Jury VFF Documentary Film Production Award 2026
The process of making a documentary film is particularly difficult to plan and often brings with it great uncertainties. Time and again, producers show great courage and demonstrate particular creativity and commitment in project development and film financing. By awarding the VFF Documentary Film Production Prize at DOK.fest Munich, we honour the passionate commitment and role of producers in the development of current cinema documentary film projects.
The prize is sponsored by the VFF Verwertungsgesellschaft der Film und Fernsehproduzenten mbH, is endowed with 7,500 euros, and is unique in Germany. In 2026, the prize will be awarded for the ninth time at DOK.fest München.
Thomas Frickel
Author, Director and Producer
After studying German language and literature, journalism and sociology in Mainz, Frickel worked as a freelance journalist for several years, focusing on cultural reporting and historical reportage. Since 1968 he has been working in the film industry. Since 1986, Frickel has been chairman and managing director of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Dokumentarfilm (the largest association for independent film in Germany) in various film and cultural policy functions – for example, on the administrative board and executive committee of the FFA, the administrative board of the VG Bild-Kunst, as delegate of the beneficiaries in the VG Wort, on the advisory board of the VFF and the Künstlersozialkasse, etc. For several years he was spokesman for the Film/Media section of the "German Cultural Council". Frickel was also co-founder and until 1999 member of the board of directors of the European Documentary Film Network EDN. He is author, director and producer of numerous short and feature-length documentaries.
Oliver Gernstl
Producer & Managing Director megaherz GmbH
Oliver Gernstl is the producer and managing director of the Munich-based production company megaherz GmbH. The company produces documentaries, reports, and children's programs for cinema and television. Among its best-known productions are formats from the “Checker” series and numerous documentary projects for public broadcasters. Oliver Gernstl is particularly interested in films that convey complex realities in an understandable way while they also entertain. In addition to its work for television and streaming, megaherz is increasingly developing documentary cinema projects and international co-productions. He lives and works in Munich.
Andrea Roggon
Director, Producer & Lecturer
Andrea Roggon works as a freelance director, producer, and lecturer, focusing primarily on artistic documentary film in all fields. After spending time abroad and completing internships in the film industry, she studied documentary film directing at the Film Academy Baden-Württemberg and at the international film school EICTV in Cuba. Her feature-length documentaries have been shown at festivals worldwide, won awards, and been released in German and Austrian cinemas. In 2011, she founded AMA FILM GmbH and has since also devoted herself to the stories of other directors as a producer. Since 2022, she has been teaching documentary film directing at the Film Academy Baden-Württemberg. Andrea Roggon is a member of AG DOK and the German Film Academy.
