Venice parallel section Giornate degli Autori (GdA) has unveiled a female focused lineup for its 2026 edition.

Drawn from 1,036 submissions from 114 countries, the lineup features 25 world premieres, of which 13 are Italian and 14 directed by women; with 10 films in competition, one closing film out of competition, five special events, and a showcase of nine titles in Venetian Nights (scroll down for the full section).

Hungarian director Lili Horvát’s first English-language film My Notes on Mars will open the edition. The sci-fi romance stars Mackenzie Davis as a scientist who vanishes during a hiking trip to reappear on the day of her own memorial service with no memory of the life she has lived in between. Rupert Friend co-stars.

Horvát previously made waves with Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time, about a talented surgeon who ditches her career for a man who then claims to have never met her before. That film debuted in the GdA’s 2020 edition and then went on to win numerous awards including a Golden Hugo in Chicago’s New Directors Competition.

Léa Domenach’s A Man’s Skin, described as a queer and feminist musical comedy set in the Italian Renaissance, and featuring Pomme, Karin Viard, and Catherine Deneuve in the cast, will close the section.

Horvát’s My Notes on Mars is among 10 films being showcased in competition.

Further contenders include Polish-born Australia-based filmmaker Kuba Dorabialski’s Agata the Writer, starring Mia Wasikowska as an Australian writer who travels to Sarajevo to work on a novel about the Bosnian war and is forced to acknowledge the limits of her own artistic vision.

In other competition highlights include Post Tenebras Lux actress Nathalia Acevedo directorial debut Salón de Belleza. Adapted from the radical novel by Mario Bellatin, it unfolds in a beauty salon in a city ravaged by a mysterious disease which becomes a refuge for the afflicted as they linger between life and death. Belgian multi-disciplinary artist Sam Louwyck, and Erwan Kepoa Falé co-star.

Established directors in the mix include Robert Guédiguian with A Woman Today. Newcomer Marilou Aussilloux stars as a young woman grappling with the distance between her own idea of freedom and the contradictions of a present day still ridden with violence and inequality, alongside the director’s longtime collaborators Ariane Ascaride, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, and Gérard Meylan.

This year’s jury for the GdA Director’s Award, which includes a cash prize of €20,000 to be split between the director and international distributor, comprises Spanish filmmaker Carla Simón, the Italian director and editor Sara Fgaier, and Hania Mroué, director of Beirut’s landmark Metropolis arthouse cinema.

In other awards, audiences for the GdA screenings at the Sala Perla will decide the Audience Award while the Europa Cinemas jury will choose the winner of the label from among the European films at Giornate degli Autori.

The Special Events lineup – featuring the documentary, autobiography, historical film, and experimentation, includes Francesca Archibugi’s Carla Lonzi, A Feminist Story, exploring the life and times of one of the most radical feminist voices of 20th-century Italy.

In other highlights beyond the main competition, Claire Denis and Mona Fastvold are the guests of honor of the Miu Miu Women’s Tales program. The 15th edition of the initiative in partnership with GdA will see the filmmakers share career lessons in on-stage conversations.

GdA’s 23rd edition is dedicated to the sidebar’s founder and longtime champion, film critic and festival exec Giorgio Gosetti who died suddenly and unexpectedly in March.

“This edition carries with it a deep void and a deep gratitude,” declares Artistic Director Gaia Furrer. “We owe to Giorgio the very idea for this free arena we inhabit, along with his faith in the new directions of cinema and his stubborn, loving determination to build and consolidate, year after year, a community of men and women filmmakers and audiences. This year, Giornate springs from the desire to honor this legacy by continuing to do what Giorgio taught us: seek out, discover, go wrong, become passionate about, and believe in cinema and in those who make it happen.”

The edition, will run alongside the Venice Film Festival from September 2 to 12, with its activities based mainly in Casa degli Autori and the Sala Laguna on the Venice Lido.

OFFICIAL SELECTION

IN COMPETITION

SADNESS SOMETIMES, OTHER TIMES REVOLT 
by María Aparicio
Argentina, Spain, 2026

AGATA THE WRITER
by Kuba Dorabialski
Australia, 2026

BALCANICA – debut feature
by Nicola Sorcinelli
Italy, Serbia, Croatia, 2026

CAMOUFLAGE – debut feature
by Mykyta Gibalenko
Germany, 2026

DEAR AJAYI
by Damilola Orimogunje
Nigeria, Germany, 2026, 120’

I PLANT MY HAND IN THE GARDEN – debut feature
by Boris Hadžija & Hoda Taheri
Germany, Serbia, U.S.

