#SSD25 > June 23-26, 2025
Official selection
roma
Produced by: Moon Man (Ukraine)
Directed by: Olha Zhurba
Logline: The turbulent youth of a street boy Roma on his way from a 13- year old hero of the Maidan Revolution to an 18-year-old adult trying to survive in a small criminal provincial town.
Award sponsored by RTBF
Prize: 3,000 euros in cash
Jury’s word:
We decided to give the Best Social Issues Pitch award to a project that spent six years with its young and charismatic protagonist in order to gain a great intimacy that creates a deep connection: ROMA is a coming of age story following an Ukrainian teenager through rough and turbulent times – living on the streets, drifting and minor crimes. The clear visual concept, the non-linear storyline as well as the very subtle score already testify a capturing, convincing and sensitive story that will go beyond its microcosm.
dark flower
Produced by: Fathom Film Group Ltd (Canada)
Directed by: Ann Shin
Logline: Kika, Tony and Anthony bet everything on an opportunity to strike it rich in the new gold rush – the legalized cannabis industry in California. But as their journeys unfold, they discover the lie at the heart of this American Dream where ‘equal opportunity’ does not necessarily mean equitable.
anaklia - georgia's big dream
Produced by: Filmpunkt GMBH (Germany)
Directed by: Stefan Tolz
Logline: As Georgia seeks to become a global player with an ambitious harbor project as trading hub of the new Silk Road between Asia and Europe, the port’s builders get caught up in the tough battle between Russia, China and the United States for dominance in world politics and trade.
drugs shortages: profits before patients
Produced by: Découpages (France)
Directed by: Xavier Deleu, Rozenn Le Saint
Logline: Shortages of masks, diagnostic tests, anesthetics, antibiotics… The Covid-19 crisis lays bare global health products shortage that has been rampant for many years. How did it get to this? Who benefits from it? This documentary reveals the root causes of drug shortages in a worldwide investigation.
long live my happy head
Produced by: Melt the Fly (United Kingdom)
Directed by: Austen McCowan, Will Hewitt
Logline: For Scottish artist Gordon, creating comic books about his brain tumour is his way of confronting his mortality. With the growth of his tumour accelerating, he and his partner Shawn (USA) must navigate chemotherapy and a global pandemic so they can cherish what time they have left.
pure unknown
Produced by: Jump Cut (Italy)
Directed by: Valentina Cicogna, Mattia Colombo
Logline: A person who dies without a name is like a story without an ending, and every year Milan’s morgue receives dozens of bone remains and bodies that have been found without an ID. Coroner Cristina Cattaneo’s mission is to write the ending to each of these stories.
the tiger mafia
Produced by: HOOK Film (Switzerland)
Directed by: Karl Ammann, Laurin Merz
Logline: The magnificent tiger is one of the world’s most beloved, and threatened creatures. Karl Ammann uncovers their illegal breeding in secret South East Asian tiger farms. He exposes how body parts are harvested, and then traded for sale in China’s underground pharmaceutical and jewelry industries.
Award sponsored by Love Nature
Prize: 3,000 euros in cash
Jury’s word: Several of the pitched projects were topical, original and visually impressive, with convincing storylines and potential for impact. One, THE TIGER MAFIA reveals unsuspected aspects of the wild animal trade that are shocking in both the depth of their cruelty and their geographic reach. This pitch wins the award for its convincing presentation of a gripping narrative, its important message and its powerful potential for impact, which deserve to find a broad audience.
chasing silver
Produced by: Big Wave Productions (United Kingdom)
Directed by: Emma Ross, Nick Stringer
Logline: In a personal and beautiful new film, Chasing Silver follows underwater cameramen Morne Hardenberg and Brocq Maxey as they undertake the most important assignment of their lives: to investigate the fate of the ocean’s failing sardine shoals and
search for solutions.
nature's survivors
Produced by: Saint Thomas Productions (France)
Directed by: Keebe Kennedy, Jacqueline Farmer
Logline: Some animals have an amazing capacity for turning disasters to their advantage, make the most out of some very perilous predicaments, they are able to foretell coming disasters and make moves to avoid the impeding disasters… how will they deal with climate change ?
never alone
Produced by: ZED (France)
Directed by: Stine Pierre
Logline: New science from world experts reveals that collaboration plays a major role in animal evolution. Secret pacts, tacit alliances, determination… this film tells the fascinating story of how animals and plants use cooperation to survive in one the most punishing places on Earth.
the urban whale
Produced by: Hitplay Productions (Canada)
Directed by: Nadine Pequeneza
Logline: North Atlantic right whales are dying faster than they can reproduce. If we don’t stop killing them, in 20 years they will be extinct. With unprecedented access to film their 2,250 km migration, The Urban Whale brings a message of hope about the most at-risk, great whale on the planet.
the wild ones
Produced by: Valeria Nardecchia (United States)
Directed by: Paola Stefani, Hernan Vilchez
Logline: Environmentalists, researchers, adventurers, photographers; dedicated individuals who risk their lives on a daily basis to ensure that these creatures are here to stay.
behind lucy
Produced by: Somadrome (Spain)
Directed by: Luis G. Juanes
Logline: It is a character-driven documentary of the scientific team behind the NASA Lucy Mission, a mission to the Trojans of Jupiter. We’ll get closer to their inside workflow dynamics and all the technical challenges they have to face from the inception of the mission till its launching in October 2021.
Award sponsored by KnowledgeNetwork
Prize: 3,000 euros in cash
Jury’s word:
BEHIND LUCY is a unique, character-driven project with great access that showcases a diverse team of highprofile scientists. It is one of the most ambitious science films coming out of Spain in a long time, and we feel this contribution will go a long way to raise its international profile.
isaac asimov, the man who saw the future
Produced by: Kepler22 Productions (France)
Directed by: Etienne Chaillou, Mathias Théry
Logline: And what if Isaac Asimov had understood everything? What if he had anticipated the questions that we are confronted with, and even those to come afterwards? This film presents the portrait of a man who saw yesterday the people we are today, and what awaits us tomorrow.
redisigning life
Produced by: Rotating Planet Productions Inc. (Canada)
Directed by: Ari Cohen
Logline: In this innovative five-part series, we reveal some of the cutting-edge research and solutions that are redefining the way we live on Earth; from mushroom leather to biogas-powered cities, ingenious individuals take us on a journey to find unique answers to the questions of our time.
the "abominable mystery" of flowers
Produced by: Magneto (France)
Directed by: François Tribolet, Clément Champiat
Logline: Having appeared late in evolution, flowers have taken over the planet with unprecedented speed and overcome all obstacles with prodigious success. New discoveries have revealed their fascinating history. A story that Darwin termed “an abominable mystery.”
the magical world of moss
Produced by: Zadig Productions (France)
Directed by: Jean Philippe Teyssier, Bruno Victor-Pujebet
Logline:Which living being is at the origin of all life on earth? Which organism has survived extinction, climatic and nuclear tragedy? Moss rubs shoulders with immortality and shakes our perception of the world. This scientific fable reveals their secrets.
the flavour of life
Produced by: Smith & Nasht (Australia)
Directed by: Talas Annamaria
Logline: Nature invites us to eat by appetite, and rewards us with flavour. THE FLAVOR OF LIFE is an epic evolutionary story of humans and the rest of life told through science, natural history and food.
Kozak
Produced by: Dot TV & Films (Ireland)
Directed by: David Burke
Logline: Under General Pinochet’s rule of terror, one man saved thousands of people from the dictator’s brutal secret police. His work was shrouded in secrecy and when he died in September 2015, the world knew next to nothing of Roberto Kozak or his extraordinary legacy.
Award sponsored by PBS International
Prize: 3,000 euros in cash
Jury’s word:
The jury members decided to select KOZAK because we were heartened to see a fresh story highlighting personal memory in Latin American history. It is told through a subjective lens, using never-before-seen material, including access to the filmed testimony of the main character. We hope the Sunnyside History Award will help to bring this story to fruition and we look forward to seeing it when it is completed.
the con: churchill & roosevelt's secret american war
Produced by: White Pine Pictures (Canada)
Directed by: Andrew Munger
Logline: The greatest untold story of WW2 and the largest espionage operation mounted by a friendly nation against an ally. A secret, illegal conspiracy between Churchill and Roosevelt to use dirty tricks, sex and fake news to fight Hitler’s henchmen in the U.S.
a perfect spy
Produced by: Little Big Story (France)
Directed by: Rémi Laine
Logline: A polish Jew enrolled in the Red Army to escape the Shoah, veteran of Israel’s independence, scientist Marcus Klingberg was placed by the Israelis at the head of their secret bacterial weapons program. Unaware that he was KGB’s #1 mole. This film is an intimate saga of Israel’s most dangerous spy.
h2
Produced by: Medalia Productions (Israel)
Directed by: Idit Avrahami, Noam Sheizaf
Logline: Legally segregated, highly surveilled, heavily filmed and intensely guarded: H2 uncovers the way a one-kilometer long street in Hebron fuels the entire Israeli-Palestinian conflict: past, present and future.
system terror
Produced by: Tondowski Films (Germany)
Directed by: Astrid Schult
Logline: 11 September 2001 – an attack that changes the world. The West’s response: The War on Terror, to this day. With System Terror, the filmmaker, Astrid Schult, takes stock 20 years after 9/11.
the children of chaos
Produced by: Elephant Adventures (France)
Directed by: Agnès Pizzini, Julien Johan
Logline: This is a story that has never been told: that of the thousands of children who wandered through Europe at the end of World War II. The thousands of lost children who were then used for political ends by the winning powers between 1945 and 1952. It’s a global historical investigation.
the mayor, me mussolini and the museum
Produced by: Illegitime Defense (France)
Directed by: Piergiorgio Curzi
Logline: Italy’s never really dealt with its fascist past, which is why Giorgio Frassineti wants to create the first ever museum on fascism in Mussolini’s hometown, to counter his uncomfortable legacy.
