Official Competition
Official Selection 2026
The Festival International des Jeunes Acteurs (FIJA) unveils its official selection for its 3rd edition, taking place in Paris from April 17 to 24, 2026. 8 feature films and 25 short films by emerging filmmakers from around the world, carried by outstanding young performers, are in competition this year.
Feature Films
MORLAIX
France / Spain | 2025
Director: Jaime Rosales
Cast: Aminthe Audiard, Samuel Kircher, Mélanie Thierry, Àlex Brendemühl, Jeanne Trinité
Synopsis: Shaken by the recent death of her mother, young Gwen finds comfort among her friends and her boyfriend Thomas. But the arrival of Jean-Luc, a magnetically charming Parisian student, throws her emotions into turmoil. Unable to choose, she one day stumbles upon a film at the cinema that seems inexplicably to reveal her own future…
TRULY NAKED
Netherlands / Belgium / France | 2025
Director: Muriel d’Ansembourg
Cast: Caolán O’Gorman, Andrew Howard, Safiya Benaddi, Alessa Savage, Lyndsey Marshal
Synopsis: For Alec, who lives alone with his father Dylan — an adult film performer — desire and pornography have become one and the same. His routine grows increasingly difficult to conceal when he grows closer to Nina, a classmate. To open himself up to real feeling, Alec will have to break free and allow himself to be truly seen.
SUKKWAN ISLAND
France / Norway / Belgium / United Kingdom | 2025
Director: Vladimir de Fontenay Based on the novel by David Vann
Cast: Swann Arlaud, Woody Norman, Ruaridh Mollica, Alma Pöysti, Tuppence Middleton
Synopsis: Tom takes his thirteen-year-old son to spend a year on a remote island in the far North. Amid the grandeur of the wilderness, the two reconnect — but the extreme conditions and isolation push their relationship to its breaking point.
LE GARÇON QUI FAISAIT DANSER LES COLLINES
(Original title: DJ Ahmet)
North Macedonia / Czech Republic / Serbia / Croatia | 2025
Director: Georgi M. Unkovski
Cast: Arif Jakup, Agush Agushev, Dora Akan Zlatanova
Synopsis: Fifteen-year-old Ahmet grows up in the mountains of Macedonia, tending his father’s sheep and looking after his younger brother. But what truly sets his heart ablaze is music. Torn between the expectations of those around him and his longing for something more, can Ahmet ever find his own path?
D'OÙ VIENT LE VENT
(Original title: Tunis-Djerba)
Tunisia / France | 2025
Director: Amel Guellaty
Cast: Eya Bellagha, Slim Baccar, Sondos Belhassen
Synopsis: In Tunis, Alyssa and Mehdi — two friends in their early twenties — dream of opportunities in a conservative and authoritarian country. When Alyssa discovers an art contest whose prize is an artist residency abroad, she enters Mehdi. The only catch: the contest takes place in Djerba, over 500 kilometres away. Alyssa’s audacity sends them both on the road, chasing their destiny and the promise of a better life.
THE PLAGUE
United States / Romania | 2025
Director: Charlie Polinger
Cast: Everett Blunck, Kayo Martin, Kenny Rasmussen, Joel Edgerton
Synopsis: In the summer of 2003, at an all-boys water polo camp, twelve-year-old Ben struggles to find his place within a ruthless social hierarchy. When he befriends Eli — a lonely outcast shunned by the others for allegedly carrying a contagious “plague” — Ben is drawn into a cruel and escalating ritual of scapegoating. As the line between game and real harm blurs, he is forced to confront his own complicity and the terrifying cost of belonging.
FANTASY
Slovenia / North Macedonia | 2025
Director: Kukla (Kukla Kesherović)
Cast: Sarah Al Saleh, Alina Juhart, Mina Milovanović, Mia Skrbinac
Synopsis: Mihrije, Sina and Jasna are three friends in their early twenties living in Slovenia. Tomboyish and fiercely independent, they refuse to play by the rules of the conservative world around them. Everything changes when they meet Fantasy, a young transgender woman whose quiet, assured presence leads each of them on an unexpected journey into gender, desire, and self-discovery.
