Sundance Documentaries Head to Berlinale, True/False Festivals

Deadline's 'Doc Talk' podcast interviews directors of top Sundance films, including Michał Marczak, Poh Si Teng, Alex Gibney, and more.

Published on Feb. 3, 2026

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Sundance Film Festival world premiere documentaries are lining up their next festival appearances, with projects like Jaripeo, Who Killed Alex Odeh?, and the docuseries The Story of Documentary Film heading to the Berlinale next week. Meanwhile, films such as American Doctor, Closure, Soul Patrol, Nuisance Bear, and To Hold a Mountain have secured spots at the True/False Film Festival in Columbia, Missouri. Before the final Sundance in Park City, Utah, Deadline's 'Doc Talk' podcast spoke with directors of some of the top documentaries at the festival, including Michał Marczak, Oscar nominee Poh Si Teng, Oscar winner Alex Gibney, Emmy winner Alex Stapleton, and Emmy winner Judd Ehrlich.

Why it matters

The Sundance Film Festival is a premier event for documentary filmmakers, and the selection of these films for other major festivals like Berlinale and True/False highlights the quality and impact of the work. The podcast interviews provide valuable insights into the creative processes and motivations behind these acclaimed documentaries.

The details

The 'Doc Talk' podcast spoke with the directors of several standout Sundance documentaries. Michał Marczak discussed his film Closure, which follows a man searching for his missing son in Warsaw, Poland. Poh Si Teng, an Oscar nominee, talked about American Doctor, which profiles physicians who volunteered to treat injured children in Gaza. Oscar winner Alex Gibney shared details about Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie, which recounts the brutal attack on the author. Emmy winner Alex Stapleton discussed The Brittney Griner Story, chronicling the WNBA star's ordeal in a Russian gulag. And Emmy winner Judd Ehrlich spoke about Jane Elliott Against the World, focusing on the lifelong efforts of a white Iowa woman to confront racism in America.

  • The 2026 Sundance Film Festival took place in Park City, Utah.
  • The Berlinale, or Berlin International Film Festival, is scheduled for next week.
  • The True/False Film Festival is set to take place in Columbia, Missouri.

The players

Michał Marczak

The director of the Sundance documentary Closure, which follows a man searching for his missing son in Warsaw, Poland.

Poh Si Teng

An Oscar-nominated director who spoke about her Sundance documentary American Doctor, which profiles physicians who volunteered to treat injured children in Gaza.

Alex Gibney

An Oscar-winning director who discussed his Sundance documentary Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie, which recounts the brutal attack on the author.

Alex Stapleton

An Emmy-winning director who spoke about her Sundance documentary The Brittney Griner Story, chronicling the WNBA star's ordeal in a Russian gulag.

Judd Ehrlich

An Emmy-winning director who discussed his Sundance documentary Jane Elliott Against the World, focusing on the lifelong efforts of a white Iowa woman to confront racism in America.

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What they’re saying

“We must make the American public aware of the destruction of innocent Palestinian life there.”

— Physicians from American Doctor (Deadline)

“I managed to survive a brutal knife attack inflicted by a fanatic intent on fulfilling the Ayatollah Khomeini's fateful fatwa on me.”

— Salman Rushdie (Deadline)

“I endured incredible conditions in a Russian gulag after I was convicted on a drug charge in a Moscow court.”

— Brittney Griner, WNBA star (Deadline)

What’s next

The selected Sundance documentaries will continue their festival runs, with Jaripeo, Who Killed Alex Odeh?, and The Story of Documentary Film heading to the Berlinale next week, and American Doctor, Closure, Soul Patrol, Nuisance Bear, and To Hold a Mountain securing spots at the True/False Film Festival in Columbia, Missouri.

The takeaway

The strong lineup of Sundance documentaries heading to other major festivals underscores the festival's continued importance as a platform for impactful and thought-provoking non-fiction filmmaking. The podcast interviews provide valuable insights into the creative processes and motivations behind these acclaimed works.