Europa! Europa Film Festival 2026

Overview

For most of the year, European cinema doesn't get much representation in Australia. That is, until Europa! Europa rolls around. Returning for its fifth edition, the festival draws on the rich cinematic talent of continental Europe to create a lineup of 43 of the latest and greatest pictures from 22 countries. Importing them to screens across Australia and New Zealand, you're invited to watch from Thursday, February 19—Thursday, March 19.

Leading this year's program is the opening night ANZ premiere of Norwegian director Mona Fastvold's The Testament of Ann Lee, starring Amanda Seyfried in a Golden Globe-nominated performance as the founder of the devotional Christian sect known as the Shakers in the mid-18th century. Other highlights include Willem Dafoe starring in Miguel Angel Jiménez's The Birthday Party, and the Australian premiere of Wunderschöner, the sequel to the 2022 German box-office hit Wunderschön.

"I am excited for audiences to encounter the full breadth of this year's program," Europa! Europa Artistic Director Spiro Economopoulos told Concrete Playground. "Beyond The Testament of Ann Lee, there are bold debut features and new work from established directors, films shaped by moral tension and political pressure without easy answers. That conversation sits at the heart of Europa."

Beyond the headline-grabbing films, there are literary adaptations, stories about European musicians, European-made animated films, LGBTQIA+ films, historical stories, documentaries, and a pair of striking retrospectives delving into the work of directors Michelangelo Antonioni and Éric Rohmer. Marking the festival's first Australia- and New Zealand-wide program, film-lovers can catch Europa's incredible flicks at cinemas in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Hobart, plus Auckland if you live across the ditch.

Europa! Europa is happening at Melbourne's Classic Cinemas and Lido Cinemas until Thursday, March 19, and Cameo Cinemas until Monday, March 2; Ritz Cinemas in Sydney until Thursday, March 19, Brisbane's Angelika Cinemas and Hobart's State Cinema until Sunday, March 1, and Bridgeway Cinema in Auckland until Wednesday, March 4. Head to the website for more information.