Short Films
Tristes Tigres — Pichardo Adán
Out — Vanessa Zambernardi
A Hundred Bucks — Tallulah Remond-Stephen
Petit point — Julie Lerat-Gersant
Lolita — Adib Cheikhi
El ascensor — Claudia García Ramos
Battant — Maël Leurele
Sync — Lubos Vacke
Le 4ème singe — Wang Xin
Olive — Tom Koch
La danse de Gabriel — Maxence Saugrain
Bahamas — Marina Festre
Malo — Louis Barrau
Made to order — Jos Berlioux
Oceania — Valentin Noujaïm
Grande Envie — Julien Aveque
Insiste — Ben Popincourt
Le rappel des oiseaux — Théo De Oliveira & Rémi Potisek
Âme sœur(s) — Jammeh Diangana
Titre provisoire — Laëtitia Martinoni
Il faut souffrir — Floriane Colas
Mémé — Anne-Sophie Diego
L’avance — Djiby Kebe
Petit Tom — Léo Riehl
FILM SCHOOL Short FILM – IN COMPETITION
CHOKBAR — Arnaud Christien & Adrien Urizar Neutre — MediaDiffusion
Iris — Abolfazl Talooni — National Film and TV School
Mémé — Juliette Coget
Mon Jules à moi — Alice le François — 3iS
Peckerhead — Ante Pask — RITCS School of Arts
Touche Pipi — Philippe Chatard — ENSAV
TUINHUIS (garden shed) — Finn Van den IJseel
FEATURE FILM – IN COMPETITION
LES ENFANTS ROUGES
Drama | Tunisia | 1h38
Director: Lofti Achour
Cast: Ali Hlali, Wided Dadebi, Yassine Samouni
In the mountains of Tunisia, teenagers Nizar and Achraf are tending their flock when they’re attacked by a terrorist group. Nizar, 16, is killed, while 14-year-old Achraf is sent back to his village with a chilling message. Inspired by a true story and set against a harsh social backdrop, this drama delves into the wounded psyche of a child and his extraordinary resilience in the face of horror.
LES FLEURS DU SILENCE
Drama, Romance | United Kingdom | 1h39
Director: Will Seefried
Cast: Fionn O’Shea, Robert Aramayo, Erin Kellyman
In 1920s England, a gay novelist and his psychiatric nurse form an unexpected friendship through a series of appointments prescribed by a doctor. Gradually, he reveals the torment of a forbidden affair and the tragedy of a desperate, destructive “cure.” Balancing fragility and hope, the film sheds light on the medical experiments once used to “treat” homosexuality during that era.
LE DOMAINE
Thriller | France | 1h29
Director: Giovanni Aloi
Cast: Félix Lefebvre, Patrick d’Assumçao, Lina-Camélia Lumbroso
On an ordinary night, three young men murder the owners of a hunting lodge. Hired by a local kingpin who denies any involvement, they quickly spiral into a web of lies and violence. Between illusions of power and a descent into darkness, this tense thriller explores the fragility of moral boundaries under the weight of crime.
TOXIC
Drama | Lithuania | 1h39
Director: Saulė Bliuvaitė
Cast: Vesta Matulyte, Ieva Rupeikaite, Egle Gabrenaite
In a small Lithuanian town, 13-year-olds Marija and Kristina try to escape their bleak daily lives by joining a modeling school. But their dreams of fame and a better life soon lead them to push their bodies and minds to the limit. A poignant tale of friendship and sacrifice, offering an intimate portrait of youth in search of recognition and escape.
EN GARDE
Drama | Singapore | 1h49
Director: Nelicia Low
Cast: Tsao Yu-Ning, Hsiu-Fu Liu, Ning Dingiv
Jie, a young fencing prodigy, reunites with his older brother Han, recently released from prison after serving seven years for a tragic accident during a competition. As Han secretly coaches him for the national championships, old tensions resurface and Jie begins to question the truth behind his brother’s past. A gripping family thriller blending rivalry and a quest for justice.
