TR
Ⓒ 2026 Beykoz Kundura

DocLab

Project and capacity-building program designed for documentary cinema and theater directors.

Kundura DocLab is an international artistic project development lab in the documentary genre that aims to strengthen the creative research process for makers. The platform brings theater and film practice together for an investigative process to develop artistic collaboration and methodology in non-fiction storytelling.

​​This international program brought together cinema and theater documentary directors from many different countries for the first time in May 2023. Regularly curated each year with invited instructors of diverse backgrounds, the program creates a space for the convergence of different creative minds and stories from various countries.

Kundura DocLab welcomes all cinema and theater directors whose output is based on research. We believe that there is a strong interconnection between the two disciplines and aim to bridge them by exploring similar elements, overlapping innovative aspects in the creative process, and the form of storytelling.

Kundura DocLab is constructing a framework where documentary creators can share common artistic creation processes from an equal standpoint, fostering their creative worlds while enabling the personal development of their artistic identities. Throughout this entire process, we not only question and discuss the definitions of today but also explore the essence of non-fiction storytelling, contemplating the possibilities of creating new approaches. In doing so, we seek the pathways to “another world” by delving into the core of non-fiction narrative and discussing redefining the present.

When?

The fourth edition of Kundura DocLab will be held at Beykoz Kundura from June 8 to 12, 2026.

Application: February 9–April 24, 2026, until 18:00 (Türkiye time)

Announcement of selected projects:May 6, 2026

Preliminary Meeting: May 11, 2026 (online)

Residential development program: June 8-12, 2026 (Beykoz Kundura)

*Successful applicants must attend the Preliminary Meeting

kunduralab@beykozkundura.com

The application process has ended.

What we offer

Kundura DocLab offers a capacity-building program; gathering with inspiring workshops, lectures, and international exchange programs held for the fourth time in Istanbul in June 2026 to generate this creative and collaborative space. We will investigate harmoniously for a cutting-edge cross-disciplinary approach and offer an exchange for building up a curious ecosystem in artistic production.

Who can participate?

Kundura DocLab is open to every research-based filmmaker and theatermaker who is practicing documentary, keen on in-depth improvement of methodologies, and looking for self-development as a creative practitioner.

Conditions of Participation

Applicants must be 30 years of age or older. 

For filmmakers: We expect you to have either 1 feature-length documentary film or 2 medium-length documentary films that have participated in an international festival program.

For theatermakers: We expect you to have 1 original production performed at either a national festival or an international fringe festival. 

We value participants who, alongside a strong aesthetic approach, can enhance their analytical skills in their creative practices, express themselves effectively, and prioritize openness to sharing and collaborative production in their research.

Participants must be proficient in English, with an at least Upper-Intermediate, preferably Advanced Level knowledge.

Participants must attend the entire program; successful applicants will be required to sign a memorandum of understanding.

Artists can apply with their film or performance/theater projects at the early stage of development. They must present an idea to work on throughout the lab for the application. 

The applicants can enroll from the following regions; 

Afghanistan, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, Georgia, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Syria, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Yemen and European countries.

Who Do We Work With?

The Kundura DocLab program, designed as a comprehensive experience that engages participants in active production both during and after the workshop process, was developed under the consultancy of dramaturg Aljoscha Begrich and creative film producer Bruni Burres.

In addition to project and capacity-building programs, Kundura DocLab which will also offer opportunities to establish international collaborations will feature screenings open to the public, workshops, artist talks, and masterclasses.

Participation fee

Kundura DocLab provides accommodation (including breakfast and dinner), Lab training, and access to ticketed events.  Travel expenses must be covered by the participant.

Our Working Principles

Kundura DocLab aims to create a safe, sustainable, and inclusive environment for discussion, dialogue, and sharing, where everyone is treated within the framework of respect and equality.

We declare that the participant selection process and the workshops will not involve any form of favoritism, offensive language, discrimination, abuse, marginalization, or humiliating behavior based on gender, ethnicity, religious belief, skin color, gender identity, socioeconomic class, caste, disability, or age.