Award sponsored by West Lake – IDF 2020
Prize: 3,000 euros in cash
Jury’s word:
In this era where historical legacy is being manipulated for political propaganda, it is more than ever important to find a way to address even the most uncomfortable parts of our history. The strength of the proposal, its out-of-the-ordinary and humorous way to address a very serious topic and our conviction that culture can have a strong political impact led us to this decision. With this Sunny Side of the Doc Pitch Award we want to support the film team in the development of their ambitious endeavor.
e. is for escovedo: the sheila e. story
Produced by: Walnut & Rose Pictures (United States)
Directed by: Jennifer Steinman Sternin, Sabrina Schmidt Gordon
Logline: The dramatic, musical life story of the best female drummer in the world– from her childhood in a tight-knit family of Latino musicians, through her rise to fame as a 1980s pop-superstar alongside Prince, to the reality of life today as a 62-year old performer in the youth-obsessed music industry.
kapr code
Produced by: Mindset Pictures (Czech Republic)
Directed by: Králová Lucie
Logline: Documentary opera exploring the nature of memory, music and narration through imprints of controversial and progressive composer JAN KAPR, awarded by Stalin and later completely banned in communist Czechoslovakia, but performed abroad by prestigious musical bodies.
venus de milo - a beauty with no arms
Produced by: Yuzy Productions (France)
Directed by: Mathilde Damoisel
Logline: A portray of one of the most famous and mysterious creation of the art world. The imperfect yet sublime, the broken nevertheless majestic Venus de Milo intrigued, inspired and challenged numerous artists. A journey into history and art, aesthetics and politics.
latin noir
Produced by: Anemon Productions (Greece)
Directed by: Andreas Apostolides
Logline: How a new generation of Latin American novelists are creating one of the most dynamic forms of literature today in an explosive fusion of art, history and crime.
the mad world of harvey kurtz-man
Produced by: All in Pictures Inc (Canada)
Directed by: Bart Simpson
Logline: The forgotten creator of MAD Magazine – Harvey Kurtzman – is revealed as the mastermind behind decades of the evolution of satire, and his influence and legacy reverberates in our contemporary culture today.
ancestral secret vr
Produced by: Galgo Storytelling (Chile)
Directed by: Maria Jose Diaz, Francisca Silva
Logline: There is an ancient Inca prophecy, which states that when the Earth goes through difficult times, harmony will only come back when the condor (native people) and the eagle (western society) fly together again. The Q’ero community of Peru reveals their secrets that have the power to unite both worlds.
Award sponsored by INA
Prize: 3,000 euros in cash
Jury’s word:
We, the jury members are amazed by all the imaginative pitches for this session which seemed crafted with passion and joy. We decided to award the project ANCESTRAL SECRET VR since we think this project carries so much deep meaning. It takes us on a poetic and magical journey which sheds a very promising humanistic light on people and their stories.
archi vr - the villa savoye by le corbusier
Produced by: CLPB Media | CLPB Rights (France)
Directed by: Gordon
Logline: Punctuated by the writings of the greatest architectural theorists of the 20th century, the history of the creation of the Villa Savoye, one of the most famous buildings of Le Corbusier. A 6DOF and interactive playful VR experience. The first episode of a new VR Achitecture series.
do not stand at my grave and weep
Produced by: Les Poissons Volants (France)
Directed by: Sandra Devonssay
Logline: From 1932 to 1906, this virtual reality walk backwards tells the life of Margaret Schwarzkopf, a German Jewish Women who went to Baltimore, confronted with the rise of Nazism in Germany, until she could no longer return home to visit her mother’s grave.
ishark: the domino effect vr
Produced by: Amberjack Films (United Kingdom)
Directed by: Andy Byatt, Roy Kimhi
Logline: An immersive 360 VR journey into the twilight zone. Taking the controls of a submersible, you venture on a dive into the depths and encounter hammerhead sharks on the hunt; you become a shark equipped with unique senses and discover shark behaviour, threats, and how to save them from extinction.
utopia factory
Produced by: Animaviva Productions (France)
Directed by: Gilles Boustani
Logline: In the 19th century, the industrialist André Godin built the Familistère of Guise, outlining a path over 120 years of a “concrete utopia”, implementing astonishing social innovation. The spectator is invited to build the Familistère with Godin and imagine its contours.
the wild west show
Produced by: Tamanoir (France)
Directed by: Samuel Lepoil
Logline: Follow in Virtual Reality Calamity Jane in the Black Hills, through a conflict that will forge the myth of the West, until you discover the terrible secret buried in the heart of these mountains.