OXANA
Biopic, Drama | France, Ukraine | 1h44
Director: Charlène Favier
Cast: Albina Korzh, Maryna Koshkina, Lada Korovai
In 2008 Ukraine, Oxana and her friends protest against corruption and injustice by painting slogans on their bodies and wearing flower crowns. From these urgent actions emerged one of the most powerful feminist movements of the 21st century: FEMEN. Tireless in her activism, Oxana would cross borders and risk her life for freedom. A powerful and moving portrait of a fearless fight for justice.
OLLIE
Dramedy | France | 1h42
Director: Antoine Besse
Cast: Kristen Billon, Théo Christine, Emmanuelle Bercot
After his mother’s death, 13-year-old Pierre returns to the family farm and finds solace in his passion for skateboarding. Bullied at school, he befriends Bertrand, a troubled outsider and former skater. Together, they embark on a journey of healing and self-discovery. A heartfelt ode to friendship and resilience, set against a backdrop of tricks and freedom.
TRANSMITSVAH
Dramedy | Argentina | 1h40
Director: Daniel Burman
Cast: Penélope Guerrero, Milo Burgess-Webb, Alejandro Awada, Gustavo Bassani
Mumy Singer, a renowned trans singer, returns to Argentina to make peace with her past and her Yiddish family. As a child, she refused to celebrate her Bar Mitzvah, breaking with tradition. With the support of her brother Eduardo, she decides to finally mark this rite of passage in her own way—with a joyful and moving Trans-Mitzvah. A tender and empowering comedy about identity and self-acceptance.
Official Competition Trailer
Short FILM – IN COMPETITION
• EURYDICE NE REVIENT PAS – 9:00
• JEANNE de Léo Holderbaum – 30:00
• HELIAMPHORE de Elian VILLAIN – 2:25
• STALKER de David Cholewa – 20:00
• HERE FOR YOU de Cezary Orłowski – 20:00
• PETITS de Isabelle Cadière – 19:00
• GLOSS de Grace Smith – 14:35
• OCTAVE de Julia Boutteville – 2:21
• SAM ET LOLA de Mahaut Adam – 20:00
• LES REPTILES de Kristina Spassovska – 19:35
• AVEC ALICE de Lena Dana – 8:00
• ERREUR 2305 de Hugo Pichon-Martin – 14:00
• LAISSEZ MOI DANSER de Lou Zidi – 22:00
• FEU À VOLONTÉ de Sophie Perron – 3:00
• MONKEY de Mohsen Habibi – 10:55
• MONSIEUR TARKOVSKY de Maxence Saugrain – 15:00
• LES INCONSOLABLES de Hugo Roblin – 4:30
• DES SAPES POUR CREVER de Cédric Paillard, Enzo MAGEN – 15:00
• FURIOUS de Thomas Vernay – 20:00
• THE CURE de Taisia Deeva – 13:00
• THE SHADE OF CHLORINE de Clément Dezelus – 22:18
• SISTERS de Joss Berlioux – 7:26
FILM SCHOOL Short FILM – IN COMPETITION
Découverte – 3iS – Zoé Harrang
Diogène – Cinécréatis – Gaëlle Sellin
Regarde-moi – Cinécréatis – Benjamin Hermenier & Lucie Barrion
Tue l’amour – Cinefabrique – Hugo Pichon-Martin
Persona – Cinemagis – Alissa Laiacona
Nemetta – CLCF – Jean-Thomas Delsol
Si tu veux, tu peux – ESRA – Romain Oelhoffen
Les hormones – Fémis – Anna Wasjbrot
La musica nasce dal silenzio – Firenze Cinecittà – Giuliana Belluomo
Baby brother – HFF Munich – Berthold Wahjudi
À la dure – INIS – Daniel Cyr