The Indies – debut feature
by Pauline Julier, Nicolas Chapoulier
Switzerland, Spain, 2026

MY NOTES ON MARS – opening film
by Lili Horvát
Hungary, Austria

SALÓN DE BELLEZA – debut feature
by Nathalia Acevedo
Mexico, France, 2026

A WOMAN TODAY
by Robert Guédiguian
France, Italy, 2026

OUT OF COMPETITION

MAN’S SKIN – closing film
by Léa Domenach
France, 2026

SPECIAL EVENTS

AL BARANEYA
by Ashgan El-Hamus
Netherlands, Egypt, Belgium, Saudi Arabia, 2026

CARLA LONZI, A FEMINIST STORY
by Francesca Archibugi
Italy, 2026

THE PHANTOM
by Ignacio Masllorens, David Lamelas
Argentina, 2026

THE MASSACRE
by Cosimo Messeri
Italy, 2026

EVEN IF HELL CAME
by Samuele Rossi
Italy, 2026

Venice Days, the independent sidebar of the Venice International Film Festival, has unveiled the lineup for its 23rd edition, the first since the death in March of section founder and longtime head Giorgio Gosetti. This year’s Venice Days, running Sept. 2-12 alongside the 83rd Venice Festival, is dedicated to his memory.

The sidebar, and its accompanying Italian cinema section Venice Nights, includes 25 world premieres, more than half of which (14) are directed by women.

My Notes on Mars from Hungarian director Lili Horvát (Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time) will open Venice Days, screening in competition. Horvát’s English-language debut stars Mackenzie Davis and Rupert Friend in the story of a young scientist who mysteriously disappears only to show up weeks later at her own memorial service with no memory of what happened.

Kuba Dorabialski’s Agata the Writer, starring Mia Wasikowska as an Australian author in Sarajevo, will also premiere in competition, alongside Pauline Julier and Nicolas Chapoulier’s period drama The Indies; Boris Hadžija and Hoda Taheri’s hybrid fiction-documentary I Plant My Hand in the Garden; and Nicola Sorcinelli’s debut Balcanica, the only Italian title in competition, about an Afghan father and son who, after music is banned in their country, try to flee to Europe.

Other highlights include María Aparicio’s Sadness Sometimes, Other Times Revolt, a drama centered on two Argentines in Madrid; Mykyta Gibalenko’s debut Camouflage, about a young Ukrainian in Germany whose separation from home is transformed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine; a Damilola Orimogunje’s family melodrama Dear Ajayi, which will be the first Nigerian movie to screen in Venice Days competition.

Léa Domenach’s Man’s Skin, a queer feminist musical comedy set in the Italian Renaissance and featuring Catherine Deneuve, will close Venice Days, screening out of competition.

An all-woman jury, headed by Spanish filmmaker Carla Simón (Alcarràs, Summer 1993) with Italian director Sara Fgaier (Weightless), and Hania Mroué, director of Beirut’s Metropolis Cinema, will pick the winner of the GdA Director’s Award, which carries a €20,000 ($23,000) cash prize to be split between the director and the film’s international distributor. The Lido audience will vote for the Audience Award, while the Europa Cinemas jury will choose the Europa Cinemas Label from the European films in the lineup.

Roberta Torre’s Scarpe rotte will open Venetian Nights, the sidebar’s Italian cinema program. The film, starring Barbara Ronchi, is freely inspired by the life of Natalia Ginzburg and is set in wartime Rome.

Miu Miu Women’s Tales, a short film anthology series created by fashion brand Miu Miu, returns to Venice Days with Discipline, a new short from Mona Fastvold (The Testament of Ann Lee) and Avec Kim, from French auteur Claire Denis (Beau Travail), the latter starring Suzanne Lindon and Kim Gordon.

The 2026 Venice Days will also include talks, industry events and public programs at the Casa degli Autori and Sala Laguna. Among them are the return of #confronti, the fourth edition of the Declaration of Filmmakers, a soundtracks event organized with ACMF, the second edition of Africa Chiama, and a new collaboration with Venezia CULT that will bring cartoonists Leo Ortolani and Dave McKean to the Lido.

The Venice Film Festival will announce its competition lineup on Thursday, July 23.

The full 2026 Venice Days lineup:

IN COMPETITION

Sadness Sometimes, Other Times Revolt, dir: María Aparicio (Argentina, Spain)

Agata the Writer, dir: Kuba Dorabialski (Australia)

Balcanica, dir: Nicola Sorcinelli (Italy, Serbia, Croatia)

Camouflage, dir: Mykyta Gibalenko (Germany)

Dear Ajayi, dir: Damilola Orimogunje (Nigeria, Germany)

I Plant My Hand in the Garden, dirs.: Boris Hadžija, Hoda Taheri (Germany, Serbia, USA)

The Indies, dirs.: Pauline Julier, Nicolas Chapoulier (Switzerland, Spain)

My Notes on Mars, dir: Lili Horvát (Hungary, Austria)

Salón de Belleza, dir: Nathalia Acevedo (Mexico, France)

A Woman Today, dir: Robert Guédiguian (France, Italy)

OUT OF COMPETITION

Man’s Skin, dir: Léa Domenach (France) Closing Film

SPECIAL EVENTS

Al Baraneya, dir: Ashgan El-Hamus (Netherlands, Egypt, Belgium, Saudi Arabia)

