A season celebrating French film begins a journey around New Zealand.

November marks French Documentary Month in France, and this year, out of all of the overseas countries taking part in French Documentary Film Month (whether it be via "the Festival of Festivals" or other presentations of French docos and co-productions) New Zealand has the most venues (ahead of Spain and Peru who each had 9 venues in 2006).

Nine documentaries will be screened around New Zealand from November until April, dealing with a range of subject matter from the experiences of young people in Cuba, to the flora and fauna of Greenland.

The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs has selected and produced the FDFM Collection since 2004 as a way for the rest of the world to participate in French Documentary Film Month (held every November). French Documentary Film Month is run by "Images en bibliothèques" and this year marks the eighth edition.

Ms Typhaine Biard-Hamon, Cultural Counsellor at the French Embassy promises audiences a memorable moving going experience. "This festival has become a much-awaited annual rendez-vous. For three years now, it has enabled the New Zealand public to discover some of the best and most recent films from French documentary film festivals, and the audience feedback has encouraged us to return with more. The Festival of Festivals never fails to surprise me and the feelings evoked by the films are often stronger than my reaction to feature films."

While Film Archive mediaplex manager Steve Russell is delighted by the 2007/08 line-up. “It's fantastic that once again the Film Archive's public screening programme has the opportunity to participate in French Documentary Month, doubly so as it is a worldwide celebration. Non-fiction film features prominently on our programme throughout the year, regularly drawing good and appreciative audiences. This year I'm particularly pleased to see the inclusion of Camila Guzman Urzua's The Sugar Curtain which follows in the tradition of her father, Patricio Guzman's documentary Salvador Allende which featured in last year's Festival of Festivals. Those with long enough memories will recall his classic The Battle of Chile.”

Russell points to the increasing importance and recognition documentary film making is enjoying, “We're not alone in witnessing this phenomenon. You only have to look at the current DOCNZ Film Festival or the strength of the documentary component of the New Zealand Film Festival programme to realize how popular documentary film making has become.”

Highlights from the programme include Itchkéri Kenti, made by Florent Marcie who headed to Chechnya with two (photo) cameras, a hand-held (film) camera and a blank slate. Without being able to speak a word of Russian, Marcie was nevertheless able to gather accounts from Chechynyan freedom fighters, villagers, a humanitarian doctor, the leader of the separatists (Aslan Maskhadov) and his commander (Shamyl Bassaiev), as well as men and women passionate about their right to independence. Before the film was screened to the public, Florent Macie showed it to a young Russian entrepreneur visiting Paris who was overwhelmed by the images of Chechnyans in Grozny demonstrating for independence. He said that Russians has never seen these kind of images and insisted that the film be released there too.

This documentary film and more are of extreme cultural significance and offer a unique voice for all of humanity. For more details visit events.filmarchive.org.nz