SMART7 Competition: the new European cinema
The SMART7 Competition, a programme dedicated to emerging voices in European cinema, returns at the 25th edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival (June 12–21, 2026, Cluj-Napoca) with a new selection of films. Conceived as a platform for discovering and supporting early-career auteurs, the programme brings forward films that experiment both thematically and formally, connecting audiences to some of the freshest directions in European cinema. This year’s line-up once brings together seven debut features or films signed by emerging filmmakers, tracing a journey through family relationships, personal crises, and the pressures of contemporary realities.
All titles will screen across the seven festivals forming the SMART7 network: Vilnius IFF Kino Pavasaris (Lithuania), IndieLisboa (Portugal), FILMADRID (Spain), Transilvania IFF (Romania), New Horizons IFF (Poland), Reykjavik IFF (Iceland), and Thessaloniki IFF (Greece).
Romania’s entry is A River’s Gaze (Malul vânăt), directed by Andreea Borțun. The filmmaker’s feature debut — following her Cannes-selected short When Night Meets Dawn (2021) — observes the relationship between Lavinia, a single mother, and her 13-year-old son Dani, across four seasons spent in a Romanian village. As the boy approaches adolescence, the fragile balance between dependence and autonomy begins to shift, and their bond is tested by socio-economic pressures and the inevitable transformations of age.
“It’s been eight years since the first thoughts about A River’s Gaze began to take shape. In developing the narrative, we followed a rather alternative path, involving immersive research in rural communities in the south. A slow but necessary process, followed by waiting for funding and for the right international audience. That’s where things become uncomfortable — and sometimes unnecessarily so. I believe it’s important to also consider alternative funding and distribution routes that can shorten these timelines. So for us, having the chance to begin the festival circuit from the outset in six countries beyond Romania is incredibly valuable. Especially in a context where this alliance of festivals believes in and invests in its young audience. In an era with many films but few physical screens, I think this festival alliance bypasses traditional gatekeeping. And that’s encouraging” said director Andreea Borțun.
From Poland comes No Ghosts on Good Street (Nie ma duchów w mieszkaniu na Dobrej), the debut feature by Emi Buchwald, centred on the lives of four siblings growing up in the absence of their parents. Closely observing their intimacy, tensions, and forms of dependency, the film proposes an unconventional narrative structure and a layered portrait of the young generation. The project was widely acclaimed at the Gdynia National Film Festival, receiving multiple awards, including Best Director.
Greece is represented by Patty Is Such a Girly Name (Poly koritsistiko onoma to Patty), directed by Giorgos Georgopoulos, a coming-of-age drama about Daphne, a teenage judoka from an isolated island. Her move to a larger city to continue training under her mentor marks the beginning of a maturation journey defined by discipline, competition, and the drive for self-affirmation. The film premiered at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival and was later awarded at Thessaloniki IFF.
In The Visitor (Svečias), Lithuanian director Vytautas Katkus follows Danielius, a newly-become father returning to his hometown to sell his parents’ apartment. Reconnecting with spaces and people from his past opens a process of remembrance and personal repositioning. The film received the Best Director Award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
The selection further includes:
The Fires (Eldarnir), the feature debut of Icelandic director Ugla Hauksdóttir — a disaster-film-inflected story in which a volcanology expert attempts to warn the scientific community about an imminent eruption threatening Reykjavik, while her personal life becomes entangled in a complicated romance;
Eternal Flame (Óculos de Sol Pretos), the first feature by Portuguese filmmaker Pedro Ramalhete — a melancholic comedy exploring the dynamics of a film crew, while paying tribute to Portuguese cinema and filmmaking at large;
The Dashed Lines (As Liñas Descontinuas), directed by Spanish filmmaker Anxos Fazáns — following the unexpected encounter between Bea, a 50-year-old woman in the midst of a divorce, and Denís, a 28-year-old trans man navigating an unstable period. Their connection evolves into a relationship of mutual support and personal rediscovery — a sensitive portrait of loneliness, identity, and the possibility of a new beginning.
SMART7 Selection
A River’s Gaze (Malul vânăt), dir. Andreea Borțun — Romania, 2025
No Ghosts on Good Street (Nie ma duchów w mieszkaniu na Dobrej), dir. Emi Buchwald — Poland, 2025
Patty Is Such a Girly Name (Poly koritsistiko onoma to Patty), dir. Giorgos Georgopoulos — Greece, 2025
The Visitor (Svečias), dir. Vytautas Katkus — Lithuania, 2025
The Fires (Eldarnir), dir. Ugla Hauksdóttir — Iceland, 2025
Eternal Flame (Óculos de Sol Pretos), dir. Pedro Ramalhete — Portugal, 2025
The Dashed Lines (As Liñas Descontinuas), dir. Anxos Fazáns — Spain, 2025
At the end of the festival season, an international jury made up of young film-industry professionals will designate the winner of the competition, who will receive a €5,000 award. In 2025, the SMART7 Trophy went to Portuguese-Cape Verdean director Denise Fernandes for her debut feature Hanami, with the prize announced during the Closing Gala of the 65th edition of Thessaloniki IFF.
SMART7 is supported by Creative Europe MEDIA and aims to function as a platform for promoting European cinema, creating a meeting space between emerging filmmakers and audiences. Alongside the joint film programme, the initiative also includes activities designed to facilitate international exchange of festival know-how and professional experience.
More details about the TIFF.25 programme will be announced soon. Festival passes are already available online.
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The Transilvania International Film Festival is organized by Asociația pentru Promovarea Filmului Românesc and Asociația Festivalul de Film Transilvania.
