Documentary Edge Festival Announces Packed 2018 Program

The Documentary Edge Festival has been bringing the very best documentaries from across the globe to New Zealand since 2005. It annually attracts more than 10,000 people to watch a selection of thought-provoking, feature-length documentaries and pint-sized flicks.

With five titles already released, including a George Michael autobiography and a woolly mammoth hit direct from Sundance, the festival has now unveiled its full program for 2018. The 80-film lineup has something for every cinematic palate, from a decidedly anti-Hollywood fame documentary to a homegrown short about K' Road institution Coco's Cantina, and a feature about monstrous swamp rats.

Elsewhere on the lineup film-goers will be treated to unscripted masterpieces from Norway, England, Australia, Switzerland, Palestine and beyond.

Recruiting for Jihad tells the story of a well-known Norwegian extremist and a filmmaker's eventual battle for independent journalism; Gospel According to André is a film from director Kate Novack which explores the career of fashion editor and journalist André Leon Talley; Mermaids follows five women who are part of the growing "mermaiding" subculture; Anote's Ark is a climate change doco about a low-lying Pacific nation which is being swallowed by the ocean; Stan follows New Zealand songwriter Stan Walker as he faces serious health issues; Newtown tells the story of the deadliest mass shooting of school children in American history; and Nests of Gold uncovers of one of the world's most expensive foods. And that's just a tiny slice of the pie — see the full program here.

The 13th Documentary Edge Festival 2018 will play out from May 9-20 at Wellington's Roxy Cinema and from May 23 - June 4 at Auckland's Q Theatre.