In collaboration with Arte

Building on its first edition in 2022, IDFA and Arte are proud to announce the second edition of their Europe Conference. Intended to take a sidestep from the whirlwind of the festival’s program, to reflect and discuss contemporary filmmaking practices and some the paradigm-shifting realities we are all confronted with, the program invites a keynote speech as well as two discussion forums. Among all the creative industries, cinema incarnates Europe’s most plural, polyphonic, and engaged fields, it is one of the continent’s most worldly accomplishments and the continent is a vital partner to film production all over the world. As filmmakers, producers, distributors, exhibitors, and critics from all over the world converge to this festival, the conference provides a unique gathering for an enriching sidestep for sharing ideas and thinking critically.

The conference begins with veteran and award-winning documentary filmmaker Anand Patwardhan, whose prolific practice has been devoted to safeguarding the modern Indian republic’s promises of equality, justice and freedom of expression. With fearless acuity and lucidity, Patwardhan has investigated the rise of religious fundamentalism, debunked the fictions of fanatic ideologies, and explored the lingering wounds of partition. He remains undeterred by the lack of access to funding and censorship at home, and his conviction that documentary filmmaking still matters is inspiring. 

Condition report of our planet: repair, restitution or survival
Regardless of its perception as the “new” buzz notion, the Anthropocene is in fact a very abstract concept, and mobilizing the general public to accept a drastic shift in perspective is one of the most daunting challenges of our time. This panel of filmmakers offer stories, from different parts of the world, and in different scales, that nonetheless incarnate manifestations of the same crisis: our belief that extraction of natural resources is the key to progress and well-being.
Speakers: Sarvnik Kaur (dir.Against the Tide), Sebastián Peña Escobar (dir/prod The Last) and Ralf Buecheler (dir. In Wolf Country)
Moderator: Maria Bonsanti (Fondazione Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia)
 
Extended wars and regimes of images: the case of documentary
This forum invites filmmakers and producers to reflect on how witnessing and capturing civil war, invasion and conflict has impacted their documentary practice, the sense of urgency and necessity in weaving dramaturgy, the point of view and antagonism, the focus and the off frame, and regimes of images.
Speakers: Muhannad Lamin (dir/prod Donga), Jordan Bryon (dir. Transition) and Olha Beskhmelnytsina (2Brave Productions)
Moderator: Dorota Lech (Hot Docs)
 
15:00 – 15:10: Welcome by Orwa Nyrabia (Artistic Director IDFA) and Fabrice Puchault (Arte)
15:10 – 15:30 Keynote by Anand Patwardhan
15:30 – 16:15: Condition report of our Planet: Repair, Restitution or Survival
16:15 – 16:30: Coffee break 
16:30 – 17:30: Extended Wars and Regimes of Images: The Case of Documentary