UNICORN: Breaking the Law Is Our Business entered production this June with filming taking place in Paris, Barcelona, and Berlin, marking a new stage for this investigative documentary about the power of major technology platforms and their impact on our cities.
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The documentary Understory (formerly known as Seeing Green) continues to move forward in production and is preparing to enter a key new phase: post-production. (more…)
The 2026 edition of DocsBarcelona Pro, the industry platform of the DocsBarcelona festival, once again brought together non-fiction professionals from around the world in Barcelona. At Polar Star Films, we were delighted to take part in this year’s edition not only as producers, but also by contributing to the evaluation and development of new documentary projects.
Our producer Marieke van den Bersselaar served on the jury for the ARTE European Talent Development Award, while Carles Brugueras participated as a jury member for the DocsBarcelona Campus Pitch, a program dedicated to supporting emerging documentary voices.
The DocsBarcelona Pro Awards ceremony recognized some of the most outstanding projects of the edition. Crossed received the 3Cat Award for Best Project, worth €15,000 and considered the platform’s highest-value award. Meanwhile, My Sister Gaza won both the ARTE Award and the Al Jazeera Award, each endowed with €10,000.
We congratulate all the selected and awarded projects for contributing to the vitality and diversity of contemporary documentary filmmaking.
We would also like to congratulate the winners of the 2026 ProDocs Awards, presented during the festival as part of the 15th anniversary celebrations of ProDocs, the Catalan documentary producers’ association.
This year, the feature documentary Dios lo ve, produced by Hic&Nunc and centered on renowned architect Óscar Tusquets, received the Best Television Documentary Award. The Best Television Series Award went to Els herois de Vandellòs, produced by Minoria Absoluta, which reconstructs the management of the serious nuclear incident that took place at the Catalan power plant in 1989.
We are especially proud that Infiltrats, a production by La Directa and Polar Star Films for the special edition of 30 minuts on 3Cat, was a finalist in this year’s ProDocs Awards.
👉 If you have not seen it yet, Infiltrats is available to watch on the 3Cat platform.
👉 Discover all the award-winning projects from DocsBarcelona Pro 2026.
We are immensely happy to announce that Mums (Mares) has been nominated for the Gaudí Award for Best Documentary Film, a recognition that celebrates not only the cinematic work but also the courage, tenderness, and honesty that run through this story.
Anna (41) and Ari (32) want to become mothers. What initially seemed like a straightforward path soon transforms into a complex medical, physical, and emotional journey that puts the couple’s limits to the test.
For more than four years, Ari captures with her camera the ups and downs of a process filled with hope and frustration, laughter and tears, expectation and disappointment. And through it all, Anna and Ari never lose their sense of humour.
Mums is a transgenerational film that invites us to reflect on the consequences of postponing motherhood, while highlighting love, care, and the bonds that sustain us—especially when things get difficult.
The Gaudí nomination adds to a celebrated international trajectory that includes:
To Anna and Ari for their generosity and courage.
To the teams who have supported this film at every stage.
And to the audiences, for embracing this story with such emotion.
We continue celebrating and sharing Mums, now more than ever.
We are delighted to share that BALOMANIA, the documentary film by Sissel Morell Dargis, has been awarded the Laie Dart International Award.
In the words of the jury:
The film combines a deeply personal and emotional dimension with a collective and political perspective. With an approach rooted in visual anthropology, it reveals a Brazilian cultural practice as an art form connected to community and cultural identity. The rare access to an underground, exclusively male world, together with a clear and immersive structure, builds a suspenseful narrative that explores rebellion, social inequality, and the sense of belonging.
Balomania reveals a secret society of hot air balloon makers in the favelas of Brazil, willing to risk everything to launch their illegal creations—some reaching up to 70 meters high—powered by fireworks. The film takes us on a surreal and intimate journey through a country grappling with socioeconomic decline and political collapse. It challenges our preconceived notions about favela communities and highlights the true power of art.
Selected and awarded at more than 40 festivals and competitions worldwide, Balomania continues to expand its international trajectory. Follow @balomaniaworld on Instagram to stay up to date.
Learn more and watch the trailer
Infiltrats, the current affairs investigation that revealed the patterns, impacts, and mistakes of police infiltration operations in various social movements in Catalonia and beyond, is the most-watched of the “30 minuts” series. With over 363,000 accumulated views, the programme, based on years of investigation by La Directa, is the most-watched in the history of the slot on the 3cat digital platform.
In early 2020, at least four officers from the National Police infiltrated various social movements in the Catalan Countries. Under false identities, María Perelló arrives in Girona, Ramón Martínez in Valencia, and Daniel Hernández and Marc Hernández in Barcelona. All four are part of the 33rd class of the Ávila Police Academy and operate under the orders of the General Commissariat of Information. Two years later, a journalistic investigation by the Directa reveals the real identities and backgrounds of these officers.
We’re thrilled to announce that Mañana al Mar, the very first feature documentary produced by Polar Star Films, is now available to stream on Tënk. Completed in 2006 and shot on luminous 16mm film, this poetic gem is finally reaching new audiences nearly 20 years after its premiere.
Currently streaming in France, Belgium, Switzerland, and Luxembourg, Mañana al Mar is a sensuous, impressionistic meditation on aging and the sea, directed by Ines Thomsen. Set on the beaches of Barcelona, the film follows a group of senior citizens who gather daily at the shoreline, offering a moving and quietly radical portrait of aging not as decline, but as transformation and joy.
One of the unforgettable protagonists is Paulina, who, despite walking with a crutch, answers the siren call of the sea with unwavering determination. Each day she crosses the sand slowly, painfully—until the moment the waves touch her feet. Then, she lets go of the crutch, dives in, and becomes weightless, singing Cuban love songs with abandon. It’s a scene that captures the soul of the film: the body’s vulnerability and the spirit’s resilience.
Produced in co-production with ZDF/ARTE (Germany), TVC (Spain), and gop03 (Germany), and supported by ICIC Spain and Kulturelle Filmförderung Schleswig-Holstein, Mañana al Mar marked the beginning of Polar Star Films’ journey into long-form documentary storytelling. It remains one of the team’s most beloved early works.
Watch the trailer here
If you’re in a Tënk-available region, you can stream the film here with a free one-month trial subscription.
We’re honoured that Mañana al Mar continues to find new life and audiences nearly two decades on. Dive in.
#Documentary #PolarStarFilms #MananaAlMar #Tënk #AgingWithJoy #16mm #Barcelona #PoeticCinema #InesThomsen
We are overjoyed to share that Only on Earth, directed by Robin Petré, has been awarded the Best Feature Documentary prize at the XXVIII edition of FICMEC, the Canary Islands International Environmental Film Festival! (more…)
Our current documentary in production Seeing Green not only explores the relationship between plant intelligence and the climate crisis but also integrates an active commitment to sustainability. (more…)
We’re absolutely delighted to share that Mums, directed by Ariadna Seuba Serra, has won the Audience Award at DocsBarcelona 2025! (more…)
We’re thrilled to share that Only on Earth, directed by Robin Petré, has received the Award for Best Cinematography and a Special Mention for the Green Warsaw Award at the 21st Millennium Docs Against Gravity Film Festival in Poland. (more…)
We are thrilled to share that The Click Trap has been awarded Best Television Documentary at the 12th edition of the ProDocs Awards, recognizing the best in television documentary in Spain 2024! (more…)