As it marks its 40th edition, the Fribourg Intl. Film Festival remains one of Europe’s key showcases for films from the Global South, a region artistic director Thierry Jobin says continues to define the event’s identity and relevance.
Running March 20–29, the festival will screen 114 films from 62 countries, including 58 premieres. Jobin, who’s led FIFF since 2011, says the anniversary edition reflects a balance between discovery and urgency. “We show films that had to be made, often in places where that’s still an act of courage,” he tells Variety.
Leon Le’s Vietnam War-set film ”Ky Nam Inn”
Courtesy of Fribourg Intl. Film Festival
Founded in 1980 by NGO administrator Magda Bossy, FIFF began as the Festival of Third World Film, created to highlight cinema from Africa, Asia and Latin America. The title was later changed in the 1990s after conversations with participating filmmakers, with the festival maintaining its original commitment to showcasing films from those regions.
“Making a film in Tehran or Khartoum is not the same as making one in Zurich,” Jobin says. “For many directors, filming is a matter of survival.”
That urgency runs through the 2026 selection. The competition includes “Divine Comedy,” Iranian director Ali Asgari’s satire on censorship, Zhanna Ozirna’s ”Honeymoon,” set in war‑torn Ukraine, Leon Le’s Vietnam War-set film, ”Ky Nam Inn” and “Homo Sapiens?,” an Argentine comedy that closes the event. Jobin says Iranian shorts reached Fribourg despite internet blocks and security risks for their makers. “If they risk prison to make films, the least we can do is show them,” he adds.
Zhanna Ozirna’s ”Honeymoon” is set in war‑torn Ukraine
Courtesy of Fribourg Intl. Film Festival
In total, the international competition will showcase 12 feature length films and 15 shorts, after kicking off with the opening film, “A Sad and Beautiful World,” Lebanon’s 2026 Oscars entry. The international features jury includes directors Manuel Abramovich (Argentina/Germany), Milcah Cherotich (Kenya), Ahmad Ghossein (Lebanon), and Granaz Moussavi (Iran/Australia), while the shorts jury is composed of Swiss artists and tastemakers across disciplines.
Fribourg’s longevity is built on public trust. More than 250,000 students have taken part in its school screenings since the 1980s, and the festival’s yearly attendance has doubled to about 56,000 under Jobin. “Maybe it’s the only time some of these kids will see a film from Mali or Mongolia,” he says. “But they remember it.”
That outreach goes hand‑in‑hand with participatory programming. Viewers vote for favorites, program small sidebars, and introduce screenings. “We’re probably the festival that programs the least,” Jobin says. “The audience helps us choose.”
His selection method remains pragmatic. “After Berlin every year, I look at distributors’ catalogs to spot new movements,” he explains. “When 10 or 12 Colombian titles show up, that’s a sign of momentum.” Accordingly, this year’s New Territory section spotlights Colombia, reflecting the country’s growing festival presence.
Fribourg’s format intentionally avoids separating cinema from the Global South into its own strand. “We didn’t want a ‘ghetto’ of films from the Global South,” Jobin notes. “We wanted dialogue, films facing each other.”
Jobin says using recognizable film genres helps audiences engage with work from places they may not know. “If I tell someone to watch a Vietnamese film, they might hesitate,” he explains. “But if I say it’s a Vietnamese gangster film, they immediately have a reference point.”
This year’s Cinéma de Genre (Genre Cinema) program explores how mothers are portrayed on screen, from Almodóvar’s “Volver” to new films about motherhood from around the world, a theme that also pays tribute to FIFF founder Magda Bossy, often affectionately called the festival’s “mother.”
Jobin also emphasizes what he calls “informal networking.” Borrowing from Mexico’s Morelia Festival, Fribourg favors conversations over panels. “We avoid too many markets or workshops,” he explains. “The best collaborations happen when filmmakers watch each other’s movies and speak afterward, sometimes at two in the morning over fondue.”
Like other mid‑sized European events, FIFF faces tighter budgets. Cuts to Switzerland’s cultural‑cooperation programs and the shutdown of the Visions Sud Est film fund cost the festival about $380,000. Public subsidies that once covered 60% of costs now make up far less.
Jobin has been turning toward private partners while stressing independence. “We can bring in sponsors without selling our soul,” he says. “Local business owners realize their companies often have 60 nationalities. When they see that, they understand why diversity matters.”
The 40th edition’s section Bye Bye Visions Sud‑Est pays tribute to the defunct fund, showing five pairings of shorts discovered at FIFF with the features they later inspired. Among them is Indian director Payal Kapadia’s “All We Imagine Is Light,” 2024 Cannes Grand Prix winner, who previously featured a short at Fribourg.
Based in a bilingual university town of 40,000 residents, FIFF is designed to blend into daily life. Jobin says the festival works closely with local schools, restaurants and cultural groups to make its presence felt across the city. “Our goal is to make cinema part of everyday conversation,” he says. “When people see the festival poster, they don’t think of it as something separate. It’s their event.”
This year, FIFF will open the Nomad Wood Nest, a new timber pavilion on the main square that will serve as the festival’s central hub. The space will host talks, concerts, and culinary programs such as Un film, un repas, (“A Film, a Meal”) which pairs screenings with themed dinners. Jobin calls it “a complete experience, a way for audiences and filmmakers to keep the discussion going beyond the theater.”
Jobin says the festival’s longevity comes from its relationship with its audience and its willingness to keep evolving. “People here buy tickets before they even know the films,” he says. “They trust us and still want to be surprised.”
For him, that curiosity is the festival’s real legacy. “The world changes fast,” he adds, “but the need to look it in the eye, that’s what keeps Fribourg going.”
