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CineMart launches Safe Harbour programme for stateless and at-risk filmmakers

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Safe Harbour is IFFR’s 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 initiative has been developed in collaboration with the International Emerging Film Talent Fund (IEFTF).

Safe Harbour concept stills, clockwise from top left: The Beer Girl In Yangon, dir. Sein Lyan Tun, Last Trip, dir. Ziad Kalthoum, Shall We Meet Again?, dir. Amjad Sokkar and Woroud Alqassas, Hidden Journey, dir. Noura Adil

During IFFR’s CineMart, the participants will take part in a tailored series of meetings with producers, funds, industry partners and allies. In preparation, filmmakers will be given online mentorship, followed by an in-person workshop ahead of CineMart, aimed at preparing and strengthening their project materials for market participation. 

For the pilot edition Safe Harbour, four early-stage projects by writers, directors and artists who are at risk and/or stateless have been selected to participate:

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. Following their predecessor organisation, IEFTA, the fund brings extensive expertise in supporting displaced and at-risk filmmakers across festivals, markets and labs worldwide. For Safe Harbour they led global outreach and contributed to the selection process following extensive research and interviews with more than 30 filmmakers.

The 2026 pilot of Safe Harbour is supported by Creative Europe MEDIA 360. 

The new initiative aligns with IFFR’s commitment to the International Coalition for Filmmakers at Risk (ICFR) and is a complementary initiative to the pilot scheme of the Displacement Film Fund, an initiative spearheaded by Cate Blanchett and announced at IFFR 2025 for which IFFR’s Hubert Bals Fund is the Management Partner. DFF was established to champion and fund the work of displaced filmmakers, or filmmakers with a proven track record in creating authentic storytelling on the experiences of displaced people.

Vanja Kaluderjcic, Festival Director at IFFR commented: “The introduction of Safe Harbour marks an important new chapter in IFFR’s commitment to supporting filmmakers in fragile situations who face significant challenges in accessing funding and opportunities. Across IFFR Pro this edition, we’re reinforcing our dedication to a more diverse and resilient industry globally and demonstrating our capacity to respond to evolving needs. This can be seen throughout our programme and its brand-new initiatives, including in Lightroom, CineMart x HBF, and our new Creators Lab, which builds on more than 25 years of success from our globally renowned Rotterdam Lab producers’ workshop.”

Further details of IFFR’s industry programme for 2026

Rotterdam Lab

In addition, IFFR Pro announces it is expanding its renowned emerging producers’ workshop Rotterdam Lab with an innovative new Creators Lab for writers and directors. The Lab also announces five further producers selected for Rotterdam Lab through an open call.

HBF Reunion Day

The festival will also introduce the inaugural HBF Reunion Day on 2 February 2026, bringing together filmmakers whose careers have been shaped by the Hubert Bals Fund across its 35-year history. The event offers HBF alumni in Rotterdam a unique opportunity to meet, reflect collectively and discuss the evolving landscape of independent cinema. A programme for alumni will offer tailored workshops, informal encounters and receptions, highlighting the HBF’s continued global impact and revisiting the fund’s origins as a champion of visionary filmmakers and underrepresented voices. 

Hubert Bals Fund alumni filmmakers at IFFR 2026 will include Lucrecia Martel whose three-time HBF-supported Nuestra tierra screens in Harbour, alongside Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke’s Semaine de la critique Grand Prix-winning A Useful Ghost, supported through HBF+Europe.

IFFR’s Pro Hub

IFFR’s Pro Hub will also again welcome industry guests and filmmakers to join panels, workshops and mentor sessions. The Pro Hub is conceived to encourage and enable emerging and established filmmakers in their work, introducing them to the international film industry and equipping them with the insights and connections needed to move ahead.

As part of its extensive industry programme this edition, the Pro Hub will host intimate Meet the Expert sessions, covering topics including making films on a limited budget, impact producing and audience design, and development producing for director-driven projects.

  • About IFFR 

    International Film Festival Rotterdam’s (IFFR) upcoming 55th edition of the festival will take place from 29 January – 8 February 2026. IFFR presents a leading international film festival and year-round programme and actively supports new and adventurous filmmaking talent through its co-production market CineMart, its Hubert Bals Fund, Rotterdam Lab and other industry activities.

    IFFR seeks to expand, enrich and challenge people’s views of the world and each other through film and audiovisual arts. IFFR’s programme deepens appreciation of cinema in all its forms, broadens and diversifies audiences, and creates opportunities for independent filmmakers and artists from around the globe.

    Through IFFR’s visionary programming and forward-looking  initiatives, we create a haven for the plurality of voices, audiovisual formats and diverse storytelling. We are an essential destination for film professionals and film lovers. We support filmmakers and artists with funding and development opportunities and advance the impact of their work in the world. We are accessible to everyone. Through screenings, talks, exhibitions, education, professional initiatives and funding schemes we bring people from all backgrounds together, enabling discovery, recognition dialogue, learning and development. We look where others don’t and we open a space for ideas, pushing creative boundaries that have the power to transform.

    IFFR is supported by partners including Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschap (OCW), Gemeente Rotterdam, Rotterdam Festivals, Creative Europe Media, NL Film Fonds, Fonds 21, de Volkskrant and VriendenLoterij.

Safe Harbour partner

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