On The Walls 2026 Documentary Film Festival (August 2026)
From Thursday, 13th August to Sunday, 16th August 2026
Join us at Castello di Potentino for the 6th edition of On The Walls Documentary Festival – 2026. Festival entry is free!
A long weekend of documentaries, dialogue, and a live concert under the stars, with screenings in the chapel by day and projected onto the medieval castle walls by night. This year’s program includes exclusive screenings of both the 2026 Oscar-winning documentary and the Golden Globe-winning documentary.
SEE THE FULL LINEUP BELOW!
The festival brings global stories to rural places where cinemas are scarce and access to culture is limited.
Directors, producers, and guests from around the world will take part in Q&As, both in person and online, exploring this year’s theme: BORDERLINES.
If you would like to book, a 4-night stay (Thursday–Monday) includes full lodging and board (wine sold separately at a discounted rate). Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served either al fresco under the loggia or in the castle’s Great Hall, at a grand table shared by guests, directors, volunteers, and friends.
Festival entry is free to ensure access for the local community.
Please see the programme below.
THURSDAY 13 AUGUST
21:00 - Oscar-winning Documentary 'MR. NOBODY AGAINST PUTIN' (Dir. David Borenstein & Pavel Talankin)
A Russian schoolteacher secretly documents the militarisation and propaganda infiltrating classrooms during the war in Ukraine, risking everything to expose life inside Putin’s Russia.
FRIDAY 14 AUGUST
11:00 – CUTTING THROUGH ROCKS (Dir. Mohammadreza Eyni & Sara Khaki)
An intimate portrait of the first woman elected to a rural Iranian village council as she challenges patriarchy, child marriage, and tradition from within her community.
17:00 – SABBATH QUEEN (Dir. Sandi DuBowski)
Filmed over two decades, this moving documentary follows Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie’s journey from Orthodox Jewish heir to radical drag performer and founder of an inclusive New York congregation.
21:00 – COEXISTENCE, MY ASS! (Dir. Amber Fares)
Following Israeli comedian and activist Noam Shuster-Eliassi as she develops her one-woman show, the film uses sharp humour and personal insight to confront inequality, identity, and the realities of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.
SATURDAY 15 AUGUST
11:00 – GEN (Dir. Gianluca Matarrese)
A deeply personal coming-of-age documentary exploring gender, identity, and belonging across generations.
17:00 – MOLLY VS THE MACHINES (Dir. Marc Silver)
A devastating and urgent documentary examining the tragic death of 14-year-old Molly Russell and her father’s fight to hold Big Tech accountable.
21:00 – KOMARNICA “THE NATURE THAT REMAINS” (Dir. Emilija Gašić)
A visually stunning conservation documentary about Montenegro’s Komarnica River Canyon — one of Europe’s last free-flowing wild rivers and a critical biodiversity hotspot now threatened by hydropower development.
21:00 – DENIZENS PART III: THE HUMAN LAMENT (Lucas Gutierrez in collaboration with Charlotte Horton, Otis Springer, and Phoebe Reid)
The third chapter in an evolving multimedia installation combining real-time laser projections, soundscapes, and film to explore innovative ways of capturing and preserving the frequencies, rhythms, and visual essence of the plant and human life of Monte Amiata.
SUNDAY 16 AUGUST
11:00 - Documentaries in Progress Workshop with Leslie Knott and Yuval Orr
Award-winning filmmakers Leslie Knott and Yuval Orr present works in progress and discuss their approaches to documentary storytelling, sharing insights into research, editing, collaboration, and the challenges of developing nonfiction films from concept to screen.
17:00 – NATCHEZ (Dir. Suzannah Herbert)
Set in the American South, Natchez examines how a town built on antebellum tourism confronts — and often avoids — the enduring legacy of slavery and racial inequality.
20:00 – Cardellini del Fontanino Concert
Traditional mountain singers from Monte Amiata, the Cardellini del Fontanino preserve and perform the rich oral folk music traditions of southern Tuscany.
21:00 – Golden Globe-winning Documentary THE SIX BILLION DOLLAR MAN (Dir. Eugene Jarecki)
The extraordinary story of Julian Assange, WikiLeaks, and the global battle over truth, secrecy, and freedom of information.
