The 2026 edition of the European Genre Forum has announced the eight projects selected for its 12th cycle, continuing its mission to support emerging European filmmakers working within genre cinema. The new cycle will kick off with the Screenwriting and Directing Lab in Zagreb, running from 2-5 July in collaboration with the Fantastic Zagreb Film Festival.

As was the case with previous editions, the training initiative spans six months and comprises three intensive talent labs focused on different stages of project development. This year’s selection once again reflects a broad spectrum of genre storytelling, with projects exploring sci-fi, horror, thriller, fantasy, dark comedy, mystery and dystopian drama.

The selected teams represent a wide geographic range, with eight countries involved across the eight projects. Over the course of the programme, they will receive tailored guidance to develop their projects both creatively and strategically. Designed for debuting or sophomore filmmakers, the labs aim to elevate the overall quality of the projects while fostering the next generation of European genre talent.

Among the selected projects, Alda by Vako Kirkitadze explores a remote village shaken by supernatural events tied to guilt and superstition, while Bear Skin by Marc Charley delves into ritualistic violence in an isolated community where a symbolic hunt turns deadly. Genre hybridity is also evident in Brain Drain by Max r Lincoln, a horror-comedy about a student’s monstrous transformation, and Sun Offspring by Octavian Saramet, which follows a couple entangled in a disturbing fertility cult. Questions of identity and societal pressure emerge in Dreaming Differences by Kateřina Winkler, centred on a sleepless future, while Garm by Matthias Kreter blends psychological drama and horror through the destabilising presence of a stray dog.

Contemporary anxieties around technology and perception are addressed in Lulu by Angel Radev, set within a company assessing AI-generated imagery, as obsession blurs the line between the real and the artificial. Meanwhile, Otok by Mariana Jukica (Chasing Paper Birds) offers a contained survival-horror narrative, in which a wedding on a remote island descends into paranoia and violence following a sudden disappearance. Together, the projects highlight the programme’s continued focus on bold storytelling and thematic diversity within the European genre landscape.

Following the Zagreb session, the Producing Lab will take place in Amsterdam from 2-6 November, during the Imagine Fantastic Film Festival, focusing on the business, financial and legal dimensions of filmmaking. The programme concludes with the Marketing and Packaging Lab, set for 16-20 November in Tallinn, within the framework of Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, part of the Black Nights Film Festival, where participants will further develop their pitching, packaging, marketing and sales strategies.

Throughout all three labs, participants will engage in hands-on training with script consultants and industry professionals, including mentors specialising in co-production, legal affairs, crowdfunding and international sales. The programme also includes a look at case studies on recent European genre success stories.

Here are the projects selected for the 12th European Genre Forum:

Bear Skin – Marc Charley (France)
Producer: Laurent Normand

Otok – Mariana Jukica (Germany)
Producers: Daniel Haingartner, Matthias Halibrand

Alda – Vako Kirkitadze (Georgia)
Producer: Nika Gugushvili

Garm – Matthias Kreter (Germany)
Producer: Nicolas Kronauer

Brain Drain – Max r Lincoln (UK)
Producer: Rami Pantoja

Lulu – Angel Radev (Bulgaria/Germany/France)
Producer: Noura Al Kadri

Sun Offspring – Octavian Saramet (Romania)
Producer: Mara Cracaleanu

Dreaming Differences – Kateřina Winkler (Slovakia/Czech Republic)
Producer: Nataša Jurčová Findrová