The sixteenth edition of DokuFest, an international documentary and short film festival held in Prizren, will host a total of 102 films this summer at open-air and indoor cinemas scattered throughout the scenic, bustling town.

This year’s theme, explained Nita Deda, the director of the festival, is the future.

“Through movies, concerts, discussions, exhibitions and technology, we will try to create a space where the future, with all its hope and mysticism, can be explored,” she told Prishtina Insight. “Our program is curated to offer an overview between utopias and dystopias, borders and sincerity, fear and love.”

Films will be competing for prizes in six categories: Balkan Dox, International Dox, Human Rights Dox, Green Dox, International Shorts, and in the National category. Two films will be screened for the first time ever,  having their world premieres, while two more will have their international premiere and several will have their regional and European premieres.

Veton Nurkollari, the artistic director of the festival, mused that it is no easy task to pick just a few highlights from this year’s program. Among the rich selection Nurkollari picked out Donkeyote, a documentary about a Spanish animal lover who takes his donkey on a 2,200 mile trek across the American Trail of Tears, and One More Time with Feeling, which documents the recording of the sixteenth studio album of band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in the aftermath of the death of the band leader’s son.

A few other highlights of the festival are Stop Making Sense, Liberation Day, and competing films like City of Ghosts, Makala, Nowhere to Hide.

“Special attention should be paid to authors from Kosovo and Albania, they have some outstanding films in the program,” Nurkollari added. 13 short films from Albanian filmmakers from the region will compete for the best National film prize, while two Kosovo-produced films are also in competition for the best Balkan documentary.

The festival will also host two special film programs, Fake It So Real and Future Is Sonic. The former focuses on ‘mockumentaries,’ and experimental documentary films that play with fictive and real storytelling,  whereas the latter is a collection of seven feature films that delve into the lives of musicians and music itself.

Apart from film screenings and competitions, DokuFest will also host a number of workshops and masterclasses, such as the Laboratory of Visual Anthropology, a series of masterclasses exploring time and films. At the Balkan Documentary Center – MODULE PRIZREN, seven documentary filmmakers will pitch their projects before a jury. Meanwhile, the Film and Factual Media Program, a three-day long camp for Gjilan, Vitia, Kacanik, and Hani i Elezit, will bring youth together for documentary film production.

Dokufest’s sidekicks will also host several interactive activities throughout the week: DokuTalks and DokuTech will host panels and discussions, DokuPhoto will put together photography-related activities, DokuKids will hold activities for children, and at night, festival-goers can catch musical performances at DokuNights.

DokuFest will be held from August 4 to August 12, 2017. The call for volunteers is open until June 15. More information on the films, competitions and other activities can be found on their website.