Sweden’s Göteborg Film Festival has announced its 2026 lineup.
As observed by Artistic Director Pia Lundberg, the 49th edition – unspooling from Jan. 23 to Feb. 1 – will feature “266 films from around the globe, including numerous world and international premieres, as well as a strong selection from the Nordic region.”
Among the world premieres in the Nordic Competition, Julia Thelin’s “The Patron” will represent Sweden, while Finnish director Alli Haapasalo will follow “Girl Picture” with “Tell Everyone.” Maria Sødahl is set to present “The Last Resort.”
“Premiering at Göteborg Film Festival feels magical. I once lied to get press accreditation because I really wanted to attend the festival,” said Thelin. “A lie only works if you believe it… Even when you know it’s a lie, the power can reside in not acknowledging the truth.”
Producers Eliza Jones and Markus Waltå added: “We can’t wait to present ‘The Patron’ at [cinema] Draken on the first weekend of the festival. It’s a full-circle moment, going from showing our short films with Julia in Startsladden [Swedish Short Competition] to showing our feature film here.”
“It’s a very stylish and interesting debut,” said Lundberg about “The Patron” – where a young woman pretends to be a patron for artists – also describing “Tell Everyone” as a “beautifully shot and beautifully told story.”
Set in the 19th century, it follows a woman who finds herself committed to a mental institution on an island somewhere in the Finnish archipelago.
“I just fully finished the film yesterday, but I’m ready and very excited to release ‘Tell Everyone’ into the world,” Haapasalo told Variety. “I love and appreciate the Göteborg Film Festival, and the times I’ve attended have been very inspirational and empowering. It’s a great honor to premiere ‘Tell Everyone’ in the main competition.”
‘Tell Everyone’
Courtesy of Göteborg Film Festival
“The Curse of Kane” by Even G. Benestad and August Baugstø Hanssen will top the list of new discoveries in the Nordic Documentary Competition, alongside “A Song for Love,” directed by Hogir Hirori, and “Första blatten på månen” by Iván Blanco.
In the first, a man decides to build a film empire worthy of his childhood idol, the Western hero Morgan Kane. “It tells an extraordinary story of an enigmatic man battling both the wolves of capitalism and his own inner demons in his refusal to let go of his dream,” accrding to the Göteborg Festival.
Blanco will focus on artist Douglas “Dogge Doggelito” Léon, who “became a powerful symbol of Sweden’s multicultural suburbs,” while delivering a “universal story about shattered dreams, identity, fatherhood, and grief – and about the longing for recognition and redemption.” Hirori, by following a nursing student, “portrays the trials and joys of coming of age.”
Finally, the International Competition will host the world premiere of “Zejtune” directed by Alex Camilleri, known for 2021 “Luzzu.”
“There’s a lot of anticipation surrounding that film: it’s a gripping and finely drawn drama, and it’s charming musically as well. We’re very happy to screen it and we think the audience will really like it as well,” noted Lundberg.
Other promising titles include “How to Divorce During the War” by Andrius Blaževičius, recently selected by Sundance, and Itonje Søimer Guttormsen’s “Butterfly” with Renate Reinsve, currently busy promoting “Sentimental Value” ahead of the Academy Awards.
‘The Curse of Kane’
Courtesy of Göteborg Film Festival
As previously announced, the fest will welcome the likes of Noomi Rapace and Agnieszka Holland, as well as Ruben Östlund, set to tease his upcoming drama “The Entertainment System Is Down.”
Göteborg will open with Marcus Carlsson’s “The Quiet Beekeeper” about a father and a daughter struggling to connect, described by Lundberg as a “moving and down-to-earth film which takes place far away from the big cities.”
“It’s always such a pleasure to see so many Nordic films and have so many excellent titles to choose from. ‘The Quiet Beekeeper’ is important. It’s really nice to have a Swedish opening film this year, given all the talk about Swedish cinema not doing well at the local box-office,” she said.
