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Documentary Competition

From the year’s most topical stories—from Ukraine to Elon Musk—to intimate portraits of everyday people, these engrossing films bring you close to the drama of real life.


A group of women in headscarves gather outside among misty mountains, one woman aims a rifle into the distance supported by another.

32 Meters

Morteza Atabaki

This witty observational film follows two Turkish women who set out to start the first-ever ladies-only sharp-shooting competition in their village.

A journalist in a helmet and protective vest gestures in a dusty street surronded by civilians. A smoke cloud billows in the back among damaged buildings.

Citizen Osama Al mowaten Osama

Ahmed Hassouna

In this raw and affecting portrait of resilience, a Gazan photographer captures the devastation while protecting his newborn son and older parents.

Two young girls play dress-up. One girl in a cropped red shirt wears earrings and necklaces, she looks into the distance. The other girl in a blue floral shirt examines one of the necklaces; she wears beaded bracelets, earrings, and a necklace of her own.

The Illusion of an Everlasting Summer La ilusión de un verano sin fin

Alessandra Sanguinetti

Filmed over 25 years, this profound study of female intimacy tracks two Argentine cousins as their days of adolescent wonder give way to sobering adulthood.

A woman in army fatigues sits pensively on a dilapidated truck staring off into the distance at sunset, overgrown brush and metal fences surround her.

Mariinka

Pieter-Jan De Pue

Spanning a decade, this sprawling yet intimate war-time epic follows several youth as their world is upended and they adapt to the crushing reality of life in Ukraine.

A woman and man relax in pool floats on a large body of water. The woman wears glasses and a bikini, a hat resting in her float as she lets her head fall into the water, a drink resting between her knees. The man is shirtless and has a beard, he lies on his back, head in his hands, a drink in his floaty.

Summer Drift Virages

Céline Carridroit, Aline Suter

Swiss watch technician Johanna sets out to restore her beloved VW bug and return to the tracks where she once raced in this celebration of trans identity.

A sumo wrestler stands shirtless, hands wrapped in dramatic lighting with his hair tied back. He looks into the distance, a black background stretching behind him.

SUMO: Spirit Weighs Nothing

Erik Shirai

Sumo wrestlers, both up-and-comers and veterans, train to reach the sport’s highest rank while adhering to its storied traditions in this illuminating film.

A young boy and a man lean against a wooden fence with sprawling farmland behind them. The man has a beard and wears a black tank top and smokes a cigarette. The teen wears a black tracksuit, they both stare contemplatively into the distance.

Tin Castle

Alexander Murphy

Irish Travelers Paddy and Lisa O’Reilly and their 10 children find their traditional way of life under threat in this immersive and tender portrait.

Black-and-white close up of Michèle Firk, a woman with a dark pixie cut with defined eyebrows gazing at the camera. She wears a knowing expression, lips slightly parted, in defining lighting.

Tricontinental, Letter to Open in Case Of Tricontinentale, lettre à ouvrir au cas où

Laura Cazador

This electrifying film essay tracks the short life of film critic Michèle Firk and the anti-imperialist movements of the 1960s that she joined.

A man in head-to-toe snow gear faces away towards a vast stretch of snow-covered mountains near dusk. He wears a red coat and harness and carries walking gear as he walks down a snowy road flanked by the mountains.

The Ultra Runner

Mila Aung-Thwin

A spectacularly shot film profile of Romanian athlete Tiberiu Uşeriu, who has spent much of his life running—in extreme races and from his past.

Program Partner

Logo: WTTW (2019)

Program Patron

Cynthia Stone Raskin

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