way we encounter reality—offering unexpected perspectives and opening up new possibilities for agency and resistance."

Which awards carry €5,000 prizes?

Three cross-section awards carry €5,000 prizes each. The IDFA Award for Best First Feature, the Best Dutch Film award, and the Beeld & Geluid IDFA ReFrame Award for Best Creative Use of Archive each include the stipend. Winners will be named at the Nov. 19 ceremony.

First Feature nominees also qualify for the FIPRESCI Award, chosen by an international critics' jury.

What high-profile titles join the lineup?

Recent additions include Alex Gibney's "Musk," a portrait of Elon Musk. Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim contribute "You Can See Everything" on Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes. Albert Serra's "Sixteen Moments of My Life" spotlights Ingrid Caven singing live at the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord in Paris.

The Special Screenings slate adds a John Leerdam restoration—"30 mei, 1969 (gritu di un pueblo)"—revisiting the 1969 Curaçao uprising and the colonial inequalities that fueled it.

Takeaway: The signed titles, drawn from festival-circuit crossovers, position IDFA as a year-end destination for prestige documentaries.

IDFA's 39th edition will run 11 days across Amsterdam venues, with the awards ceremony closing the mid-festival stretch on Nov. 19 before final screenings through Nov. 22.