The International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) is the world's largest documentary film festival held annually since 1988 in Amsterdam. Over a period of twelve days, it has screened more than 300 films and sold more than 250,000 tickets. Visitors to the festival have increased from 65,000 in 2000 to 285,000 in 2018. The festival is an independent, international meeting place for audiences and professionals to see a diverse (in form, content, and cultural background) program of high-quality documentaries. IDFA selects creative and accessible documentaries, which offer new insights into society. In its mission statement, IDFA says it ‘strives to screen films with urgent social themes that reflect the spirit of the time in which they are made’. The festival was initially held at the Leidseplein area in the center of Amsterdam. It has since spread to a number of other locations, including Tuschinski Cinema and EYE Filmmuseum. Apart from its international film program, the variety of genres, and the many European and world premieres featured each year, the festival also hosts debates, forums, and workshops. Since 2007, the festival's New Media program IDFA DocLab showcases the best interactive non-fiction storytelling and explores how the digital revolution is reshaping documentary art. In addition to the festival, IDFA has developed several professional activities, contributing to the development of filmmakers and their films at all stages. At the co-financing and co-production market IDFA Forum filmmakers and producers pitch their plans to financiers; at Docs for Sale new documentaries are on offer to programmers and distributors; the IDFA Bertha Fund supports filmmakers and documentary projects in developing countries, and the IDFAcademy offers international training programs for up-and-coming doc talents. IDFA was founded by Ally Derks, who remained at the helm from 1988 until 2017 when she stepped down. Barbara Visser oversaw the 2017 edition as interim director. In January 2018, Syrian film producer Orwa Nyrabia was appointed as the new artistic director of IDFA. Prizes The best new documentaries of the year compete in IDFA's main competition programs: The IDFA Award for Best Feature-Length Documentary for best documentary longer than 70 minutes. Prize: €15,000 (The jury also presents a Special Jury Award) The IDFA Award for Best Mid-Length Documentary for best documentary between 40 and 70 minutes. Prize: €10,000 (The jury also presents a Special Jury Award) The IDFA Award for Best Short Documentary for best documentary under 40 minutes. Prize: €5,000 (The