CPH:DOX

What CPH:DOX does

CPH:DOX (Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival) is a documentary film festival and cultural institution founded in 2003 and operated by the Copenhagen Film Festival Foundation, a Danish non-profit (CVR DK31285569) headquartered at Flæsketorvet 60, Copenhagen V. In its 23rd edition (March 11–22, 2026), the festival annually programs 70+ competition titles and draws 150,000+ attendees across Copenhagen venues led by Kunsthal Charlottenborg, supplemented by digital streaming on its PARA:DOX platform (140+ films in 2026). The festival's 12 sub-brands cover the full documentary stack: CPH:INDUSTRY for 2,000+ international delegates, CPH:FORUM as a financing/co-production market (launched 2011), CPH:LAB for talent development in immersive/interactive non-fiction (launched 2019), CPH:CONFERENCE and CPH:DOX SUMMIT for industry debate, INTRO:DOX for first/second-time filmmakers, DOX:ACADEMY and UNG:DOX for students, INTER:ACTIVE for XR exhibition, and CPH:MARKET for film acquisitions. Competitions include the €10,000 DOX:AWARD, five additional €5,000 prizes, and — newly in 2026 — the FIPRESCI Critics' Award.

Revenue is generated through unit-priced ticket sales (e.g., 50 DKK UNG:DOX student, 110 DKK INTER:ACTIVE), professional accreditations, CPH:FORUM submission fees (250 DKK), CPH:LAB tuition (3,750 DKK ≈ €500 per participant), and the PARA:DOX/KLUB:DOX digital subscription offering. The foundation is funded primarily by public subsidies from the Danish Film Institute, Creative Europe Media, and Copenhagen Municipality, alongside private foundation grants from Novo Nordisk Fonden and Lundbeck Fonden, corporate and media partnerships (European Film Promotion, Variety, Deadline, Screen, Cineuropa), and program-fee revenue. The organization operates year-round with a lean core team but scales significantly during the March festival window.

Name

CPH:DOX

Legal name

Copenhagen Film Festival Foundation

Website

https://cphdox.dk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CPH:DOX is a Copenhagen-based non-profit foundation operating an annual documentary film festival serving 150,000+ general audiences, 2,000+ industry delegates, and film students via screenings, financing markets, talent development programs, and a digital streaming platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Documentary Film Festival

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920), Motion Picture and Video Exhibition (51213)

SIC

Services-Allied To Motion Picture Production (7819)

akta.pro primary industry

Film Festivals & Festival Organizers (MPADAKAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Virtual/Hybrid Conference Production & Platform Management (THAHACAM)

Keywords

• Documentary film festival
• Film industry events
• Documentary co-production market
• Film talent development
• Immersive documentary exhibition

Headquarters

HQ city

Copenhagen

HQ country

Denmark

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Festival tickets sold for film screenings, events, and INTER:ACTIVE Exhibition. Standard tickets plus discounted student/youth tickets.
2. Professional Accreditation: Industry accreditation fees granting access to CPH:INDUSTRY events, conferences, screenings, and networking. Multiple accreditation tiers available.
3. Industry Services: CPH:MARKET online platform for film acquisitions, CPH:FORUM participation fees (250 DKK submission fee), CPH:LAB tuition fees (3750 DKK per participant).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

CPH:DOX produces an annual documentary film festival in Copenhagen featuring international competition screenings, premieres, and awards. Around the festival it operates professional industry programs (CPH:INDUSTRY conferences, CPH:FORUM financing and co-production market, CPH:LAB talent development), the UNG:DOX youth education initiative, and the PARA:DOX digital streaming platform that extends festival access beyond Copenhagen.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CPH:FORUM: International financing and co-production event for documentary projects
• CPH:INDUSTRY
• CPH:LAB
• CPH:CONFERENCE
• CPH:DOX SUMMIT
• INTRO:DOX
• DOX:ACADEMY
• UNG:DOX
• PARA:DOX
• INTER:ACTIVE
• DOX:AWARD
• CPH:MARKET

