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Sheffield DocFest (formerly styled Sheffield Doc/Fest), short for Sheffield International Documentary Festival (SIDF), is an international documentary festival and Marketplace held annually in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

, England. The Festival includes film screenings, interactive and virtual reality exhibitions, talks & sessions, Marketplace & Talent for the funding and distribution of documentaries and development of filmmakers, unmissable live events, and its own

awards An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An award ...

. Since beginning in 1994, DocFest has become the UK's biggest documentary festival and the third largest in the world.Matt Thrift
''Preview: Sheffield DocFest 2013''
, ''Little White Lies'', 29 May 2013 The

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

have called it "one of the leading showcases of documentary films".''Martin Scorsese premiere for Sheffield DocFest''
BBC News, 8 May 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 Sheffield DocFest is now widely recognised as one of the top three documentary festivals in the world, and "the most significant documentary festival in Britain".Julie Farmer, 'Centre Stage', ''First For Business'', 1 June 2013 The Festival has been voted one of the Top Five Coolest Documentary Film Festivals in the World by ''

MovieMaker ''MovieMaker'' is a magazine, website and podcast network focused on the art and business of filmmaking with a special emphasis on independent film. The magazine is published on a quarterly basis. See also * List of film periodicals Film period ...

'' magazine.

About Sheffield DocFest

Sheffield DocFest is the UK's leading documentary festival and one of the world's most influential markets for documentary projects. The festival champions and presents the breadth of documentary form – film, television, immersive and art – in the vibrant city of Sheffield each June. DocFest offers makers and audiences a place for inspiration, debate, development, learning and challenge. DocFest's programming represents the festival's core values – creativity, empathy, freedom, inclusivity and internationalism. Over the years, the festival has been held at over 20 other venues across

and the surrounding area, including th
Showroom Workstation
Light Cinema,

Sheffield Town Hall Sheffield Town Hall is a municipal building on Pinstone Street in the City of Sheffield, England. The building is used by Sheffield City Council, and also contains a publicly displayed collection of silverware. It is a Grade I listed building. ...

Sheffield City Hall Sheffield City Hall is a Grade II* listed building in Sheffield, England in Barker's Pool, one of the city's central squares. It was built and is owned by Sheffield City Council but is now managed by the Sheffield City Trust, under a 99-year l ...

, and the DocFest Exchange on

Tudor Square Tudor Square is a city square in the city of Sheffield, England. The square is home to the largest concentration of theatres in the UK outside London and has thus become known as Sheffield's ‘Theatre Land’. The Square lies at the heart of th ...

developed with

Wellcome Wellcome () is a supermarket chain owned by British conglomerate Jardine Matheson Holdings via its DFI Retail Group subsidiary. The Wellcome supermarket chain is one of the two largest supermarket chains in Hong Kong, the other being Parkn ...

. Fun is a key element, and the festival holds many parties.Chris Bond
''Documentary evidence of a golden age as festival opens window on the world'', ''The Yorkshire Post'', 30 May 2013
/ref> The festival has grown steadily over recent years.Nick Bradshaw
''The best of Sheffield DocFest 2013'', ''Sight & Sound'', 10 July 2013
/ref> DocFest screenings help many films to achieve a wider audience by attracting distribution and further screening opportunities for the films it shows.Alexandra Zeevalkink
''Sheffield DocFest: call for documentary submissions '', docgeeks.com, 30 October 2012
/ref> Sheffield DocFest's Marketplace & Talent is a major part of the Festival, which includes the MeetMarket for films and series to achieve funding and distribution, Alternate Realities Market for interactive and virtual reality projects, live pitches, and other training initiatives. Interactive, immersive and virtual reality documentary is also a central element of the Festival with interactive exhibitions and commissioned works scattered across the city, and the Alternate Realities Summit taking place throughout an entire day of the Festival. Sheffield DocFest is the perfect platform for anyone with an interest in interactive, virtual reality and factual content. DocFest prides itself in supporting and nurturing new talent: in addition to the Festival days in June, Sheffield DocFest presents All Year workshops, screenings, labs and mentoring opportunities both in the UK and internationally.

History

In 1990, Peter Symes of

BBC TV BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 19 ...

Features

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

had the idea of creating a forum for British documentary filmmakers to debate and discuss their craft. In 1993, he set up a festival board which included representatives from

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...

Central Independent Television ITV Central, previously known as Central Independent Television, Carlton Central, ITV1 for Central England and commonly referred to as simply Central, is the Independent Television franchisee for the Midlands. It was created following the rest ...

and

Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...

. They chose to hold the festival in

, an English industrial town which was just beginning to develop a media and cultural sector.Kevin Ritchie
''DocFest celebrates its second decade''
''realscreen.com'', 12 June 2013 The first Sheffield International Documentary Festival was held in 1994, formatted as an international film festival and conference for documentary professionals.'20th Anniversary for Sheffield DocFest', ''Regional Film and Video'', 1 June 2013 It included a film programme, one or two masterclasses, and a party.'Quidnunc', ''Sheffield Telegraph'', 6 June 2013 It lasted two days and mainly attracted London-based filmmakers and producers, plus several international commissioners and distributors. Over the next eight years, the

Festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

continued with around 475-700 delegates attending, and total audiences reaching around 2000. The Festival became an opportunity for London-based independent filmmakers to talk to commissioners at the

...
and

, who were otherwise difficult to reach. Success at the Festival might mean landing a job for the coming year. In 2005 DocFest attracted more than 600 mostly-UK delegates and enjoyed almost 9000 screening and session admissions. However, with changes in the factual television marketplace, it was time for DocFest to move from a primarily craft-based event, and increase its marketplace activity. The chairman at the time, Steve Hewlett, visited the

Australian International Documentary Conference The Australian International Documentary Conference (AIDC) is an Australian conference for the promotion of documentary, factual and unscripted screen content, regarded as one of two major national conferences for filmmakers. History First esta ...

(AIDC) where he met its director Heather Croall, who had a background in filmmaking and had founded the

cross-platform In computing, cross-platform software (also called multi-platform software, platform-agnostic software, or platform-independent software) is computer software that is designed to work in several computing platforms. Some cross-platform software r ...

storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural pre ...

event DigiDocs. He invited Croall to come and work for the festival, where she was subsequently Festival Director & CEO until early 2015, turning around the Festival's fortunes. The 1990s rise in

international co-production A co-production is a joint venture between two or more different production companies for the purpose of film production, television production, video game development, and so on. In the case of an international co-production, production companies ...

s meant that British producers could no longer rely solely on one big broadcaster for their entire budget, and instead had to look abroad to piece together financing for their films. To internationalise the Festival and help filmmakers achieve this financing, Croall introduced the MeetMarket pitching forum, where filmmakers pitch their ideas to funders in one-to-one meetings. MeetMarket was developed with the help Karolina Lidin, Marketplace

Executive Producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...

since 2008. In 2003, she developed the very first MeetMarket with Croall at AIDC, which was later brought to

in 2006. Croall also introduced the digital-focused Summit and Crossover Market, now Alternate Realities Market, which – like the MeetMarket – pairs

buyer Procurement is the method of discovering and agreeing to terms and purchasing goods, services, or other works from an external source, often with the use of a tendering or competitive bidding process. When a government agency buys goods or serv ...

s and commissioners with game designers,

technologist Technologist may refer to: * Applied Science Technologist, a Canadian professional title in engineering and applied science technology. * Architectural technologist, a specialist in the technology fields of building, design and construction. * C ...

s, producers, digital agencies and filmmakers, all looking to tell stories in the interactive realm. In 2007, Hussain Currimbhoy joined as programmer.Paul Banks
''Fav docs of Sheffield DocFest's programmer''
''The Knowledge'', 9 May 2013 In 2011 the Festival moved from November to June, to better fit into the industry calendar and ensure better weather and lighter evenings for visitors. DocFest was an early advocate of

crowdfunding Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by crow ...

as a source of

finance Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fina ...

for documentary filmmakers, and in 2010 staged its first festival-based

pitching event, which was also an industry first. The campaign was launched on Indiegogo with a goal to raise $25k for the Festival to help stage special events. They exceeded their target. From 2012, selected highlights from the Festival have often played at the

BFI Southbank BFI Southbank (from 1951 to 2007, known as the National Film Theatre) is the leading repertory cinema in the UK, specialising in seasons of classic, independent and non-English language films. It is operated by the British Film Institute. His ...

in London.Chris Patmore
''Packed schedule for Sheffield DocFest announced''
moviescopemag.com, 10 May 2013 The Festival began producing its own film projects, including '' From the Sea to the Land Beyond'' in 2012 and '' The Big Melt'' in 2013. From 2014, the

became recognised by the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

as an Oscar-qualifying festival in the Best Documentary (Short Subject) category with the DocFest Short Doc Award Winner eligible to enter for consideration. Many DocFest Short Doc Award-winning films have gone on to be shortlisted for Oscars. In 2014 DocFest presented films including '' Beyond Clueless'' and ''

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'' at

Latitude Festival The Latitude Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Henham Park, near Southwold, Suffolk, England. It was first held in July 2006 and has been held every year since, apart from 2020, when it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 ...

