The Institute of Documentary Film (IDF) team is once again heading to the Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival – one of Europe’s key festivals dedicated to auteur documentary cinema.
Each year, the festival offers a space for inspiration, exchange, and networking among filmmakers, producers, and representatives of film institutions – and the IDF team is traditionally part of it. If you’re attending this year’s Ji.hlava, don’t hesitate to meet us in person!
You can meet Veronika Janatková, who took on the role of programme director at the Institute of Documentary Film in September 2025. Veronika will be in Jihlava from Thursday, October 30 to Saturday, November 1, and is open to meetings.
The festival will once again host the traditional meeting of the KineDok partner countries. Managers and coordinators from participating countries will discuss the selection of VR films for the upcoming year and will also take part in the industry programme. You can meet Ivana Formanová, KineDok manager for the Czech Republic, and Eliška Hoskovcová, KineDok coordinator. If you’re interested in learning more about how KineDok operates in other countries – such as Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, or Croatia – feel free to get in touch as well. The KineDok team will be present at the festival from Tuesday, October 28 to Friday, October 31.
Ji.hlava is also a place where many projects supported by IDF are presented every year. This year’s edition even opened with the film Virtual Girlfriends (dir. Barbora Chalupová), which took part in Ex Oriente Film 2024 and was later presented at East Doc Forum 2025. Congratulations to the whole creative team!
Virtual Girlfriends (film still)
The Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival is the largest festival of auteur documentary cinema in Central and Eastern Europe and one of the continent’s most important events dedicated to the art of documentary. Each year, Ji.hlava presents over 300 films from around the world, often accompanied by their authors and creators in person.
You can find the full festival programme at www.ji-hlava.com.
Cover photo: Štefan Berec, Ji.hlava 2025