Our Mission
Millennium Docs Against Gravity initiated the trend of documentary films in Poland and has since generated broad interest among audiences, a result of the consistently developed and attractive festival program. The growing audience, the festival's international stature, and the increasing number of partners reflect the validity of the festival's development concept and the creation of a community of audiences and co-organizing organizations for one of the most important film events in Poland. The 21st edition of the festival in 2024 gathered an audience of over 165,000 people. As the only film festival in Europe, it takes place simultaneously in 7 cities: Warsaw, Wrocław, Gdynia, Poznań, Katowice, Bydgoszcz, and Łódź.
Our festival is evolving in a nomadic manner, in line with the 21st century, seeking audiences all over the country. We believe this is the future of film festivals. We take the priorities of promoting film culture by our partnering institutions who financially support the festival very seriously. MDAG is also a co-founder and member of the Doc Alliance, which brings together seven key European documentary film festivals: CPH: DOX Copenhagen, DOK Leipzig, IDFF Jihlava, FID Marseille, Visions du Réel Nyon, Doclisboa, and Millennium Docs Against Gravity.
Our festival was the first in Poland to introduce a competition for the best feature-length documentary film (Bank Millennium Award). In 2009 and 2023, our festival received the prestigious award from the Polish Film Institute for the "most important international film event" in Poland. The festival was also nominated in the same category in 2013.
OVER 165 000 PEOPLE PARTICIPATED IN 21st MILLENNIUM DOCS AGAINST GRAVITY FILM FESTIVAL [SEE PHOTOS]
Our reach and festival goers
MDAG is second largest film festival in Poland, the most significant celebration of documentary art in the country, and one of the largest film events worldwide.
It is the only film festival in Europe that takes place simultaneously in seven different cities (Warsaw, Wrocław, Gdynia, Katowice, Poznań, Bydgoszcz, and Łódź).
Total amount of festival goers in 2024: 165 255 participants
Total amount of films in the 2024 programme: Over 190
Our viewers
Great success of 3rd MDAG INDUSTRY!
5 days of MDAG Industry, 4 pitchings, 37 projects, over 280 one-on-one meetings, 11 educational events.
We have just concluded the third edition of the industry section: MDAG Industry. This is a project of a unique event for the film industry, which connects Polish creators with international festival representatives, distributors, producers, sales agents, and well-known stars of contemporary cinema.
We strive to make Warsaw and MDAG a place where the best projects from Poland, Eastern, and Central Europe are presented, and participants are excellently prepared for discussions and presentations with buyers, festivals, and producers from the West.
A total of 1,205 people participated in the events (a 20% increase compared to the previous year).
2024
Winners
Partners
Total amount of media patrons:
31
Total amount of festival partners:
50
Media presence
Amount of publications/appearances in 2024:
7035
AVE (Advertising Value Equivalent) in 2024:
39 854 505 PLN
Events
The schedule of the 21th MDAG encompassed a total of 221 accompanying events, concerts, and Q&A sessions - both offline and online.
Audiences had the opportunity to listen to and ask questions to 120 creators or film protagonists during 130 meetings with them.
Q&A’s with artists
The 21st edition of MDAG provided an opportunity to meet with numerous prominent figures from the world of documentary cinema. The festival once again hosted filmmakers and film protagonists from various corners of the globe, creating a remarkable occasion for personal conversations and exchange of ideas.
Dorottya Zurbó, co-director of the film "The Agent of Happiness," is known for her documentaries "The Next Guardian" and "Easy Lessons." Her works have been presented at numerous international festivals.
Lana Wilson, director of the film "Look Into My Eyes", has directed films such as "After Tiller" and "Miss Americana." She is an Emmy Award winner and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Her latest film, "Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields," received critical acclaim and two Emmy nominations.
Eliza Kubarska, director of the film "The Last Expedition," specializes in mountain-themed documentaries. Her films, such as "K2. Touching the Sky," have won many international awards. Kubarska is also an experienced mountaineer.
