IFFR Pro Awards presented to projects across CineMart, Darkroom, Lightroom and Safe Harbour 

The winners of the IFFR Pro Awards were announced for 2026 in a ceremony held at ‘de Doelen’ on Wednesday 4 February. The IFFR Pro Awards celebrate outstanding projects from the CineMart, Darkroom, Lightroom and Safe Harbour selections, recognising bold artistic vision, innovation and international collaboration at different stages of development.

The winners were selected from the 21 projects for the 43rd  edition of CineMart, alongside 10 projects for the work-in-progress platform Darkroom, nine immersive media projects under IFFR’s new industry platform for immersive storytelling Lightroom, and the four projects from Safe Harbour– the new market programme intended to uplift projects in development from emerging filmmakers who have experienced displacement or forced migration and who face limited access to professional networks, funding pathways and development opportunities. The Safe Harbour initiative has been developed in collaboration with the International Emerging Film Talent Fund (IEFTF).

Head of IFFR Pro, Marten Rabarts, said: “As our latest edition of IFFR Pro draws to a close, the breadth and evolution of this year’s programme was a true reflection of our commitment to meeting filmmakers’ shifting needs. This was echoed throughout the programme with the launch of Safe Harbour, Lightroom, CineMart x HBF and the Creators Lab, as well as our CineMart and Darkroom lineups which were stronger and more essential than ever. Tonight it was a privilege to come together and celebrate all the market projects, including the winners, each of which has gained remarkable momentum over the past few days – and to round out another powerful edition of IFFR Pro that has sparked connections, unlocked new partnerships and propelled projects closer to a life on the screen and beyond.”

IFFR Pro Days 2026

The IFFR Pro Industry Days officially concluded on Wednesday 4 February, following a programme of initiatives including CineMart and Darkroom, alongside Safe Harbour, expanding Rotterdam Producers Lab with a new Creators Lab for writers and directors, piloting of the Dutch Talent Market on Sunday 1 February, and welcoming the first HBF Reunion at the festival. 

The Pro Hub provided a meeting place, networking environment and hive of knowledge for the whole filmmaking and professional community at the festival, programming Pro Dialogues exploring topics that resonate directly with the programme – from Asian genre cinema and African independent film to putting sex on screen and contemporary Arab filmmaking – alongside priceless Meet the Experts sessions, Pro Encounters networking roundtables with festival programmers, Pitch Out! opportunities and one-to-one mentor meetings with industry insiders.

Additionally, IFFR’s Art Directions programme celebrated its 30th anniversary this year. To mark the milestone, IFFR Pro launched Lightroom – a new industry programme for immersive work hosted at Katoenhuis, featuring a project market and the Reality Check: Lightroom symposium on 31 January. The symposium brought together artists, producers, curators, technologists, funders and policymakers to explore how immersive storytelling can move from experimentation towards sustainable artistic and industry frameworks. 

The discussion highlighted three key challenges: defining “immersive” to set clear expectations and open institutional pathways; building community and collaboration across disciplines despite limited reach and distribution; and ensuring sustainability through proper documentation, archiving and shared resources to preserve XR’s history for future creators. 

Full findings with concrete, actionable results from the day will be published in a report.

IFFR Pro 2026 winners in full:

4DR Studio Awards

4DR Studios handed out two awards: one for Best Immersive Project in development and one for Best Immersive work-in-progress project in Lightroom. Both consist of a volumetric video studio package and workshop for a selected and eligible project.

Jury: Natasja Paulssen (4DR Studios), Isa de Koeijer (4DR Studios)

4DR Studios Award for Best Immersive Project in development 

WINNER: Chemin des Bâtards by Leon Rogissart, produced by BNA-BBOT, UpscaleXR and Muziektheater Transparant (Belgium, Netherlands)

4DR Studios Award for Best Immersive work-in-progress project in Lightroom 

WINNER: Cléo by Coco Chen, produced by Digital Art Foundation, National Performing Arts Center- National Taichung Theater (Taiwan) 

ArteKino International Award 

ArteKino offers an award, worth €6,000, to the producer of a standout project to support its development. 

WINNER: The Poet’s Son by Nicolas Graux, produced by Tarantula, Yellow Blackbird, Petit à Petit Production, Clin d’Œil Films (Belgium, France, Germany)

Jury statement: “The ArteKino International Award goes to a first feature project that brings humanity and poetry into a place of darkness in this perilous moment in time. Told by a convincing filmmaker, it is a personal, intimate story that transcends its actuality.”

Jury: Bero Beyer (Augustus Film), Gilles Duval (ARTE France Cinéma), Anton Scholten (Filmmore)

Eurimages New Lab Awards 

Eurimages offers two awards: an Outreach Award for Darkroom & Lightroom work-in-progress projects (€30,000) and an Innovation Award for CineMart & Lightroom projects in development (€20,000).

Innovation Award

WINNER: Daughters of the Sea by Martika Ramirez Escobar, produced by This Side Up / Arkeofilms, Alba Sotorra Cinema Productions (Philippines, Spain)

Jury statement: “For daring to rethink the conventions of filmmaking for the sake of artistic integrity and authentic cross-cultural storytelling, the innovation award goes to Daughters of the Sea by Martika Ramirez Escobar.”

