The Silver Eye Award 2026 for the best documentary film from the East Doc Market for films in the rough-cut stage goes to the project Inside (dir. Dorota Vlnová, prod. Roman Pivovarník, co-prod. Katarina Prpić). In addition to the main prize, the jury has decided to grant a Special Mention to the project Animals of the East (dir. Anna Ďurišíková, Andrej Kolenčík, prod. Andrej Kolenčík). Congratulations to all the awarded filmmakers!
The winners were announced on March 23 during the award ceremony held at Kino 35 of the French Institute in Prague. Alongside the recognition itself, the awarded project receives a year-long festival distribution support through the East Doc Caravan, helping the film travel across international festivals and reach wider audiences.
The final decision was made by an international jury composed of experienced industry professionals Diana Karklin from Rise and Shine World Sales and Hélder Beja, Director of Doclisboa – International Film Festival. Bringing together backgrounds in film sales, programming, and cultural production, the jury evaluated this year’s projects with a focus on artistic vision, urgency of topic, and the potential to resonate beyond national borders.
The jury commented on the main award as follows:
“Sometimes political debates are useless or at least should not be at the center of sharing our most private experiences. And there are things that cannot be fully explained with the help of words and arguments. In such instances, the sensorial serves as the language to communicate the experience of cultivating a life within oneself and the decision to terminate it.
Quoting Margaret Atwood in her poem “Christmas Carols”:
“A plane
swoops too low over the fox farm
and the mother eats her young. This too
is Nature.”
This film offers a truly innovative and poetic cinematic approach to the highly political topic of abortion rights and has the potential to shift the conversation in another direction. The award goes to INSIDE."
The jury also shared their statement on the Special Mention:
"In today’s world, where the so-called strongmen promote the so-called masculine values of force and aggression and the social media run by greedy oligarchs is driving us further apart, caring for the weaker becomes a revolutionary act regardless of gender. The heroes are not the ones that bomb and kill, but the ones that devote their time and energy to the ones that need it the most, be they humans or other living beings, which is the ultimate act of humanity. We think that we should counterposition stories of empathy to the grand narratives of good and evil and put the light on real heroes in the shadows. So… the special mention goes to ANIMALS OF THE EAST. ”
Since 2009, the Silver Eye Award has been recognizing outstanding documentary projects from Central and Eastern Europe as part of the East Doc Market, held within the East Doc Platform. The award continues to support filmmakers whose work stands out through its artistic originality, social relevance, and the courage to engage with complex or urgent themes, while offering audiences fresh and distinctive perspectives.
The East Doc Platform is made possible thanks to the financial support of Creative Europe MEDIA, Czech Audiovisual Fund, Ministry of Culture Czech Republic, the capital city of Prague, APA - Audiovisual Producers' Association, Czech-German Future Fund, HBO, Creative Europe Desk Czech Republic and the Austrian Cultural Forum.
The general media partner is the Czech television.
The event is held in cooperation with the One World Film Festival and the French Institute in Prague.