Tallinn Black Nights locks 24 films and 21 world premieres for 30th edition
Tallinn's Black Nights Film Festival has unveiled the line-ups for its Official Selection and First Feature competitions.
The two strands hold 24 films together, with 21 world premieres and three international premieres, as reported by Variety. Twenty-four films. Twenty-one first-ever screenings. For a festival marking its 30th edition, it is a full shop window.
The Official Selection accounts for 12 of those world premieres, drawn from 15 countries once co-producing territories are counted, according to the same report. Its Grand Prix carries €20,000 ($22,500) in prize money. The jury is headed by Christopher Hampton.
The First Feature competition is the debut-film strand. It brings nine world premieres and three international premieres from 19 countries, Variety reported. A world premiere means no public screening anywhere before Tallinn. An international premiere means the first screening outside the film's home country.
Curator Malaika Bova built that First Feature programme from around 400 submissions from 86 countries. In the Official Selection, curator Triin Tramberg led the choices and takes over overall artistic directing duties from Tiina Lokk.
Two titles named in the announcement show the range. They include Sh*t Happens by José María Cabral and In Starland, the feature directing debut of British actor Ray Panthaki.
For fans, this means a fortnight with new work before it has distributors, release dates or reviews attached. Festivals such as Tallinn use competitions of this kind to introduce first-time directors alongside more established names, with prizes and press attention helping the films find sales agents and buyers.
The competition screenings run from 13 to 19 November as part of the wider festival, which is staged from 6 to 22 November 2026, according to festival listings on PÖFF. The 30th edition opens on 6 November at Alexela Concert Hall with Ulya. That opening film is a co-production between Latvia, Estonia, Poland and Lithuania that premiered in Un Certain Regard at Cannes.
