Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival (FEFFS)
The European meeting place for fantastic, horror, and science fiction cinema
2026
About FEFFS
FEFFS — edition 2026
The 19th edition of the Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival will take place from Friday, September 25th to Sunday, October 4th, 2026. The official selection features around forty feature films, a retrospective dedicated to artificial intelligence, and fourteen initial titles unveiled on August 12th: Edwin's Sleep No More, Joko Anwar's Ghost in the Cell, Jan Komasa's The Good Boy, and more.
2026 Edition
The 19th edition will be held from Friday, September 25th to Sunday, October 4th, 2026, in cinemas across Strasbourg. The previous edition welcomed 22,000 cinema admissions and a total of 30,000 visitors.
The main retrospective is dedicated to artificial intelligence. The festival poster, designed by artist Mahon, pays tribute to Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. The program includes genre feature films and shorts screened in the presence of the film crews, classic films on the big screen, masterclasses, off-site events, professional networking, and the return of the Festival Village at Place Saint-Thomas.
A first wave of fourteen titles was announced on August 12th, 2026, out of the forty films expected in the official selection. The full program and screening schedule will be announced in early September.
Press, professional, and partner accreditation requests are open from August 17th to September 13th, 2026.
Highlights FEFFS 2026
- Retrospective dedicated to artificial intelligence, with a poster by Mahon paying tribute to 2001: A Space Odyssey
- Around forty feature films in the official selection, including Edwin's Sleep No More and Joko Anwar's Ghost in the Cell
- Three Midnight Movies announced, including Nikias Chryssos' Bloody Tennis, returning to FEFFS after Der Bunker
- 4th edition of the Eurogenre professional days, from September 29th to October 1st, featuring nine European feature film projects
- Return of the Festival Village at Place Saint-Thomas
Programme FEFFS 2026
Official Selection — first wave, announced August 12th, 2026
Fourteen titles out of the forty feature films expected. Venues and screening times have not yet been published.
International Fantastic Film Competition
- Sleep No More — Edwin (Indonesia) · a dark horror-comedy about workplace exploitation: employees become possessed by an entity when exhausted by their tasks.
- Never After Dark — Dave Boyle (Japan) · a ghost story and home invasion thriller centered on a medium, starring actress Moeka Hoshi.
- Leviticus — Adrian Chiarella (Australia) · two teenagers grapple with a violent supernatural force that takes the form of the person they desire most.
Crossovers Competition
- Ikatan Darah — Sidharta Tata (Indonesia) · an action film.
- Dead End — Chan Chun-Hao (Taiwan) · a film noir inspired by true events: during a night of pursuit, a disgraced former athlete discovers a betting system based on the death dates of terminally ill patients.
- The Good Boy — Jan Komasa (Poland) · a kidnapping thriller and dreamlike tale: a couple locks up a young delinquent to eradicate the evil within him.
International Animation Competition
- Nobody — Yu Shui (China) · a wild piglet, a toad, a weasel, and a gorilla find the courage to become heroes during a pilgrimage.
- Le Fils de pute — Erica Maradona, Tania Anaya, Otto Guerra, and Sávio Leite (Brazil) · Ismaël leaves his mother's home in search of his father and the ocean, accompanied by his crippled dog.
- Blaise — Dimitri Planchon and Jean-Paul Guigue · a dark comedy about the Sauvage family, created using paper cutouts and digital photomontage.
Midnight Movies
- Penny Lane is Dead — Mia Kate Russell (Australia) · a queer, punk slasher in the vein of 80s Ozploitation.
- Bloody Tennis — Nikias Chryssos (Germany) · a horror-comedy and hallucinatory trip set in an unorthodox tennis academy.
- Ghost in the Cell — Joko Anwar (Indonesia) · an entity massacres prisoners in a high-security facility.
Documentaries
- Ghost in the Machine — Valerie Veatch · explores the philosophical, cultural, and political foundations of the AI boom, echoing the main retrospective.
- Mockbuster — Anthony Frith · goes behind the scenes of The Asylum, a B-movie studio (Sharknado): an Australian director has six days and a tiny budget to shoot a monster movie.
2026 Retrospective: Artificial Intelligence
The major retrospective is dedicated to artificial intelligence. The festival poster, designed by Mahon, pays tribute to 2001: A Space Odyssey. The selected films have not yet been announced.
Eurogenre Professional Days — Tuesday, September 29th to Thursday, October 1st, 2026
4th edition. Nine European feature film projects in development will be presented during the pitch session on Tuesday, September 29th:
- The Mediator — Ido Gotlib (Germany)
- Rebirth (Un Respiro) — written by Daniele Cosci, Grey Ladder Productions (Italy)
- Trails — Mads Erichsen, Pingpong Film ApS (Denmark)
- Ducasse — William Samaha, Narrativ Nation (Belgium)
- Paradise Morbid — David-Jan Bronsgeest, Bloodrave Films (Netherlands)
- The Control of Skin — Morgane Ahrach, Almaa films (France)
- HAXA — Myriam Dupuis (France)
- La Concession — Aurélia Raoull (France)
- Poochandi : la légende du mangeur d'enfants — Vinoth Kumar Saguerre (France)
Thursday, October 1st is dedicated to short film projects in development supported by the Eurométropole de Strasbourg's Concept Aid, as well as projects supported by the Grand Est Region, currently in writing or production. Contact: [email protected]
Announced, but not yet detailed
- Genre feature films and shorts screened with film crews in attendance
- Classic films to rediscover on the big screen
- Masterclasses
- Off-site events and professional networking
- The Festival Village, Place Saint-Thomas
The rest of the selection, venues, and schedules will be published in early September 2026 at strasbourgfestival.com.
