During the pitching session, the jury granted the 2026 ArteKino International Prize, valued at €20,000, to Antoine Rein and Fabrice Goldstein of Kare Productions for the feature film project “All The Little Live Things,” directed by Carine Tardieu (France).
The Investors Circle, the Marché du Film’s exclusive gathering of top film financing experts and investors, concluded its fourth edition with resounding success.
Held over two days during the 79th Festival de Cannes at the Festival & Marché’s official beachside venue Plage des Palmes, this high-profile event brought together key voices from across the global film industry. This year’s program placed a particular emphasis on the evolving role of brands within the film financing ecosystem, highlighting their growing strategic involvement and direct investment in cinema.
The event opened with keynote conversation featuring a prominent figure at the intersection of fashion, branding, and film: Koji Yanai, Group Senior Executive Officer and Director of the Board at Fast Retailing Co., Ltd., the parent company of UNIQLO. Yanai was also the producer of Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days, which competed for the Palme d’Or at the 76th Festival de Cannes.
These keynotes were followed by a panel discussion featuring Rebecca De Pas (Film Fund Manager, Fondazione Prada), Elsa Huisman (Founding Partner, 111 Avocats), Philipp Manderla (Global Head, Red Bull Studios), and Brian Newman (CEO, Sub-Genre Media), further exploring how brands are reshaping financing models and long-term engagement with independent cinema.
The conversations led into a private pitching session presenting eight ambitious, large-scale film projects — revealed exclusively to Investors Circle participants — from internationally acclaimed filmmakers.
This year’s selection included Juho Kuosmanen (Compartment No. 6, Grand Prix, Cannes 2021), Felipe Gálvez (The Settlers, FIPRESCI Prize, Un Certain Regard, Cannes 2025), Magnus von Horn (The Girl with the Needle, In Competition, Cannes 2024); Academy Award nominee), and Carine Tardieu (Ôtez-moi d’un doute, Directors’ Fortnight, Cannes 2017; The Ties That Bind Us (L’Attachement), Venice 2024, César winner for Best Film & Best Adaptation).
Carefully selected for their potential to captivate audiences and investors alike, these projects, with budgets ranging from 1 to 12 million euros, represent a diverse array of storytelling and creative visions.
The presence of lead producers and internationally renowned directors lent an air of exclusivity as they unveiled their projects to a select audience of VIP investors, who had the exclusive opportunity to discover these 8 anticipated projects for the first time. With the support of 111 Avocats, a top law firm fully dedicated to the entertainment industry, the teams behind the projects received legal guidance to prepare their conversations with equity investors.
The 2026 selection of film projects revealed at the 2026 Investors Circle:
- ALL THE LITTLE LIVE THINGS
directed by Carine Tardieu (France)
produced by Antoine Rein, Fabrice Goldstein at Kare Productions - CIGHID
directed by Emanuel Pârvu (Romania)
produced by Miruna Berescu at FAMart - DREAM COME TRUE
directed by Juho Kuosmanen (Finland)
produced by Jussi Rantamäki at Aamu Film Company, Katrin Pors at Snowglobe - IMPUNITY
directed by Felipe Gálvez (Chile)
produced by Benjamin Domenech, Santiago Gallelli, Matías Roveda at Rei Pictures, Emily Morgan at Quiddity, Alejandra García at Ronda Cine, Sylvie Pialat, Alejandro Arenas at Les Films du Worso. - MONTJOIE
directed by Noé Debré (France)
produced by Benjamin Elalouf at Moonshaker - THE PASSENGER
directed by Magnus von Horn (Sweden/Poland)
produced by Jan Krüger, Roshanak Khodabakhsh at Port au Prince Films and Mariusz Włodarski at Lava Films - THE RETURNING
directed by Atsuko Hirayanagi (Japan/USA)
produced by Eiko Mizuno-Gray at Loaded Films - WOLFMOTHER
directed by Ismaël El Iraki (Morocco/France)
produced by Alexis Hofmann, Sébastien Onomo at Special Touch Studios
The 2026 ArteKino International Prize of €20,000 went to Antoine Rein and Fabrice Goldstein of Kare Productions to support the financing of their feature film project All The Little Live Things, directed by Carine Tardieu (France).
The announcement comes as a timely reminder of the Investors Circle’s role in championing bold new projects with international potential: last year’s winning project – Gentle Monster, directed by Marie Kreutzer and produced by Alexander Glehr & Johanna Scherz (Film AG Produktions GmbH) – premiered in Competition at this year’s Festival de Cannes.
The Investors Circle program is organized by the Marché du Film – Festival de Cannes with the support of Creative Europe MEDIA.