Filmmakers and industry leaders will tackle some of the biggest opportunities and challenges facing African cinema.
Durban, South Africa (29 September 2026) – The African film industry is changing fast, and the 2026 Durban FilmMart is putting some of those biggest questions on the table.
The Durban FilmMart Institute has launched the industry programme for this year’s edition, which takes place in Durban from 9 to 12 October.
The four-day programme will explore everything from film financing and international co-productions to artificial intelligence, advocacy, animation and the rapidly growing world of vertical dramas.
DFM Institute director Magdalene Reddy says the programme reflects an industry that is opening up new opportunities while also confronting some difficult questions about who controls its future.
“This programme reflects where the African film industry is currently: expanding audiences, growing co-production pathways and new capital arriving in new forms, but also asks real questions about advocacy, technology and who gets to shape the future of the sector.”
There is also a strong focus on protecting and strengthening the industry itself.
Who Is Fighting Our Corner? Film Advocacy and Lobbying on the African Continent brings together people involved in advocacy across guilds, professional associations, filmmaker collectives and civil society to examine what effective lobbying looks like and where the industry still needs to find its voice.
The project began as a work-in-progress at Durban FilmMart before reaching the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered in Un Certain Regard and went on to receive the FIPRESCI Prize and the Caméra d’Or.
Technology will also take centre stage. With artificial intelligence increasingly influencing creative industries, AI and Animation will explore what the technology could mean for African animation.
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Together, the sessions point towards the bigger conversation at the heart of this year’s Durban FilmMart: how African filmmakers can build stronger relationships with investors, audiences, international partners and one another while shaping an industry that works on its own terms.
The full Durban FilmMart 2026 Industry Programme is now live, with more information available through the Durban FilmMart Institute.
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