17/11/2025 - The Spanish filmmaker will share his experience with the nine young European filmmakers selected with their debut feature projects

Director Oliver Laxe (© 2025 Fabrizio de Gennaro for Cineuropa - fadege.it, @fadege.it)

A programme designed to support the transition from short films to feature films, the 8th edition of the Talent Village - running from 12 to 16 December within the Industry Village unspooling within the 17th Les Arcs Film Festival (13-20 December) - will once again boast a top-tier patron in the form of Oliver Laxe (the winner of a Special Mention in Cannes this year by way of Sirāt [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Óliver Laxe
film profile] having travelled to the Croisette three times previously, also selected in the Directors’ Fortnight in 2010 via You All Are Captains [+see also:
trailer
film profile], and awarded the Grand Prize in Critics’ Week 2016 thanks to Mimosas [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Oliver Laxe
film profile] as well as the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize in 2019 via Fire Will Come [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Óliver Laxe
film profile]). The Spanish filmmaker, who succeeds Hungary’s Ildikó Enyedi and Sweden’s Ruben Östlund in this role, will be on hand in the Savoie resort to meet the nine selected European talents and to share his experience with them.

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Focused on the workings of the international industry, the Talent Village will see its participants honing their projects through three workshops led by Dutch producer Erik Glijnis (Lemming Film), French talents Thomas Rosso (Critics’ Week) and Olivier Barbier (head of International Sales at Lucky Number), and Australian music supervisor Laura Bell. The young filmmakers will then take part in the Co-Production Village market, before the best project walks away with the Talent Village Award (€5,000 courtesy of Ciclic Centre - Val de Loire).

The young Talent Village filmmakers (all highly acclaimed for their short works) will also get the opportunity to work with four emerging composers (Greece’s Gregorios Eleftheriou, French-Finnish talent Emil Sana and French talents Lolita Del Pino and Minh Lê Boutin) selected from Les Arcs’ Music Village as part of a partnership with Sacem.

The selected filmmakers are as follows:

Ruairí Bradley (Ireland)
Project:  Jomo
Production:  Noir Studio

Chloe Culpin (United Kingdom)
Project:  Annie & Joan
Production:  Erebus Pictures Limited, Riff Raff Entertainment

Dovydas Drakšas (Lithuania)
Project:  Lagoon Blues

Fran Moreno Blanco - Santi Pujol Amat (Spain)
Project:  Stem Cell

Xandra Popescu (Romania)
Project:  Daughters of the Burning Heart
Production:  Angst & Bange

Helio Pu (France)
Project:  Anywhere Anytime
Production:  Fin Août Début Septembre

Reza Rasouli (Austria)
Project:  Roots & Wind
Production:  Lost Frames

Xin Wang (France)
Project:  Interpretations
Production:  Alexis Hofmann

(Translated from French)