[RECAP] The power of a good story: Dokufest & Honeyland

The kind of evening that reminds you why these conversations matter.

As part of the Atelier Pelikula project, in our Sonda Creative Centre we hosted two guests whose work speaks for itself – Veton Nurkollari, artistic director of Dokufest, and Samir Ljuma, director of photography behind the award-winning documentary Honeyland.

Nurkollari’s lecture, City as a Film Stage, traced the story of Dokufest – from a group of friends who saw potential in an abandoned cinema in Prizren to a festival that now draws tens of thousands of visitors each year and has transformed the city into a recognized European cultural destination. At the heart of that story is a simple but powerful idea: that film can be a tool for community development, not just artistic expression. The success of Dokufest, as Nurkollari framed it, isn’t measured only in numbers – it lies in its broader role as a platform for education, music, and art, and in initiatives like the Future is Here film school, which has produced over 150 documentary films by young authors since 2011.

Ljuma brought a different perspective – the craft behind the lens, and what it takes to tell a story that travels beyond its origin. He walked the audience through the making of Honeyland – the story of Hatidže Muratova, a wild bee hunter living in a remote Macedonian village. He shared how the story unfolded organically, under what conditions the team worked, and what it means to intervene – or choose not to – in a documentary process. His approach to the protagonists and to nature was guided by a clear ethical compass: patient, responsible, and deeply respectful of what was in front of the lens.

Both lectures sparked genuine interest and lively questions from the audience. Public screenings of Honeyland and a selection of short documentary films from Dokufest were also arranged – a fitting extension of an evening that felt like exactly the right way to open a project like Atelier Pelikula.

You can watch the lectures below: