A successful festival week lies behind us: This year, 53,000 visitors attended the screenings, events, and industry activities. We would like to thank everyone for their interest and for all the wonderful and valuable encounters!
Our Festival Director Christoph Terhechte sums up:
“The fact that so many festivalgoers and accredited guests once again flocked to the cinemas, to DOK Neuland and to the DOK Industry events continues to show how great the demand is for artistic engagement with global political issues and diverse lifestyles,” concludes festival director Christoph Terhechte. “This year, we observed a striking number of film talks in which the audience not only asked questions but also engaged in lengthy and lively discussions about the films. There is a thirst for dialogue held face-to-face – and it remained respectful throughout the festival. This is the approach to discourse we like to see.”
More than 2,000 industry professionals were accredited. Highlights of DOK Industry included the DOK Talks “Doc Together: Documentary as Resistance” and “Anidox Lab – The Alchemy of Animated Documentaries.”
A tip for all those who can’t get enough of DOK Leipzig: One final part of our programme is still to come. The third part of our Retrospective “Un-American Activities: Films from the ‘Other America’ at the Leipzig Documentary Film Week from 1962 to 1989” will take place on 7 and 8 November at Luru Kino in the Spinnerei.
Looking back on six years under Christoph Terhechte’s direction
The 68th edition of the festival marked the final one under Christoph Terhechte, who took over as Festival Director in January 2020. Since then, he has streamlined the film programme, strengthened the presence of feature-length animation at the festival, and championed emerging talent and cinema culture. He also established the Audience Competition and the sections “Panorama: Central and Eastern Europe” and “Camera Lucida.”
On 1 January 2026, Ola Staszel will assume the position of Festival Director and Managing Director of Leipziger Dok-Filmwochen GmbH.
The 69th edition of DOK Leipzig will take place from 26 October to 1 November 2026.
Read more in our press release.
