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The 25th WATCH DOCS International Film Festival on Human Rights in Film has begun!

In Warsaw cinemas — Kinoteka, Muranów and KINOMUZEUM, as well as on the platforms mojeekino.pl and Player, you will find 62 documentary films, including Polish and international premieres, archival works, and classics of the genre.

Across three competition sections, 21 films will compete for awards. In addition to film screenings, the festival program features dozens of meetings with filmmakers, seven major panel discussions with journalists and experts, a masterclass led by a world-renowned director, industry events, and a concert.

A special anniversary collection, featuring a selection of standout titles from recent editions, will also be available 5–31 December to viewers across Poland on the PLAYER platform.

Tonight, during special screenings, Polish filmmakers will meet with audiences:

6:00 pm Kino Muranów: Stanisław Cuske, cinematographer of Silver, whose images immerse us in darkness and the emotions tied to the extreme dangers of mining work. As WATCH DOCS program director Konrad Wirkowski writes: “The film tells the dark story of Cerro Rico — the Bolivian mine from which most of the silver ever extracted by humanity originates. Cerro Rico consists of hundreds of kilometers of tunnels carved into the rock, where generations of local miners have lost their health and lives — once building the power of the Spanish crown, and today — equally ruthless corporations.”

6:00 pm KINOMUZEUM: Grzegorz Paprzycki, director of December — “an uncompromising socio-political manifesto: how can we reconcile the idea of Christmas Eve with our attitude toward migrants? Paprzycki poses radical questions but doesn’t pretend to offer ready-made answers. What would have to happen for us to truly care about the fate of people left to die in the border forest?” (Konrad Wirkowski)

6:00 pm Kinoteka: Martyna Wojciechowska and Jowita Baraniecka, directors of Stolen Children — the film takes us to Georgia, where investigative journalist Tamuna Museridze attempts to unravel a deeply personal mystery. By tracing the widespread baby-trafficking practice of the 1990s in which infants were taken from Georgian maternity wards and sold abroad, she uncovers hidden mechanisms, long-buried secrets, and ongoing family tragedies. The scale is shocking: up to 100,000 children were stolen and sold.

Also screening today in cinemas:

8:30 pm KINOMUZEUM — Welded Together, winner of this year’s Sheffield DocFest. The story of a young welder fighting for a better future for her little sister is powerful enough to break even the hardest hearts. Despite her age, Katia possesses extraordinary strength, navigating grueling physical labor, pervasive misogyny, overwhelming bureaucracy, and the ghosts of her past. But is it enough to break the cycle of generational trauma?

9:00 pm Kino Muranów — Marriage Cops
Couple's therapy at a police station? The film presents an unconventional method of resolving conflicts… at the precinct. “In India, where women stand little chance against the patriarchal system, this is often the only way to enforce their rights. The police station in Dehradun hosts couples seeking help with relationship problems. In practice, it’s almost always the women who initiate contact — demanding child support or an end to violence. Husbands often have to be brought in by force, and entire multigenerational families appear at the station.”

And tonight — we dance and fundraise for the dogs!
Join us at the festival club Kulturalna for Silent Psisko! During the party, you’ll once again be able to support our “dog-patron” — Fundacja RAP, which rescues, treats, and prepares dogs for adoption into loving homes.
We start at 10:00 pm!