Haus des Dokumentarfilms

What Haus des Dokumentarfilms does

Haus des Dokumentarfilms (HDF) is a Stuttgart-based non-profit association (eingetragener Verein, legally "Haus des Dokumentarfilms – Europäisches Medienforum Stuttgart e.V.") founded in 1991 to promote, present, collect, and research documentary film in Europe. It is the only institution on the continent dedicated exclusively to the documentary form. The organization operates four interlocking program areas: industry events (DOKVILLE annual conference with ~350 accredited attendees, Roman Brodmann Kolloquium, masterclasses with filmmakers such as Doris Dörrie and Stephan Lamby, DOK Premiere cinema screenings across Stuttgart, Ludwigsburg, Berlin, Cologne, and other cities); a state-level film archive (Landesfilmsammlung Baden-Württemberg) holding 11,000+ titles dating to 1904, including ~1,650 Nazi-era films and a timecode-searchable online database of 11,000+ post-1945 documentaries with 1.8 million detail searches logged; film education (FILMWISSEN ONLINE interactive platform with Deutsche Filmakademie, Jugendfilmpreis BW, school screening programs); and an awards portfolio (Roman Brodmann Preis €10,000, Förderpreis Deutscher Dokumentarfilmpreis €3,000, Baden-Württembergischer Filmpreis €1,000, DOK.talent Award €2,500, Jugendfilmpreis €500).

The core technology is the DOKapp mobile application (iOS/Android, ad-free), built with Stuttgart-based Bitfactory and funded by MFG, which aggregates TV schedules, streaming catalogs, cinema listings, and festival information for documentary content. Supporting digital platforms include dokumentarfilm.info (editorial portal), DOKsite (festival database), and an open-access research platform for documentary film history.

Revenue is generated through a hybrid non-profit model: recurring Trägerverein membership fees from 20+ public broadcasters, film foundations, religious institutions, and government bodies (SWR, ZDF, ARTE, MFG, Land Baden-Württemberg, Stadt Stuttgart); project-based grants from film funds and state programs; transaction fees from masterclass/workshop tickets (€30–45) and DVD sales (€12–19.95 for Filmreise regional history compilations); and archive licensing fees from documentary producers licensing historical footage. Free-tier offerings (newsletter, online database, festival listings) drive top-of-funnel engagement while paid events and licensing anchor revenue.

Name

Haus des Dokumentarfilms

Legal name

Haus des Dokumentarfilms – Europäisches Medienforum Stuttgart e.V.

Website

https://hdf.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Haus des Dokumentarfilms is a Stuttgart-based non-profit association (founded 1991) that is Europe's only institution dedicated exclusively to documentary film promotion, archive management (11,000+ titles), industry events (DOKVILLE, masterclasses), film education, and awards for documentary filmmakers and cultural institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Documentary Film Institution

NAICS

Motion Picture and Video Production (51211), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Allied To Motion Picture Distribution (7829)

akta.pro primary industry

Archival Research, Rights & Provenance Services (Clearance, Chain-of-Custody) (MPADAMAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Access & Distribution for Archives (Restored Masters, DCP Creation, Screening Deliverables) (MPADAMAJ)

Keywords

• Documentary film promotion
• Film archive services
• Documentary film research
• Film industry events
• Film education programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Stuttgart

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Event-based Activities: Revenue generated through ticket sales for masterclasses (35-45€ regular, 30-40€ student pricing), workshop fees, and event sponsorship/cooperation arrangements with partners like ARTE, SWR, MFG, and others.
2. DVD Sales - Filmreise Series: Sale of DVD compilation films from the Filmreise series featuring regional historical footage. DVDs priced at 12€ to 19.95€ plus shipping. Includes cities such as Stuttgart, Heidelberg, Tübingen, Freiburg, Karlsruhe, and others.
3. Membership Fees: The organization operates as a non-profit association (e.V.) with members including public broadcasters, film foundations, religious institutions, and cultural organizations who pay membership fees. Member organizations include SWR, ZDF, ARTE, BR, NDR, WDR, rbb, Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, and others.
4. Licensing and Archive Services: The Landesfilmsammlung Baden-Württemberg provides licensing of historical film footage to documentary productions, TV documentaries, and occasionally feature films. Serves as a rights clearinghouse with contracts from all source providers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

Haus des Dokumentarfilms (HDF) is Europe's only institution dedicated exclusively to documentary film promotion, presentation, collection, and research. It operates the Landesfilmsammlung Baden-Württemberg archive with over 11,000 film titles, organizes the annual DOKVILLE industry conference (~350 attendees), runs the Roman Brodmann Kolloquium media-political symposium, hosts masterclasses and workshops with renowned filmmakers, awards multiple documentary film prizes (Roman Brodmann Preis €10,000, Förderpreis €3,000, BW Filmpreis €1,000, Jugendfilmpreis €500, DOK.talent Award €2,500), provides film education resources, and operates the DOKapp mobile application and online documentary film databases.

