We announce the line-up of the Documentary Features Competition of the 34th edition of the ToruńCAMERIMAGE International Film Festival.
The aim of the competition is to recognize the art of documentary filmmaking as creative interpretation of reality. Putting emphasis on the visual and aesthetic aspects of the selected nonfiction entries, the jury awards the best cinematographers in the competition.
CLOSURE
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ORIGINAL TITLE: Bez Końca
DIRECTOR: Michał Marczak
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michał Marczak
PRODUCTION: Braidmade Films, Warboys
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Poland, France 2026
Daniel did not hear his son Krzysiek leave the house and head towards the bridge over the Vistula, where he was last seen. A camera captured him, and then he disappeared: either he jumped into the river or walked off the bridge. Since then, Daniel and his wife have lived suspended between hope and fear. Unable to wait for a breakthrough in the investigation, the father builds a boat equipped with cameras and drones to search the river himself. The search consumes him. The lonely hours spent on the boat become a chance for him to reckon with his life so far.
GABIN
DIRECTOR: Maxence Voiseux
CINEMATOGRAPHER: François Chambe
PRODUCTION: Alter Ego Production
COUNTRY AND YEAR: France, 2026
In northern France, Gabin, the youngest of the Jourdel family, finds himself destined to take over his father’s butcher shop. Torn between family loyalty and a desire to break free, his dreams lie elsewhere: to train a contest cow, to become a dog breeder and to save his mother’s farm from financial ruin. Spanning a decade, Gabin immerses us in this young boy’s world, following his journey from age 8 to 18.
HEAT
DIRECTOR: Jacqueline Zünd
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Nikolai von Graevenitz
PRODUCTION: Lomotion
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Switzerland, 2026
Heat is a cinematic exploration of heat as a condition and a borderline experience. The film captures vertigo, loss of control and the distortion of perception, making the heat physically tangible. Focusing on the Persian Gulf as one of the hottest regions on the planet, Heat paints a panorama of human stories, moods and survival strategies. It is a glimpse into a possible future for all of us.
MAGILLIGAN
DIRECTOR: Ross McClean
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ross McClean
PRODUCTION: Here and Elsewhere Films
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Ireland, UK, 2026
Imprisoned as a teenager for a violent offence, Ryan finds purpose working with sheep on the prison farm. But the order inside is in stark contrast to the chaos he finds upon release, as his past refuses to go quietly. Magilligan is an intimate portrait of a man caught between two worlds, with more than just his freedom at stake.
NUISANCE BEAR
DIRECTORS: Gabriela Osio Vanden, Jack Weisman
CINEMATOGRAPHERS: Gabriela Osio VandenM, Jack Weisman
PRODUCTION: Documist
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Canada, 2026
A polar bear is forced to navigate a human world of tourists, wildlife officers and hunters as its ancient migration collides with modern life. When a once-respected predator comes to be seen as an intruder, it becomes increasingly difficult to determine who truly belongs in this shared landscape. Returning to Churchill, Manitoba, the filmmakers deepen the inquiry begun in their earlier short film, creating a multifaceted portrait of the fraught coexistence between polar bears and humans that resists simple judgements. The film traces this relationship with nuance, revealing how these Arctic predators deal with being constantly monitored, photographed and redirected. By challenging the conventions of a nature documentary and avoiding moralism, Nuisance Bear questions established notions of wildlife as spectacle.
PHENOMENA
DIRECTOR: Josef Gatti
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Josef Gatti
PRODUCTION: Gatti, Mashup Pictures, Sandbox Films
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Australia, 2026
A psychedelic odyssey into the fabric of the universe, guided by a filmmaker and his immersive practical experiments that blur the lines between art and science to reveal nature’s inner workings. Captured entirely on camera, without visual effects or artifice, the unfolding, awe-inspiring, hyperreal imagery is elevated by music from the legendary Nils Frahm and an ethereal original electronic score by Rival Consoles, transforming curious observation into a hypnotic audiovisual adventure spanning scales from the subatomic to the cosmological. Tracing the forces and elements shaping the natural world, Phenomena is a kinetic sensory experience exploring the wonders of the universe and our connection to it.
THE TALE OF SILYAN
DIRECTOR: Tamara Kotevska
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jean Dakar
PRODUCTION: Ciconia, Concordia, The Corner Shop
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Macedonia, USA, 2025
Nikola, a farmer struggling with the consequences of new government regulations, is unable to sell either his land or his crops. When his family leaves the country in search of a better life, he takes a job at a landfill, where he finds an injured white stork, Silyan. He nurses the bird back to health, and an unusual bond gradually develops between them. This unexpected relationship becomes the heart of a moving story about climate change, economic migration, perseverance in the face of adversity and the quiet power of companionship.
TO HOLD A MOUNTAIN
DIRECTORS: Petar Glomazić, Biljana Tutorov
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Eva Kraljević
PRODUCTION: Wake Up Films
COUNTRY AND YEAR: Serbia, France,Montenegro, Slovenia, Croatia, 2026
In the Sinjajevina mountains of Montenegro, Gara and her thirteen-year-old daughter Nada return to their family pastures every year, living close to nature and sustaining a pastoral tradition. Their world comes under threat when the government announces plans to establish a military training ground there. Gara takes the lead in the local resistance, while the adolescent Nada grapples with loss and questions about violence against the land. The film combines ecological reflection with an intimate portrait of the relationship between mother and daughter.