Documenta Madrid
May 7 to May 16, 2009

About the Festival
Documenta Madrid is an international film festival dedicated exclusively to documentary film. Its offices are located in the capital of Spain and it is organized by the City of Madrid. It is presently the city's most widely-attended festival.

The festival was born for the purpose of strengthening and disseminating the documentary genre , in so far as it understood to be a reflection of the social, cultural, economic, artistic, environmental, and other realities that exist in the world.

From the selection of films, which is done exclusively using qualitative criteria and respect for any and all critical viewpoints of our surroundings, Documenta seeks to provide an annual meeting place for professionals, creators, and the public to whom the work is aimed.

Documenta is a continuously evolving festival and aspires to improve year after year as a showcase for the best in international documentary film, one which brings us closer to both the classics as well as the latest offerings in the genre. For this reason, we dedicate our attention equally to three general blocks of activities: screenings (in both public and private screening rooms, and conserving the original language and formats), parallel activities (publications, exhibitions, presentations, gatherings, round tables, DVD releases, etc.), and training activities (conferences, instructional classes, workshops, etc.).

Our understanding of the documentary is based on a dual commitment. Firstly, a commitment to aesthetics, which shows how present day documentary filmmaking breaks new ground in its language and form , thus distancing itself for the most part from the standardized norms. Secondly, we are convinced that non-fiction work makes us all more aware of the need to change the world in order to improve it . Our most intimate calling, our dream, is that by opening some windows to the world in each screening, we make an audience member aware of an issue, and thereby make that person reflect on it, make the issue his/her own, and perhaps then... do something about it.

Along with this wish, two other priorities for the festival are to further enjoy making Documenta Madrid a reality and to make the guests and attendees feel at home among us.

DOCUMENTA MADRID 10’s main objective is to develop, strengthen and disseminate the documentary as part of the audiovisual sector, as we believe it to be one of the most suitable media for reflecting social, cultural, economic and artistic realities. The festival seeks to promote the audiovisual genre and at the same time provide an annual meeting place for professionals, artists and the public for whom this work is carried out. The abundance of films received and the high audience attendance rates at past festivals have made it one of the leading events in the genre on the national and international scenes.

Call For Entries
The call for entries has been opened to participate in the 6th International Documentary Festival of Madrid, organized by the Government’s Department of the Arts. Anyone interested can send in their work before the deadline of December 31, 2008. The competition will be held from May 1 to May 10, 2009 and will have prize-winnings of 73,000 Euros. As a new feature this year, the winner of the Audience Award for Original Full-length film will be distributed as part of the “Documentary of the Month” series.
Submit film online
Regulations and Rules PDF


Submit in one click from your fest21.com account.

DOCUMENTA MADRID 10 will feature four Competitive Sections:


ORIGINAL FULL LENGTH DOCUMENTARY FILM COMPETITION

FULL-LENGTH FILMS
First prize of the jury , to be awarded 10,000 € and a trophy.
Second prize of the jury , to be awarded 5,000 € and a trophy.
Honorable mention of the jury , to be awarded a diploma.
Audience award for best film , to be awarded 3.000 € and a diploma.

SHORT FILMS
First prize of the jury , to be awarded 5,000 € and a trophy.
Second prize of the jury , to be awarded 3,000 € and a trophy.
Honorable mention of the jury , to be awarded a diploma.
Audience award for best film , to be awarded 3.000 € and a diploma.

DOCUMENTARY FILM CONTEST

First prize of the jury , to be awarded 10,000 € and a trophy.
Second prize of the jury , to be awarded 5,000 € and a trophy.
Honorable mention of the jury , to be awarded a diploma.
Audience award for best film , to be awarded 3.000 € and a diploma.

NATIONAL COMPETITION

FULL-LENGTH FILMS
First prize of the jury , to be awarded 8,000 € and a trophy.
Second prize of the jury , to be awarded 4,000 € and a trophy.
Audience award , to be awarded 2.000 € and a diploma.

SHORT FILMS
First prize of the jury , to be awarded 4.000 € and a trophy.
Second prize of the jury , to be awarded 3,000 € and a trophy.
Audience award, to be awarded 2.000 € and a diploma.

FILMOTECH.COM
Filmotech.com Award , to be awarded 3,000 € and a diploma.

The awards can neither be declared void nor be given ex aequo.
The organization will be able to decide on other awards for extraordinary achievements.
There will be no right of appeal against the decision of the jury.
All the awards will be subject to the deductions and withholdings provided

The complete rules and regulations and the online registration form are available at the festival website:Regulations and Rules PDF