, with Sigur Ros scored archive film '' The Show of Shows: 100 Years of Vaudeville, Circuses and Carnivals'', ''

Montage of Heck Montage may refer to: Arts and entertainment Filmmaking and films * Montage (filmmaking), a technique in film editing * ''Montage'' (2013 film), a South Korean film Music * Montage (music), or sound collage * ''Montage'' (Block B EP), 2017 ...

'', ''Sounds of the Cosmos'' and a number of shorts also featured in 2015. This

partnership A partnership is an arrangement where parties, known as business partners, agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments o ...

has continued, and in 2017 DocFest brought a selection of

virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), educ ...

projects to

Latitude In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...

for the first time, alongside a curated programme of shorts. In 2014 there were some high level staff changes. Deputy Director Charlie Phillips left to head up the documentary arm of

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

, with director of Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival Melanie Iredale taking up the position.Adam Benzine
''DocFest hires Iredale as Phillips, Currimbhoy depart''
''Realscreen'', 8 September 2014 Director of Programming Hussain Currimbhoy left for Sundance Festival with former Executive Content Adviser at Independent Television Service (ITVS) Claire Aguilar becoming Head of Programming & Industry Engagement.Sarah Cooper
''Claire Aguilar joins Sheffield DocFest''
''Screen International'', 12 December 2014 Croall returned to Australia to direct the

Adelaide Fringe The Adelaide Fringe, formerly Adelaide Fringe Festival, is the world's second-largest annual arts festival (after the Edinburgh Festival Fringe), held in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Between mid-February and mid-March each year, i ...

.Sheffield DocFest director Heather Croall to step down
screendaily.com, 5 January 2015. Retrieved 1 June 2015 Following Heather's departure, Crossover Labs Director Mark Atkin stepped in as acting director for the 2015

, before Liz McIntyre of

Discovery Networks Discovery, Inc. was an American multinational mass media factual television conglomerate based in New York City. Established in 1985, the company operated a group of factual and lifestyle television brands, such as the namesake Discovery Channe ...

joined as CEO & Festival Director from 1 September 2015.Sheffield DocFest hires Liz McIntyre
broadcastnow.co.uk, 21 April 2015. Retrieved 1 June 2015 Since McIntyre's appointment, the CEO & Festival Director has championed diverse and pluralist voices, inclusiveness and accessibility, for example creating a

crèche Crèche or creche (from Latin ''cripia'' "crib, cradle") may refer to: *Child care center, an organization of adults who take care of children in place of their parents *Nativity scene, a group of figures arranged to represent the birth of Jesus ...

service and introducing

British Sign Language British Sign Language (BSL) is a sign language used in the United Kingdom (UK), and is the first or preferred language among the Deaf community in the UK. Based on the percentage of people who reported 'using British Sign Language at home' on ...

interpreted talks,

Dementia Dementia is a disorder which manifests as a set of related symptoms, which usually surfaces when the brain is damaged by injury or disease. The symptoms involve progressive impairments in memory, thinking, and behavior, which negatively affe ...

-friendly screenings, Doc/Dinner for championing diverse talent within the industry, and a From Door to Doc, affording reduced rate entry to screenings for hard-to-reach areas of

. In 2016 there were high-level staff appointments. Luke W Moody, formerly of

BRITDOC Doc Society (formerly Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation and BRITDOC Foundation) is a social entrepreneurship organisation created in 2005. They have supported the production of over 60 films that have won awards . Development Initially supported by UK b ...

(now Doc Society) joined as Director of Film Programming, replacing Head of Programming & Industry Engagement Claire Aguilar. Former

Dogwoof Dogwoof is a film-distribution company based in the United Kingdom. History Dogwoof Pictures Dogwoof was founded in 2003 by Andy Whittaker, and originally concentrated on foreign films, including such titles as ''Don't Move'', '' Fateless'', ' ...

Distribution Manager Patrick Hurley joined as Head of Marketplace & Talent, replacing Marketplace Manager Anna Parker. From

...
, Dan Tucker joined as Curator of Alternate Realities. And in 2017, Lisa Brook joined as Marketing & Events Consultant. The effect of the

economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...

is worth millions of pounds. Outside of the annual

, there is now also a year-round programme, called DocFest All Year, providing training, educational and cultural activities across the UK, including a training initiative for aspiring

feature Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature (CAD), could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (software design) is an intentional distinguishing characteristic of a software item ...

documentary producers called Future Producer School launched in 2014.Manori Ravindra
''Sheffield DocFest launches producer school, pitch competitions''
realscreen.com, 10 March 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014

2020

The 27th Sheffield DocFest was due to take place between 4–9 June 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was cancelled in its original form. In November 2019 Cíntia Gil became the new festival director at Sheffield DocFest. Her vision and film programme strands for the 27th edition of Sheffield DocFest were announced in
A letter to Sheffield and to those who will join DocFest in 2020
.

2019

The 26th Sheffield DocFest was held between 6–11 June 2019, and attracted 28,098 public admissions, up 9% from the previous year, along with 3,489 industry delegates from 59 countries. The Festival opened at Sheffield City Hall with a UK premiere of "

Diego Maradona Diego Armando Maradona (; 30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two joint winners of the FI ...

" by

Asif Kapadia Asif Kapadia (born 1972) is a British filmmaker. Academy Award, BAFTA and Grammy winning director Asif Kapadia has made his name directing visually striking films exploring ‘outsiders’, characters living in extreme circumstances, fighting ...

. The programme featured over 200 documentaries with 36 world premieres, 19 international, 12 European and 91 UK premieres. The films were chosen from a submission pool of 2548 from 52 countries around the world. Programme included "The Rest" by

Ai Weiwei Ai Weiwei (, ; born 28 August 1957) is a Chinese contemporary artist, documentarian, and activist. Ai grew up in the far northwest of China, where he lived under harsh conditions due to his father's exile. As an activist, he has been openly c ...

, " Nomad: In the Footsteps of Bruce Chatwin" by

Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; born 5 September 1942) is a German film director, screenwriter, author, actor, and opera director, regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema. His films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with un ...

, "Midnight Family" by Luke Lorentzen, "Earth" by

Nikolaus Geyrhalter Nikolaus Geyrhalter (born 1972) is an Austrian filmmaker. He has directed, produced, written, and worked as cinematographer for numerous documentaries. He has won awards for ''Das Jahr nach Dayton'' (1997), ''Pripyat'' (1999), '' Elsewhere'' (2001 ...

, "One Child Nation" by

Nanfu Wang Nanfu Wang (born 1985) is a Chinese-born American filmmaker. Her debut film '' Hooligan Sparrow'' premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival and was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2017. Her second film, ''I A ...

, "About Love" by Archana Atul Phadke, and "

For Sama ''For Sama'' () is a 2019 documentary film produced and narrated by Waad Al-Kateab, and directed by Waad Al-Kateab and Edward Watts. The film focuses on Waad Al-Kateab's journey as a journalist and rebel in the Syrian uprising. Her husband is ...