Bruni Burres

Bruni Burres is a passionate leader with over 25 years of proven recognition in developing and implementing innovative projects at the intersection of arts, culture, human rights, and social justice. She is an executive, producer, fundraising expert, media educator, and social media consultant. Burres serves as a lead consultant for the Sundance Film Institute’s Documentary Film Program, where she works internationally to strategize and deepen projects with individual artists and organizations. Since 2008, she has been a mentor and partner in the Greenhouse Documentary program and continues to collaborate with its founding team as a partner and educator for Close-Up, an international co-production initiative supporting emerging filmmakers from the Middle East and North Africa. She also serves as an advisor for Doc Society's Good Pitch. From 1991 to 2008, she directed the Human Rights Watch Film Festival, of which she is also a co-founder. Bruni is the co-writer and executive producer of Beyond My Grandfather Allende, which won Best Documentary at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, and the co-writer and producer of Whose Country? a film by Mohamed Siam that premiered at the 2016 New York Film Festival.

Born in Belgrade in 1977, they studied art history, philosophy, and cultural studies in Berlin, Buenos Aires, and Mexico City. They have been collaborating with Rimini Protokoll for over 10 years since 2010, working with Stefan Kaegi on the Remote X project, which has been performed in more than 50 cities, including Istanbul.

Since 2014, they have been serving as a dramaturg at the Berlin Gorki Theater, collaborating on documentary projects with artists such as Ersan Mondtag, Marta Gornicka, Oliver Frljić, and Lola Arias. Begrich has also worked on numerous public space projects in cities like Santiago de Chile, Tehran, and Copenhagen. From 2020 to 2023, they worked as a curator and dramaturg at the Ruhrtriennale, collaborating with Mapa Teatro, Mariano Pensotti, and Marco Layera. In 2020, they founded the OSTEN festival in Bitterfeld, focusing on exploring post-socialist societies and the challenges of living within them through visual and performative means. Since 2024 Co-leader of International Forum at Berliner Festspiele

FAQ

We only accept online applications. Deadline for applications is April 24, 2026. Please read the requirements carefully before completing the application.

Filmmakers and theatermakers of 30 years of age or above can apply. 

 

Conditions of Participation:

  • For filmmakers: We expect you to have either 1 feature-length documentary film or 2 medium-length documentary films that have participated in an international festival program.
  • For theatermakers: We expect you to have 1 original production performed at either a national festival or an international fringe festival. 

 

Participants must be proficient in English, with an at least Upper-Intermediate or preferably Advanced Level knowledge.

 

Participants must attend the entire program; successful applicants will be required to sign a memorandum of understanding.

Co-writers and co-directors can apply together with the same project, but only one person from the same project can participate in DocLab. 

The application form is expected to be filled in collectively. The project owners must decide who the participants will be.

We recommend that you participate in the work that expresses yourself and your approach most authentically, clearly, and comfortably.

No, there is no participant fee for Kundura DocLab. Kundura DocLab provides accommodation (including breakfast and dinner), workshop training, and passes to the ticketed events organized between / June 8 – 12, 2026. Travel expenses must be covered by the participants who may obtain financial support as they wish.

Selected projects will be announced on May 6, 2026 via Beykoz Kundura’s website (Kundura DocLab section) and social media accounts.

Yes, you may reapply for the next edition.

Yes, you can apply, but you can only apply twice with the same project.

The Preliminary Meeting is an online event which will bring Kundura DocLab management team and the participants together for the first time on May 11, 2026.

 

We aim to clear all the questions in mind, answer all questions as a team thus bring all the participants together on the same page to build the connection smoothly during the lab.

 

Participants are required to attend the Preliminary Meeting, otherwise they will lose the right to take part in the lab program

Yes, the participants from each genre will attend all the workshops together as we aim for these two disciplines to learn from each other.

You must participate in all programs except optional events/activities.

Yes, you just need to be a citizen of one of the following countries: Afghanistan, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, Georgia, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Syria, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Yemen and European countries.

No. you must be a citizen of one of the following countries: Afghanistan, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, Georgia, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Syria, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Yemen and European countries.

No, you must submit your application from the country of your citizenship.

DocLab FelsefeLab PerformLab