Films & Events Program Strands International Documentaries

International Documentaries

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You’ll see it to believe it when the very best of non-fiction filmmaking from around the world arrives at SFF.

The International Documentaries lineup is back with more extraordinary true stories and real-life storytelling that promises to inspire, challenge and transform.

A-ZDate

Past Event

Documentary

32 Meters

Women aren’t allowed in the local shooting contest in Halime’s small Turkish village. So, she creates her own in this bold, hilarious and moving documentary. Hot Docs Festival 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist

An AI future seems inevitable. Oscar winner Daniel Roher (Navalny, SFF 2022) and Charlie Tyrell break open all the promise and perils in this illuminating doc. Sundance 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

American Doctor

Three American doctors travel to Gaza, risking everything to save lives – in turn exposing the reality of the war and the endurance of human compassion. Sundance 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

Baby Jackfruit Baby Guava

A Vietnamese family confront their past, present and imagined future with the impending arrival of baby Guava in this startlingly intimate directorial debut. Hot Docs 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

Birds of War

This unbelievable love story uses 13 years of personal archives to chart the evolving romance between a Lebanese journalist and a Syrian cameraman. Award winner, Sundance 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

A Child of My Own

A woman fakes a pregnancy and goes to extreme lengths to sustain the lie in this thrilling new doc from two-time Oscar nominee Maite Alberdi (The Eternal Memory, SFF 2023).

Past Event

Documentary

Closure

One of the top-reviewed documentaries at Sundance, Michał Marczak (Fuck for Forest, SFF 2013) delivers a powerfully emotive portrait of a father's search for his missing son.

Past Event

Documentary

Crocodile

The astonishing story behind the Nigerian filmmaking collective The Critics, whose handmade science fiction films have taken the world by storm. Berlinale 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

The Cycle of Love

The heart-warming story of a Delhi street artist's attempt to cycle from India to Sweden to reunite with the love of his life, from Oscar-winner Orlando von Einsiedel.

Past Event

Documentary

Daughters of the Forest

This one-of-a-kind sci-fi documentary follows two mycologists in Mexico working to preserve and share remarkable ancestral mushroom knowledge. Award winner, SXSW 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

Everybody to Kenmure Street

This Sundance award winner captures the dawn immigration raid that sparked an unprecedented community uprising in Glasgow. Featuring Emma Thompson and Kate Dickie.

Past Event

Documentary

A Fox Under a Pink Moon

Winner of the top prize at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, this unforgettable doc follows 16-year-old Soraya as she risks everything to escape Iran.

Past Event

Documentary

Give Me the Ball!

The definitive Billie Jean King documentary – revealing her sacrifices and triumphs both off and on the tennis court through interviews and rare archival footage. Sundance 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

Hanging by a Wire

This nail-biting doc follows a desperate rescue attempt when a cable car carrying eight people – including six school children – fails 900 metres above a deadly ravine in Pakistan. Sundance 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

The History of Concrete

A hysterical debut and instant classic from the genius behind How To with John Wilson. An unexpected meditation on politics, celebrity, religion and urbanism. Sundance 2026.

Past Event

Guest

Documentary

If Pigeons Turned to Gold

Have you ever grieved someone who hasn’t died yet? Pepa Lubojacki’s Berlinale award winning and formally inventive doc tells the story of their family as they confront intergenerational addiction.

Past Event

Documentary

Just Look Up

This pressing documentary follows Michael Greenberg, the leader of the climate activist group Climate Defiance which is fighting for the planet's future. Award winner, CPH:DOX 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

Landmarks

This explosive documentary directed by Lucrecia Martel (Zama, SFF 2018) won Best Film at BFI London Film Festival. A gripping investigation into the killing of an Indigenous leader.

This exhilarating documentary charts the rise of the late rugby legend Jonah Lomu, a once in a lifetime talent and sporting icon who changed the landscape of rugby forever.

Past Event

Documentary

My Father and Qaddafi

Director Jihan K reconstructs her father's disappearance after he opposed Qaddafi, with the help of her determined mother who never stopped searching. Award winner, Venice.

Past Event

Documentary

Nuisance Bear

Winner of the Grand Jury Prize for U.S. Documentary at Sundance, this urgent doc follows polar bears in Manitoba struggling to adapt to a world transformed by climate change.

Past Event

Documentary

Once Upon a Time in Harlem

Footage of a once-in-a-lifetime gathering of Harlem Renaissance legends in 1972 is revealed in this exquisite and lauded documentary. Sundance; Cannes Directors' Fortnight 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

Past Future Continuous

Firouzeh Khosrovani returns after Radiograph of a Family (SFF 2021) with a striking doc following an involuntary immigrant who surveils her parents who remain in Iran. Venice 2025.

Past Event

Documentary

Remake

Revered filmmaker Ross McElwee (Sherman's March, SFF 1986; Bright Leaves, SFF 2004) returns after 14 years with a heart-rending tribute to his lost son. Award winner, Venice 2025.

An audience award winner at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, this electrifying documentary relives six breathless hours when martial law was declared in Seoul.

Past Event

Documentary

Steal This Story, Please!

This multiple audience award-winning film on Democracy Now! cofounder Amy Goodman reveals why fearless journalism matters more than ever. Executive produced by Jane Fonda.

Past Event

Documentary

Summer 2000: The X-Cetra Story

This whimsical documentary follows four women whose childhood album unexpectedly goes viral decades later, sparking an unplanned reunion. Winner, SXSW Documentary Competition.

Past Event

Documentary

The Tale of Silyan

Oscar-nominated Tamara Kotevska’s (Honeyland, SFF 2019) remarkable new documentary follows a Macedonian farmer and an injured stork, whose unlikely friendship transforms a solitary life. Venice, 2025.

An award winner at Sundance, this visionary and tender documentary follows a queer filmmaker and his loving mother as they work together to heal their family history through the magic of art and animation.

Past Event

Documentary

Time and Water

Oscar nominee Sara Dosa’s (Fire of Love, SFF 2022) latest stunner sees writer Andri Snær Magnason reflect on family, memory and Iceland’s disappearing glaciers. Sundance 2026.

Past Event

Documentary

To Hold a Mountain

Winner of Sundance’s World Cinema Documentary Prize, this enthralling film follows a mother and daughter trying to stop their picturesque mountain home from becoming a NATO base.

Past Event

Documentary

Traces

Winner of the Berlinale Panorama Audience Award for Best Documentary, Traces follows brave Ukrainian women who break their silence about sexual violence during Russia's war.

Past Event

Documentary

Whispers in the Woods

A visual stunner, drawing one million people to French cinemas. Photographer Vincent Munier journeys with his father and son through the Vosges, France. Featuring music by Warren Ellis.

Sydney Film Festival acknowledges Australia’s First Nations People as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the land, and pay respect to the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, upon whose Country SFF is based.

We honour the storytelling and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across Australia.

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