The 17th Beldocs Festival, which took place from May 22 to 29, 2024, in Belgrade, featured two unique interactive audiovisual programs – the now traditional XR Exhibition: Immersive Reality and the latest addition to the festival’s lineup, Play.docs Showcase. Audiences had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the content of both exhibitions at the Balkan Cinema by reserving time slots for the films online.
“It’s fascinating how immersive art opens up spatial possibilities for the realization of complex ideas, while also enduring, despite numerous challenges, whether artists approach it critically or use its illusionary power purposefully. In 2017, like other documentary film festivals around the world, we embraced immersive content and have since enabled the development of XR projects from this region and provided a space to showcase the latest global XR productions,” said Mara Prohaska Marković, director of Beldocs.
This year’s XR Exhibition included three XR works that were previously shown at prestigious film festivals. Comfortless (2023), by South Korean director Gina Kim, takes viewers into the world of the “American Town,” a brothel for U.S. soldiers during the Korean War. Shot on location in Gunsan, the film uses virtual reality to evoke the eerie atmosphere of the past.
The award-winning From the Main Square (2022) is an animated virtual experience by Brazilian director Pedro Harres, where the viewer witnesses the rise and fall of an imagined city built around a vibrant main square.
Shadowtime (2023), a collaboration between artists Sister Sylvester and Deniz Tortum, explores a constructed reality governed by different rules of time and space, with Alma as the guide, raising questions about the relationship between the virtual and real worlds and the ongoing climate crisis.
The new Play.docs program, created in collaboration with the Serbian Games Association (SGA), featured a selection of four video games where new technologies intersect with documentary filmmaking. Audiences had the chance to engage with these serious games through panel discussions, masterclasses, and interactive participation.
“Our goal is to promote discussions about important social, political, and environmental issues through these types of games and to engage audiences with interactive narratives that foster empathy and critical thinking. Connecting serious games and documentary films enriches the cultural discourse, pushing the boundaries of understanding and addressing global challenges,” said Andrijana Sofranić Šućur, head of the Beldocs Industry program.
About Beldocs
Beldocs is one of the leading international documentary film festivals in this part of Europe, held annually in May in Belgrade. Founded in 2008, this year’s edition showcased 13 program sections, over 100 premiere screenings across eight days at eight different locations. The festival awards six prizes in four competition programs. In addition to film screenings, Beldocs organizes panels and masterclasses, while its Industry activities include workshops with cash prizes for future film development. The festival attracts more than 150 international audiovisual industry experts, authors, and producers each year. Supported by over 200 partners in Serbia, the region, and Europe, Beldocs continues to grow under the guidance of a creative team of over 20 members, including film, design, and art experts. Since 2017, Beldocs has been a partner in European projects such as #europeanfilmchallenge, AVA Doc, Moving Cinema, Young4Film, and is a member of the European Documentary Network. More information can be found at www.beldocs.rs.
