The thirty second version of Sheffield DocFest 2025 is wrapping on Monday after an awards ceremony at Sheffield’s Crucible Playhouse, which honored Anastasiya Miroshnichenko‘a Welded Collectively with the pageant’s prime award. The documentary offers with alcoholism in Belarussian society, portraying a younger lady who’s desperately making an attempt to carry her household collectively.
This 12 months noticed 51 world premieres, 16 worldwide premieres, eight European premieres, and 39 U.Okay. premieres from 68 international locations of manufacturing display in Sheffield.
Here’s a have a look at the 2025 award winners.
Worldwide Competitors (Grand Jury Award)
Welded Collectively directed by Anastasiya Miroshnichenko (France, Netherlands, Belgium, 2025).
The jury stated: “A portrait of resilience and energy — each of the primary character and of a group that stands in solidarity. The movie highlights the distinction between the generosity of the folks and the tough realities of alcoholism within the Belarussian society. An trustworthy and delicate portrayal of a younger lady desperately making an attempt to carry her household ‘welded collectively’.”
Particular Point out: The Fuel Station Attendant, directed by Karla Murthy (USA, 2025)
The jury stated: “This love letter to the director’s father is an intimate and honest portrait of each a household and the U.S. society. The movie is delicately crafted with care, creativity, and sensibility.”
Worldwide First Characteristic Competitors (supported by Netflix)
Comparsa directed by Vickie Curtis, Doug Anderson (Guatemala, USA, 2025).
The jury stated: “The movie that we selected celebrates the ability of resilience of a group, whereas shedding mild on an unknown story of systemic gender-based violence. It’s a movie that introduces us to wonderful characters, sensible, delicate, with an astonishing inside pressure that’s an inspiration to push for change towards all odds. The film will depart us with a a lot wanted and highly effective sense of hope. The creativity, the entry, the belief constructed with the entire group made us fall in love with a film that opens vital dialog: come on stage, do a dance, sing with me: COMPARSAAAAA.”
Particular Point out: Carmela and the Walkers (Carmela y los Caminantes), directed by Luis Herrera, Esteban Coloma (Ecuador, 2025)
The jury stated: “This movie receives a particular point out for its deeply human portrayal of resilience, solidarity, and ethical braveness within the face of disaster. With extraordinary intimacy and empathy, the filmmakers make clear an pressing humanitarian concern by way of the highly effective lens of 1 lady’s on a regular basis heroism, providing a shifting testomony to the energy of group and compassion amid adversity.”
Worldwide Quick Movie Competitors
In a Whisper (Dans un Souffle) directed by Catarina Gonçalves (Portugal, Hungary, Belgium, 2025).
The jury stated: “For its daring and minimalistic, cinematic mastery, and thoughtfully crafted sound design, this elegant portrait of admiration and resilience displays the extraordinary expertise of a promising director whose trajectory is clearly on the rise.”
Particular Point out: Oscurana, directed by Violeta Mora (Honduras, Hungary, Portugal, Belgium, 2025)
The jury stated: “We wish to give an honourable point out to a gorgeous movie for its distinctive perspective, introduced in a visually sparse but powerfully affecting method. This sensory invitation fosters empathy for the human rights crises that immigrants face when crossing borders, and it’s now extra vital than ever on this unprecedented time.”
Tim Hetherington Award (introduced in affiliation with Dogwoof)
Sudan, Bear in mind Us (Sudan Y’a Ghali) directed by Hind Meddeb (France, Tunisia, Qatar, 2024).
The jury stated: “Set towards a women-led revolution, Sudan, Bear in mind Us captures the spirit of resistance and the deep human want for freedom. The movie is wealthy in color and texture, and there’s a quiet poetry in the way in which the story unfolds. It reminds us of the human capability for hope, the significance of empathy and the tragedy of loss. At its coronary heart is a deep sense of group the place the collective takes precedence over the person. This spirit of togetherness is likely one of the movie’s strongest messages.”
Worldwide Digital Actuality Competitors
Speechless Witness of a Wandering Tree.
The jury stated: “We unanimously agreed to present this award to a challenge that employs a poetic strategy to language and visible storytelling and acts as an intimate therapeutic ritual within the ongoing aftermath of hostility in direction of girls in an space of battle. By means of magical realism and the progressive use of the 360 cameras to constructively course of the impression of trauma and given the restrictions of manufacturing work on this area, the artists we really feel needs to be moreover counseled on the making of their work towards the backdrop of instability.”
Runa Simi directed by Augusto Zegarra (Peru, 2025) by “5 of the U.Okay.’s most passionate younger documentary lovers to have a good time non-fiction cinema.”
The jury stated: “Language is greater than only a technique of communication between peoples. Language shapes how we expect, our beliefs and our expertise of the world. Languages are dynamic; emerge from contexts, evolve, grow to be endangered, even extinct. It is a movie all about language and one particular person’s particular and humble dream to protect his native tongue by way of the magic of standard cinema. With beautiful cinematography and a soulful, intergenerational solid, this can be a story of hope, group and decolonisation in motion. It blossoms to grow to be way more common than its particular cultural context and is in the end a tribute to the ability of cinema to unite. As younger folks, all of us see non-fiction so otherwise, with so many potentialities, however this documentary connects our ardour. It’s a movie that amplifies, celebrates and preserves a lived actuality.”
Particular Point out: The Stand, directed by Christopher Auchter (Canada, 2024)
The jury stated: “We really feel this movie comes at a very urgent political second, the place hope can typically really feel in restricted provide. In instances like these, it’s important for us to show to, and to study from historical past. To acknowledge that injustice has all the time existed, however folks have all the time resisted. The Stand depicts this resistance with galvanising pressure. It’s a story of the land rights protests of the Haida nation in 1985, informed by way of the distillation of over 100 hours of archival footage to kind a compelling and immersive portrait of a motion. Witnessing the steadfast dedication, humanity and unwavering compassion of the Haida folks is deeply hopeful and represents a type of inspiration for audiences at present on easy methods to successfully resist.”