The new edition of the festival In-Edit 2026 arrives with many novelties such as the new sections for music videos and series or the first projects by creators like Carla Simón and Albert Serra.
We speak with Astrid Rousse and Toni L. Querol, directors of the festival, about how this new edition is shaping up, the need to preserve Barcelona's musical memory, and why documentary continues to be the best tool to understand what is happening to us.
— How would you define this new edition of In-Edit? What would be its slogan or main theme?
— We are aware that we are about to reach the festival's 25th anniversary, which will be next year. Right now, we are on a path of consolidation and, at the same time, of opening up. We are consolidating in terms of dimensions and artistic ambitions, and in parallel, we are opening up to other formats: music videos, the presentation of series, and other projects that are at the crossroads between audiovisual, music, and other disciplines. We want to explore these intersections beyond what would strictly be the cinematographic documentary genre.
Furthermore, we continue to weave an increasingly larger network between the local and international spheres, taking advantage of the fact that the festival has had editions abroad for more than twenty years and has very powerful connections. This year we collaborate with many music festivals and diverse initiatives; it is a very powerful creative space from Barcelona.
— Speaking of these new formats, you are opening up to the field of series and music videos. How are these genres incorporated into the program?
— The main space where these things will happen will be the In-Edit Lab. We are very interested in musical audiovisual content on platforms and television being maintained and growing. It was a very powerful format a few years ago, but then it dwindled, and it's hard for people to commit to it. That's why we want to support those who start producing musical documentary series.
An example of this is the presentation we will make of Radio Galileo, a new documentary series that is in an advanced project phase and is seeking distribution. It interviews artists of many styles and generations from all over Spain with a common thread: having performed at the mythical Galileo Galilei venue in Madrid. These are very well-recorded interviews and performances, a commitment to musical documentary in series format that we miss and that we have a duty to support.
On the other hand, regarding video clips, we have started a collaboration with Sala Apolo through an open call. The video clip is the audiovisual format with which many people start: it is the quarry of new talent and a space for experimentation where one can take many risks at the language level. From this selection will come the Apolo Award for the best music video, which will include a financial endowment and the possibility of shooting a video clip using the facilities of the same venue.
— This year the opening film is dedicated to Marianne Faithfull and the closing film to the Beastie Boys. Why did you choose these titles?
— We open with the documentary about Marianne Faithfull not only because she is a fascinating figure, but because of the film itself. The directors, Liam Forsyth and Jane Pollard (known for their work with Nick Cave in 20,000 Days on Earth), are great innovators of the genre and seek hybrid formats between fiction, performance, and documentary.
We combat and challenge the reductionist and sexist prejudice of labeling Faithfull simply as "Mick Jagger's girlfriend."
In this film, we combat and challenge the reductionist and sexist prejudice of labeling Faithfull simply as "Mick Jagger's girlfriend." To explore her memory, the directors deploy an almost fictional device: a "Ministry of Non-Oblivion" where officials put the artist before her own memories. It is one of the last interviews she granted before dying and demonstrates her brilliant lucidity. We are interested in it both for the protagonist and for what it represents in terms of genre renewal.
And as for the closing, The Best Summer, we return a bit to the origins of the festival: rescuing unreleased material. It is a documentary made from found footage. The director saved a box of 90s camcorder tapes during the Malibu fires without knowing what was inside, and they turned out to be unreleased images of a tour of Australia with the Beastie Boys. It is an authentic time capsule and 100% responds to the DNA of In-Edit.
— One of the great attractions of this edition is the participation of filmmakers like Carla Simón and Albert Serra, who are making their debut in the musical format. What can you tell us about it?
— In the case of Carla Simón, she will present a short film in premiere format that had not been seen on the big screen. It is an incursion into contemporary musical cinema, visually dazzling, starring the dancer and choreographer Rocío Molina and with the collaboration of Niño de Elche. It explores the clash between tradition, modernity, and female empowerment. It is a totally hybrid piece that mixes fiction, performance, and documentary resources, reusing voices from old films. Carla Simón herself will come to present it at the festival.
