Documentary Film Festival Visions du Réel 2026 Lineup for 57th Edition
'Heat' film still
Courtesy of Visions du Reel
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Swiss documentary film festival Visions du Réel (VdR), meaning “Visions of Reality,” unveiled its 2026 lineup on Wednesday, featuring the latest films from established and new names, as well as a selection of the best from the recent fest circuit.
The 57th edition of the festival in Nyon, near Geneva, which runs April 17-26, will present a program featuring 164 films from a record 75 countries. “Among the 128 new films presented, 83 are world premieres and eight international premieres. 58 first films, including 36 first feature-length films, complete the picture,” with no fewer than 26 Swiss productions or co-productions, organizers said.
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Among the lineup are Heat, the new doc by Jacqueline Zünd, and such recent festival highlights as John Wilson’s The History of Concrete, American Doctor by Poh Si Teng, Jaripeo by Efraín Mojica and Rebecca Zweig, and CPH:DOX winner and hybrid doc Whispers in May by Dongnan Chen. Even Oliver Laxe’s Oscar-nominated drama Sirât made the cut. The 57th edition will open with a screening of Oscar-winning filmmaker Laura Poitras’ Cover-Up.
“We are delighted to note that the reputation of Visions du Réel and its films continues to grow, allowing us to continually expand the cinematic territories and realities explored, as well as to reaffirm our ambition to showcase new talent – the number of first films has risen to 58, including 36 debut feature-length films, and the screenings will feature 83 world premieres and eight  international premieres,” highlighted VdR artistic director Emilie Bujès. “While some producing countries differ from the filmmaker’s origin or the country where the film was shot for financial or political reasons, the number of countries represented in the selection continues to rise steadily and significantly.”
And she noted: “Certain regions, such as Asia, particularly stand out in 2026, as well as relatively rare countries like Sudan (in the Burning Lights Competition), Vietnam, Indonesia, Yemen and Palestine – which delights us both from a cinematic and a symbolic perspective.”
Among this year’s special guests at VdR will be Kelly Reichardt, the guest of honor for the 57th edition. Beyond a retrospective of her films and a curated selection of documentaries chosen by the filmmaker, a special evening will be dedicated to her, featuring a ceremony and the premiere screening of The Mastermind, her latest feature. A masterclass will take place the following day. Also, Sergei Loznitsa is the special guest at this year’s VdR.
Check out the 2026 Visions du Réel lineup below.
International Feature Film Competition
A Fire There by Marlene Edoyan, Canada, 2026, 94’, world premiere
Death in the Making by Piotr Pawlus, Netherlands/Poland, 2026, 84’, world premiere
Dentro by Elsa Amiel, France/Switzerland, 2026, 95’, world premiere
Djeliya, mémoire du Mandé by Boubacar Sangaré, Burkina Faso/Côte d’Ivoire/Mali/Senegal/France, 2026, 112’, world premiere
From Dawn to Dawn by Xisi Sofia Ye Chen, Spain/France, 2026, 94’, world premiere
Heat by Jacqueline Zünd, Switzerland, 2026, 87’, world premiere
Humboldt USA by G. Anthony Svatek, USA, 2026, 89’, world premiere
Magilligan by Ross McClean, United Kingdom/Ireland/USA, 2026, 74’, world premiere
Meanwhile in Namibia by Jonas Spriestersbach, Germany/Namibia, 2026, 120’, world premiere
Saudades Eternas by Emma Boccanfuso, Switzerland/France, 2026, 94’, world premiere
The Night and the Days of Miguel Burnier by João Dumans, Brazil, 2026, 82’, world premiere
The Price of the Sun by Jérôme Le Maire, Belgium/France/Morocco, 2026, 91’, world premiere
Two Mountains Weighing Down My Chest by Viv Li, Germany/Netherlands, 2026, 85’, international premiere
Burning Lights Competition
Above the Waterline by Elisa Sepulveda Ruddoff, Chile/France, 2026, 72’, world premiere
Alea Jacarandas by Hassen Ferhani, France/Algeria, 2026, 78’, world premiere
Baby Jackfruit Baby Guava by Nong Nhat Quang, Vietnam/South Korea, 2026, 104’, world premiere
Club Heaven by Jona Honer, Netherlands/Belgium, 2026, 78’, world premiere
Comme un château fort by Lou Colp&eac