From Erik Gandini's iconoclastic view of the Nordic way of life in "The Swedish Theory of Love" and Pablo Chavarría Gutiérrez' "The Letters" about a political miscarriage of justice, to Pietro Marcello's imaginative take on Italian rural life in "Lost and Beautiful" and David Sington's inventive character study about a man on death row in "The Fear of 13" – these are but a few of the nominees for this year's DOX:AWARD, CPH:DOX' main competition with a total of 16 films from around the globe presenting fresh and fervent views on art, life and society. See festival trailer below
Artist portrait is opening film
CPH:DOX, running 5-15 November in Copenhagen and featuring a wealth of film series, concerts, debates and industry meetings, opens with "Man Falling" in which director Anne Wivel portrays her friend and world renowned artist Per Kirkeby who fell down a flight of stairs, resulting in a brain injury that prevents him from working.
The film moves close in on the painter as he fights his way back to the world of colour and shape while at the same time acknowledging his lack of progress. "Man Falling" will be travelling to IDFA later in November.
Naomi Klein and Olafur Eliasson as curators
More than 200 international titles make up the festival programme, which this year gives special attention to issues of democracy. REALITY:CHECK is a brand new, three-day democracy lab testing the state of affairs through talks, workshops, discussions, film screenings and parties.
In relation to this, activist Naomi Klein and director Avi Lewis have selected 10 films that suggest how political commitment, artistic originality and strong narratives can make a difference. Klein and Lewis are also nominated for the F:ACT Award with their adaptation of Klein's book "This Changes Everything" about the climate crisis.
Another series is curated by Olafur Eliasson who has selected a string of films based on the physical world and the human-induced changes it is undergoing. The two curated programmes by Klein/Lewis and Eliasson form the core of CPH:DOX's political agenda, which this year focuses on climate change in preparation for the world climate summit in Paris in December.
Four competitions including Danish titles
Besides the DOX:AWARD, the festival hosts these competitions: the F:ACT Award featuring journalistic documentaries, NEW:VISION with films of artistic boldness, and NORDIC:DOX comprising 12 new films from Norway, Finland, Sweden, Iceland and Denmark. Add to these official competition programmes the Doc Alliance Award, the Politiken Audience Award and the DR Talent Award.
Among the Danish films screening at CPH:DOX are several that will be continuing their journey to IDFA in Amsterdam, starting 18 November, such as Andreas Koefoed's "At Home in the World," "Motley's Law," "Natural Disorder," and as mentioned above, "Man Falling." Read Danish Docs headed for IDFA
Find the latest stories about festival sections, conferences and other events at cphdox.dk/en
