San Sebastián Adds Six Films to 2026 Competition, Including Eisenberg, Cavayé and Kernell Titles
The San Sebastián Film Festival has added six films to the Official Selection of its 74th edition, expanding the Golden Shell competition to 16 titles. New works from Jesse Eisenberg, Fred Cavayé, Amanda Kernell and Gabriel Martins join the slate, alongside feature debuts from Ah Biao and Tony Vahl. The festival runs September 18–26, 2026 in the Basque city. Variety
Eisenberg's "The Debut" stars Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti and is his third film as director. Moore plays a shy housewife who becomes an obsessive method actor. The film will arrive in San Sebastián after a stop at Toronto, with A24 handling its U.S. release. Variety
Fred Cavayé's new take on Victor Hugo's "Les Misérables" will hold its world premiere at San Sebastián, according to Screen Daily. The film stars Vincent Lindon, Tahar Rahim and Noémie Merlant, follows Jean Valjean after 19 years in prison, and is backed by Studiocanal, which is handling international sales. Screen Daily Variety
Amanda Kernell's "Brace Your Heart" ("Garrat du váimmu") follows a young woman fighting to preserve the reindeer herd she inherited from her father. Produced by Nordisk Film Production and sold internationally by TrustNordisk, it world premieres at Toronto before heading to the Basque festival. Variety
Gabriel Martins' third feature, "On Behalf of My Son" ("Vicentina pede desculpas"), centres on a woman who seeks out families whose relatives died in an accident caused by her son. Filmes de Plástico produces in partnership with Netflix, and the film premieres at Toronto. Variety
Two first-time directors round out the additions. Ah Biao's "Border" ("Bian jing") is set in a forgotten border town, where a broke young miner is drawn toward crime after meeting an enigmatic woman. Tony Vahl's "Krux" stars Jella Haase and unfolds in a northeastern German village at the end of World War II; Global Constellation handles international sales, and it too plays Toronto before San Sebastián. Variety
These six titles join 10 previously announced Golden Shell contenders from Roberto Bueso, Nicole Garcia, Mikel Gurrea, Maha Harada, Pablo Larraín, Mike Leigh, Hans Petter Moland, Benjamín Naishtat, Javier Ruiz Caldera and Yeşim Ustaoğlu. The full competition line-up now stands at 16 films. Variety
What gives the additions their texture is the festival circuit threading through them. Toronto acts as a launch pad for four of the six, while Cavayé's "Les Misérables" skips that route and claims its first audience on the Basque coast. For the Golden Shell race, that means several contenders will arrive in San Sebastián already road-tested by critics and buyers.
