The tenth edition of MIA | Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo (MIA Market) will take place from 14 to 18 October 2024, in Rome. Over its ten years, MIA has positioned itself as a vital incubator for audiovisual works, with an increasing emphasis on non-fiction content. This year’s edition will present a wide array of documentary and factual projects at the Doc Co-Production Market & Pitching Forum.
The documentary section of the 2024 MIA Market highlights 14 projects from 13 countries, ranging from Denmark to China to the United States. This year’s offerings reflect a diversity of topics and styles, including environmental, social, cultural, and historical documentaries. The high-profile selection features nine projects directed or produced by women.
One of the standout projects in the forum is Black Carbon-Native Science (Denmark/Germany/Norway/Canada), which explores the work of an Inuit scientist researching microplastics in Greenland’s ice and the oceans. Also exploring environmental concerns, Inferno Climate Crisis in the Mediterranean (France/Germany/Greece) takes an urgent look at rising sea temperatures in the Mediterranean.
In the realm of historical documentaries, Seveso – The Italian Chernobyl (Italy) revisits the Seveso disaster of the 1970s, drawing attention to the long-term effects of one of Italy’s most devastating environmental catastrophes. Meanwhile, Small Town America: The Untold Story of the MPW Archive (USA) captures nearly a century of transformation in rural America, chronicling cultural shifts through the lens of a local archive.
Social issues also are present at the forum, with projects like Homesick (Denmark/South Korea), which examines adoption from the perspective of those who have been adopted, and The Siege of Paradise (Ireland/Italy/Switzerland), a study of over-tourism’s impact on vulnerable ecosystems. These films, alongside others exploring family dynamics, art forgery, and Western pop music’s spread in China (Trash Kids), underscore the expansive thematic reach of this year’s documentary selections.
The event’s commitment to unscripted content is also reflected in the presence of key players from major broadcasters like Rai, Sky, and Mediaset, who are involved in shaping the selection process. With projects poised to premiere for the first time on the international stage, MIA remains a critical space for documentary filmmakers to connect with potential co-producers, buyers, and financiers.