" by

Waad Al-Kateab Waad Al-Kateab ( ar, وعد الخطيب; born ) is the pseudonym of a Syrian journalist, filmmaker, and activist. Her documentary, ''For Sama'' (2019), was nominated for four BAFTAs at the 73rd British Academy Film Awards, winning for Best Docu ...

and Edward Watts. Alternate Realities programme featured 28 projects and included "Subconscious Sensibilities" - an exhibition of virtual and augmented reality, games, interactive documentaries and large scale digital installations at

Site Gallery Site Gallery is an art gallery in Sheffield, England. It specialises in moving image, new media and performance based art. Site Gallery is based at Brown Street in Sheffield's Cultural Industries Quarter. It is an international centre for con ...

. "Converging Sensibilities" at the Hallam Performance Lab was a collection of 360° documentaries presented as a VR Cinema. VR experiences at the festival included: "Echo" by Georgie Pinn, "Le Lac" by Nyasha Kadandara, "Algorithmic Perfumery" by Frederik Duerinck, and "Spectre" by Bill Posters and dr. Daniel Howe – a Sheffield DocFest commission, in partnership with

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...

and MUTEK, with support from

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council of Great Britain was divided into three s ...

. Over 200 speakers shared their own experiences at the 26th Sheffield DocFest. The Talks & Sessions programme included:

Paul Greengrass Paul Greengrass (born 13 August 1955) is a British film director, film producer, screenwriter and former journalist. He specialises in dramatisations of historic events and is known for his signature use of hand-held cameras. His early film ' ...

, Jenn Nkiru,

, Chidera Eggerue,

Stacey Dooley Stacey Jaclyn Dooley (born 9 March 1987) is an English television presenter, journalist, and media personality. She came to prominence in 2008 when she appeared as a participant on ''Blood, Sweat and T-shirts''. Since then, she has made social ...

Rodney P Rodney Panton, also known as Rodney P (born in Balham, London, 12 December 1969) is an English MC, as well as a radio and television personality who first gained attention via the UK hip hop scene in the 1980s. A former member of UK hip-hop group ...

Michael Dapaah Michael Dapaah (born 10 August 1991) is a British actor, rapper, and comedian best known for portraying the fictional rapper Big Shaq (also known as Roadman Shaq). He is also known for his mockumentary ''SWIL'' (Somewhere in London), which fo ...

Jeremy Deller Jeremy Deller (born 30 March 1966) is an English people, English conceptual, video and installation artist. Much of Deller's work is Collaboration, collaborative; it has a strong political aspect, in the subjects dealt with and also the Idealiz ...

and Paddy Wivell. Industry sessions programme included "My Big Break" featuring Roxy Rezvany, Ellie Flynn and Eliza Capai discussing their career highs and lows; and "Breaking the Class Ceiling" with Danny Leigh, Fiona Campbell, Kieran Yates, Billy Porter, Mia Bays and Paul Sng exploring barriers for entry to the industry. Over 300 Decision Makers from over 30 countries attended the 2019 Festival, including executives from

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

Arte Arte (; (), sometimes stylized in lowercase or uppercase in its logo) is a European public service channel dedicated to culture. It is made up of three separate companies: the Strasbourg-based European Economic Interest Grouping ARTE, plus ...

...
,

Cinereach Cinereach is a nonprofit film funding organization in New York, NY, founded in 2006, which provides grants, awards, an annual fellowship, and in-house film production. The organization also has partnerships with other film development organization ...

Doc Society Doc Society (formerly Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation and BRITDOC Foundation) is a social entrepreneurship organisation created in 2005. They have supported the production of over 60 films that have won awards . Development Initially supported by UK b ...

, Altitude, Submarine Entertainment,

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

, POV,

RYOT Ryot (alternatives: raiyat, rait or ravat) was a general economic term used throughout India for peasant cultivators but with variations in different provinces. While zamindars were landlords, raiyats were tenants and cultivators, and served as hi ...

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and Pulse Films. Over two days 87 teams took approximately 1,650 match-made meetings with the Decision Makers in the MeetMarket and Alternate Realities Talent Market.

2018

The 25th Edition of Sheffield DocFest was held between 7–12 June 2018.

2017

The 2017 event took place from 9 to 14 June. A record total of 72,146 audiences attended, including 3,397 industry delegates who travelled from 54 countries, 36,008 public audiences, and virtual audiences experiencing the Festival through

livestream Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...

. The film programme hosted a record 182 films with 35 world premieres, 21 international, 24 European and 73 UK premieres. The film programme boasted premieres including: Daisy Asquith's Queerama, the Opening Night Film, scored by John Grant; Laura Poitras' new Julian Assange documentary

Risk In simple terms, risk is the possibility of something bad happening. Risk involves uncertainty about the effects/implications of an activity with respect to something that humans value (such as health, well-being, wealth, property or the environme ...

; Whitney 'Can I Be Me' from

Nick Broomfield Nicholas Broomfield (born 1948) is an English documentary film director. His self-reflective style has been regarded as influential to many later filmmakers. In the early 21st century, he began to use non-actors in scripted works, which he cal ...

; and Winnie from Pascale Lamche, which originated in DocFest's MeetMarket. The Alternate Realities programme featured 26 projects, 12 of which had world premieres, 1 international, 5 European and 8 UK. VR experiences at the festival included:

Chasing Coral ''Chasing Coral'' is a 2017 American documentary film about a team of divers, scientists and photographers around the world who document the disappearance of coral reefs. ''Chasing Coral'' was produced by Exposure Labs and directed by Jeff Orlows ...

: The VR Experience, presented in a 360 dome, which accompanied the feature documentary in the film programme; Unrest VR, which accompanied the feature film

Unrest Unrest, also called disaffection, is a sociological phenomenon, including: * Civil unrest * Civil disorder * Domestic terrorism * Industrial unrest * Labor unrest * Rebellion * Riot * Strike action * State of emergency Notable historical instance ...

; and Future Aleppo by Alex Pearson and Marshmallow Laser Feast, a commission by DocFest, in partnership with FACT, and with support from

. The Talks & Sessions programme included big-name speakers

Lenny Henry Sir Lenworth George Henry (born 29 August 1958) is a British actor, comedian, singer, television presenter and writer. Henry gained success as a stand-up comedian and impressionist in the late 1970s and early 1980s, culminating in ''The Lenn ...

Peter Greenaway Peter Greenaway, (born 5 April 1942) is a Welsh film director, screenwriter and artist. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular. Common traits in his films are the ...

Ian Hislop Ian David Hislop (born 13 July 1960) is a British journalist, satirist, writer, broadcaster, and editor of the magazine ''Private Eye''. He has appeared on numerous radio and television programmes and has been a team captain on the BBC quiz show ...

and

Louis Theroux Louis Sebastian Theroux (; born 20 May 1970) is a British-American documentarian, journalist, broadcaster, and author. He has received two British Academy Television Awards and a Royal Television Society Television Award. After graduating fro ...

. Industry sessions included: a panel about making your film Oscar-ready, featuring Tom Oyer from the

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motio ...

; a sessions with

God's Own Country "God's Own Country" is a phrase meaning an area, region or place supposedly favoured by God. Examples Australia In Australia, the phrase "God's own country" was often used to describe the country in the early 1900s, but it appears to have gr ...

director Francis Lee for the Northern Talent Talk; a free public interview with

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sensation Elijah Quashie aka

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; and two sessions with editor

Walter Murch Walter Scott Murch (born July 12, 1943) is an American film editor, director, writer and sound designer. With a career stretching back to 1969, including work on ''THX 1138'', ''Apocalypse Now'', '' The Godfather I'', '' II'', and '' III'', ''Ame ...

. 2017 saw the reinvention of all film strands to concisely represent the creative vision of the

. The new strands featured in 2017 were: Doc/Vision, Doc/Adventure, Doc/Expose, Doc/Love, Doc/Think, Doc/Rhythm, Focus/Industry, featuring work-in-progress pieces, and Focus/India, featuring a collection of documentaries from that year's focus country of choice, to mark 70 years after

Partition Partition may refer to: Computing Hardware * Disk partitioning, the division of a hard disk drive * Memory partition, a subdivision of a computer's memory, usually for use by a single job Software * Partition (database), the division of a ...