Outreach Award 

WINNER: LFD Hope by Joshua Loftin, produced by Gallivant Film, Sea Fox Films, Lorenz Films, Good Kids productions (United Kingdom, Hungary) 

Jury statement: “For the audacity to treat fragility as a way to strengthen communities and paving a clear path towards inclusive dialogues on topics silenced by conformity.”

Jury: Stefan Prohorov (Bulgarian National Film Center), Frédéric Boyer (Tribeca Festival), Klaudia Śmieja-Rostworowska (Madants)

Filmmore Awards

Amsterdam-based Filmmore, a leading full-service post-production, editing and visual effects facility, offers two awards: a Filmmore Post-production Award (€7,500) to be used for visual effects and post-production for a CineMart project, and a Filmmore Work-in-progress Post-production Award (€5,000) for a Darkroom project.

Filmmore Work-in-progress Post-production Award

WINNER: The Hummingbird Paints Fragrant Songs by Èlia Gasull Balada and Matteo Norzi, produced by Shipibo Conibo Center (Peru, United States, Spain, Chile)

Jury statement: “The Hummingbird Paints Fragrant Songs captivated us with its scope and commitment – a film that transcends storytelling to become an act of purpose. We are honoured to support a work that feels less like a project and more like a calling.”

Jury: Igor Riabchuk (Filmmore), Gabor Greiner (Films Boutique)

Filmmore Post-Production Award 

WINNER: Pale Faces by Chantel Clark, produced by BALDR Film, Cadence (Netherlands, South Africa) 

Jury statement: “The Filmmore Award goes to a daring new co-production pushing the envelope of genre, relevance and historic conscience. The filmmakers ambitiously weave a rich tapestry of myth and research, folklore and colonialism.”

Jury: Bero Beyer (Augustus Film), Gilles Duval (ARTE France Cinéma), Anton Scholten (Filmmore)

HBF Empowerment Award 

Thanks to a private donor, the Hubert Bals Fund is granting the HBF Empowerment Award (€10,000) to a Darkroom project. The award empowers filmmakers who come from politically challenging contexts or whose work addresses themes such as freedom of expression, displacement, human rights and/or underrepresented communities.

WINNER: Marina by Laís Santos Araújo and Pethrus Tibúrcio, produced by ColorBird Inc. (Brazil)

Jury statement: “We were seduced by this film from its first images – the main character’s emotion, motivation and doubts were all there. The jury unanimously decided to award this local story from an underrepresented region, made by underrepresented filmmakers but with global appeal.”

Jury: Juliette Duret (BOZAR), Gabrielle Rozing (Imagine Filmdistributie), Jonas Chadarevian (São Paulo International Film Festival, MOSTRA)

HBF x PUBLIKUM Audience Outreach Award

The HBF x PUBLIKUM Audience Outreach Award (€9,000) is presented to a HBF-supported film project in development that demonstrates strong potential to engage a clearly defined or underserved audience. The award offers tailored consultancy from PUBLIKUM, supporting the project at a critical stage of development where audience insight can meaningfully inform creative choices, positioning and communication strategies. By strengthening the project’s audience awareness and impact readiness, the award helps filmmakers translate artistic vision into clear audience connection and market presence.

WINNER: Coumba by Mamadou Dia, produced by Maayo Productions, Les Films du Bilboquet (Senegal, France)

Jury: Rikke Flodin (PUBLIKUM.io), Danielle Guirguis (Smarthouse Creative Impact Studio)

New Impulse Award

Thanks to the generosity of a private donor, the New Impulse Award (€2,500) is given to one of the newly presented Safe Harbour projects. 

For the pilot edition of Safe Harbour, four early-stage projects by writers, directors and artists who are at risk and/or stateless were presented during CineMart. 

Safe Harbour has been developed in collaboration with the International Emerging Film Talent Fund (IEFTF), the Athens-based philanthropic organisation dedicated to strengthening film ecosystems across the Global South. For Safe Harbour they led global outreach and contributed to the selection process following extensive research and interviews with more than 30 filmmakers.

WINNER: Hidden Journey by Noura Adil, produced by: Weika Production Ltd. (Sudan)

Jury: Jannie Langbroek, Frank Peijnenburg 

VIPO Award

The Visual Industry Promotion Organization dedicated to supporting Japan’s content industry internationally offers an award, worth €3,000, to an outstanding project with budgets where the award can make the most impact.

WINNER: Neon Phantom by Leonardo Martinelli, produced by Duas Mariola Filmes (Brazil)

Jury statement: “This work stands out for its fresh and engaging concept: it tells a universal story of youth and family through a musical, while exploring the nature of society through delivery work – a form of labour that symbolises our times. It shows remarkable creativity and exciting, limitless potential.”

Jury: Mika Morishita (VIPO), Yoshi Yatabe (VIPO), Nahoko Yamashita (VIPO), Kousuke Ono (VIPO)