VFF Documentary Production Award 2027

DOK.fest München and VFF Verwertungsgesellschaft der Film- und Fernsehproduzenten mbH are pleased to announce the 10th VFF Documentary Production Award, which will be presented at the 42nd DOK.fest München, taking place in May 2027.

Submissions for the VFF Documentary Film Production Award 2027 will open in September.

An award for documentary film producers in Germany

The process of making a documentary film is particularly difficult to plan and often involves great uncertainty. Yet time and again producers demonstrate great passion and courage and show special creativity and commitment in project development and film financing. With the presentation of the VFF Documentary Film Production Award at DOK.fest München, we honour the passionate commitment and the role of producers in the development of current cinema documentary projects.

The award is donated by VFF Verwertungsgesellschaft der Film und Fernsehproduzenten mbH, it comes with a cash prize of 7,500 euros and is the only one of its kind in Germany. The award is presented to the film’s producer. In 2027, the prize will be awarded for the tenth time at DOK.fest München, with the ceremony taking place as part of the festival.

Award donor

INNERE EMIGRANTEN wins the VFF Documentary Production Award 2026

The VFF Documentary Production Award 2026 goes to producer and director Lena Karbe for INNERE EMIGRANTEN.

The jury’s statement reads:

"There are many benefits to dividing labour when it comes to making a film. An experienced production company takes charge of the financial, administrative and organisational aspects and, in doing so, provides the directing team with the creative freedom it desperately needs.

Yet, in documentary film in particular, we repeatedly encounter situations that can only succeed when the producer and director are one and the same person. INNERE EMIGRANTEN by Lena Karbe is an outstanding example of this: the producer, who was born in St. Petersburg and has lived in Germany since she studied at the Munich Filmhochschule, returned to her home country to capture a profound and authentic picture of Russian society during a two-year production period. This was not achieved through the use of conventional journalistic methods – this would have been virtually impossible under the prevailing political circumstances – but through an idea that is as simple as it is ingenious: she portrays psychologists taking calls at a Moscow crisis hotline. We don’t see the callers themselves but, although the narrative is calm and reflective, the reactions of the counselling team shed light on the state of a deeply wounded society. It goes without saying that such a project can only be achieved under the strictest secrecy and Lena Karbe, taking a high risk herself, was well advised not to expose any other team members to the dangers involved. Her Russian crew remains completely anonymous and what we learn about the filming and the transfer of the resulting footage reads like an episode from a spy thriller.

It is hardly surprising that the German funders were initially sceptical about the success of such an undertaking but Lene Karbe did not give up: through repeated applications, she eventually secured the support of Film-Förder-Fonds Bayern, the Deutschen Film-Förder-Fonds DFFF and the FFA using funds from the German-French Mini-Traité as a German-French coproduction was established with Anne-Catherine Witt’s Paris production company Macalube-Film. Not wanting to be left out, the German broadcasters RBB and MDR came on board with just under a third of the production costs and ensured that the project, despite substantial contributions and provisions from the participating production companies, could be brought to a successful conclusion and achieve such a remarkable result. The jury concludes that a great willingness to take risks does pay off. And sometimes, as in this case, even results in you winning the VFF Documentary Film Production Prize. Congratulations!"

Jury: Thomas Frickel (Author, Director and Producer), Oliver Gernstl (Producer & Managing Director megaherz GmbH), Andrea Roggon (Director, Producer & Lecturer)

Shortlist 2026

HELENE WEIGEL - REVOLUTIONÄRIN IM RAMPENLICHT
DE, AT, 2026, Maria Wischnewski, 102 min.
Production: Maria Wischnewski

IM UMKREIS DES PARADIESES
DE, 2026, Yulia Lokshina, 120 min.
Production: Isabelle Bertolone

INNERE EMIGRANTEN
DE, FR, 2025, Lena Karbe, 92 min.
Production: Lena Karbe, Anne-Catherine Witt and Kathleen Mcinnis

MATERIA PRIMA
DE, 2026, Jens Schanze, 89 min.
Production: Jens Schanze

SIRI HUSVEDT - DANCE AROUND THE SELF
DE, CH, 2026, Sabine Lidl, 110 min.
Production: Irene Höfer

STILLE ZWISCHEN UNS
DE, 2026, Kim Münster, 85 min.
Production: Kim Münster