Masterclass for filmmakers by IFFR and Buddy Career Boost

Each year on World Refugee Day (20 June), people around the world pause to reflect on the lives of those who have been forced to flee their homes. To mark the occasion, IFFR is presents a special programme on Wednesday 17 June, in collaboration with Buddy Film Foundation and Fenix, and supported by UNIQLO. The programme features two events: at Fenix, the Buddy Film Foundation hosts a workshop for filmmakers with lived experience of displacement, and at LantarenVenster, audiences can attend a screening of the Displacement Film Fund short films, which world premiered earlier this year at IFFR 2026.

From mid-June through to December 2026, the Buddy Film Foundation Buddy Career Boost programme will support professional screenwriters with a refugee background who are looking to further develop their voice and build their careers in the Netherlands.

The programme will kick off on Wednesday 17 June with a workshop and activities in the lead-up to World Refugee Day. The workshop will be led by an experienced filmmaker with a refugee background and will focus on artistic exchange, talent development, storytelling, identity and migration.

Before the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to visit the Fenix art museum about migration for free. After the workshop, there will be a communal dinner, followed by the screening of the Displacement Film Fund short films at LantarenVenster.

You do not need to be enrolled in the Buddy Career Boost programme to take part in this event. So, if you are a professional screenwriter or filmmaker with a refugee background and are interested in joining the workshop, please register your interest via the link below and we will get back to you as soon as possible regarding your participation.

Please note that places are limited, so we encourage you to register early.

The programme:

• < 16.00: visit Fenix art museum about migration
• 16.00–18.00: workshop
• 18.00–19.00: dinner
• 19.30–22.15: screening Displacement Film Fund short films