Against the backdrop of rapidly changing distribution platforms and market demand, this forum reconsiders the position and social value of documentary cinema. It will also provide an opportunity to share insights into the current landscape of the domestic and international documentary market, explore the genre’s capacity to embrace diverse forms, and seek new ways for documentaries to connect with audiences.

The majority of the five highest-grossing Korean documentaries of 2025 were political documentaries. The proliferation of films driven by intense political engagement, partisan conflict, or direct intervention in specific political issues prompts a broader question: how is the political dimension of documentary constituted, and how does it operate? This question arises between the cinema of politics and the politics of cinema, and between the content and form of documentary as both political expression and practice.

The Forum of 18th DMZ Docs, “Political Documentary Today,” was conceived as one response to this question. Organized with the participation of Critics’ Choice, DMZ Docs’ program for critical discourse on Korean documentary cinema, the forum begins with a fundamental question–“What makes a documentary political?”—and examines the practices, issues, and aesthetics of documentaries that engage with politics.

The geopolitical crisis that began with the war in Ukraine has extended to Gaza and Iran, cutting through the heart of international affairs, cultural politics, and artistic practice. Within the sphere of state-led cultural administration, including festival institutions, the complex relationships between activism, freedom of expression, and the responsibilities of artists have become the subject of intense debate.

Although Korea once appeared relatively distant from these discussions, several recent controversies—including debate over the screening of Israeli film at the Jeonju International Film Festival and the art world’s boycott of the Centre Pompidou Hanwha project—have opened the conversation domestically.

Within the festival sector, the debate intensified after the Cannes Film Festival’s boycott of Russian films in 2022. The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam and the Berlin International Film Festival have likewise faced controversy over their public positions on Gaza.

What does it mean to boycott works of art and culture on political grounds? This forum raises the question and brings together a range of perspectives.