This year’s selection brings together a vibrant delegation of filmmakers. Six Projects, six Producers, and five Directors across three interconnected professional programs will come together during the Locarno Pro days, immersing themselves in the industry environment of the Festival. In parallel, the Open Doors Screenings section continue to offer a window to the public, onto feature and short films from the contemporary scene of this diverse region.
The participating talents represent a new generation of bold and visionary creators, reshaping the ways we tell stories and build careers in cinema. The selected Projects seek international co-production opportunities while offering innovative perspectives and urgent narratives. The Producers are exploring sustainable ways of building companies and networks across borders. The Directors featured in the Open Doors Screenings with their short films - together with the eight feature films screened in the selection, including a world premiere - bring unique visions from territories often absent from the global conversation – each of them redefining cinematic language in their own way.
This new generation of filmmakers is not only responding to the complexities of their realities – they are also catalyzing a reinvention of cinema as we know it. They are questioning outdated models and introducing new, bold, and collaborative approaches.
As part of Locarno Pro, Open Doors continues its commitment to imagining new dynamics for the film industry – ones that are more ethical, inclusive, and sustainable. With this new regional focus, the program sets out to encourage more horizontal exchanges between film communities, and to support the creation of professional ecosystems that respect local contexts while fostering international dialogue.
Thanks to our long-standing relationship with SDC, Open Doors’ activities run throughout the year, culminating each August in Locarno.
We are proud to open this new cycle by welcoming the emerging voices shaping the future of the cinematic landscape of the African continent—and the global film industry.
Zsuzsi Bánkuti
Head of Open Door
