The Filmplaneet in Ghent founded the Ghent Viewpoint Documentary Film Festival in 1994, to focus explicitly on documentary films.
During its original nine year run, the festival has become a respected international festival and is renowned for its strong, qualitative and independent film selection. Highlights were Frederic Wiseman's Domestic Violence, which had it’s World Premiere at the Venice Film Festival, and the Focus dedicated to the work of American documentary filmmaker Alan Berliner, who presented his latest film personally. In association with SMAK it also hosted Harmony Korine photo series ‘Milk Chicken Review’ and ‘Coke Head Swingers’ and the video installation ‘The Diary of Anna Frank. Part II’. The festival has hosted many noteworthy filmmakers: Kim Longinotto, Michael Glawogger, Hans Van den Broeck, Monteith McCollum, Gabriel Noble, Deborah Hoffmann, Frances Reid, Thom Vander Beken. Unfortunately, in its original incarnation, the festival came to an end in 2003.
Inspired by that original movement, the revived Ghent Viewpoint Documentary Film Festival, now in it’s 13th edition, will continue to emphasize lesser known, vanguard documentary works and further its tradition of galvanizing budding talent.
Most importantly, the Ghent Viewpoint Documentary Film Festival will create a space for unique visionaries and voices. True to its history, the festival will screen films of both novices and veterans—with medium and low budgets—from all over the globe. The festival’s goal is to create a warm, open atmosphere in which filmmakers, fans, critics, and producers can watch the films of emerging talents, explore new cinematic techniques and styles, and award cinematic excellence.
The Ghent Viewpoint Documentary Film Festival will create an intimate atmosphere in which to revel in the beauty and wonder of the cinema with like-minded cineastes from all over the globe.
The Ghent Viewpoint Documentary Film Festival will take place at Studio Skoop, the leading arthouse cinema in Ghent, Belgium in April 2019.
Out of the official selections, an international jury will select one winner in each category (Feature Documentary, Short Documentary, ...). One film will be labeled as 'best of the fest'. Each winner will receive a film festival entry package that equals 500 USD worth of submission fees with partner festivals (Brussels Independent Film Festival, Hong Kong Arthouse Film Festival, Boston Short Film Festival, London Super Shorts Film Festival ...).
The competition is divided into the following categories:
Documentary Feature Films (documentaries up to 120 minutes)
Documentary Short Films (documentaries up to 40 minutes)
Environment Films (documentaries on climate change, nature, wild life, ...)
Society Films (documentaries on immigration, politics, movements, ...)
LGBT Films (documentaries on gender issues, sexual orientation, ...)
Health Films (documentaries on both mental and physical health)
Artist Films (documentaries on musicians, filmmakers, artists, ...)
Experimental Films (documentaries that uses an experimental approach)