Top 5 Films to Watch at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival

Who doesn’t love a good doco? They enthral, perplex and stupefy. Often, they’re stranger than fiction. Now in its fourth year, the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival (MDFF) kicks off in July. Milk Bar is here to guide you through their most thought-provoking, progressive and eclectic programme yet. So rug up, grab a warm drink, and let’s do this.

Chasing a Million

Can the business of bartering lead you to amass a fortune? In Chasing a Million, Albert and Stefan defy all odds when they begin with a free rabbit from the internet and end up with a luxe apartment afoot a mountain slope. Unusual, unpredictable and extremely entertaining, this film will certainly give you some ideas.

The Art of Incarceration

Nearly half of the documentaries are created by Australian filmmakers. One of the standouts is The Art of Incarceration. Premiering at the festival, the film explores The Torch, a one-of-a-kind not-for-profit organisation that runs arts programs for Indigenous prisoners and ex-offenders in Victoria’s prison system. The narrative piece analyses and humanises the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples within the prison system through telling individual stories of their quest for cultural identity and spiritual healing.

Dark Money

Directed by Kimberly Reed, Dark Money is a political thriller that challenges the invisible trail of money that influences election campaigns and elected officials. The gripping doco uncovers the shocking and perturbing truth of how American elections are bought and sold, casting aside personal freedoms and rights of democracy. Sounds familiar, hey?

The Queens

If you are a fan of Foxtel’s hit show Pose, Ru Paul or the classic Paris is Burning, then The Queens is right up your alley. Beyond the entertainment, sequins and drama, the feature-length doco explores the transgender subculture of competitive female impersonation. Through the lens of two iconic beauty pageant shows, you can watch the highs and lows of the competitors’ lives as they vie for the crown.

17 Block

17 Blocks traces the steps of the Sanford family. Directed by Davy Rothbart and using intimate home videos, the clan’s struggles with addiction and gun violence are retold in plain view as they pursue love, experience loss, and ultimately, accept their fates.

‘The final selection is an uncompromising, award-winning and challenging slate of documentaries from the world’s very best film festivals,’ says MDFF director Lyndon Stone.

Take a look at the full list of films here.

Melbourne Documentary Film Festival
Friday, 19 to Tuesday, 30 July 2025
mdff.org.au