. 2017 also saw the use of new venue The Light Cinema on the Moor, offering 3 luxury cinema screens. Following the 2017 Festival, 9 virtual reality works from the Alternate Realities exhibition were chosen to tour Latin America as part of DocFest's Realidades Alternativas tour with support from

. The tour visited festivals DocMontevideo in

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, DocSP in Brazil, and Noviembre Electrónico in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. Notable screenings and events included: * The world premiere Opening Night Film Queerama from director Daisy Asquith and with a soundtrack from John Grant,

Alison Goldfrapp Alison Elizabeth Margaret Goldfrapp (born 13 May 1966) is an English musician and record producer, known as the vocalist of English electronic music duo Goldfrapp. Early life Goldfrapp was born on 13 May 1966, in Enfield, London, the youngest o ...

, and Hercules & Love Affair, chronicling 50 years after the decriminalization of homosexuality in the UK through the

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

archive. The Opening Night event included a Q&A with Asquith and Grant, hosted by Campbell X, and a performance from Grant * Closing Night honoured MP Jo Cox with Closing Night Film Jo Cox: Death of an MP by director Toby Paxton, a discussion about her legacy, and a Great Get Together held on Tudor Square to encourage Festival-goers and the public to unite and remember * A livestream of the UK Premiere of

's Whitney 'Can I Be Me', featuring a Q&A with Broomfield and radio presenter

Sarah-Jane Crawford Sarah-Jane Crawford is an English television and radio presenter, actress, voice-over artist, and DJ best known for her radio work with Hits Radio and formerly with BBC Radio 1Xtra, and television work with E! Network (which she is curre ...

, and a live tribute performance by Michele John, all broadcast live to 130 cinemas across the UK * The return of Desert Island Docs, featuring Northern film star

Maxine Peake Maxine Peake (born 14 July 1974) is an English actress and narrator. She is known for her roles as Twinkle in the BBC One sitcom ''dinnerladies'' (1998–2000), Veronica Ball in the hit Channel 4 comedy drama '' Shameless'' (2004–2007), Marth ...

as she discussed her favourite documentaries and the influence they hold on her life and work * Joe Cocker: Mad Dog with Soul saw a sold-out screening in the iconic

Leadmill The Leadmill is the longest running live music venue and nightclub in Sheffield, England, based on Leadmill Road, lying on the southeast edge of the Sheffield city centre, city centre. It opened in 1980 in a former flour mill, originally a Com ...

, where

Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...

frequently performed * The introduction of Docs 'til Dawn, showcasing rare cult documentaries after midnight. 2017's Docs 'til Dawn programme included

Adam Curtis Adam Curtis (born 26 May 1955) is an English documentary filmmaker. Curtis began his career as a conventional documentary producer for the BBC throughout the 1980s and into the early 1990s. The release of ''Pandora's Box (British TV series), ...

' HyperNormalisation, with an introduction from Curtis himself * A retrospective looking back 50 years at 1967: The Summer of Love and Discontent, featuring films such as Allan King's '' Warrendale'', Far from Vietnam produced by Chris Marker and directed by

French New Wave French New Wave (french: La Nouvelle Vague) is a French art film movement that emerged in the late 1950s. The movement was characterized by its rejection of traditional filmmaking conventions in favor of experimentation and a spirit of iconocla ...

filmmakers

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran� ...

Alain Resnais Alain Resnais (; 3 June 19221 March 2014) was a French film director and screenwriter whose career extended over more than six decades. After training as a film editor in the mid-1940s, he went on to direct a number of short films which included ...

Agnès Varda Agnès Varda (; born Arlette Varda; 30 May 1928 – 29 March 2019) was a Belgian-born French film director, screenwriter, photographer, and artist. Her pioneering work was central to the development of the widely influential French New Wave film ...

Joris Ivens Georg Henri Anton "Joris" Ivens (18 November 1898 – 28 June 1989) was a Dutch documentary filmmaker. Among the notable films he directed or co-directed are '' A Tale of the Wind'', '' The Spanish Earth'', ''Rain'', ''...A Valparaiso'', ''M ...

, William Klein and

Claude Lelouch Claude Barruck Joseph Lelouch (; born 30 October 1937) is a French film director, screenwriter, writer, cinematographer, actor and film producer, producer. Lelouch grew up in an Algerian Jewish Family. He emerged as a prominent director in the 1 ...

, and a rare screening of Edouard 'Yves' de Laurot's Silent Revolution/Black Liberation * Immersive live cinema for the European premiere of

Florian Habicht Florian Habicht is a New Zealand film director. Florian was born in Berlin, Germany and moved with his family to the Bay of Islands, New Zealand, when he was eight. He went to high school in Kerikeri before attending the University of Auckland's ...

's Spookers, shown in the 1920s

Abbeydale Picture House Abbeydale Picture House (later Abbeydale Cinema) is a former cinema in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. When opened by the Lord Mayor of Sheffield on 20 December 1920 the picture house was the largest and most luxurious cinema in Sheffield, ...

and featuring a fright-night cast of performers staged in the building * The world premiere of

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

Dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) "The Rou ...

competition film Bruk Out! from director Cori Wapnowski, including a follow-up dancehall dance class held by the film's protagonist Ale Camara at the DocFest Exchange on

and the

Party at Code featuring a performance from dancers featured in the film * A work-in-progress special preview of 8 Minutes from the Alexander Whitley Dance Company, combining contemporary dance with

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

visuals from BAFTA-winning artist Tal Rosner, ahead of the Sadler Wells premiere in July * The Alternate Realities Summit returned with a full day of panel sessions and keynote speakers, featuring

Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...

's Jessica Brillhart,

's VR Deputy Editor Nicole Jackson,

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

UK's Che Ramsden, and Robin McNicholas from Marshmallow Laser Feast on using the latest technology to create projects like Future Aleppo and including a surprise

Skype Skype () is a proprietary telecommunications application operated by Skype Technologies, a division of Microsoft, best known for VoIP-based videotelephony, videoconferencing and voice calls. It also has instant messaging, file transfer, deb ...

from Future Aleppo's 13-year-old inspiration Syrian refugee Mohammed Kteish * The European premiere of VR installation Munduruku: The Fight to Defend the Heart of the Amazon by Grace Boyle (The Feelies), James Manisty (Alchemy VR) and Pete Speller (

Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth t ...

), which went on to win the Alternate Realities Audience Award at DocFest 2017, and then further tour Latin America with DocFest's international VR tour 'Realidades Alternativas' with support from

* Live VR experience DOOM ROOM hosted in Theatre Delicatessen mixed performance art with virtual reality in a UK premiere from Danish artist Mads Damsbo (source) * The return of DocFest Exchange developed with Wellcome, offering elements of the film, Alternate Realities, and talks programmes for free to the public * Years and Years frontman

Olly Alexander Oliver Alexander Thornton (born 15 July 1990) is a British singer and actor. He is best known as the lead singer of Years & Years and for his performance as Ritchie Tozer in the Channel 4 drama series, ''It's a Sin''. Early life Alexander w ...

on his new documentary Growing Up Gay and his personal struggle with mental health in the

LGBTQ+ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...

community *

in conversation with

for

The BBC ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

Interview, held at the sold-out

Crucible Theatre The Crucible Theatre (often referred to simply as "The Crucible") is a theatre in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England which opened in 1971. Although it hosts regular theatrical performances, it is best known for hosting professional snooker's m ...

* The introduction of the Craft Summit presented by Documentary Campus, featuring industry heavyweights that dissect the art of documentary filmmaking. Speakers included editor

, Field of Vision's Charlotte Cook and Ben Steele on serialised documentaries, Balz Bachmann and Nainita Desai on composing, and directors from the 2017 film programme Julia Dahr ( Thank You for the Rain), Shaul Schwarz (Trophy) and Egil Håskjold Larsen (69 Minutes of 86 Days) on directing and

cinematography Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to focu ...

2016

The 2016 event took place from 10 to 15 June. A total of 32,769 audiences attended, including 3,534 industry delegates who travelled from 60 countries, and 29,235 public audiences, both figures a record increase on 2015. The film programme hosted a record 160 films with 27 world premieres, 15 international, 19 European and a whopping 52 UK premieres from 49 different countries. Audiences were attracted to big filmmaking names from the documentary world including US director

Michael Moore Michael Francis Moore (born April 23, 1954) is an American filmmaker, author and left-wing activist. His works frequently address the topics of globalization and capitalism. Moore won the 2002 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for ' ...

– whose film ''

Where to Invade Next ''Where to Invade Next'' is a 2015 American documentary film written and directed by Michael Moore. The film, in the style of a Travel documentary, travelogue, has Moore spending time in countries such as Italy, France, Finland, Tunisia, Slovenia ...

'' opened the Festival –

Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...

winning director

Ken Loach Kenneth Charles Loach (born 17 June 1936) is a British film director and screenwriter. His socially critical directing style and socialist ideals are evident in his film treatment of social issues such as poverty (''Poor Cow'', 1967), homelessne ...

, and legendary filmmakers D. A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus. Women and LGBT, LGBT+ subjects feature prominently throughout the Festival's selection, making up two of the festival's strands, plus a retrospective honouring Chantal Akerman. The speakers represented in the Talks & Sessions programme were 45% female. The newly renamed Alternate Realities programme featured 14 immersive media experiences in Millennium Gallery, and 12 virtual reality documentaries in Site Gallery, The Space and Union Street. The Alternate Realities Summit was a day-long event with a focus on virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and mixed reality. The morning session saw a keynote from Ramona Pringle and Bina48, an artificially intelligent robot, while the afternoon session saw a keynote from Google's Jessica Brillhart. 2016 also saw the inaugural Alternate Realities Commission, supported by site Gallery and

. Darren Emerson's Indefinite (previously Invisible) won the £5,000 prize and had its World Premiere at the Festival. Indefinite, about the detention of immigrants in Britain, was later featured by The New York Times. 2016 saw the introduction of the DocFest Exchange on

developed with Wellcome, which hosted a series of public talks, including an interview with This is England director Shane Meadows. Notable screening and events included: * The UK Premiere of

's ''Where to Invade Next'' opened the Festival at

, attended by Moore for a post-screening Q&A which was live streamed to more than 120 cinemas nationwide. * The UK Premiere of The Seasons in Quincy: Four Portraits of John Berger closed the Festival with a sell-out screening at Showroom Cinema, attended by directors Tilda Swinton and Bartek Dziadosz * Live performances accompanied film screenings including: a performance by protagonist and famous street dancer Storyboard P following the World Premiere of Storyboard P, a stranger in Sweden; a solo set by Princess Shaw following the UK Premiere of Presenting Princess Shaw; and Where You're Meant to Be was screened in

, followed by a set from Arab Strap's Aidan Moffat and the Bothy Ballad singers. * Following the UK Premieres of ''Strike a Pose'' and ''Kiki'', the Vogue, Strike a Pose Party invited Madonna backup dancer Kevin Stea, New York ballroom leader Twiggy Pucci Garcon, and a house of voguers to O2 Academy Sheffield, O2 Academy * USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education, USC Shoah Foundations' New Dimensions in Testimony had its World Premiere as part of the Alternate Realities Exhibition, showcasing groundbreaking technology in natural language processing software through a hologram of Holocaust Survivor Pinchas Gutter. The project was awarded both the Alternate Realities Interactive Award and Audience Award for Interactive Project. It was also featured in the Alternate Realities Summit, with creator Dr Stephen Smith presenting a keynote, joined by Gutter himself on stage * David Attenborough, Sir David Attenborough came to the

for the first time, seeing a sold-out talk at the Crucible Theatre, which was live broadcast to the Outdoor Screen on

held a packed Q&A following Versus: The Life and Films of Ken Loach * D. A. Pennebaker was honoured with a retrospective, and also attended the UK Premiere of his film Unlocking the Cage. The legendary documentary maker was also featured in conversation with collaborator Chris Hegedus at the Crucible Theatre * Joanna Lumley delivered a packed talk at Crucible Theatre * Snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan returned to the Crucible Theatre, where he has won five World Championship titles, to discuss his favourite documentaries

2015

The 22nd Festival ran for six days 5–10 June. Over 20 venues were used to host films, sessions, interactive exhibitions and networking events, with the full programme announced on the morning of the general election on 7 May.DocGeeks
''Sheffield DocFest aims for bigger, better and more interactive in 2015''
''DocGeeks'', 7 May 2015 A record number of audiences attended the festival, with 3,422 festival delegates and 27,917 members of the public. 148 films were shown, of which a record breaking 31 were world premieres, including Sean McAllister (filmmaker), Sean McAllister's hotly anticipated ''A Syrian Love Story'', Brian Hill's ''The Confessions of Thomas Quick'', and Jake Witzenfeld's ''Oriented'', 41 UK premieres, 13 international premieres, and 19 European premieres.Michael Rosser
'' Sheffield DocFest unveils 2015 line-up''
''Screen Daily'', 7 May 2015 Nearly 50% of the film programming was headed up by female filmmakers, with 73 of the films either produced or directed by women filmmakers.Alex Ritman
''Sheffield DocFest Touts Strong Female Presence''
''The Hollywood Reporter'', 9 June 2015 Notable screenings and events included: * The UK premiere of Joshua Oppenheimer's ''The Look of Silence'' at Showroom Cinema, Sheffield, Showroom Cinema opened the

with sell out screenings in both Screens 3 and 4. * Opening Night continued at

with the world premiere of archive film '' The Show of Shows: 100 Years of Vaudeville, Circuses and Carnivals'' directed by Benedikt Erlingsson and scored by Georg Hólm and Orri Páll Dýrason of Sigur Rós and the Head of the Pagan Church in Iceland and godfather of Icelandic music, Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson.Ben Green
''SHEFFIELD DOCFEST 2015: Full programme announced''
''The Star'', 11 May 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015 The film features never before seen footage from fairgrounds, circuses, variety performances, vaudeville and more, from the very birth of film to the present day, including footage from The University of Sheffield's National Fairground Archive. * A special screening of Jessica Edward's bio-doc ''Mavis!'' documenting the life of Mavis Staples was held in the classic Victorian era, Victorian Sheffield Botanical Gardens. * Sheffield Repertory Orchestra performing Gustav Holst's The Planets live to a screening of interplanetary odysseys and commissioned visuals by Sheffield creative design agency Human and commentary from astronomer Paul Crowther. * A 'Women in Docs' strand celebrating films with women on screen and behind the lens. * ''War Work: 8 Songs with Film'', a master work of poetic and musical archive composed and directed by Michael Nyman, and performed by Michael Nyman Band and Hilary Summers to commemorate the First World War.Caroline Frost
''Idris Elba's 'Mandela, My Dad And Me' One Of The Highlights At This Year's Sheffield Documentary Festival''
''HuffPost'', 7 May 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015 * A retrospective of British activist filmmaker John Akomfrah. * A closing night event including screening of ''Monty Python – Monty Python: The Meaning of Live, The Meaning of Live'' by Roger Graef and James Rogan, with Michael Palin in attendance for a post-screening Q&A and book signing. * The Ideas & Science strand, supported by the Wellcome Trust, focusing on creativity and innovation at the heart of documentary, digital and interactive. * An 'Interactive at Sheffield' exhibition presented by Crossover Labs, featuring 16 interactive documentaries held at Millennium Gallery. * A dedicated

arcade at

featuring 9 projects on a collection of Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear VR and Google Cardboard.Jamie Feltham
''Sheffield DocFest 2015 Shows VR at its Most Humanising, Empowering and Emotive''
''VR Focus'', 9 June 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015 * ''FINAL DAYS'' by British artist Heather Phillipson, a specially commissioned installation at Sheffield Co-operative Society, Castle House, a defunct department store in the heard of

. Supported by

, presented in partnership with University of Sheffield and Serpentine Galleries. There were 83 sessions, talks and masterclasses, with speakers including Davina McCall, Nicky Campbell, Jon Snow (journalist), Jon Snow, Lucy Worsley, Philippa Perry, Ian Katz, Charlotte Moore (TV executive), Charlotte Moore, and Robin Ince.

