Willy Brandt Documentary Film Award for Freedom and Human Rights

The Willy Brandt Documentary Film Award for Freedom and Human Rights honors a documentary film for its outstanding artistic and content achievements. The prize, endowed with EUR 3,000 by the Federal Chancellor Willy Brandt Foundation and is awarded in cooperation with the Human Rights Film Festival Berlin. The festival was founded in 2018 by the organisation Aktion gegen den Hunger.

Willy Brandt Documentary Film Award 2023

The documentary “While We Watched” (2022) by Indian director Vinay Shukla follows the well-known Indian journalist Ravish Kumar as he confronts nationalism in India and stands up for the highest ideals of journalism against all odds.

Willy Brandt Documentary Film Award 2022

The documentary film “Outside” (2021) by the Ukrainian director tells the story of the street boy Roma, who ends up on the front lines of the Maidan uprising during the 2014 revolution in Ukraine and suddenly becomes the face of the revolution. Five years later, Roma is back on the streets. His future seems to have been decided. In telephone conversations with director Olha Zhurba, he ponders the question: Can you ever escape your childhood?

Willy Brandt Documentary Film Award 2021

The moving film Imad’s Childhood (2021) by director Zahavi Sanjavi is about the five-year-old Imad who has spent more than half of his life in IS captivity and is now returning to his Yazidi family. In addition to the winning film, two other films received a special mention by the jury: the film “Fly so Far” (2020) by director Celina Escher and the film “La Vocera” (2020) by director Luciana Kaplan.

Willy Brandt Documentary Film Award 2020

The Kenyan film “Softie” (2019) by director Sam Soko is a gripping documentary about the life and political commitment of the activist Boniface Mwangi. In addition to the winning film, the film “Stop Filming Us” (2019) by director Joris Postema received a special mention from the jury this year.

Willy Brandt Documentary Film Award 2019

Director Askold Kurov received the inaugural award for his impressive documentary Novaya (2018) about the editing of “Novaya Gazeta”, one of the first and now last independent newspapers in Russia.