This year, the Zurich Film Festival once again presents 14 films competing for the Golden Eye in each of its Feature Film and Documentary Competitions. The competitions are exclusively dedicated to first, second and third directorial features. The main prize is endowed with CHF 25,000. The Feature Film Competition Jury will be presided over by James Bond director Cary Joji Fukunaga, while filmmaker Sine Plambech will serve as President of the Documentary Competition Jury.
The Feature Film Competition jury will be headed by American director and screenwriter Cary Joji Fukunaga (NO TIME TO DIE). Together with Swiss-French actress Ella Rumpf (DES PREUVES D’AMOUR/LOVE LETTERS), Mexican director and screenwriter Fernando Eimbcke (MOSCAS), producer Julie Billy (THE LITTLE SISTER), and Italian film editor and director Walter Fasano (NINO – UN FILM SU NINO ROTA), he will decide on the winner of the Golden Eye in the Feature Film Competition.
Danish anthropologist and filmmaker Sine Plambech (HEARTBOUND) will serve as President of the Documentary Competition jury at the 22nd Zurich Film Festival. Together with Spanish cinematographer Alfredo de Juan (EDGE OF THE UNKNOWN), Norwegian producer Anne Köhncke (PERVERT PARK), Swiss director Jela Hasler (LES NOUVELLES ÈVES), and Austrian director and producer Nikolaus Geyrhalter (HOMO SAPIENS), she will decide on the awards among the 14 films competing in the Documentary Competition.
«Both competitions are dedicated to emerging filmmakers – directors at the beginning of their careers who present their first works. Cary Joji Fukunaga was once in exactly this position: his very first feature film, SIN NOMBRE, screened in competition at our festival in 2009, before he went on to build a major international career. In 2021, we were delighted to present his James Bond film NO TIME TO DIE as a Gala Premiere», says Reta Guetg, Festival Director of ZFF. «Danish filmmaker Sine Plambech will preside over the Documentary Competition jury. As both a filmmaker and an anthropologist, she understands how documentary filmmaking can shape our view of society. She demonstrated this with her debut documentary HEARTBOUND in 2018, which won her the Golden Eye at ZFF. Her latest film, RESCUE, will have its European premiere at our festival. Now, two filmmakers are returning to the festival as Jury Presidents – a quintessential ZFF story. We are delighted that Sine Plambech and Cary Joji Fukunaga are taking the time to support and mentor the next generation of filmmakers.»
Feature Films in Competition:
A GIRL UNKNOWN (Zou Jing, China / France, 2026)
BLACK CHURCH BAY (Rhys Marc Jones, UK, 2026)
DUA (Blerta Basholli, Kosovo / Switzerland / France, 2026)
FLESH AND FUEL (Pierre le Gall, France / Poland, 2026)
MILA / MARIJA (Andrina Mračnikar, Austria / Slovenia / Greece / Slovakia, 2026)
EL DESHIELO (Manuela Martelli, Chile / USA / Spain / Mexico, 2026)
HOT WATER (Ramzi Bashour, USA, 2026)
DIE IDEEN (Fabian Stumm, Germany, 2026)
SERIFE TAVSAN (Tareq Daoud, Switzerland, Türkiye, 2026)
CLARISSA (Arie Esiri and Chuko Esiri, Nigeria / USA, 2026)
THE GUEST (Mads Mengel Nielsen, Denmark, 2026)
HEAD TO HEAD (Ghasideh Golmakani, Iran / Germany, 2026)
HOW TO DIVORCE DURING THE WAR (Andrius Blaževičius, Lithuania / Luxembourg / Ireland / Czech Republic, 2026)
SEVDA (Ufuk Emiroglu, Switzerland / Belgium / Türkiye, 2026)
President: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Cary Joji Fukunaga’s film work includes the critically acclaimed SIN NOMBRE, the film adaptation of Bronte’s JANE EYRE, and BEASTS OF NO NATION. He co-wrote the 2017 adaptation of Stephen King’s IT, and co-wrote and directed the most recent James Bond film, NO TIME TO DIE. He recently wrapped production on a film adaptation of Jo Nesbo’s BLOOD ON SNOW. In television, Cary Fukunaga won an Emmy for Outstanding Directing for the first season of HBO’s TRUE DETECTIVE. Other TV projects include the first season of THE ALIENIST for TNT, MANIAC for Netflix, and MASTERS OF THE AIR for Apple TV+.