2014

The Festival expanded from five days to six and for the first time began on a Saturday. Screenings took place across a wider range of more unusual venues in

and the Peak District.Kelly Anderson
''Sheffield DocFest expands, sets 2014 dates''
''Real Screen'', 12 September 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2014 130 films were shown, of which 21 were world premieres, 24 UK premieres, and 12 European premieres.Kevin Ritchie
''Scorsese, Longinotto, Woolcock to premiere docs in Sheffield''
''Real Screen'', 9 May 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014Eric Eidelstein
''The 21st Annual Sheffield Documentary Festival Will Showcase a New Scorsese Film, Industry Sessions and More''
indiewire.com, 8 May 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014Ian Youngs
''Sheffield DocFest: War crimes, pop stars and skaters''
BBC News, 6 June 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 World premieres included Martin Scorsese's documentary about ''The New York Review of Books'', ''The 50 Year Argument''; Alex Holmes' ''Stop At Nothing: The Lance Armstrong Story''; ''The Last Man On The Moon'', about former astronaut Eugene Cernan who also attended the Festival; ''One Rogue Reporter'', written and directed by former 'Daily Star (United Kingdom), Daily Star' reporter Rich Peppiatt; and ''Brilliant Creatures: Rebels of Oz''.Vanessa Thorpe
''The Australians who set 60s Britain swinging''
''The Guardian'', 31 May 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 Notable screenings and events included: * The European premiere of ''Pulp: A Film About Life, Death and Supermarkets'' directed by

,Henry Barnes
''Sheffield DocFest to host first public screening of Scorsese documentary''
''The Guardian'', 8 May 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 telling the story of Pulp (band), Pulp's final concert in

in 2012 and including a simulcast and live satellite Q&A with the band, broadcast to 120 cinemas across the UK and Ireland.Charles Gant
''22 Jump Street triples original's first weekend take at UK box office''
''The Guardian'', 10 June 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 * The premiere of Kim Longinotto's ''Love Is All'' at Chatsworth House with a soundtrack by Richard Hawley, combining film material from the BFI National Archive with original music in a similar vein to previous DocFest projects '' From the Sea to the Land Beyond'' and '' The Big Melt''. * Saint Etienne (band), Saint Etienne performing a live score to ''How We Used To Live'', Paul Kelly (film maker), Paul Kelly's documentary about vanishing London. * Summer Camp (band), Summer Camp performing a live soundtrack to ''The Guardian, Guardian'' writer Charlie Lyne's film essay '' Beyond Clueless'', about 90s teen movies. * A 'Hell on Wheels' strand of cycling films to celebrate the Tour de France visiting Yorkshire.Helen Pidd
''Hell on wheels: cycling documentaries at Sheffield DocFest''
''The Guardian'', 9 June 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 * Nightly screenings in the Peak Cavern including Thomas Balmes' ''Happiness (2014 film), Happiness''. * A spotlight on South Africa including ''Miners Shot Down'' about the Marikana miners' strike. * A retrospective of experimental Greek-French director

. * An 'Interactive at Sheffield' exhibition presented by Crossover Labs, featuring 15 interactive documentaries delivered through devices including the Oculus Rift Virtual Reality headset. This included the first documentary videogames to be shown at the

, ''Riot (video game), Riot'' and ''Papers, Please''.''Sheffield Documentary Festival to Present 15 Boundary-Pushing Interactive Documentaries as part of Interactive at Sheffield''
indiewire.com, 6 May 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 * Immersive documentary ''Door into the Dark''.Charlotte Harding
''How to get lost''
''Dazed''. Retrieved 4 August 2014 Speakers included Peter Bazalgette,

, Brian Eno, Sue Perkins, Grayson Perry, John Pilger, Jon Snow (journalist), Jon Snow, and Ondi Timoner. There were 82 conference sessions and masterclasses, and a record number of pitch opportunities for filmmakers worth £200,000.

2013

2013 saw a record number of films and delegates. Delegate numbers rose by 18% to 3,129. There were a record 18 international delegations including representatives from Armenia, Canada, Jordan, Morocco, the Netherlands, the State of Palestine, Russia, South Africa, and South Sudan, attending the Festival with a special focus on factual filmmaking in their regions. 250 buyers and Decision Makers from over 20 countries attended. Film submissions topped 2000 for the first time.Daniel Dylan Wray
''Sheffield DocFest hopes to rekindle last year's Oscar magic''
''The Guardian'', 9 May 2013 120 films were shown, of which there were 77 feature length documentaries, 33 Short film, shorts, 10 interactive projects and one Installation art, art installation. There were 18 world premieres, 12 UK premieres, and 5 European premieres. A record 14 films screening at DocFest were developed and funded through #MeetMarket, MeetMarket,Pippa Considine
''Sheffield DocFest highlights for 2013''
televisual.com, 10 May 2013 including Joshua Oppenheimer's ''The Act of Killing'' which went on to win the Audience Award. World premieres included ''Johnny Moped, Basically, Johnny Moped'', ''Emptying The Skies'', ''Everybody's Child'', ''A Fragile Trust, A Fragile Trust: Plagiarism, Power & Jayson Blair at the New York Times'', ''Here Was Cuba'', ''Mirage Men'', ''Notes from the Inside with James Rhodes (pianist), James Rhodes'', ''Particle fever'', ''Plot for Peace'', ''Project Wild Thing'', ''Richard Pryor: Omit the Logic'', '' The Big Melt'', ''Sebastian Junger#Which Way is the Front Line From Here?, Which Way is the Front Line from Here? The Life and Time of Tim Hetherington'', ''The Man Whose Mind Exploded'', ''The Road to Fame'', ''The Secret Life of Uri Geller – Psychic Spy?'', ''Thin Ice (2013 film), Thin Ice'', and ''To Let The World In''. European premieres included ''After Tiller'', ''Dirty Wars'', and ''Pandora's Promise''. UK premieres included ''The Act of Killing'' and ''The Crash Reel''.Barry Walsh
''"Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" to open Sheffield DocFest''
realscreen.com, 9 May 2013 ''The Act of Killing'' went on to win a British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Bafta and was named best film of 2013 by ''

''.''Hussain Currimbhoy''
, British Council, 2 June 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 Film strands included Behind the Beats, Best of British, Cross-Platform, Euro/Doc, First Cut, Global Encounters, New York Times Op-Docs, Queer Screen, Resistance, Shorts, The Habit of Art, and This Sporting Life. A new strand, Films on Film, screened a notable film with a documentary about it, for example ''The Exorcist (film), The Exorcist (Director's Cut)'' with ''The Fear of God: 25 Years of The Exorcist'', and John Waters' ''Female Trouble'' with ''I Am Divine''. This strand aimed to attract a wider mix of people, and was supported by National Lottery (United Kingdom), Lottery funding through the BFI's Film Festival Fund which provides extra resources to help grow film festival audiences.''Pussy Riot film to open Sheffield DocFest''
screendaily.com, 9 May 2013 The DocFest Retrospective strand celebrated the work of Japanese filmmaker Shōhei Imamura. More than 75 directors were present and took part in Q&A sessions. Notable screenings and events included: * Three opening night films: ** '' The Big Melt'', a documentary film about

's steel industry by Martin Wallace with a live soundtrack from Jarvis Cocker and over 50 musicians.''Pulp's Jarvis Cocker to perform at Sheffield premiere of steel documentary 'The Big Melt''
''NME'', 10 June 2013 ** An in-cave screening of ''The Summit (2012 film), The Summit'', a climbing documentary by Nick Ryan about the quest to reach the peak of K2. This was screened at Peak Cavern, a cave known as the 'Devil's Arse', in the Peak District. ** The European premiere of ''Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer'' followed by a

interview with Yekaterina Samutsevich, Katya Samutsevich, one of the members of Pussy Riot.Mark Moran
''Pussy Riot film to open Sheffield's DocFest 20''
pictureville.net, 9 May 2013 * A live soundtrack performance of ''Songs from the Shipyards'' by Mercury Prize-nominees The Unthanks. * A look behind-the-scenes of the BBC's ''Who Do You Think You Are? (UK TV series), Who Do You Think You Are?'' series. * A day of events centred on the

documentary ''The Spirit of '45''.'The Spirit of '45 Day announced for Sheffield DocFest'
8 May 2013 * TEDxSheffield, a fringe event which took place the day before the Festival. * The Howard Street (Sheffield), Howard Street outdoor screen which showed films for free for 12 hours each day during the Festival.Ellen Beardmore, ''Once in a lifetime' chance to see films', ''The Star (Sheffield)'', 30 May 2013 * Blast Theory's interactive online game ''I'd Hide You''.Liat Clark
''City-wide manhunt turns Sheffield into digital stage''
, wired.co.uk, 20 February 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 * Doc/Feast, a street food market made up of local foodie businesses, plus a special DocFest ale. There were 80 conference sessions and masterclasses, and 300 speakers. Notable speakers included Adam Buxton, Melvyn Bragg, Jonathan Franzen, Uri Geller, Ira Glass, Alex Graham, Janice Hadlow, Jay Hunt (television executive), Jay Hunt, Ross Kemp, Mark Kermode, Trevor McDonald, Sir Trevor McDonald, Hardeep Singh Kohli,

