Explore: Documentary
Animation Shorts
Forms collide in this assorted collection of visual storytelling.
Aquarius
The age of Aquarius floods into Nimbin in this radical, love-fuelled documentary exploring the lasting impact of a 1970s counterculture crucible.
Architecton
Rock your world with this mesmerising documentary about the increasingly impermanent building blocks of civilisation.
As the Tide Comes In
Amid the climate crisis, an eight-square-kilometre island off the Danish coast is a microcosm of the rest of the world in this witty portrait.
Black Box Diaries
This daring work of first-person journalism charts the case that not only launched #MeToo in Japan but changed the country’s legal system for good.
The Cats of Gokogu Shrine
A Wiseman-esque study of a Japanese village’s Shinto shrine whose feline residents bring the local humans joy, solace and sometimes consternation.
A Century in Sound
Slip into the serene surrounds of Japanese ‘listening cafés’, where music lovers, audiophiles and locals come together to hear records.
Copa 71
Think the global surge in interest in women’s football is a relatively recent occurrence? This eye-opening documentary asks you to think again.
Crushed
A harrowing account of an abusive and violent relationship during a woman’s early adulthood.
Dahomey
As the restitution conversation gains global momentum, this striking Berlinale Golden Bear–winning documentary follows a stolen statue home.
Dale Frank – Nobody's Sweetie
The greatest look yet at a well-known artist very few have seen up close, as the titular visionary recluse invites us into his home.
Daughters
From EPs Kerry Washington and Joel Edgerton, this film joins four girls as they reunite with their incarcerated fathers for the Daddy Daughter Dance.
DEVO
This effusive documentary explodes onto the screen as it chronicles the remarkable rise and staying power of the 80s new-wave band behind ‘Whip It’.
Dig! XX
A classic tale of fame and destruction is revisited in this reconstructed rock doc about The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre.
Direct Action
Winner of the Berlinale’s Encounters Award for Best Film, this bold and vital documentary explores the militant activist community in France.
Documentary Shorts
Far-reaching, resonating subjects pulled from various corners of the world.
Dory Previn: On My Way to Where
Her uniquely emotional songwriting fuelled the best revenge on her cheating husband: a brilliant second solo career.
Ellis Park
Legendary Australian musician Warren Ellis takes us on a guided tour through his world and one very special animal sanctuary.
Emperor
An interactive and surrealist voyage into the mind of a father experiencing aphasia.
Ernest Cole: Lost and Found
Raoul Peck (I Am Not Your Negro) profiles the man who exposed apartheid in South Africa in this winner of the Cannes L’Œil d’Or for Best Documentary.
Ever Since, I Have Been Flying
A profound portrait of survival set among the mountains of south-eastern Türkiye.
Every Little Thing
In this big-hearted documentary, a Los Angeles teacher takes time off to nurture injured hummingbirds and finds herself on an uplifting journey.
Experimental Shorts
Unconventional cinema that tests the boundaries of form and function.
The Falling Sky
A stunning doc that follows the Yanomami people of the Amazon as they perform a sacred rite and defend their homeland from the incursion of mining.
Flathead
Two men in rural Queensland search for solace in spirituality in this cinematic blend of documentary and fiction.
Fulldome Showcase 1
MIFF’s popular annual program of fulldome screenings at the Melbourne Planetarium returns for the 2024 festival.
Fulldome Showcase 2
MIFF’s popular annual program of fulldome screenings at the Melbourne Planetarium returns for the 2024 festival.
Fungi: Web of Life
Lose yourself in this immersive trip into the fascinating world of fungi, as narrated by Björk.
Future Council
Damon Gameau (That Sugar Film) takes eight kids on the ultimate school excursion: a road trip across Europe to seek solutions to the climate crisis.
Gaucho Gaucho
A Sundance-awarded film about an Argentine cowboy community, elevated by sublime monochrome cinematography and sweeping western-inspired imagery.
Gigi
Aquatic and amphibious imagery act as motifs for a young woman’s recollections of her life.
Grandmamauntsistercat
Winner of the Berlinale’s Teddy Award for Best Short Film, this story of a matriarchal family repurposes archival footage from communist Poland.
I Shall Not Hate
This doc from the streets of Israel and Palestine charts a five-time Nobel-nominated doctor’s mission to turn personal tragedy into worldwide hope.
Immortals
Two activist-survivors navigate the aftermath of Iraq’s October 2019 protests in this extraordinary collaborative portrait of contemporary Iraq.
Impossible Space
A symphonic journey through fascinating real and artificial visual worlds, inspired by the spirit of science and discovery.
INNERSTAR 01: Reddening
The first entry in a series inspired by astronomical phenomena and the exploration of consciousness and existence from a philosophical perspective.
Intercepted
A haunting psychological portrait of invasion, this Berlinale-awarded documentary covertly listens in as Russian troops call home.
Iranian Subversive Documentaries, 1961-67
Three works manifesting the subversive nature of Iranian New Wave documentary cinema as well as their deep roots in poetry.
It follows It passes on
Postwar memories of the Taiwanese Kinmen Islands are seen as if through broken glass, summoned by way of incense, ceramics, sand, light and shadows.
Iwakura
Rooted in Shinto mythology, Iwakura invokes the spirits that embody the sacred rock formations found throughout Japan.
Kanoon: From Didactic to Poetic, 1974-77
A suite of films produced by Kanoon, the celebrated government agency that brought culture and literacy to children and young adults in Iran.
Lasting Impressions
Plunge between the brushstrokes of impressionist artworks in this 3D spectacle that honours their daringly modern beauty.