Ella Rumpf
Born in Paris in 1995 and raised in Zurich, Ella Rumpf grew up in a bilingual household in German and French and trained as an actress in London. She first came to prominence with her role in CHRIEG, which earned her a Swiss Film Award nomination, before experiencing her international breakthrough in 2017 with Julia Ducournau's RAW in Cannes. TIGER GIRL, SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL (EFP Shooting Star 2020), and SOUL OF A BEAST followed, along with the series SUCCESSION, TOKYO VICE, and FREUD. In 2023, she took on the title role in LE THÉORÈME DE MARGUERITE, for which she won the César Award and the Swiss Film Award for Best Actress in 2024. She then appeared in DES PREUVES D'AMOUR/LOVE LETTERS (which premiered in Cannes) and in COUTURE alongside Angelina Jolie. Most recently, she was seen in TOO MANY BEASTS (Cannes 2026) and JUPITER at the Venice Film Festival.
Fernando Eimbcke
Over the past decade, Fernando Eimbcke has established himself as one of Latin America's most influential directors. Born in Mexico City and educated at UNAM, he made his feature debut with DUCK SEASON, which premiered at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, earned multiple accolades, and was released in the United States by Alfonso Cuarón and Warner Independent. His subsequent film, LAKE TAHOE, premiered at the 2008 Berlin International Film Festival, where it received the FIPRESCI Prize and the Silver Bear Jury Prize, awarded for «opening new perspectives on cinematic art». His third feature, CLUB SANDWICH, premiered in 2013 at TIFF and later won the Golden Shell at the San Sebastián Film Festival. His fourth feature, OLMO, premiered in the Panorama section of the 2025 Berlin International Film Festival, marking his first U.S. production with Plan B and Teorema. Most recently, his latest feature, MOSCAS, premiered in the Main Competition of the 2026 Berlin International Film Festival.
Julie Billy
Julie Billy is a Paris-based film producer with over fifteen years of experience championing distinctive auteur-driven cinema. She has collaborated with acclaimed filmmakers including Jonas Carpignano, Nadav Lapid and Yorgos Lanthimos, before founding June Films in 2020, where she develops and produces ambitious, internationally-minded projects. She initiated and produced Hafsia Herzi’s THE LITTLE SISTER, which premiered in Competition at Cannes in 2025, winning the Queer Palm and Best Actress Award; Emma Benestan’s ANIMALE, which premiered at Cannes Critics’ Week in 2024; and GREEN EYES by Fanny Liatard and Jérémy Trouilh, which opened Locarno’s Piazza Grande in 2026. June Films also produced THE CONFIDANTE, the first French HBO Max series, directed by Just Philippot and named among The New York Times’ Top 10 International TV Shows of the Year. Julie Billy is a co-founder of Collectif 50/50 and received the Trophée du Film Français Director-Producer Duo Award in 2021.
Walter Fasano
Walter Fasano has edited more than seventy films, collaborating with directors such as Park Chan-wook, Dario Argento, the D’Innocenzo brothers and Trudie Styler. His collaborations with Luca Guadagnino include THE PROTAGONISTS, I AM LOVE (which Fasano also co-wrote), A BIGGER SPLASH, SUSPIRIA and BERTOLUCCI ON BERTOLUCCI, which they co- directed. With Guadagnino and James Ivory, he shared the David di Donatello for Best Adapted Screenplay for CALL ME BY OUR NAME. The film went on to receive four Academy Award nominations and won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. In 2021, Fasano wrote and directed PINO, on the pop-artist Pino Pascali, that won Best Documentary at the Turin Film Festival and was met with unanimous critical acclaim. His feature length documentary NINO – A FILM ON NINO ROTA has premiered at the Venice Film Festival. He recently launched L’Ultima Radio, a web radio station featuring hand-picked tracks, selected and edited in unpredictable ways.