, Miranda Sawyer interviewing Michael Palin, Sue Perkins, Captain Sensible, and Alan Yentob.'Docfest', ''Exposed magazine'', 1 May 2013Ian Soutar, 'Film critic Mark exorcising 25 years of fear', ''Sheffield Telegraph'', 6 June 2013

2012

2,657 delegates from 67 countries attended the Festival, and general admissions were 20,079. Notable screenings and events included: * The debut of ''From The Sea To The Land Beyond'', a documentary by Penny Woolcock with a live soundtrack performance by British Sea Power. * A surprise performance by Sixto Rodriguez, the star of opening night film ''Searching for Sugar Man'', which went on to win an Academy Award, Oscar for Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary. Speakers included Gareth Malone and Tim Pool.Laura Davies, 'What's Up, Doc', ''Exposed magazine'', 1 June 2013

2011

2011 saw the Festival move from November to June, right off the back of the November 2010 Festival. The Festival opened with Morgan Spurlocks' POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold and featured box-office hit Senna (film), Senna, Alma Har'el's debut Bombay Beach (film), Bombay Beach, an Albert Maysels retrospective, and Oscar-winning director Barbara Kopple's Gun Fight.

Awards

The Sheffield DocFest Awards honour the best documentaries from the DocFest programme, and are judged by industry professionals.

Current categories

* Sheffield DocFest Audience Award voted for by audiences, for both Films and Alternate Realities projects. * Grand Jury Prize for excellence in style, substance and approach. The jury is made up of UK and international documentary specialists. * Environmental Award given to the documentary that best addresses or raises awareness of the environmental challenges faces by the world. * Interactive Award for a project that exhibits originality in approach to form, storytelling and delivery. The jury is made up of international film and interactive industry experts. * Tim Hetherington Award presented by Dogwoof Pictures, Dogwoof. This was introduced in 2013 to honour war photographer Tim Hetherington. It includes a cash prize and is decided by a jury including Tim's mother, Judith Hetherington. * Illuminate Award supported by

. This award explores the screen chemistry between vibrant storytelling and innovative filmmaking inspired by science. * Art Doc Award for new forms of documentary storytelling and bold, innovative non-fiction films. * New Talent Award to discover the future of documentary film. * Youth Jury Award for the film that is most engaging for young audiences. The winner is chosen by a jury of five young people aged 18–22, who take part in a series of workshops and screenings with industry professionals ahead of the festival. * Short Doc Award, introduced in 2013, these films are made by new and established filmmakers from around the world and automatically qualifies the winner for consideration for the

. * Student Doc Award for films made as part of tertiary course work at UK and international universities, judged by a panel of industry experts. * Alternate Realities Virtual Reality Award, celebrating virtual reality documentary as a flourishing creative genre awarding the project that displays excellence in factual storytelling as well as technical ingenuity. * Alternate Realities Interactive Award, honouring the project that exhibits originality in its approach to form, storytelling and delivery.

Previous categories

* Inspiration Award, introduced in 2009, which celebrates a figure in the industry who has championed documentary and helped get great work into the public eye. * The In The Dark Sheffield International Audio Award introduced in 2014 to highlight the best in audio documentaries.Vicky Frost
''Sheffield DocFest 2014: Love and Radio - audio''
''The Guardian'', 7 June 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014 * Interactive Award * Student Doc Award * Sheffield Innovation Award * EDA Award for Best Female-Directed Film * The Wintonick Award * Short Doc Audience Award * Creative Leadership Award * Award for Unsung Hero in Factual TV * Storytelling and Innovation Award * Jerwood First Cuts Award

Winners

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

The awards were held on 10 June 2015 at the Crucible Theatre.

2014

The awards were held on 12 June 2014. For the first time, the award-winning documentary short automatically qualifies for consideration for the

. A Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Roger Graef.''Harold Evans film Attacking The Devil wins Sheffield DocFest award''
BBC News, 12 June 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014

2013

The awards were held on 16 June 2013, and presented by Jeremy Hardy. The Alliance of Women Film Journalists also presented a Special EDA Award to Sheffield DocFest's Festival Director, Heather Croall, naming her 2013's Ambassador of Women's Films.Michael Rosser
''The Act of Killing takes top prize at Sheffield DocFest ''
screendaily.com. Retrieved 16 June 2013Jennifer Merin

, about.com. Retrieved 16 June 2013

2012

The awards were held on 17 June 2012.

2011

A Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Albert and David Maysles, Albert Maysles.

2010

2009

Films

Sheffield DocFest's film programme showcases international documentaries and new works of non-fiction. The Film programme includes: * Over 150 screenings of feature, mid-length and short documentaries and works of non-fiction each year. * Q&As with the filmmakers and protagonists of the films. * A strand of panels corresponding to the main programme, featuring filmmakers and protagonists of the films, including sessions, workshops, and pitching competitions. * Free outdoor screenings of U-rated documentaries. * A series of films In Competition for prestigious awards.

Alternate Realities

Sheffield DocFest runs a number of programmes focused on new media development in interactive and immersive projects and

, titled Alternate Realities. The Alternate Realities programme includes: * The Alternative Realities Summit, which is a full day of sessions exploring the Digital Revolution, digital revolution in broadcasting. Delegates can network with representatives from the film and TV industry, which have included keynote speakers such as Google's Jessica Brillhart, BBC North's Richard Deverell, Frank Rose, Steven Johnson and Katerina Cizek from ''Highrise (documentary), Highrise''. The day includes breakout sessions and round table discussions. * The Alternative Realities Market, which is a pitching event for interactive and digital projects run in a similar way to the festival's #MeetMarket, MeetMarket. It took place for the first time in 2013, when 27 project teams pitched to 85 cross-platform decision makers. * A strand of Alternative Realities panels during the main Festival conference programme, which includes sessions, commissioning editor panels, workshops, project showcasing, and cross-platform pitching competitions. * The Alternative Realities Exhibition, which shows and hosts interactive and VR including those commissioned especially for the Festival. This is also a space where delegates can meet and network. * Meet the Maker sessions, which allow audiences to meet the artists behind the projects featured in the exhibition for informal Q&As. In 2017, Alternate Realities at Sheffield DocFest was awarded

NPO status, helping the programme to grow even further.

Talks & Sessions

Sheffield DocFest's Talks & Sessions programme features high-profile speakers, industry creatives, and documentary talent in a variety of discussions, large public talks, commissioning question panels, interviews, and showcasing sessions. Past high-profile speakers include David Attenborough, Sir David Attenborough,

, Joanna Lumley, Reggie Yates,

, Kim Longinotto, Tilda Swinton, D. A. Pennebaker, John Akomfrah, Brett Morgan, Sue Perkins, and Joan Rivers.

