Supported projects

KINSHASA - Marlies Geyskens travels to Kinshasa, a city of millions that has been struggling with a growing mountain of rubbish in recent years. There, she follows two local artists who make costumes from recycled materials.

TERVUREN / LUBUMBASHI - The increasing pressure on the Africa Museum to return artefacts has taken a new turn. The US, Congo and the EU are keen to digitise the museum's geological archives from the colonial era and gain access to information about the subsoil of Central Africa and its potential untapped mineral resources.

TEHRAN / BRUSSELS / MWANZA / TOKYO – Whether by lorry, bicycle, plane, boat, rickshaw or motorbike, they flout prejudices, rigid traditions and absurd laws. All over the world, courageous women are setting out on their journeys. They challenge gender roles, transform their surroundings and gain independence.

ANTWERP/BRUSSELS - How is it that we know so little about Africa yet still have such strong opinions about it? This ABC book takes a close look at the existing clichés.

BENZDORP/PARAMARIBO - Deep in the Amazon rainforest, on the banks of the Lawa River between Suriname and French Guiana, live the Wayana. The peaceful existence of this indigenous population came to an abrupt end in 1885, when gold was discovered in the region. Since then, the presence of outsiders has left deep scars on their society.

LONGYEARBYEN - Svalbard, once an isolated destination for researchers and miners, is increasingly visited by tourists. Climate change, easier accessibility, and ‘last chance’ tourism have driven rapid growth in visitor numbers. This puts pressure on the fragile ecosystem and raises questions about the balance between economic development and nature conservation.

MECHELEN - Youth care center Juneco is a multicultural hub that houses 15 unaccompanied foreign minors aged 12 to 18 in Belgium. The young people grow up here without their families, creating close friendships.

BEIRUT - Jado is a trans woman from Beirut. A prominent figure and a motherly presence in the local LGBTQIA+ community, she is an inspiration to many. Like many others, she has to fight every day just to be herself and survive.

BRUSSELS - Life is impossible without music blends music, memory and humanity through the true stories of pianist Kosta Jakić and Simon Gronowski, a Holocaust survivor.

BEIJING - China in 2025 has changed significantly. Under the new strongman Xi Jingping, the Communist Party's totalitarian control over the state is greater than ever. By developing the New Silk Road and increasing its high-tech expertise, it has also been able to expand its sphere of influence worldwide.

MATAM - As a nine-year-old girl born with exceptional flexibility, Fanta took her first steps in the Amoukanama circus group, which consisted of boys. Even then, Fanta dreamed of a professional career as an acrobat. However, her family did not approve. Five years later, Fanta still cherishes the same dream and faces the same practical family objections.

BELGRADE - Yugoslavia began as a dream. A noble ideal to unite the Slavic peoples of the south. What followed was a tortuous history: from kingdom to socialist republic, from tourist paradise to war zone.

AFRICA - New generations always dream big. Daaf Borren travelled through some 16 countries in Africa, fascinated by their stories. From Mali and Congo to Ethiopia and Mauritania: this is an atypical travel book, in which you not only cover many kilometres, but also travel along to the future.

NAYPYIDAW - From exile, Myanmar filmmakers continue their armed resistance against the military regime. Many have joined rebel groups, seamlessly switching between camera and gun whilst using film proceeds to fund the insurgency.

WASHINGTON D.C. - A chronicle of fascinating encounters with ordinary Americans combined with an in-depth analysis of the rise and growth of the far right and how the working class turned away from the Democratic Party en masse.

KINSHASA - Following on from the first part of the dossier on why and how Congo's forests became the world's first lung, John Vandaele explores whether the country can effectively be the 'solution country' it claims to want to be.

BISHKEK - Kyrgyzstan is a country where Russian influence is still very strong. While other global players such as Europe and the West are increasingly vying for influence in the region, conflicting interests can be observed.

AMSTERDAM / BRUSSELS - Gay & Grey is a documentary series by director Julia M. Free in a co-production with VRT Canvas and DeMensen. The series follows the daily lives of senior lesbian couples, aged 70 and above, whose relationships have stood the test of time.

BELGIUM - Some 60 years ago, the language border in Belgium was established by law. Although this border has crossed our territories for centuries, it became the object of conflict especially in the 20th century.

AUSTIN - When a Belgian filmmaker moves to Texas and becomes a mother, she is confronted with a reality barely comprehensible in Europe: preschoolers trained to keep quiet in a dark closet, schools deploying armed teachers and children crawling behind their school desks with an escape plan in mind.

CAIRO - Cairo Encounters follows the lives of four Western European women who have emigrated to Cairo for love. The documentary explores the impact of their life choices on their Western identities and highlights their interactions with Egyptian society.

NOUAKCHOTT - In the Sahel, Mauritania is the only country spared from jihadist incursions and large-scale violence. Meanwhile, nearly two hundred thousand Malian refugees are staying both in the Mauritanian refugee camp of M'bera and in the villages of the Hodh Chargui border region.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Latinos voting for Trump in the US: they exist and there are far more of them than you might think. Alex Cordova travels to the United States in the run-up to the presidential election. He examines the role of the church, politics and identity in the context of the 4 November election.

KINSHASA / TERVUREN - After almost 70 years in the Africa Museum, the rare Kakungu mask is back in Congo. Despite the festive ceremony at the National Museum, the mask remains the property of Belgium, causing unrest among the Congolese people and the Suku community, where the mask originally came from.

ENONTEKIO - The Arctic region is warming up four times as fast as the global average. This impacts people and animals.

BRUSSELS - In We, Roma there are 99 distinct stories of Roma. The themes are broad, from their own language to their own court, from Iftar to Mary worship, from prejudice to the affirmation of certain stereotypes.

OSWIECIM - Journalist Evelien Rutten goes on a road trip to Auschwitz with her teenage daughter and two aunts in this narrative podcast and book of the same name. They visit all the important places that played a crucial role in their family history.

PUERTO BAQUERIZO MORENO - A visual documentation of the human history of Galápagos and its first inhabitants, who bore witness to the development of the last century.

BRUSSELS/AMSTERDAM - In June 2020, following protests in the United States, colonial heritage in Belgium became fiercely debated.

KIEV - In January 2024, Dutch investigative journalist Linda van der Pol and Belgian photographer Gena Kagermanov traveled to Ukraine to investigate the impact of the Russian invasion on the Ukrainian cultural sector in several cities.