Story perspectives

Cannes Debuts Mark Cousins' Documentary Series, Kino Lorber Acquires Rights

5/24/2026

Summary

Story summary

Cannes added Mark Cousins’ 16-chapter series *The Story of Documentary Film* to its selection, debuting the 1970s chapters.
Festival chief Thierry Frémaux introduced Cousins, who wore a “documentary kills fascism” t-shirt, called documentary a “solidarity machine,” and cited Noriaki Tsuchimoto’s Minamata documentary and *Harlan County U.S.A.* to argue documentary is central to cinema.
Kino Lorber secured North American rights and will release all 16 chapters later this year.

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Story summary

Cannes added Mark Cousins’ 16-chapter series *The Story of Documentary Film* to its selection, debuting the 1970s chapters.
Festival chief Thierry Frémaux introduced Cousins, who wore a “documentary kills fascism” t-shirt, called documentary a “solidarity machine,” and cited Noriaki Tsuchimoto’s Minamata documentary and *Harlan County U.S.A.* to argue documentary is central to cinema.
Kino Lorber secured North American rights and will release all 16 chapters later this year.