The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) has announced a robust lineup for its 36th edition, taking place from 8 to 19 November. Notably, the festival will feature its broadest East and Southeast Asian cinema selection to date, with a special focus on the works of Guest of Honor, Chinese documentary filmmaker Wang Bing. Wang’s Retrospective program will include six films that span from 2002 to the present, featuring works like Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks. His curated Top 10 selection will explore the subtle politics in contemporary Chinese cinema, including films like Last Train Home.
Lifetime Achievement award-winner Peter Greenaway is also set for a celebratory Retrospective, highlighting his genre-defying approach to filmmaking. Greenaway’s selection includes provocative films like The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, and Rembrandt’s J’Accuse, challenging conventional genre norms.
IDFA will also present two curated Focus programs: «Fabrications» and «6 Worlds on 16.» «Fabrications» will probe the relationship between documentary films and truth, inviting audiences to consider how realities are fabricated on screen. The second Focus program celebrates 100 years of 16mm film and its influence on documentary filmmaking, featuring classics like Agnès Varda’s Daguerréotypes.
Additionally, IDFA has announced «Corresponding Cinemas,» a series that aims to unveil the invisible connections between filmmakers. The program will begin with Sky Hopinka and will explore the work of filmmakers like Basma al-Sharif and Jumana Manna, among others.
