The Venice International Film Festival has unveiled a competition-heavy 2026 line-up that signals a clear shift away from the studio and streamer dominance of recent editions. Artistic director Alberto Barbera has assembled a programme led by established auteurs, international festival favourites and ambitious arthouse cinema, while also drawing criticism for the overwhelming lack of women filmmakers in competition.
Opening the festival on September 2 is Danny Boyle's Ink, which screens in competition. The Oscar-winning filmmaker returns with a thriller starring Jack O'Connell, Guy Pearce and Claire Foy.
Among the most anticipated premieres is Lee Chang-dong's Possible Love, marking the Korean master's first feature in eight years since Burning. Produced by Netflix, the drama reunites an ensemble led by Jeon Do-yeon, Sul Kyung-gu, Zo In-sung and Cho Yeo-jeong.
Martin McDonagh returns to Venice with Wild Horse Nine, a political black comedy set in the days leading up to Chile's 1973 military coup. The film stars John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell and Steve Buscemi, continuing the director's long association with the festival after Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and The Banshees of Inisherin.
Another major world premiere is Florian Zeller's Bunker, featuring Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem, Stephen Graham, Paul Dano and Patrick Schwarzenegger in a psychological thriller centred on an architect commissioned to build a billionaire's survival bunker.
Japanese cinema has a particularly strong presence. Hirokazu Kore-eda brings Look Back, a live-action adaptation of Tatsuki Fujimoto's acclaimed manga, while Shinya Tsukamoto competes with Mr. Nelson, Did You Kill People?, inspired by the experiences of an African American Vietnam War veteran.
Veteran German filmmaker Werner Herzog returns with Bucking Fastard, starring sisters Rooney Mara and Kate Mara as inseparable twins based on a true story. Italian cinema is equally prominent with five competition titles, including Nanni Moretti's romantic comedy Succederà Questa Notte (It Will Happen Tonight), Edoardo De Angelis' Il Fuoco Che Ti Porti Dentro and Andrea Pallaoro's The Echo Chamber.
The competition also features Casey Affleck's third directorial feature Company, Ali Asgari's Iranian drama A Bit of Light, Stéphane Brizé's Un Bon Petit Soldat, Cédric Kahn's 15/18 (A Place To Heal) and Ilya Khrzhanovsky's monumental 210-minute Dau.
Despite the breadth of international representation, the gender imbalance remains striking. Danish-Egyptian filmmaker May el-Toukhy's Woman Unknown is the only film directed by a woman among the 20 competition titles, a significant drop from last year's six female-directed entries.
Outside competition, Venice has assembled an expansive documentary programme including Alex Gibney's Musk, Wim Wenders' From Inside Out: The Architecture of Peter Zumthor, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin's Everest: The Other Side, Sergei Loznitsa's Imperium, and Russell Crowe's directorial documentary What Love Builds.
The Orizzonti section continues its focus on emerging voices with films from Thailand, Bangladesh, Iran, Greece, Serbia, Germany, France, India and China. India's sole representation comes through Anuparna Roy's Lovers in the Blue Night, selected in the competitive sidebar dedicated to new cinematic trends.
Venezia 82 Competition
Ink
Dir. Danny Boyle
Company
Dir. Casey Affleck
A Bit Of Light
Dir. Ali Asgari
Ritorno A Buenos Aires
Dir. Marco Bechis
Un Bon Petit Soldat
Dir. Stéphane Brizé
Il Fuoco Che Ti Porti Dentro
Dir. Edoardo De Angelis
Woman Unknown
Dir. May el-Toukhy
Bucking Fastard
Dir. Werner Herzog
15/18 (A Place To Heal)
Dir. Cédric Kahn
Dau
Dir. Ilya Khrzhanovsky
Look Back
Dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda
Possible Love
Dir. Lee Chang-dong
Wild Horse Nine
Dir. Martin McDonagh
Succederà Questa Notte
Dir. Nanni Moretti
Primetime
Dir. Lance Oppenheim
The Echo Chamber
Dir. Andrea Pallaoro
Un Peu Avant Minuit
Dir. Nicolas Pariser
L'Estranea
Dir. Paolo Strippoli
Mr. Nelson, Did You Kill People?
Dir. Shinya Tsukamoto
Bunker
Dir. Florian Zeller
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Orizzonti
La Ragazza Con La Leica
Dir. Alina Marazzi
The Burning Giants
Dir. Phuttiphong Aroonpheng
What Belongs To Others
Dir. Grzegorz Dębowski
Una Storia
Dir. Anna Foglietta
La Città Dei Vivi
Dir. Edoardo Gabbriellini
Falling House
Dir. Mohsen Gharaei
Too Much Sugar
Dir. Robert Greene
The Difficult Bride
Dir. Rubaiyat Hossain
La Maison Du Vent
Dir. Auguste Bernard Kouemo Yanghu
I Figli Della Scimmia
Dir. Tommaso Landucci
A Day In The Life Of Jo: Chapter Phaedra
Dir. Jacqueline Lentzou
Oasis
Dir. Jannis Lenz
Until The Day Ends
Dir. Jelena Maksimović
La Moula
Dir. Jérôme Pierrat
Lovers In The Blue Night 🇮🇳
Dir. Anuparna Roy
Un Détour Par Diane
Dir. Ann Sirot & Raphaël Balboni
The Colour Of The Sun
Dir. Xavier Tera
Eklipse
Dir. Manuel Wetscher
Big Little Things
Dir. Michelle Zhou