Marketplace & Talent

MeetMarket & Alternate Realities Market

MeetMarket & Alternate Realities Market is a documentary pitching event held at Sheffield DocFest, where filmmakers pitch their project ideas one-on-one to UK and international broadcasters, funders and distributors. Former Festival Director Heather Croall introduced MeetMarket to DocFest in 2006 and developed it as an alternative to public pitching (where filmmakers pitch to a large audience).Michael Rosser
''Heather Croall, Sheffield DocFest''
screendaily.com, 10 June 2013 Each meeting is match-made and scheduled with relevant Decision Makers. Each year there are approximately 65 projects, which hold many one-to-one across two days.Michael Rosser
''Sheffield DocFest's MeetMarket draws record pitches''
screendaily.com, 2 April 2013 In 2017, the event was attended by 330 Decision Makers. Since its introduction, nearly 10,800 meetings have taken place for 609 documentary and digital projects (as of July 2017). All meetings held at MeetMarket have been requested by both parties, meaning it's more likely for a deal to be made. While the focus is on achieving funding and distribution (business), distribution, participants also benefit from advice on production, distribution, exhibition, marketing and outreach. Filmmaker Guy Davidi said "Pitching in intimate round-table sessions was a big comfort. It reduces tension and competitiveness and makes the whole thing much more relaxed and fun. We have created important connections and in one case it led directly to an investment."''MeetMarket report 2006-2012''
, ''Broadcast'', 2012. Retrieved 9 January 2014 In 2017, 63 projects from 22 countries, including new films from

, Mark Cousins (film critic), Mark Cousins, Kim Longinotto, Dionne Walker, Laura Poitras, and Jerry Rothwell, and 24 Alternate Realities projects were selected, including works from Charlotte Mikkelborg, Richard Nockles, and INK Stories. 330 Decision Makers took part, including representatives from Submarine, BBC Earth VR, Royal Shakespeare Company, National Film Board of Canada, The National Film Board of Canada, Vice Media, VICE, and Pulse Films. In 2016, 64 projects from 27 countries were chosen to participate, including new films from Orlando von Einsiedel, Jennifer Brea, Mike Lerner (filmmaker), Mike Lerner, Stefan Kloos, Nick Fraser, Christoph Jorg, David Letterman, Al Morrow, Jeanie Finlay, André Singer (producer), Andre Singer, Amir Amiriani, and Catherine Allen. 25 Alternate Realities Market projects were chosen, including works from Katharine Round, Alex Pearson, Darren Emerson, and Jennifer Brea. 313 Decision Makers took part in the MeetMarket, Alternate Realities Market and various other Marketplace initiatives from organisations including Red Bull, Canal+, Al Jazeera, Discovery Channel, Discovery,

, and

. In 2015, 64 projects from 19 countries were chosen to participate in MeetMarket from 600 submissions, including new films from John Akomfrah, Lindsey Dryden and Maheen Zia. 300 executives, distributors, commissioners, funders, advisors and buyers across documentary and digital media took part in the MeetMarket and Marketplace activity including

...
,

and

. In 2014, 64 projects were chosen to participate in MeetMarket, including new films from Franny Armstrong, William Karel, and Stanley Nelson Jr. 290 investors, commissioners and production partners took part including commissioners from

, ''Dazed & Confused (magazine), Dazed'', ''Vice (magazine), Vice'', Vimeo and Nowness and distributors Oscilloscope Laboratories,

and PBS. In 2013 MeetMarket attracted over 600 applications. Over 60 projects from 18 countries were chosen to participate. Filmmakers included Franny Armstrong, Marshall Curry, Jeanie Finlay, Alex Gibney, Phil Grabsky, Brian Hill (director), Brian Hill, Victor Kossakovsky and Joshua Oppenheimer. The selection also included six cross-platform projects. MeetMarket films and Alternate Realities Market projects are tracked for success across awards and other film festivals. Films and projects have gone on to win awards at Sundance Film Festival, Sundance, Tribeca Film Festival, Tribeca, International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, IDFA, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Hot Docs and DocFest. Notable films to achieve funding through MeetMarket include

and Unrest VR, Notes on Blindness and Notes on Blindness: Into Darkness, Joshua Oppenheimer's ''The Act of Killing'' and ''The Look of Silence'', ''Searching for Sugarman'', Jeanie Finlay's ''The Great Hip Hop Hoax'', ''Ping Pong (2012 film), Ping Pong'', ''5 Broken Cameras'', and ''God Loves Uganda''.

Pitches

The Marketplace plays host to further initiatives, such as pitches and prize competitions. Pitched projects are selected from an open call, cover a range of topics, and offer funding, in-kind support and Festival Pass prizes. Previous pitches include: * The

Film Fund * The Whicker's World Foundation Film & TV Award, offering £80,000 to the winning pitch *

...
Northern Docs Pitch *

Pitch * Vice Media, VICE Rule Britannia Pitch * The

First Cut Pitch * Virgin Money Shorts Competition

Training Initiatives

The Marketplace also holds All Year training initiatives, including Future Producer School. Future Producer School, created by Sheffield DocFest and Bungalow Town Productions, has successfully run every year since its launch in 2014. Aimed at emerging producers currently working in the industry, the primary outcome of Future Producer School is to develop industry partnerships and provide industry knowledge and experience to up-and-coming producers that have the ambition to become international feature documentary producers. Notable alumni include Eloise King, Julia Nottingham, Lindsey Dryden, and Sky Neal. On-Screen Talent Market is a Sheffield DocFest initiative to connect charismatic subject-specialists with producers, commissioners, and other Decision Makers looking for fresh faces for their programmes. The programme includes an intensive morning training programme giving insight into the industry via first-hand encounters with established professionals, and is designed for the experts to hone their skills in presenting themselves to the media. This is followed by an afternoon of match-made one-to-one meetings between the talent and television executives. The programme is designed and delivered in collaboration with the Academic Ideas Lab. Doc/Dinner allows a group of emerging filmmakers to dine with industry executives to exchange ideas and expertise, hosted by Yates. In 2017, execs from the

...
,

, Vice Media, VICE, Pulse Films and

met with 20 young filmmakers.

Delegations

DocFest hosts a number of international and national delegations each year, including delegations from Norway, Scotland, Palestine (region), Palestine, Indonesia, Jordan, Cuba and Greater Europe, Wider Europe.

Social Events & Networking

Each year, DocFest hosts parties and drinks events during the

and year-round, including the annual Guilty Pleasures Party held at both DocFest and in Amsterdam at International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam, IDFA. Nightly parties are themed around the programme and in 2017 included: the I Will Always Love Docs Party, celebrating the premiere of Whitney: Can I Be Me, Whitney "Can I Be Me"; a Great Get Together lunchtime picnic celebrating the life and legacy of Jo Cox, Jo Cox MP, before the premiere of Closing Night Film Jo Cox: Death of an MP; and in 2016, and the Vogue, Strike a Pose Party, celebrating the premieres of Strike a Pose and Kiki. Each year also sees the Award Ceremony hosted at Crucible Theatre, Sheffield's Crucible Theatre, honouring the best films of the

. Each Festival sees dozens of networking drinks hosted by sponsors and supporters, including Image Nation, Image Nation Abu Dhabi, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Shooting People, and more.

All Year programme

DocFest activities outside of the five-day festival include: * Films, for example DocFest presents which takes a selection of the Festival's film programme around the UK, and screenings at

. * Alternate Realities Tours across the UK to various venues and

and internationally. In 2017, DocFest toured Latin America with the 'Realidades Alternativas' exhibition. * Talks & Sessions across various film festivals, featuring members of the DocFest staff. * Marketplace & Talent, including ongoing mentoring programme for filmmakers. * Networking events for filmmakers. * A structured internship and Volunteering, volunteer programme for young people.

Festival directors

* Liz McIntyre, 2015–present * Heather Croall, 2006–2014 * Brent Woods, 2002–2005 * Kathy Loizou, 1996–2001 * Paula Shirley, 1995 * Midge MacKenzie, 1994

Festival chairpersons

Alex Cooke (producer) 2019–present (Deputy chair - Brian Woods 2016–present) * Alex Graham (producer), Alex Graham, 2011–2019 * Steve Hewlett, 2005–2011 * Christo Hird, 2000–2004 * Roger James, 1997–2000 * Marian Bowan, 1996 * Peter Symes, 1994–1995

Board Members

* Peter Armstrong * Patrick Holland * Ralph Lee * Shirani Sabaratnam * Helen Scott * Ian Wild

References

External links

Official websiteCrossover website
(archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheffield Doc Fest Annual events in the United Kingdom Film festivals in England Culture in Sheffield Digital media organizations Documentary film festivals in the United Kingdom Documentary film organizations Events in Sheffield Festivals in South Yorkshire Film organisations in the United Kingdom Film festivals established in 1994 British documentary film awards