Each year, the DOCU/BEST programme features films that have made waves at major international forums and deserve the attention of Ukrainian audiences, as they push boundaries and reimagine the possibilities of contemporary creative documentary. Meet three films you must watch.
Curated by Docudays UA programmer Olga Sydorushkina.
In If Pigeons Turned to Gold, Czech filmmaker Pepa Lubojacki confronts a hidden family wound with courage and compassion. Rather than silence or shame, she embraces radical honesty and the pursuit of healing, offering one of the most profoundly humane works in this year’s Docudays UA line-up. At its heart lies her relationship with her older brother, dependent on alcohol and living on the streets, unable to break free from his circumstances. Through this intimate lens, Pepa revisits their shared past, the legacy of addiction within her family, and society’s treatment of those pushed to the margins. Remarkably sincere and profoundly important, yet free of pathos — and at times playfully irreverent, as the director employs AI to inject a spark of mischief — the film confronts the brutal question: “What is it like to mourn someone who is still alive?” Its world premiere took place in the Berlinale Forum, where it received both the Berlinale Documentary Award for Best Documentary and the prestigious Caligari Film Award.
With its powerful cinematic vision and urgent social relevance, Silver by Natalia Koniarz has become one of the year’s standout international hits. The film journeys into Bolivia’s largest silver mine, observing miners whose families have lived and laboured there for generations, risking their lives while clinging to hope amid the bleakness of existence. The colonial legacy lingers, rebranded as global technology corporations exploiting silver as raw material. Here, artificial intelligence and advanced technologies stand side by side with near-medieval working conditions that have scarcely shifted in centuries.
In Silver, Natalia weaves a sorrowful yet strikingly beautiful tale, showing how capitalism confines everyone to their own mine, from which they yearn to break free.
Winner of the Golden Leopard at Locarno in 2025, Hair, Paper, Water… by Nicolas Graux and Trương Minh Quý invites audiences into the world of Cao Thi Hau. Through words and memories, she teaches her grandchildren the endangered language of the Ruc people. A homeopath and farmer, Hau embodies the oral traditions and natural heritage of her community, passing them on as a form of magic. Filmed on 16mm, the richly textured images convey a timeless intimacy, while the sounds of rustling leaves, mud, and water drops create a sensory encounter with fragility and grandeur alike.
Main photo: Hair, Paper, Water…
The 23rd Docudays UA is held with the financial support of the European Union, the Embassy of Sweden in Ukraine, and the State Film Agency of Ukraine. The views, conclusions, or recommendations expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the governments of these countries. The authors alone are responsible for the content of this publication.
