Every year, documentaries and narrative experiences take centre stage at the 33rd edition of Sunny Side of the Doc, which will be held in-person in La Rochelle, France from June 20 through 23, 2022.
With activities galore and three Canadian projects in the fest’s official selection, Canada’s got a bright presence planned, all in the name of facilitating international business and coproduction for our fantastic homegrown content.
We’re excited to welcome you to our new and improved eco-friendly Canada Pavilion, which will play host to networking activities and meeting spaces for our participants! The Canada Pavilion is our exhibitor stand, and is THE place to meet Canadian producers and companies. Discover more about coproducing with Canada, right here!
But first, three Canadian projects made the official selection! From an exploration of technology’s dark side of to a virtual reality doc about Holocaust survivors and a heartfelt look at the ocean and climate change, these projects are part of New Voices, which includes 48 works hailing from 22 countries. After prepping for pitch day with coaching and mentoring, the film team will present to a jury of industry pros for the chance to win €3,000.
Here are Canada’s Sunny Side of the Doc contenders in the New Voices competition:
Global Issues Pitch
- Fred Peabody’s Digital Tsunami
Known for his 2019 feature-length doc The Corporate Coup D’État and 2016’s Emmy-nominated All Governments Lie: Truth, Deception, and the Spirit of I.F. Stone, which earned the Directors Guild of Canada’s Allan King Award for Excellence in Documentary, Fred Peabody’s latest project dives into the negative socio-political aspects of digital culture, drawing on the work of Marshall McLuhan.
Immersive Experiences Pitch
- Joanne Popinska’s Jacob’s Journey
According to the logline on the SSOD website, “Jacob’s Journey is part of an interactive virtual reality documentary capturing the stories of Holocaust survivors. It features Jacob Goldstein, a 94-year-old from Lodz, who survived the Nazi concentration camps.”
Science Pitch
- Marie-Dominique Michaud and Iolande Cadrin-Rossignol’s Ocean Seen From the Heart
Following 2018’s Earth Seen From the Heart (la terre vue du coeur), also starring Hubert Reeves, Ocean Seen From the Heart explores the regenerative nature of the ocean and biodiversity in the context of climate change.
Canada's events and activities
Canadian producers attending SSOD will have plenty of chances to connect and do business, with a focus on facilitating distribution and coproduction opportunities with our valued international partners around the globe.
So, what’s on the Sunny Side of the Doc market agenda for 2022? Glad you asked!
We’re starting off with a Canadian Breakfast at the Lounge from 9:30 to 11:30am on June 21st, in collaboration with the Ciclic Centre-Val de Loire (the regional agency for books and images for the Centre-Val de Loire region of France) and the L’Alliance des producteurs francophones du Canada (Telefilm Canada’s associate partners in this SSOD mission).
The SODEC and XN Quebec will have matchmaking sessions with international participants. plus more SSOD matchmaking sessions with France, Luxembourg, Greece, South Africa, Chile, Finland, Italy, Germany, Poland and Belgium.