Documentary Films in Competition:
THE MATCH (Juan Cabral and Santiago Franco, Argentina / UK, 2026)
THE GYMNASTS OF FISHERMAN COLONY (Habiba Nosheen, Canada / Pakistan / USA, 2026)
LA DÉTENTION (Guillaume Massart, France, 2026)
PERFECT ROAD (Christian Bonke and Adam Bonke, Denmark, 2026)
WE ARE STARDUST (Elisabeth Rasmussen, Norway / Denmark, 2026)
SUMO: SPIRIT WEIGHS NOTHING (Erik Shirai, Japan / USA / UK, 2026)
THE SIEGE OF PARADISE (Gar O’Rourke, Ireland / Switzerland / Italy / 2026)
SCHRECKSCHRAUBE (Simon David, Switzerland, 2026)
BUGBOY (Lucas Paleocrassas, Greece / France / Denmark, 2026)
BUCKS HARBOR (Pete Muller, USA, 2026)
ONE IN A MILLION (Itab Azzam and Jack MacInnes, UK /USA, 2026)
COLORS OF WHITE ROCK (Khoroldorj Choijoovanchig, Mongolia / France, 2026)
MY HOME OF WIND AND SAND (Patrick Wally, Austria, 2026)
LA FACE CACHÉE DE LA TERRE (Arnaud Alain, France, 2026)
President: Sine Plambech
Sine Plambech is an anthropologist and film director of HEARTBOUND, winner of ZFF Golden Eye 2018 with Janus Metz. Her award winning films had their premieres among others at TIFF, DOC NYC and IDFA. In her films Plambech documents migration, womens lives, and human rights issues. A former Visiting Professor at Yale and London School of Economics she is now based in Copenhagen and Italy as a Senior Researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS).
Alfredo de Juan
Alfredo de Juan is a Director of Photography specializing in narrative documentaries and feature films. Nominated for Best Cinematography at both the BIFA and Cinema Eye Honors, he has won multiple Best Cinematography awards at festivals worldwide for NASCONDIDO (Victoria Fiore, 2022), and an Emmy Award for LOST IN THE JUNGLE (National Geographic/Disney). He is also a Canon Pro Master Ambassador. His credits feature high-profile international projects, including National Geographic’s EDGE OF THE UNKNOWN with Jimmy Chin, Apple TV+’s MESSI’S WORLD CUP: THE RISE OF A LEGEND (Emmy-nominated series), and Netflix’s THE LAST DOLPHIN KING and THE SPY WHO FELL TO EARTH. Additional highlights include COUNTRY OF LOST CHILDREN for ARTE, and Santi Aguado’s FAST FORWARD. Recent projects include Anonymous Content’s THE BALLOONISTS, which premiered at TIFF, and the Bolivian feature LEMU, directed by Juan Pablo Richter for Pucara Films.
Anne Köhncke
Anne Köhncke is a Norwegian producer and co-founder of the six-time Oscar-nominated Final Cut for Real in Copenhagen (2009), and Final Cut for Real Norway (2019). She lives in Marseille, working in France and Norway. She is a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, European Film Academy and Asian Pacific Screen Academy, and has produced several award-winning films selected for Sundance, Berlinale, TIFF, Rotterdam, IDFA and CPH:DOX, and others. Her works include PERVERT PARK, THE ACT OF KILLING (with Signe Byrge Sørensen) and WHAT WALAA WANTS. Prior to producing, she was a Commissioning Editor at DR2, and a Sales Executive.
Jela Hasler
Jela Hasler studied photography in Zurich and Istanbul and video in Lucerne. Her short films have screened at renowned festivals including Locarno, IDFA, Hot Docs, Tampere, and Cannes' Semaine de la Critique. Her two most recent shorts, ÜBER WASSER and LA GRAVIDITÉ, both won the Swiss Film Award. She was part of the directing collective behind the feature documentary LES NOUVELLES ÈVES, which premiered at the Zurich Film Festival in 2021 and was invited to festivals including Max Ophüls, among others. In 2024, Jela was named one of Vimeo's ten «Breakout Creators of the Year».
Nikolas Geyrhalter
Nikolaus Geyrhalter, born in Vienna in 1972, is an Austrian director, cinematographer, and film producer. In 1994 he founded the production company NGF and, as a self-taught filmmaker, made his first feature-length documentary, ANGESCHWEMMT. His widely acclaimed films, for which he always serves as his own cinematographer, combine a precise, observational visual style with a restrained, deeply humane way of storytelling. Above all, he gained recognition for films such as PRIPYAT, UNSER TÄGLICH BROT, HOMO SAPIENS, and ERDE.
You can find the official media release here.