Carla Lonzi, A Feminist Story, dir: Francesca Archibugi (Italy)

The Phantom, dirs.: Ignacio Masllorens, David Lamelas (Argentina)

The Massacre, dir: Cosimo Messeri (Italy)

Even If Hell Came, dir: Samuele Rossi (Italy)

VENICE NIGHTS

Anatomia di un ritratto, dirs.: Francesco Clerici, Mattia Colombo (Italy, Switzerland)

Auber 89, dir: Giuseppe Schillaci (France, Italy)

Domenica capitale – Genere domenicale, dir: Giovanna Giuliani (Italy)

La leggenda del deserto, dir: Elisabetta Giannini (Italy)

Memoria del lampo, dir: Riccardo Giacconi (Italy)

Il mestiere, dir: Beppe Tufarulo (Italy, Belgium, France)

Scarpe rotte, dir: Roberta Torre (Italy) Opening Film

Si sveglia e sbadiglia, il gatto; poi l’amore, dirs.: Federico Francioni, Samuele Sestieri (Italy)

Uno si distrae al bivio, dir: Alessandra Lancellotti (Italy)

Director of the European Film Academy Matthijs Wouter Knol and Yorgos Lanthimos’ producer Athina Rachel Tsangari are among the industry professionals tapped to join British star Emily Watson on the Sarajevo Film Festival jury.

Alongside filmmaker Igor Bezinović and actress Sara Klimoska, they will judge the feature film competition at the Bosnian film festival, running for a week in mid-August.

Watson joins a rich constellation of auteurs who have previously presided over the Sarajevo jury in past editions, including Mike Leigh, Jeremy Irons, Asghar Farhadi, Ruben Östlund, and Mia Wasikowska.

The group will award the Heart of Sarajevo Awards in the feature film competition at the ceremony on Aug. 21.

Watson most recently starred as Mary Shakespeare in Chloé Zhao’s adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s award-winning historical novel Hamnet. Her notable film credits include Lars von Trier’s Breaking the Waves, A24’s God’s Creatures opposite Paul Mescal, Small Things Like These, Netflix drama Steve, and the Oscar-winning Gosford Park. On television, Watson currently leads the HBO/Max series Dune: Prophecy and has just finished shooting the second season.

Croatian director Bezinović is best known for his 2025 film Fiume o morte!, which won numerous awards, including the European Film Award for best documentary, as well as AFA Awards (Adriatic Film & TV Awards) for best film, best director, and best screenplay. His other works include the documentaries The Blockade (2012) and Veruda – A Film About Bojan (2015), both of which received the Oktavijan Award for best Croatian documentary film. His debut feature, A Brief Excursion (2017), premiered at Rotterdam and went on to win the Grand Golden Arena for best film at the Pula Film Festival.

Klimoska is an actress from North Macedonia whose latest leading role is in Sister Brother Manhole Cover, directed by Milcho Manchevski, which is set to premiere in 2026. This marks her third collaboration with the acclaimed director, following Willow and Kaymak. Her credits also include You Won’t Be Alone by Goran Stolevski, which premiered at Sundance, and Housekeeping for Beginners, which screened at the Venice Film Festival. Internationally, she has appeared in Nico by Eline Gehring, Family Secrets by Malik Vitthal, and Replay by Jason Lester. Klimoska has been part of the Talents Sarajevo program at Sarajevo Film Festival, and the corresponding scheme at the Berlinale. In 2022, she was nominated for the Heart of Sarajevo award for her role in the TV series Underneath.

Knol is an industry-renowned film producer, lecturer, editor and journalist from the Netherlands. Since 2021, he has been the CEO and director of the European Film Academy. He is responsible for the executive management, the vision and all related programming of current and future activities of the Academy, including brand and audience development, knowledge sharing and film heritage projects, and the annual European Film Awards. Knol has been part of the main jury at the festivals of Buenos Aires, Jerusalem, Istanbul, and Locarno.

Greek director-screenwriter-producer Tsangari is considered a principal instigator of the Greek New Wave. Her genre-bending films explore power and desire in gender, class and alterity. Her debut project,
The Slow Business of Going (2001), was a sci-fi road movie shot in hotel rooms across nine cities around the globe. It went on to garner several best film and best director awards worldwide, and now resides in MoMA’s permanent film collection.

Her sophomore feature Attenberg (2010) premiered at Venice in competition, where it won the Coppa Volpi and the Lina Mangiacapre Directing award. Chevalier (2015) won best film at the BFI London Film Festival and was nominated for best foreign film at the Independent Spirit Awards. Both movies were Greece’s official submissions for best international film at the Oscars. Under the banner of her Athens-based company Haos Film, she has produced a number of award-winning films such as Yorgos Lanthimos’ Kinetta and Alps, Georgis Grigorakis’ Digger, and was co-producer on Richard Linklater’s Before Midnight.

Her latest feature, Harvest, a neo-western starring Caleb Landry Jones and Harry Melling, was shot in the Scottish Highlands and premiered at Venice in 2024.