Łukasz Ronduda and Dawid Nickel co-directed the film "Rave." Ronduda, a curator at the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, is known for the film "All Our Fears." Nickel, a graduate of the Krzysztof Kieślowski Film School, gained recognition for his debut feature film "Love Tasting."
Lidia Duda, director of the film "Forest," is a two-time Grand Prix winner at the Krakow Film Festival. Her previous film "Fledglings" won the Marco Zucchi Award at the Locarno Film Festival 2022 and four awards at the MDAG Festival.
Alys Tomlinson and Cécile Embleton, co-directors of the film "Mother Vera," are renowned visual artists. Tomlinson is an award-winning photographer (series "Ex Voto"), and Embleton has received numerous accolades for her short films.
Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie co-directed the film "Sugarcane." NoiseCat, a writer and journalist, debuts as a filmmaker, while Kassie, an investigative journalist, has won many awards for her reporting and documentaries.
Klara Tasovská, director of the film "I Am Not Everything I Want to Be," is a graduate of FAMU in Prague and the author of award-winning documentaries. Libuše Jarcovjáková, the protagonist of her film, documented the lives of minorities in Czechoslovakia and Germany.
Basel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Balal, and Yuval Abraham co-directed the film "No Other Land," which received the Grand Prix - Millennium Bank Award. Adra and Balal are Palestinian activists and documentarians, while Szor and Abraham are Israeli filmmakers and journalists.
Lea Hartlaub, director of the film "sr," creates films and video installations. She graduated in photography and media studies and completed postgraduate studies at the Academy of Media Arts in Cologne.
Karolina Domagalska, director of the film "Abortion Dream Team," is a reporter, activist, and author of the book "I Will Not Apologize for Giving Birth. Stories of Families with IVF." She is also the author of the podcast "Coś na A" about abortion.
Johan Grimonprez, director of the film "Soundtrack to a Coup d'État," is a Belgian multidisciplinary artist. His works have been exhibited in museums worldwide, and his films have won awards at festivals such as Berlinale and Tribeca.
Rachel Ramsey, co-director of the film "Copa 71," made her debut as a co-director of a feature documentary shown at TIFF 2023. Previously, she produced documentaries such as "End of the Storm" and "Sachin: A Billion Dreams."
Debates and workshops
During the 21st edition of the festival, a total of 92 events took place in all seven cities.
Accompanying events in Warsaw
Labyrinths of Modernity and Lessons from the Past
During the 21st MDAG, we invited audiences on a fascinating journey through the mysteries of mature relationships and the art of communication with the film "Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other." We also sought a recipe for eternal peace and the perfect life in our discussion following the film "Monk."
A significant highlight of our program was the debate organized in collaboration with Amnesty International after the film "No Other Land". The film sheds light on the complex aspects of the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Together with invited guests, we examined the rules governing wars and the methods of tracking and proving war crimes, genocides, and apartheid. We discussed modern technological challenges, including the issue of deepfakes and the unauthorized use of images in the film "Another Body" delving into the rights of individuals affected by this phenomenon with invited experts.
Festival events also featured meetings with extraordinary individuals like Kai Landre, the protagonist of the film "Cyborg Generation." Kai is a musician with an implanted extra sense that captures cosmic subatomic particles in the atmosphere, converting them into notes used for composing. What does the merging of body and technology mean for humanity? We had the opportunity to ask him this and other questions in person.
We discussed the power of perseverance, determination, and the fight against the most unexpected adversaries in the context of the film "Jesszilla." The story of a teenage boxer dreaming of competing in the Olympics, but facing unforeseen problems, can be an inspiration for many.
Documentary film offers a chance to explore the fascinating diversity of cultures and societies. Japan—a country of delicacy and advanced technology, but also of contrasts. Does it reflect what awaits Poland? We found out after one of the screenings of "The Making of a Japanese" during a panel co-organized with the monthly magazine ZNAK.