Products and services

• CPH:DOX Festival Annual documentary film festival held in Copenhagen featuring international competition screenings, world premieres, and the DOX:AWARD competition; open to general audiences, filmmakers, and industry professionals.
• CPH:INDUSTRY

Quantifiable outcome

• 150,000+ audience members across Denmark in 2025
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• European Film PromotioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecond year partnership for 'Europe! Docs' showcase to highlight European documentaries and improve market access in North America. Online event featuring six world premiere documentaries from CPH:DOX lineup.
• Kunsthal CharlottenborgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFestival headquarters and main venue partner. Kunsthal Charlottenborg at Nyhavn 2 serves as the central festival location for screenings, conferences, and industry events.
• FIPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration welcoming the first official FIPRESCI critics' jury at CPH:DOX 2026 for the 23rd edition.
• Doc Society (Climate Story Lab Nordic)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Doc Society for Climate Story Lab Nordic, supporting climate storytelling initiatives and Nordic film industry climate action.
• Documentary CampusminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for CPH:CONFERENCE programming and industry education initiatives.
• EAVEminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for CHANGE Co-Production Training Programme, empowering documentary film projects from Eastern Partnership countries.
• VarietyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMedia partner providing press coverage and editorial visibility for festival.
• DeadlineminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMedia partner providing news coverage and festival announcements.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• IDFA (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam): IDFA is the world's largest documentary film festival, running annually in Amsterdam with extensive industry programming, financing forums (IDA Forum/IDFA Forum), and talent development. CPH:DOX competes head-to-head for international documentary premieres, industry delegates, and co-production market share.
• Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival: Hot Docs runs annually in Toronto with a large industry conference (Hot Docs Forum), bridging finance and documentary projects, and has served as a model festival-with-industry structure that closely mirrors CPH:DOX's combination of public screenings and CPH:FORUM/CPH:INDUSTRY programming.
• Sheffield DocFest: Sheffield DocFest is a UK-based documentary festival and industry market (Doc/Deal, MeetMarket) with both public screenings and a financing/co-production forum closely comparable to CPH:FORUM. Both festivals compete for European documentary premieres and industry delegates.
• DOC NYC: DOC NYC is America's largest documentary festival, offering public screenings alongside DocuWeeks industry programming. It competes with CPH:DOX for North American co-premiere positioning and international press coverage.
• Visions du Réel (Nyon): Swiss documentary festival in Nyon combining public screenings with an industry platform (Visions du Réel Industry). Comparable in scale, programming philosophy, and bilingual industry outreach to CPH:DOX.
• True/False Film Fest: True/False is a documentary-focused festival in Missouri known for curatorial ambition and filmmaker Q&As. It is comparable to CPH:DOX in its documentary-first positioning and curatorial prestige rather than commercial scale.

Broad incumbents

• Sundance Film Festival: Sundance runs a much larger festival across fiction and documentary with separate industry lab programming (Sundance Labs), broader cultural footprint and prestige. CPH:DOX sits in its shadow as a documentary-specialist counterpart and often competes for the same world-premiere titles.
• Berlinale (Berlin International Film Festival): Berlinale is a major European film festival with a substantial documentary section, Berlinale Talents, and European Film Market. Comparable to CPH:DOX in European footprint and industry programming, but operates across all genres.
• Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF): TIFF is one of the largest global film festivals with a robust documentary program (TIFF Docs), industry platform, and year-round programming via the TIFF Bell Lightbox. Comparable to CPH:DOX as a hybrid public + industry festival but at significantly larger scale.

Others

• Documentary Campus: Documentary Campus is a pan-European industry training and talent development organization that partners with CPH:DOX on CPH:CONFERENCE programming. Comparable as an industry-education ecosystem player in the documentary sector.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cphdox
• Facebookfacebook.com/cphdox
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cph-dox

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CPH:DOX