Prices FEFFS 2026
Practical information — FEFFS
Access
Screenings are held in several cinemas in Strasbourg's city center. The Festival Village is located at Place Saint-Thomas. The Strasbourg train station is a 15-minute walk from the center.
Cinemas
- Cinéma Vox — 17 rue des Francs-Bourgeois · +33 3 88 75 50 21 · tram A, D stop Langstross Grand'Rue
- Cinéma Star — 27 rue du Jeu-des-Enfants · +33 3 88 32 67 77 · tram B, F stop Alt Winmarïk, or tram A, B, C, D, F stop Homme de Fer
- Le Cosmos — 3 rue des Francs-Bourgeois · +33 3 88 75 10 47 · tram A, B, C, D, F stop Homme de Fer
- UGC Ciné Cité — 25 avenue du Rhin · +33 3 90 41 26 50 · tram A, D stop Étoile-Bourse, or tram C, E stop Winston Churchill
- The Village — Place Saint-Thomas · tram A, D stop Langstross Grand'Rue
Rates
Rates for the 2026 edition have not yet been published. In 2025: festival pass €15, granting access to a reduced rate of €7 per screening; individual screenings from €7 to €18. UGC Unlimited cards and Star subscriptions are accepted at the respective cinemas.
Ticketing and accreditation
Online ticketing at strasbourgfestival.com. The Festival Pass badge can be picked up at the accreditation stand in the Village, Place Saint-Thomas. Press, professional, and partner accreditation requests for the 19th edition are open from August 17th to September 13th, 2026.
Contact
Association Les Films du Spectre, 9 rue du Vieil-Hôpital, 67000 Strasbourg. Office open Monday to Friday from 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM.
Phone: +33 9 52 83 73 88 · [email protected]
The origins of Strasbourg's fantastic cinema
The adventure began in 2006, when the Les Films du Spectre association launched the Hammer Film Festival, a tribute to the legendary British studio's productions. Its success encouraged the organizers to repeat the experience in 2007 with the Spectre Film Festival, dedicated to the golden age of science fiction. In 2008, the festival joined the European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation and adopted its current name: the Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival (FEFFS).
Ten days of genre cinema
Every year, the FEFFS presents an official selection of feature films, shorts, documentaries, and animated works, all rooted in genre cinema: fantasy, horror, science fiction, thrillers, film noir, and dark comedy. The program also includes premieres, thematic retrospectives, and Connexions, a section dedicated to video games, digital creation, and virtual reality, which originated at Le Shadok in 2012 and was officially named in 2020. Highlights include the Indie Game Contest for independent developers and the VR Film Corner.
Competitions and awards
The international fantastic film competition awards the Golden Octopus, the Crossovers competition (film noir, thriller, dark comedy) presents the Crossovers Grand Prix, and the international animation competition awards the Golden Stork. Short film competitions award the Golden Octopus for best fantastic short, the best animated short award, and the best Made in France short award; a jury of high school students from the Grand Est region also presents a youth jury prize. As a member of the Méliès International Festivals Federation (MIFF), the festival hosts the French leg of the Silver Méliès competition for the best European fantastic film, with winners going on to compete for the Golden Méliès. Non-competitive sections include Midnight Movies, special screenings, retrospectives, and the VR Film Corner.
The Nuit excentrique and side events
As part of the retrospectives, La Nuit excentrique runs from midnight until dawn, showcasing a selection of cult "so-bad-they're-good" films preserved by the Cinémathèque française. The festival also organizes masterclasses with directors and industry professionals, artistic interventions in museums, conferences, workshops, exhibitions, a zombie walk, and the Festival Village at Place Saint-Thomas, featuring activities for both children and adults. Summer outdoor screenings attract 4,000 spectators.
Strasbourg's cinemas take part
The FEFFS takes over several city-center theaters: the Vox, the Star, Le Cosmos, and the UGC Ciné Cité. The Festival Village is located at Place Saint-Thomas.
Attendance
In 2024, the festival welcomed over 31,000 people, presenting 46 feature films, 30 retrospective films, and 41 short films. The 18th edition saw 22,000 cinema admissions and 30,000 total visitors. The 19th edition will take place from September 25th to October 4th, 2026. The festival is supported by the CNC, the City of Strasbourg, and the Grand Est Region.
Where does it take place — FEFFS
FEFFS in brief
History of FEFFS
Edition 2025 Sep 2025Other festivals near Strasbourg
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