“Although there’s so much debate about Swedish film being underfinanced and not reaching its audience, there’re lots of very talented people in Sweden and the Nordic region who are devoted to film. That’s very hopeful.”
Lundberg also discussed this year’s focus during the festival: truth.
“Truth is such a central theme. In this ‘post-truth’ era, it has featured strongly in films, and this section will reflect truth from very different perspectives,” she said, inviting audiences to join her in this exploration.
“And, as always in January, to transform Göteborg into a meeting place for film lovers from across the world.”
Additional reporting by Annika Pham
‘The Last Resort’
Courtesy of Göteborg Film Festival
Nordic Competition
“Butterfly”
Norway, Sweden, Great Britain
Director: Itonje Søimer Guttormsen
“The Last Resort”
Denmark, Norway, Spain
Director: Maria Sødahl
World Premiere
“The Love That Remains”
Iceland, Denmark, Sweden, France
Director: Hlynur Pálmason
“The Patron”
Sweden
Director: Julia Thelin
World Premiere
“The Quiet Beekeeper” (opening film)
Sweden
Director: Marcus Carlsson
World Premiere
“Tell Everyone”
Finland
Director: Alli Haapasalo
World Premiere
“Värn”
Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Poland, Finland, Great Britain, Switzerland
Director: John Skoog
“Weightless”
Denmark
Director: Emilie Thalund
Nordic Documentary Competition
“Celtic Utopia”
Sweden, Ireland
Director: Dennis Harvey, Lars Lovén
“The Curse of Kane”
Norway
Director: Even G. Benestad, August Baugstø Hanssen
World Premiere
“The End of Quiet”
Denmark, Sweden
Director: Mikael Lypinski, Kasper Bisgaard
“Första blatten på månen”
Sweden
Director: Iván Blanco
World Premiere
“Silent Legacy”
Finland, France, Burkina Faso
Director: Jussi Rastas, Jenni Kivistö
“A Song for Love”
Sweden
Director: Hogir Hirori
World Premiere
International Competition
“The Baronesses”
Belgium, Luxembourg, France
Director: Nabil Ben Yadir, Mokhtaria Badaoui
“Becoming”
France, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Lithuania, Sweden
Director: Zhannat Alshanova
“Blue Heron”
Canada, Hungary
Director: Sophy Romvari
“Broken Voices”
Czech Republic, Slovakia
Director: Ondřej Provazník
“Calle Malaga”
Morocco, France, Spain, Germany, Belgium
Director: Maryam Touzani
“The Chronology of Water”
France, Latvia, USA
Director: Kristen Stewart
“The Condor Daughter”
Bolivia, Peru, Uruguay
Director: Álvaro Olmos Torrico
“The Good Daughter”
Spain
Director: Júlia de Paz Solvas
“How to Divorce During the War”
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Ireland, Czech Republic
Director: Andrius Blaževičius
European Premiere
“Hönan”
Greece, Germany, Hungary
Director: György Pálfi
“Kokuho”
Japan
Director: Sang-il Lee
“A Loose End”
Uruguay, Argentina, Spain
Director: Daniel Hendler
“Love Me Tender”
France
Director: Anna Cazenave Cambet
“Out of Love”
France
Director: Nathan Ambrosioni
“Super Nature”
UK
Director: Ed Sayers
International Premiere
“Zejtune”
Malta, Germany, Qatar
Director: Alex Camilleri
World Premiere
Ingmar Bergman Competition
“Bouchra”
Italy, Morocco, USA
Directors: Orian Barki, Meriem Bennani
“Karla”
Germany
Director: Christina Tournatzés
“Little Creatures”
Brazil
Director: Anne Pinheiro Guimarães
“Memory”
France, Netherlands
Director: Vladlena Sandu
“On Your Lap”
Indonesia, Saudi Arabia
Directed by: Reza Rahadian
“Shape of Momo”
India, South Korea
Director: Tribeny Rai
“Solitary”
Ireland
Director: Eamonn Murphy
“Terra vil”
Portugal, Italy
Director: Luís Campos
