The Durban FilmMart Institute (DFMI) announces the lineup of participants for the 19th edition of Talents Durban, taking place during the Durban FilmMart (DFM) in Durban from 9 – 12 October 2026. As the African satellite programme of Berlinale Talents, Talents Durban continues to play a vital role in nurturing emerging African filmmakers, animators, and film critics through mentorship, professional development, and international networking opportunities.
Berlinale Talents is a networking platform organised by the Berlin International Film Festival, offering a space for emerging filmmakers to connect, learn, and collaborate. Talents Durban serves as its African counterpart, providing a similar platform specifically tailored to the continent's unique filmmaking landscape.
DFMI Director, Magdalene Reddy, explains, “The Durban FilmMart Institute remains committed to advancing African cinema through strategic collaborations that expand international access to professional networks, markets, and sustainable industry opportunities. Talents Durban is central to this vision. Now in its 19th year of partnership with Berlinale Talents, this partnership helps to contribute meaningfully to the long-term growth and sustainability of the African film ecosystem.”
The 2026 edition reflects the diversity of African storytelling, bringing together participants from 18 African countries. This year’s selection process was highly competitive, receiving a record 551 applications. From these submissions, 26 participants and six film critics were selected across fiction features, documentaries, short films, episodic content, animation, and film criticism.
Selected participants will engage in an intensive programme of project-oriented and hands-on professional development initiatives, including Story Junction pitching sessions, masterclasses, mentorship engagements, and one-on-one consultations with leading industry experts.
Mentors for the 2026 edition include Akosua Adoma Owusu, Amine Hattou, Bongi Ndaba, Comfort Arthur, Jihane Bougrine, Mayye Zayed, Nicole Schafer, Oris Aigbokhaevbolo, Ramadan Suleman and Razanajaona Ambinintsoa Luck.
A highlight of this year’s programme is the evolution of the Talent Press stream through the introduction of a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Digital Newsroom model. Moving beyond the traditional workshop format, the programme will simulate a live festival newsroom environment.
Acclaimed alumni Wilfred Okiche and Domoina Ratsara return as Section Editors, mentoring and collaborating directly with a new generation of emerging African critics serving as Festival Film Writers. The initiative is further strengthened through partnerships with the Encounters South African International Documentary Festival (04-14 June 2026) and the Durban International Film Festival (23 July - 2 August 2026), providing participants with real-world reporting experience, and opportunities to publish critical writing from the forefront of African cinema.
Talent Press is an initiative of Talents Durban in collaboration with FIPRESCI. A new collaboration between the Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF), the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI), and the Durban FilmMart Institute was announced during FIPRESCI's annual reception. The partnership will see FIPRESCI select an outstanding participant from the Talents Durban Press programme at Durban FilmMart 2026 to receive an award presented by CIFF. The selected critic will be invited to attend the Cairo International Film Festival, cover the festival's activities, and contribute to its English-language daily publication. This initiative represents an important step in strengthening film criticism across the African continent and creating greater opportunities for emerging critical voices to engage with international film culture and discourse.
Official 2026 Talents Durban Participants and Projects:
Fiction Features
Kelvin Kagambo – Dogi Dogi (Tanzania)
Lawrencia Aphua Larbi-Amoah – Bare Feet (Ghana)
Meekaaeel Adam – The Violent Type (South Africa)
Mélanie K. ZAWADI – THE BASEMENT (DRC)
Russell Oru – The Things We Leave Behind (Nigeria)
Shandra Apondi – The Words I Do Not Have (Kenya)
Documentaries
Ahmed Shams Nagm Eldin – SABARY (Sudan)
Hussein Eddeb – The birth of Derna (Libya)
Junior Mozese – ABÉTI (DRC)
Michelle Simon – Rivers: Under Threat (South Africa)
Ramaroson Razafimbelo Anatole – Fitampoha, the return of the king of Menabe (Madagascar)
Sarra El Abed – Goodbye Party (Tunisia)
Fiction Shorts
Daisy Masembe – Rukia (Uganda)
Ghazzal Abdullah – Facing the Sun (Egypt)
Moso Sematlane – Nightbirds (Lesotho)
Sarah Abena Adjei – Awake (Ghana)
Tendaiishe Chitima – The Last Tree on Kilimanjaro (Zimbabwe)
Xola Limba – Only We Remain (South Africa)
Episodic
Cheyi Okoaye – Cause, Effect & Maybe Consequences? (Nigeria)
Des Dlamini – Slightly Awkward (South Africa)
Rudo Furusa – Borrowed Skin (Botswana)
SOGOBA Hawa – The Eleventh Year (Mali)
Animation
Jack Machiridza – All You Sheep (Zimbabwe)
Kirollos George – Alexandria forever (Egypt)
Pule Mohotsi – Amandla (South Africa)
Talent Press
Elijah Oluwanisola (Nigeria)
Hlumela Luvuno (South Africa)
NEYA Harouna (Burkina Faso)
Michelle Abuti (Kenya)
Domoina Ratsara (Madagascar) – Alumni
Wilfred Okiche (Nigeria) – Alumni
The Heads of Berlinale Talents, Nikola Joetze and Tobias Pausinger, highlight their anticipation, stating: “At Berlinale Talents, we regard Talents Durban as an essential creative partner and a space where exceptional filmmakers and storytellers from across the African continent continue to push boundaries, challenge form, and expand the global cinematic imagination. Year after year, we are inspired by how Talents Durban nurtures bold artistic voices that embody the spirit of this year’s Berlinale Talents theme, Creating and Confusion, transforming uncertainty into innovation and new narrative possibilities.
Equally vital is the internationally renowned Durban Film Market itself, which stands as one of the continent’s most significant platforms for connecting emerging and established talent with industry opportunity. It plays a decisive role in strengthening the creative ecosystem, while underscoring South Africa’s position as a dynamic and indispensable hub for the international film industry.”
As the premier film market in Africa, the 17th edition of the Durban FilmMart, under the theme “Shifting Worlds: Turning Towards Ourselves”. Inspired by the words of Ousmane Sembène, often referred to as the “father of African cinema” who said, “Why be a sunflower and turn toward the sun? I, myself, am the sun,” the 17th edition of the Durban FilmMart will be the space for discussions that advance alternative film funding pathways, revise models for distribution, consider equitable co-production frameworks and create authentic partnerships. DFM 2026 will encourage looking within to forge relationships and design new strategies that will brace a world in flux and endure the economic and social structures that are changing and destabilising the film industry.
More information on this year’s theme can be found on the Durban FilmMart Institute’s website, https://durbanfilmmart.co.za/
Delegate registration and programme details will be announced in due course.
The 17th edition Durban FilmMart is funded by the Durban Film Office, eThekwini Municipality, Ford Foundation, the National Film and Video Foundation and IEFTF.
