From Cuba to Yugoslavia and Poland to Chile — this year’s DOK Leipzig Retrospective is dedicated to the Cold War era and shows films that did not fit into the view of the divided world between East and West. It also brings up DOK Leipzig’s own history as a festival. To what extent were those films shown in Leipzig at the time or not?

The program, curated by film critic Sylvia Görke, brings together films that portray the desire for independence or alternative perspectives on communism and socialism. Works by Agnès Varda, Jean Rouch, Peter Voigt, Dušan Makavejev and Volker “Via” Lewandowsky will be screened. The title of the retrospective was deliberately chosen in view of current developments: “Terms such as ‘third way’ and ‘alternative’ came about in a context of removing ideological barriers, and people shouldn’t be allowed to simply appropriate them in order to advocate for new restrictions”, explains curator Sylvia Görke.

Matinee Saxon State Archive complements the Retrospective

Thematically, this year’s Matinee Saxon State Archive ties in with the retrospective. Under the title “So Comrades, Come Rally! The GDR in Solidarity”, the programme deals with the demonstrative solidarity of the GDR with the “oppressed peoples” of the world. Examples from amateur films show interactions with people from other countries, for example during friendship visits or the World Youth Festival. According to curator Konstantin Wiesinger, this often results in ‘skewed comparisons’ and ‘inadvertent tragicomedy’ that emphasise disparities.

Find more information in our press release.

Amid optical-kinetic wonders, existential musings and shadow parades on the phenakistiscope, this year DOK Leipzig once again presents big names and exciting insider tips from the animation film industry.

At “Animation Perspectives”, curator André Eckardt will bring two internationally acclaimed young female animation artists to the stage: Gudrun Krebitz and Moïa Jobin-Paré, from Berlin and Montreal. Jobin-Paré and her shadowy proxies creatively appropriate the world by carving bright colours into the images of a dreary cityscape, breathing life into the wasteland. Krebitz’s characters are as self-confident as they are elusive, and as stubborn as they are poetic—rounded out by a cigarette's length of existentialism.

On Friday evening during the festival week, DOK Leipzig invites you to “Animation Night” at the Schaubühne. This night is all about one of the delightful beginnings to animation art: the phenakistiscope, a combination camera and record player. Initially used for the scientific visualisation of a pumping heart, the 19th century technique has long since become part of contemporary club culture. Come along and spend the evening with us watching hallucinating visualisations of a Max Cooper track, early computer animations and historical miracle discs from the 19th century. To top off the evening, British artist duo Sculpture, who collage snippets of found magnetic sound tapes, will perform a live set.

Film professionals attending the 67th edition of DOK Leipzig will enjoy a compelling programme of animation industry activities and events, including several dedicated formats for animation film. More about animation in the scope of DOK Industry.

More info on both events in our press release.

All films in the animations programmes: Film lists.

Autumn ushers in short days filled with stories and films that enchant, delight, and enlighten kids.

During the festival week, we will be presenting a selection of films tailored to our youngest visitors. From intriguing short films, such as a sandman’s journey to a dream sand mill, to a feature-length documentary about a clique of girl rappers—kids and teens will be able to discover a film to their taste and interest.

Our youngest film fans aged 4 and up can enjoy animation films that broaden their horizons and bring joy: one film follows the journey of a little bear as he seeks “his” tree, while another zeroes in on two cells exploring “their” home organism.  

For the 6+ age group, we have compiled a programme of four animated films, including a hilarious film about a giant teacup pig that embarrasses the whole neighbourhood with its “piggyness”.

Students aged 12+ can expect four phenomenal films under the category of Young Eyes. These films approach the youth theme at eye level, from a documentary about a teen girl who fights for justice when she is not busy boxing in the ring, to an animated film about a boy grappling with others’ comments about his weight.

Tickets for Kids DOK will be available from 10 October. Daycare groups may already register for the events. Read more about how to sign up with your group here.

DOK Education: Inspiring offers for schoolchildren and teachers

DOK Education gives schoolchildren and teachers the opportunity to learn about documentary and animated film as a form of cinematic expression.

This year, our school screenings taking place during the festival week will offer pupils and teachers an in-depth look at two films from the programme. A festival film will also be in focus on this year’s Teachers Day, a full-day workshop for teachers. Bound for a week of festival excitement, young people aged 12 to 16 participating in DOK Leipzig as the Young Eyes Jury, or as part of our youth editorial team DOK Spotters (aged 14-20) will dive into films and various events. DOK Spotters will report on the festival’s films with professional guidance, while the Young Eyes Jury will select a winner and present an award to their favourite film for audiences aged 12 and up.

Registration for DOK Spotters and Teachers Day is now open!

More on DOK Education on our website (German).

The first sections of our 67th festival edition have been finalised. We will honour two female filmmakers, the renowned French director Dominique Cabrera and the Spanish animation artist Isabel Herguera, in a homage to each. We will also honour the memory of director and writer Thomas Heise, who was born in East Berlin, in a lineup of films, an evening event and this year’s DEFA matinee.

Hommage Dominique Cabrera 

Dominique Cabrera has devoted herself to various forms of expression, alternating between short and feature-length films, between fiction and documentaries. Her films have been screened at numerous international film festivals and have garnered awards at Cannes, the Berlinale, Toronto, Locarno and elsewhere. Cabrera’s commitment to social issues is central to her documentary work which at the same time consists entirely of personal films. Her Algerian-French background, which made her a so-called “pied-noir”, as well as her day-to-day experiences are dealt with in various degrees of intensity. It is not uncommon for her films to address sensitive issues such as mental and physical illness, death and mortality.

Preceding a master class by Cabrera on 31 October is a screening of Chris Marker’s influential experimental film “La Jetée” (1962). 

Hommage Isabel Herguera 

Isabel Herguera presented her first feature-length animated film, “Sultana’s Dream”, at DOK Leipzig in 2023. Curator Franka Sachse describes how Herguera’s personal creative style makes her more recent films “visually unique”: “Translucent colour fields [are] set off against porous ink strokes in rich black, unconventional perspectives and an expressive animation.” The composition and mood of Herguera’s films reflect her background in the fine arts. The first part of the homage is dedicated to her short films. The second part brings together films that showcase her role as an inspirer and mentor.

On 1 November, Isabel Herguera will report on the interplay of individual and dialogue-based creativity in a master class using selected making-ofs and documentary clips.

“Thomas Heise (1955–2024): Odds and Ends”

In the section “Thomas Heise (1955–2024): Odds and Ends”, we will pay tribute to the work of the late film director and author Thomas Heise. The programme will include three feature-length documentaries, which all tell of fractured lives and which themselves represent fragments of Heise’s work, which defies categorisation.

On 1 November, we will also host an evening in honour of Thomas Heise at the CineStar, during which renowned personalities of the film industry will reflect on his work. Excerpts from previously unreleased footage that Heise was last working on will be screened. 

The DEFA Matinee will present Heise’s documentary “Volkspolizei” (1985) and his DEFA production “Imbiß Spezial” (1990).

You can find more information about the homage programmes in our press release.

Please find the full list of films here: Film List

Foto Credit: f.l.t.r. Dominique Cabrera, Isabel Herguera, Thomas Heise | ©Victor Sicard, ©GM Films/ Inge Zimmermann