Here we still need to learn to reclaim our own history and heritage.
On the other hand, Albert Serra presents a docu-concert around the figure of Ingrid Caven, a mythical actress of the new German cinema, Fassbinder's collaborator, and a diva of the European avant-garde. Born from Serra's personal fascination with her, the film features a concert recorded in a Paris theater with songs that emerged from the collaboration with the group Més Forts. Serra's gaze films this performance —between chanson and cabaret— in an austere and re-concentrated way, turning it into a very intense cinematic experience.
— How do you see the health of the musical documentary sector in Catalonia currently?
— There is a lot of talent and high-quality work is being done, but we will continue to demand more support. Documentary is an audiovisual product that requires a lot of development time, often between 5 and 6 years of work per project. Sometimes, institutions or the private sector seek speed, and this affects support. Compared to other regions where productions are economically more powerful, here in Catalonia people have to fight very hard.
In this year's Catalan Productions section, we are very happy because it embraces many different generations and styles. From a portrait of Jordi Savall to a documentary about the superhit machine Flying Free, passing through the group Remei de Ca la Fresca or the rap of Vaya Valle. We love these contrasts.
— The section Sounds of Barcelona continues to have significant weight. What is the philosophy behind this programming line?
— We have been working intensely on this section for at least four years. The intention is to map the musical and historical landscape of the city. In cities like New York, any micro-underground scene from the 80s has four books, two documentaries, and an archive at MoMA; here we still need to learn how to reclaim our own history and heritage.
This year, Sons de Barcelona takes us from the Raval where Enrique Escudé-Cofiner (one of the most international Catalan composers of the 50s and 60s) was born, passing through the punk and artistic scene of Castelldefels, the history of the legendary venue 23 Robadors, or a documentary about the historic concerts of the Transition (Raimon, Lluís Llach, Maria del Mar Bonet). It is our way of recording the musical memory of a city that has often seen legendary venues disappear due to gentrification.
Here we still need to learn how to reclaim our own history and heritage.
— With what spirit or understanding would you like the audience to leave the festival?
— We like to invite the audience not to view In-Edit as if it were solely the lineup of a music festival. Our main goal is to foster curiosity. We love it when someone comes to see a documentary about an artist they already know and, suddenly, takes a risk and discovers a scene, a city, or a story they knew absolutely nothing about. We look for good stories for a curious audience.
The music documentary is one of the best tools to explain social, political, and cultural phenomena. At a time when we are all so atomized within our algorithmic bubble, these works provide context and historical perspective, which is something indispensable today.
The music documentary is one of the best tools to explain social, political, and cultural phenomena.
— Finally, can you give us a small preview of prominent names that will be part of this year's program?
— We can announce a good shower of very powerful names and thematic blocks. For example, we will have documentaries about David Bowie, a docu-concert by Pulp narrated by Jarvis Cocker, the punk band NOFX, the Malian duo Amadou & Mariam, and a work about Jack Johnson that talks about his three passions: surfing, cinema, and music. We also have Fermin Muguruza's project celebrating 40 years of career, and Fernando Trueba's new musical project together with Niño Josele, where they explore the dialogue between flamenco, Brazilian music, and jazz.
We will screen documentaries about Cerrone (the father of French disco), Earth, Wind & Fire, and a work focused on photographer Glen E. Friedman, a key figure in the birth of skate, punk, and hip-hop culture (with the presence of Run-DMC, Public Enemy, and Beastie Boys). And, to finish, we will have a very complete itinerary dedicated to flamenco that includes the history of La Niña de la Puebla, the figure of Perrate as a contemporary renovator, the legacy of Triana and its spiritual heirs like Califato 3/4, in addition to recovering the mythical documentary Omega.
From 29 October to 8 November, a new edition of In-Edit, the Barcelona International Music Documentary Film Festival, returns, celebrating its 24th edition at Mooby Aribau Cinemes.