DOK Leipzig 2026: The Awards

Andrei Kutsila’s haunting portrait of Belarussian activists hunted by the regime, Letters from the Silenced Country, won this year’s feature-length Golden Dove in the International Competition Documentary Film section of the 69th DOK Leipzig festival, while Laura Poitras and Rachel Lauren Mueller’s They’re Here, a dystopian look at anonymous citizens resisting a paramilitary occupation of Minneapolis, took home the Golden Dove for a short film in the same category.

International Competition Documentary Film
Golden Dove Feature-Length Film:
Letters from the Silenced Country
dir. Andrei Kutsila | PL, LT, D

Golden Dove Short Film:
They’re Here
dir. Laura Poitras, Rachel Lauren Mueller | US 2026

Silver Dove Feature-Length Film:
Concrete Land
dir. Asmahan Bkerat | JO, PS 2026

Silver Dove Short Film:
in memory of
dir. Florinda Ciucio | BE 2026

International Competition Animated Film
Golden Dove Feature-Length Film
The Orbit of Minor Satellites
dir. Chris Sullivan | US, JP 2026

Golden Dove Short Film
Terminal
dir. Alexandre Siqueira | PT, FR, ES 2026

German Competition Documentary Film
Golden Dove Feature-Length Film
Transition
dir. Peter Badel, Chris Wright | DE 2026

Golden Dove Short Film
Hello Debus
dir. Rosa Gocht | DE 2026

Audience Competition
Golden Dove
Nicole Nicole
dir. Lauren Dällenbach | CH, FR 2026

Partnership Awards
In addition, ten Partnership Awards were presented:

Jasmine Alakari received the €2,000 ver.di Prize for Solidarity, Humanity and Fairness for “Free Zone” (DE).

The €4,000 DEFA Sponsoring Prize, granted by the DEFA Foundation, was awarded to Tete Hoffmann for “My Brilliant Father“ (Mein genialer Vater | DE).

The €3,000 MDR Film Prize for an outstanding Eastern European documentary film went to Andrei Kutsila for “Letters from the Silenced Country” (Listy | PL, LT, DE).

The €2,000 Prize of the Interreligious Jury went to Kamila Serwicka for “Blossoming”  (A teraz wiosna | PL). This award is donated by Hotel Michaelis (VCH-Hotels) in Leipzig as well as the Interreligious Round Table and the Oratorium Leipzig. The jury also gave a special mention to Helena T?eštíková for “Bára – Diary of a Rockstar“ (Bára Basiková | CZ).

The Young Eyes Film Award was presented to “Moving Sisters”  (GR) by Christos Stefanou. This €2,000 award is sponsored by Rahn Dittrich Group’s European Foundation for Education and Culture and awarded by the Youth Jury in cooperation with LFD – Fachstelle für Medien und Bildung.

The Prize of the International Film Critics (FIPRESCI Prize) went to “Auber 89” (FR, IT) by Giuseppe Schillaci.

The mephisto 97.6 Award went to the short animated film “When the Sea Was Calm“ (GE) by Mamuka Tkeshelashvili.

The jury comprised of prisoners at the Juvenile Detention Centre Regis-Breitlingen presented two awards. The award Gedanken-Aufschluss went to “Last Round” (Haus der Trinker | DE) by Janis Westphal.

The film.land.sachsen Prize for Film Culture in Rural Areas, presented in cooperation with Filmverband Sachsen e.V., went to Dieter Schumann for “Garden of Hope” (Garten der Hoffnung | DE).

The Film Prize Leipziger Ring honours an outstanding documentary film about human rights, democracy or civil engagement. It is granted by the Stiftung Friedliche Revolution and has a value of €2,500. This award was presented to Barbara Kopple for “Union Town“ (US) on Saturday at noon at Passage Kinos (Filmeck).