IDFA celebrates Johan Grimonprez and announces new curated program Dead Angle

11.09.2024 – From 14 to 24 November, Amsterdam will host the Belgian multimedia artist and host a retrospective of Cuban documentaries

The 37th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) will take place from 14 to 24 November and has just announced its guest of honour for this year. The Belgian artist Johan Grimonprez will present his work – which focuses on the reinterpretation of historical events from a critical, contemporary perspective – in a retrospective that will also include his most recent, Soundtrack to a coupGrimonprez will also give the keynote lecture and present his top ten films. As a new addition, the festival will feature a curated program called Dead Angle, as well as a dedicated Spotlight on Cuba. The first titles from the IDFA DocLab, which explores the evolving landscape of interactive documentary art, were also unveiled.

This year, IDFA is inaugurating a multi-year curated program called Dead Angle, which explores the past and present through documentary cinema, “as a torch to illuminate the dark corners of our consciousness.” The first iteration is thematically linked to “borders,” exploring their complex symbolism and their physical and metaphorical presence in our lives. Confirmed titles include The Great Wall from Tadhg O'Sullivan, Route 181, fragments of a journey through Palestine and Israel from Michel Khleifi And Eyal SivanAnd Postponementled by Harun Farocki.

With this year's Spotlight on Cuba, IDFA invites audiences to explore Cuba's complex political history through 19 films and a retrospective of groundbreaking filmmakers Sara Gomezalong with a specially curated selection of films shot by students from EICTV (the International Film and Television School of San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba). The full selection of 19 titles has just been announced.

The 18th edition of IDFA's new media program, IDFA DocLab, presents an immersive documentary art exhibition across three locations. Among the first titles to premiere there are the four Film Fund DocLab Interactive Grant winners, ranging from augmented reality apps to immersive installations: the surreal animation Tongo Sound from Ruben Cabendathe wall-mounted installation The Liminal from Alaa Minawian augmented reality app called Future Botany from Marcel van Brakel And Hazal Erturkan by Polymorf and Lisa Schamlé's return to IDFA with I, a representation.