– Guillermo Galoe, Leonardo van Dijl, Mara Tamkovich, Moonika Siimets and Sofia Exarchou will participate in this year’s initiative
Five European filmmakers have been selected for the Transatlantic Stars 2026 Film Programme, an initiative of the Delegation of the European Union to the United States designed to strengthen creative and professional ties between Europeans and Americans through culture and cinema.
The programme invites award-winning mid-career EU directors to take part in a two-week immersion in the heart of the US film industry, offering them the chance to present their work, meet established professionals and gain first-hand insight into how filmmakers create, collaborate and sustain their practice across the Atlantic. The initiative underlines the importance of maintaining strong cultural partnerships between Europe and the United States at a time when international collaboration remains essential for the independent film sector.
The selected directors for the 2026 cohort are Spain’s Guillermo Galoe, Belgium’s Leonardo van Dijl, Poland’s Mara Tamkovich, Estonia’s Moonika Siimets and Greece’s Sofia Exarchou, all of whom have built strong international reputations through festival success and award-winning work.
The programme begins at the Berkshire International Film Festival in Massachusetts, where each filmmaker’s work will be presented as part of a dedicated spotlight. During the festival, participants will also take part in an intimate retreat focused on exchange, reflection and mentorship with other filmmakers and industry figures. This first stage is designed to create a space for meaningful dialogue and long-term professional connections, rather than simple market exposure.
The second stage takes place in Los Angeles, where the directors will be introduced to leading voices from across the US industry through meetings, conversations and on-the-ground immersion in the American film ecosystem. The aim is not only to familiarise participants with the realities of working in the United States, but also to encourage future co-productions, festival collaborations and artistic partnerships between both continents.
The programme concludes in Washington, DC, with State of the Arts Night, a public summit bringing together participants from the film, visual arts and music programmes of Transatlantic Stars. There, the filmmakers will join fellow European artists to showcase the work and perspectives developed during their stay in the USA, highlighting the role of culture as a bridge in transatlantic relations.
Among the selected directors, Guillermo Galoe recently premiered his debut feature, Sleepless City, in the Cannes Critics’ Week, where it won the SACD Award, while Leonardo van Dijl’s Julie Keeps Quiet premiered in the same sidebar in 2024 and won the SACD Award and the Gan Foundation Award for Distribution, with Naomi Osaka joining the project as executive producer. Mara Tamkovich’s debut feature, Under the Grey Sky, premiered at Tribeca and earned a nomination for the European Film Awards’ European Discovery – Prix FIPRESCI, while Moonika Siimets has continued to establish herself as one of Estonia’s strongest voices with films such as The Little Comrade and The Black Hole. Sofia Exarchou, whose first feature, Park, won the San Sebastián New Directors Award and whose second feature, Animal, premiered at Locarno and went on to vie for the 2025 LUX Audience Award, rounds off a cohort that reflects both the diversity and the strength of contemporary European auteur cinema.
The Transatlantic Stars 2026 Film Programme jury brought together five prominent figures from across the European and US film industries. It includes Berlin-based producer France Orsenne, co-founder of OG Films and a member of several European funding commissions, alongside US producer Joy Jorgensen, founder of Killjoy Films and head of Development at Getty Images, known for her work on transatlantic co-productions. Also on the panel are Kelley Ryan Vickery, founder and artistic director of the Berkshire International Film Festival, Hollywood producer Kirstin Winkler, whose credits range from major studio productions to international indie films, and Steve Farneth, senior executive at Cinetic Media, specialising in film financing and talent management. Together, they reflect the programme’s focus on connecting European filmmakers with key creative and industrial players in the United States.
Transatlantic Stars is led by Laura Fiore, an international project manager and specialist on EU external relations, public diplomacy and international cultural relations, who coordinates its film, music and visual arts strands. The Film Programme is directed by Seanne Winslow, a writer and producer whose credits include The Lego Movie, Nowhere and The Falconer. The second cohort of European directors will be selected for the 2027 edition later this year.
At a moment when financing, circulation and artistic freedom increasingly depend on international cooperation, the Transatlantic Stars Film Programme sends a clear message: maintaining close contact between European filmmakers and their US counterparts is not only strategically valuable, but also vital for the future of independent cinema and transatlantic relationships. For further information, please contact the team at [email protected].
