At a time when we look anxiously at today’s social realities and try, perhaps more than ever, to find some order in the chaos around us, the Moldox Festival brings to Chișinău screens 27 feature-length and 6 short documentaries—both national and international—that serve as exercises in empathy and clarity.
Under this year’s theme, “Chaos. Reinventing Reality,” the festival becomes not only the most ambitious to date, but also deeply rooted in the heart of current social issues, highlighting topics such as the fight for freedom, the memory of the past and its impact on the present, gender equality, and the traumas caused by war and violence.
Film critic, cinephile, and festival programmer Marin Basarab recommends five must-see documentaries from the Moldox 2025 selection:
- Flowers of Ukraine (dir. Adelina Borets)
A film like a breath of fresh air, filled with vivid imagery and energetic editing. Flowers of Ukraine tells the story of Natalia Yurchenko, a woman who first battles the system and later the invaders. How do you keep your optimism when surrounded by injustice, death, and pain? Natalia shows that in the face of existential danger, we can still love life, smile, and laugh. A film about courage, hope, and the determination to never give in to darkness.
- Trains (dir. Maciej J. Drigas)
A contemplative journey through the 20th century, built entirely from archival footage. The film intertwines moments of joy and despair, allowing us to witness the century’s breakthroughs and tragedies through images that speak for themselves, without a narrator.
- Cutting Through Rocks (dir. Mohammadreza Eyni & Sara Khaki)
A deeply human portrait of Sara Shahverdi, an Iranian woman devoted to girls’ education in contemporary Iran, in the spirit of freedom. The film offers a painful introspection into the current state of Iranian society, where gender equality is almost nonexistent and women are often limited to subservient roles within a rigid patriarchal system.
- Redlight to Limelight (dir. Bipuljit Basu)
A gripping documentary about the lives of sex workers and their children in Kolkata’s red-light district. The film impresses with its sensitive direction and the care with which the characters are portrayed, offering an intimate perspective on women marginalized by Indian society.
- The Voice of Hind Rajab (dir. Kaouther Ben Hania)
Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, this documentary tells the tragic story of Hind Rajab, a six-year-old Palestinian girl killed by the Israeli army. It is a film that leaves no room for neutrality and lingers with the viewer long after the screening, bringing to the forefront the tragedies of children trapped in armed conflicts.
Each screening helps us confront the darker corners of reality and encourages us to join a collective dialogue about the issues that shape us as a society.
In addition to these five highlighted films, the 10th edition of the Moldox Festival features numerous documentaries from Moldova and around the world, most of them national premieres.
We invite you to explore the full program and follow official Moldox social media channels and website for updates on tickets, screening times, and related events:
https://moldoxfestival.com/en/programme/
The festival will take place 26–30 November 2025 at Cineplex Loteanu in Chișinău.