The screening of the film "Fakir" inspired us to meet with the Towards Dialogue Foundation and prepare the unusual performance "TAJSA." Through this unique event, we aimed to activate, strengthen, and inspire actions towards positive social change. TAJSA is an expression of the need to recognize Romani people, their culture, distinctiveness, customs, and language.
We also tackled topics of women's experiences and their significance in various aspects of life. It was an excellent opportunity to revisit remarkable heritage and hear their voices. We explored the impact of women on the history of music and art during the screening of the film "Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg." Additionally, with "The Disappearance of Shere Hite," we returned to the decades-long debate on female sexuality and sexual education. We sought reasons why, despite nearly 50 years since the release of the Shere Hite Report, these topics are still taboo for us.
To conclude the festival, following the screening of "Copa 71," we prepared a discussion on the condition of women's football in Poland. We analyzed the challenges faced by women in this field and pondered why men's football continues to enjoy better treatment.
Over the years, the festival has continued the tradition of presenting films addressing important issues related to ecology and human relationships with nature. During a discussion conducted in collaboration with WWF Poland following the screening of the film "I Am a River, the River Is Me," experts delved into the topic of river protection, treating them as a crucial element of our planet's circulatory system.
We bade farewell with a true feast not only for the eyes but also for the palate! "Menus Plaisirs - Les Troisgros" was a culinary-cinematic journey through a world where food can be viewed as a work of art. On the last day of the festival, we took the audience on a discovery of new flavors, serving a special tasting menu inspired by the film, prepared by Kubuś Piekarenka.
It was a journey through a world of discoveries, insights, and reflections.
Feedback from festival guests
„With all sincerity, I feel that MDAG is "firing on all cylinders" - really a top-class international film festival. You have reached a level where everything you are doing - industry days, official programming, guest networking - is absolutely relevant. The difficult part is to maintain that level, but I am confident that MDAG will find its way. Thank you so much for inviting me to participate. I greatly enjoyed all aspects of my time at MDAG and will forever hold it in my heart.”
— Jaie Laplante, artistic director at DOC NYC
„How can I thank you enough for such an extraordinary time in Warsaw? It was an absolute joy to be at MDAG, to share my film with audiences, to meet so many other incredible and interesting filmmakers and writers, and most of all, to meet you. Thank you for making this experience one of the best of my life. I know and saw how much work it was - and I am really grateful. Counting down the days until I can come to Warsaw again.”
— Lana Wilson, director of „Look Into My Eyes”
The festival is on all year round
A look at the Against Gravity film cycles
May is particularly important for us because that is when we get to meet you during our festival screenings. However we continue to work throughout the year, organizing film cycles to promote education and important social issues. They appear in various cities, giving a wide audience the opportunity to see festival (and not just festival) hits.
VOD.MDAG.PL!
Everything started with Millennium Docs Against Gravity, the biggest film festival in Poland. In 2020, a memorable year, the festival introduced a hybrid formula: over 100 films were presented online after the cinema edition. Its tremendous success served as further proof that it was time to create a new place on the Web for the most interesting documentaries and feature films—a place where anyone could broaden their knowledge of our reality, look upon other people with tenderness, and discover the most pressing problems of the modern world.
We favor diversity of subjects, which is why our catalogue features plenty of movies about politics, the society, psychology, science, sport, art, architecture, and fashion. Feature films available on our platform are mainly art-house pictures that push the boundaries of contemporary cinematic language.
In addition to promoting film culture and delivering powerful experiences to our viewers, sparking curiosity is a major part of our mission. This is why we introduced a separate section of our platform devoted to broadly defined modern education. While mainly intended for the attendees of our courses at top Polish universities, it’s also a great choice for students as well as parents and kids. Extensive additional material allows for a broader understanding of the stories presented in the films and creates more interactive content for everyone whose curiosity about the world led them to vod.mdag.pl.