The Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival has announced the 29 projects selected for the new edition of its New Visions Forum, which will take place from October 28 to 30 as part of the 30th edition of the Czech festival. The selection brings together projects from 15 countries and offers their teams the opportunity to connect with potential co-production, financing, sales and distribution partners.

Eight of the projects are directed by first-time filmmakers, alongside new works by established filmmakers. They include Lindsey Sitz, a Pulitzer Prize winner, with Searching for SmarterChild; Simantini Chakraborty, a collaborator of Godfrey Reggio and director of The Original Badass, with Impossible to Ignore; Iranian filmmaker Ali Razi, director of At Night, the Red Sky, with Archiveless Memories, for an Imaginary Museum; and Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Zwiefka, director of Silent Trees and Vika!, with Words We Never Say.

The lineup also includes new projects by Charlotte Heilstone from the U.K. and Matej Sotník from Slovakia, both alumni of Ji.hlava’s Emerging Producers program.

The projects come from Europe, the United States, and various countries across East and Southeast Asia. The selection also includes six projects from Montenegro, this year’s Country in Focus of Ji.hlava’s industry program.

Recurring themes across the projects include memory and archives, what has been silenced or suppressed, individuals confronting systems of power, and the relationship between personal experiences and broader historical processes.

The New Visions Forum will be complemented by a Matchmaking Accelerator, connecting the selected projects with international decision-makers and industry professionals. According to the festival, Ji.hlava brings together around 1,200 industry professionals each year.

The full lineup of projects can be found at Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival.