The 29th Baltic Sea Docs (BSD) co-production forum will run in #Riga from 31 August to 5 September, presenting 26 documentary projects alongside public screenings in the capital and several regional towns.
Founded in Denmark and organised since 2006 by Latvia’s National Film Centre, BSD focuses on feature-length creative documentaries originating in or addressing the Baltic Sea region, Eastern Europe and the Caucasus. This year’s industry line-up includes 22 new projects in development or production and four returning titles in post-production, representing 14 countries. The «Coming Soon» strand targets festival partnerships and sales, while new teams receive intensive training and access to potential financiers.
Ahead of pitching, producers and directors will attend a workshop led by Danish consultants Tue Steen Müller and Mikael Opstrup. Additional tutors include directors Salomé Jashi (Georgia) and Mia Halme (Finland), producer Darya Bassel (Ukraine), sales agent Liselot Verbrugge (Netherlands) and editor Phil Jandaly (Sweden).
Pitch sessions are scheduled for 4–5 September before a panel of decision-makers spanning sales outfits (Lightdox, Rise and Shine, Dogwoof, CAT\&Docs), broadcasters (NHK, TG4, ZDF/Arte, TV3, SWR, Suspilne, LRT), festivals (PÖFF, goEast, EBS International Doc, IDFA, Thessaloniki) and production companies (Corso Films, Éclipse Film, Tanjo Films), followed by one-to-one meetings.
BSD continues to expand its partner awards, offering accreditations to forums and festivals including IDFA, Sheffield DocFest, DOK.forum Munich, East Doc Platform and Movies That Matter. Additional prizes include the BBposthouse Award (€3,000 in post-production services), the TV3 Group Award (a broadcast slot on TV3 channels and TV3 Play) and a BSD consultancy award.
On 3 September, a seminar titled «Factual Content for Young Audiences» will feature filmmaker Sigrid Klausmann, TG4’s Róisín Ní Thuairisg and DCTV’s Johnny Ramos and Jesse Perez Antigua.
The film programme opens 2 September at Riga’s Splendid Palace with Dmytro Hreshko’s Divia (2025), alongside recent BSD-connected titles such as 9-Month Contract, Letters from Wolf Street and On Sacred and Profane. BSD is supported by Creative Europe MEDIA and Latvia’s Ministry of Culture.
Find more information on the 2025 selected projects – HERE