Left Write Hook
For eight survivors of childhood sexual abuse, a program that combines boxing and writing turns into a journey of recovery and friendship.
Like My Brother
From the Tiwi Islands to Melbourne and back again, four young women who seek to make it in elite sport must face uncertain futures.
Limbotopia
First-time director Hsieh Wen-Yee presents a surreal trip through a post-apocalyptic Taiwan.
Look Into My Eyes
Supporter and sceptic alike will be touched as seven psychics connect clients with the supernatural – or simply with what’s buried in their psyches.
Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger
Hear Martin Scorsese wax lyrical about how the mesmerising films of two of Britain’s finest inspired his own adventures in cinema.
Man number 4
Gaza, December 2023. A confrontation with a disturbing photo on social media triggers questions about what it means to be an onlooker.
The Medallion
Ethiopian-Australian filmmaker Ruth Hunduma hears her mother’s testimony of surviving the ‘Red Terror’ genocide of Ethiopia in the 1970s.
Menus-Plaisirs – Les Troisgros
Frederick Wiseman’s 44th feature documentary turns the lens on the kitchens of a Michelin three-star French restaurant and the family that runs it.
Metaract
The artist’s quest for meaning is revealed through natural environments, which are recontextualised and juxtaposed with digital elements.
Mogwai: If the Stars Had a Sound
A voyage through the singular career of Scottish post-rock legends Mogwai, from their beginnings in the 90s to the creation of their latest album.
Music on Film Gala - Ellis Park
Legendary Australian musician Warren Ellis takes us on a guided tour through his world and one very special animal sanctuary.
A New Kind of Wilderness
Winner of a Sundance Grand Jury Prize for Documentary, this film follows a family living off-grid and facing change in the wake of the unexpected.
No Other Land
An impassioned and eye-opening piece of documentary activism by an Israeli–Palestinian film collective, awarded Best Documentary at the Berlinale.
Occupied City
This immersive, epic work of memorialisation from Oscar winner Steve McQueen uncovers WWII histories hidden in plain sight.
Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird
The untold 40-year story of the crowning moments, creative turmoils and deep friendship of the pair behind At the Drive-In and The Mars Volta.
On Plains of Larger River & Woodlands
For two young women stuck in suburban Hobart, there’s little to do but gossip, vent and take another hit from the bong.
Queens of Concrete
Three Australian girls seek the ultimate success in the world of competitive skateboarding while sliding into an adolescence without handrails.
Queer Utopia: Act I Cruising
Bear witness to an ageing queer man’s recollections as he reconstructs his life from memories that are slowly fading away.
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Winner of two Sundance awards, this moving documentary traces a young man’s exploits in a virtual world amid the restrictions of his physical life.
Rewards for the Tribe
An intimate and uplifting dance documentary that ponders human connection and perfection, featuring Chunky Move and Restless Dance Theatre.
The Ride Ahead
Samuel Habib expands on his Emmy-nominated short My Disability Roadmap with this filmed road trip seeking guidance on how to live a “bad-ass” life.
Scala!!!
Delirious, debaucherous and downright dangerous – the Scala played home to sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll (and John Waters) in Thatcher-era London.
Secret Mall Apartment
Exec-produced by Jesse Eisenberg, this stranger-than-fiction doc recounts how a 2000s artist collective spent four years living in a shopping mall.
Shadowtime
Join a mysterious guide through a double world that straddles time periods, realities and scales of matter.
Slow Shift
Monkeys overrun the remains of an ancient civilisation in this rich reflection on myth and reality.
Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat
US jazz collides with Cold War crimes in this film examining the CIA’s role in state-sanctioned murder – and its use of pop music to cover its tracks.
Stephen Cummins Retrospective
A crucial chapter in Australia’s queer history is brought to light in this National Film and Sound Archive restoration of Stephen Cummins’s films.
The Stimming Pool
Immerse yourself in a wildly imaginative, proudly neurodivergent world informed by autistic perspectives and perception.
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
A nuanced and inspirational account of the life-changing legacy of leading man turned disability activist Christopher Reeve.
Teaches of Peaches
Class is in session! Celebrate the world of gender-punk icon Peaches in this audacious Teddy Award–winning documentary.
This Is a Film About The Black Keys
Ohio-born bluesy rockers The Black Keys get candid and introspective in this warts-and-all documentary direct from SXSW.
Twilight Time
A profile of Australian academic, agitator and surveillance expert Des Ball – the man who counselled the US against nuclear escalation in the 1970s.
Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other
The complex relationship between two married artists is laid bare in this searing and joyful portrait of love and creativity in autumn.
Very Gentle Work
Direct from Cannes, this eerie tour visits sites of ‘violent righteousness’.
Voice
An inspirational insider’s look at a youth-led cross-country road trip to gather grassroots support for the Australian Indigenous Voice referendum.
Welcome Space Brothers
Hop aboard as this engrossing film takes you to the world of the Unarians: cosmic visionaries who believe in higher planes, therapy and movie-making.
Wilding
Letting it all go to seed is the answer to revitalising the land and its visitors, suggests this soul-nourishing film about innovative farming.
The World According to Allee Willis
A kaleidoscopic ride through the 50-year career of the mega-hit songwriter behind the Friends theme song, Earth Wind & Fire’s ‘September’ and more.
You Should Have Been Here Yesterday
Be swept up in this homage to the birth of Aussie surf culture compiled from 200 hours of home movies, iconic documentaries and restored 16mm footage.