Product overview

Haus des Dokumentarfilms (HDF) operates a multi-platform portfolio centered on documentary film promotion, research, and archiving. Its digital offerings include dokumentarfilm.info (editorial news portal), DOKsite (festival platform), and the DOKapp mobile application for documentary schedules. HDF manages the Landesfilmsammlung Baden-Württemberg (state film archive) with over 11,000 film titles, and operates research databases and publication programs including the 26-volume Buchreihe Close up. HDF organizes events including DOKVILLE (annual industry conference), Roman Brodmann Kolloquium, DOK Premiere screenings, and Meisterklassen & Workshops. The organization awards several film prizes: Roman Brodmann Preis (€10,000, political documentary), Förderpreis des Deutschen Dokumentarfilmpreises (€3,000, debut works), Baden-Württembergischer Filmpreis (€1,000), Jugendfilmpreis (€500), and DOK.talent Award (€2,500). HDF also produces the Filmreise DVD series, supports film education through FILMWISSEN ONLINE, and conducts DFG-funded documentary film history research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• DOKVILLE: Annual branch meeting/industry conference for documentary film professionals
• Roman Brodmann Preis
• DOK Premiere
• DOKapp
• dokumentarfilm.info
• DOKsite
• Landesfilmsammlung Baden-Württemberg
• Förderpreis des Deutschen Dokumentarfilmpreises
• DOK.talent Award
• Baden-Württembergischer Filmpreis (Dokumentarfilm)

Products and services

• DOKapp Free mobile application (iOS/Android) with 100% documentary film content and no advertising. Features TV program tracking for public broadcasters, Mediatheken streaming content review, cinema listings with location-based search and ticket ordering, festival overview, and daily curated film criticism and industry news. Targeted at documentary film enthusiasts and viewers.
• dokumentarfilm.info Online editorial portal providing news, reviews, festival reports, and industry news about documentary film productions in cinema, TV, and streaming.
• DOKsite
• DOKVILLE Industry Conference
• Roman Brodmann Preis Annual €10,000 award for political documentary film with strong authorial voice. Awarded since 2022 in Berlin. Named after journalist/director Roman Brodmann (1920-1990).
• Förderpreis des Deutschen Dokumentarfilmpreises
• Baden-Württembergischer Filmpreis (Bester Dokumentarfilm)
• Jugendfilmpreis Baden-Württemberg (Bester Dokumentarischer Film)
• DOK.talent Award
• Filmreise DVD Series
• Landesfilmsammlung Baden-Württemberg (LFS) State film archive affiliated with HDF, responsible for collecting, cataloguing, restoring, and providing access to historical film heritage from Baden-Württemberg. One of Europe's largest amateur film archives with over 11,000 film titles dating back to 1904, including approximately 1,650 Nazi-era titles. Provides licensing of historical footage to productions.
• Dokumentarfilmgeschichte Datenbank
• Meisterklassen & Workshops
• DOK Premiere Screenings
• Roman Brodmann Kolloquium
• FILMWISSEN ONLINE Interactive online learning platform offering educational content on film history, film language, and film knowledge for young users. HDF contributed modules on documentary film and advertising film. A consortium of seven German film institutions including Deutsche Filmakademie, DFF, CineGraph, Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek, Filmmuseum Düsseldorf, and Filmmuseum Potsdam.
• Bundesweite Kinoinitiative 27. Januar
• Buchreihe Close up

Quantifiable outcome

• DOKVILLE 2026 attracted approximately 350 accredited participants
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

28 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major, notable and minor.

• ARTEcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026European culture channel ARTE is a strategic partner for DOKVILLE, Roman Brodmann Kolloquium (fixed cooperation partner since inception), and co-production partner for documentary series like 'Mein liebster Dokumentarfilm'.
• Film- und Medienstiftung NRWmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Joint presenter of the newly established European Documentary Film Prize (Europäischer Dokumentarfilmpreis), initiated in 2026. Major German film funding body based in North Rhine-Westphalia.
• Grimme-InstitutnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Partner for DOKVILLE 2026, contributing to the industry conference program on documentary filmmaking and media.
• Bundeszentrale für Politische Bildung (bpb)notableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Partner for specific DOKVILLE 2026 panels on democracy and civic society. Provides educational perspective on documentary film and political education.
• Film Commission Region StuttgartminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Provides speed-dating networking session at DOKVILLE for film professionals and location scouts.
• Landesvertretung Rheinland-Pfalz beim BundnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2026Fixed partner for Roman Brodmann Kolloquium and Preisverleihung events held at their Berlin venue (In den Ministergärten 6).
• Haus der Geschichte Baden-WürttembergnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner for the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January (Holocaust commemoration) and DOK Premiere screenings at the museum venue.
• Deutsche KinematheknotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner in the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January (Holocaust commemoration). Major German film archive.
• BundesarchivnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner in the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January. German Federal Archives.
• Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-StiftungminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner in the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January. German film preservation foundation.
• Gedenk- und Bildungsstätte Haus der Wannsee-KonferenznotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner in the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January. Educational memorial site for Holocaust commemoration.
• Landesarchiv Baden-WürttembergminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner in the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January.
• Baden-Württembergische LandesbibliothekminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner in the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January.
• Bundesverband kommunale Filmarbeit e.V.notableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partner organizing the nationwide cinema initiative 27 January across 40+ member cinemas throughout Germany.
• Israelitische Religionsgemeinschaft Württembergs (irgw)notableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Member of Trägerverein and partner for Jewish Cultural Weeks Stuttgart (Jüdische Kulturwochen), presenting documentary film screenings annually since 2007.
• SWR (Südwestrundfunk)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 June 2024SWR is a key strategic partner co-organizing DOKVILLE (annual industry conference) and the German Documentary Film Prize (Deutscher Dokumentarfilmpreis), dotated at 20,000€ (SWR and MFG each contributing 50%). HDF CEO Eric Friedler previously led documentation departments at NDR and SWR.
• MFG Medien- und Filmgesellschaft Baden-WürttembergcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 June 2024Co-organizer of DOKVILLE and joint funder of the German Documentary Film Prize. Provided funding for DOKapp development. Key regional film funding body.
• Stuttgarter ZeitungnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2023Media partner for the multimedia project 'Die 68er' (The 68ers), providing coverage and collaborative content on the 1968 movement and its legacy.
• Südwestrundfunk (SWR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2023Co-producer of the 'Die 68er' multimedia project with SWR2 multimedia program focus, contributing radio content and archival footage.
• Daheim in der Fremde project partnersnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2023Project on refugee/migration history in Baden-Württemberg, funded by Land Baden-Württemberg. Partners include various cultural and educational institutions.
• NaturVision LudwigsburgminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2022Partner for workshop with nature filmmakers Jan and Melanie Haft (July 2022). Nature and wildlife film festival.
• Deutsche FilmakademienotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Strategic partner for film education initiatives including Filmwissen.online (interactive platform launched Feb 2022) and 'Klassiker sehen – Filme verstehen' educational program for schools. HDF contributed modules on documentary film and advertising film.
• DFF – Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum FrankfurtminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner institution in the Filmwissen.online consortium of seven German film education organizations.
• CineGraph – Hamburgisches Centrum für FilmforschungminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner institution in the Filmwissen.online consortium focusing on film research and historical content.
• Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek – Museum für Film und FernsehenminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner institution in the Filmwissen.online consortium contributing film archive expertise.
• Filmmuseum DüsseldorfminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner institution in the Filmwissen.online consortium.
• Filmmuseum PotsdamminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2022Partner institution in the Filmwissen.online consortium.
• Bitfactory (Stuttgart)notableTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2020Technology partner that developed the DOKapp mobile application in collaboration with HDF. App provides documentary film information, TV schedules, and streaming recommendations.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung: Wiesbaden-based German film heritage foundation restoring and distributing classic German films. Co-partner with HDF in the Bundesweite Kinoinitiative 27. Januar; comparable in operating an archive and supporting cinematic culture.
• Deutsche Kinemathek: Berlin-based museum and film archive for German cinema. Already a co-partner with HDF in the Bundesweite Kinoinitiative 27. Januar; comparable in operating museum exhibitions, archive services, and educational programs.
• DFF – Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum Frankfurt: Frankfurt-based German film museum and institute. Directly comparable to HDF's Landesfilmsammlung and Filmwissen.online activities; already a partner in the Filmwissen.online consortium alongside HDF.
• DOK.fest München: One of Germany's two leading documentary film festivals (Munich-based). Directly comparable to HDF as both organize documentary awards (DOK.talent Award is hosted by HDF at DOK.fest München), industry programs, and educational initiatives for the German documentary sector.
• DOK Leipzig: Germany's flagship international documentary and animated film festival in Leipzig. Comparable to HDF as both run industry conferences, masterclasses, and networking programs for documentary professionals in the German-speaking market.

Emerging players

• Visions du Réel: Nyon-based documentary film festival emphasizing European and international documentary cinema. Comparable to HDF in festival-industry model but at smaller scale and Swiss focus.
• Berlinale Talents: Berlin-based talent development programme for emerging filmmakers across fiction, documentary, and series. Comparable in offering masterclasses, networking, and project development for documentary filmmakers.

Regional players

• Hot Docs: Toronto-based North American documentary festival and industry hub. Comparable in combining festival programming with year-round industry initiatives, but operates in a different geography.

Broad incumbents

• Bundesarchiv – Filmarchiv: German Federal Archives' film division, the national-level film archive. Already a co-partner with HDF in the Bundesweite Kinoinitiative 27. Januar; comparable as a documentary and historical-film archive operator.
• International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA): World's largest documentary film festival. Operates at greater scale and global scope than HDF but with analogous industry programming (Forum, talent development, awards) for documentary professionals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/HausdesDokumentarfilms
• Facebookfacebook.com/hausdesdokumentarfilms
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/haus-des-dokumentarfilms
• Instagraminstagram.com/hausdesdokumentarfilms

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Haus des Dokumentarfilms