BEAST announces the first titles of its 9th edition
Under the theme “HOME”, the festival strengthens collaborations with European film schools and Ukrainian queer cinema
The 9th edition of the BEAST International Film Festival, taking place from 3 to 7 June 2026 in Porto, announces HOME as its transversal theme. More than just a physical place, HOME establishes itself as a realm of emotion and inquiry – between belonging, memory, and desire – inspiring the building of this year’s programme, from which we now reveal the first titles.
Among the highlights, BEAST welcomes FAMU, one of the oldest and most prestigious film schools in Europe, celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, the festival presents a special programme featuring a selection of some of the best works produced over the past ten years.
The SCHOOL VISIT programme also includes DFFB, one of Germany’s leading film academies. In collaboration with the festival, two distinct moments are presented: a documentary by Nicole Medvecka and a short film programme by directors such as Borbála Nagy, Ewelina Rosinska and Xandra Popescu.
The festival also reinforces its collaboration with Sunny Bunny in the section HOW TO CARE FOR COSMOS, dedicated to queer cinema.
The programme presented at BEAST brings together five recent short films, combining experimental and performative works with more classical narrative approaches. Through this selection, themes ranging from love in times of war to queer resistance and expression are explored, reflecting the cdiversity of voices and forms emerging in a context marked by conflict.
BEAST 2026 takes place across several venues in Porto, including Batalha – Centro de Cinema, Cinema Passos Manuel, Cinema Trindade, Casa Comum – Universidade do Porto, Central Eléctrica – CRL, Sigilo, as well as other places still to be revealed. The full programme will be announced soon.
