DC Industry Training Days

Join us for a morning coffee, collect your badge and get into good vibes with DJ Felix Klein

Official Welcome to the Industry Training Days and introduction to the pitching day.

Donata von Perfall, Managing Director, Documentary Campus

Christina Herßebroick, Head of Department "Society", MDR

Adam Gee, Head of Documentary Campus Masterschool

Five projects of Documentary Campus Masterschool 2025 will pitch for the first time to an international audience of key industry experts. One alumni project will also be presented. The projects pitching are:

Toni - Exposing the Whole Picture, Director Martin Kießling (Germany)

Mai & Miles, the jazziest story about physics ever told, Director Lea Hejn (Denmark)

The Potato Heads, Director Alison Millar, Producers Jackie Doyle & Callum Roberts (Ireland)

Bodies Under Control, Director Lisbeth Schröder, Producer Matthias Zuber (Germany)

Time Suspended, Director Lorenzo Spinelli (Italy)

Alumni project: The Elements of Life, Directors Kerstin Hoppenhaus and Sibylle Grunze, Producer Valentin Thurn (Germany)

Grab some food and network!

Five projects of Documentary Campus Masterschool 2025 will pitch for the first time to an international audience of key industry experts. The second alumni project will be presented. The projects pitching are:

KAMNOP: A Treasure is Waiting for You, Director Guillermo Roqués, Co-director & Producer Kanitha Heng Snow (Spain)

Wind Chasers - The Untold Origins of Kitesurfing, Director Agnieszka Mazur, Producer Judith Millecker (Germany)

All F*cked Up, Director Ganna Iaroscheych, Producers Kateryna Ptashka & Alexandra Bratyschenko (Ukraine)

Alumni project - Measuring the Sky, Director Petar Orešković, Producer Siniša Juričić (Croatia) 

Beautiful Death, Director Andris Gauja, Producer Elza Gauja (Latvia)

Glowing in the dark again - The Minimal Synth revolution, Director Pietro Anton (Germany)

Time to grab a cup of coffee and network.

Five projects of Documentary Campus Masterschool 2025 will pitch for the first time to an international audience of key industry experts. The third alumni project will be presented. The projects pitching are:

After the Wall, Director Claudia Euen, Producer Bianca Laschalt (Germany)

Out of Bounds - no fear, no limits, Producer Marjorie Meyer (Germany)

Echoes of the Gap, Director Harry Tatem (UK)

Alumni project: ABC: One Letter at a Time, Director Mayye Zayyed, Producer Anke Petersen (Germany)

Daughter of Two Chinas, Director Weina Li (China/Germany)

The Journey of Man: A Father`s Love, Director Alessandro Belleli, Producer Åsne Høgetveit (Norway)

Documentary Campus partner festivals present awards to the best pitches.

We are pleased to invite you to the ARTE Reception in the downstairs foyer of Händel Halle.

We open for Day 2 of Industry Training Days.

Meetings of Masterschool project teams and industry experts.

Welcome by curator Justin Crosby, TellyCast Digital Content Forum

Presentation of factual audience trends.

Speaker:Josh Rustage, Senior Analyst, Ampere Analysis

Producers at the cutting edge of social video and digital-first storytelling share how they’re reinventing factual formats for new audiences and platforms. This session explores the creative opportunities and commercial realities of making factual content native to YouTube.

Speakers: Olivier Levard, Full Joy Media (France); Serena Jones, The B1M (UK), Catherine Harwardt, Drive Beta (Germany)

Moderator: Justin Crosby, TellyCast

Rory Griffin switched from p/ding science docs for Discovery to creating a niche YouTube channel about exploring the Universe with an amateur telescope. This session explores the bumpy journey to becoming a full time creator.

Fireside chat with: Rory Griffin aka Astrobiscuit (UK) and Justin Crosby, TellyCast

Woodcut Media CEO Kate Beal lifts the lid on her company’s bold pivot into the YouTube economy. In this candid fireside chat, she shares the highs, lows, data obsessions and creative reinventions that have come with launching three new channels from scratch. Expect hard-earned lessons, real numbers and an honest take on what it takes for an indie to thrive in the digital-first era.

Speaker: Kate Beal, Woodcut Media (UK)

Channel 4 is reimagining what it means to be a public service broadcaster in the age of YouTube, TikTok and on-demand streaming. This session unpacks the broadcaster’s digital-first strategy, exploring how it is reshaping commissioning, building new audiences, and balancing commercial growth with public service values.

Fireside chat: Charlie Hyland, Digital Commissioner, Channel 4 (UK) and Justin Crosby, TellyCast

YouTube has become a vital space for factual storytelling, offering producers the chance to reach global audiences and generate sustainable revenue. In this expert session, YouTube strategist Rob Wilson reveals the essentials of launching and scaling a factual channel, from mastering algorithms and audience growth to unlocking multiple monetisation opportunities. Packed with practical advice, this session is a roadmap for indies and producers ready to make YouTube central to their business.

Speaker: Rob Wilson, VidIQ (UK)

Forget the old rules of advertising - brands aren’t just sponsors anymore, they’re commissioners, collaborators, and sometimes even broadcasters. This session dives into the realities of brand-funded content, asking how far producers can push creativity, protect editorial integrity, and still deliver the results brands demand.

Speakers: Melissa Chapman, Jungle Creations (UK); Bart Frank, Objekt (UK); Charlie Read, Upstream UK

Moderator: Justin Crosby, TellyCast

Documentary is being reshaped by digital platforms, shifting audience habits and new funding models. This session explores how producers are adapting to the changing marketplace, from social-first storytelling and global distribution to innovative partnerships that are redefining what documentary can be and how it's funded.

Speakers: Gerrit Kemming, Quintus Studios (Germany); Josh Reynolds, Zandland Films (UK); Janine Thomas, Channel 4 (UK)

Moderator: Adam Gee, Head of DC Masterschool

Fireside chat with: Serena Jones, The B1M (UK) and Justin Crosby, TellyCast

YouTube is now a proven marketplace for catalogue content, giving producers the chance to breathe new life into their archives. In this session, leaders in YouTube catalogue monetisation share insights on rights strategies, packaging, optimisation and revenue models that can turn back catalogues into long-term digital assets - and reboot long forgotten content.

Speakers: Nils Franck, Little Dot Studios Germany; Kate Beal, Woodcut Media (UK), James Dolan ,Beam Digital (UK)

Moderator: Justin Crosby, TellyCast