CIRCLE Doc Accelerator 2026 Kicks Off in Edipsos, Greece

The eighth edition of CIRCLE Doc Accelerator has officially begun! Module 01 is currently underway in Edipsos, Greece, marking the start of a year-long journey for ten women and gender-expansive filmmakers from across Europe and beyond.

Meet Our Participants

The 2026 participants and their projects are:

• Rama Abdy (Syria) — House No. 7

• Sophie Ataya (Germany) — Who We Are

• Sara Geurtsen (Germany) — Sanctuary

• Ida Grøn (Denmark) — The Inner Whale In My Ear

• Beatrice Leong (Malaysia) — The Myth of Monsters

• Diana-Elena Munteanu (Romania) — The Digs

• Maja Prettner (Slovenia) — Chasing Horses

• Piano Primrin (Thailand) — A Journey to the Universe

• Marta Smerechynska (Ukraine) — Call Me from the Frontline

• Dea Tcholokava (Georgia) — Song to an Emerald Sky

This year, the cohort was selected from 104 applications received from around the world. The selection committee consisted of writer and producer Suzy Gillet, film scholar Jelena Mišeljić, and CIRCLE alumni directors and producers Koval Bhatia and Zipporah Nyaruri.

See biographies of the participants here.

Meet Our Mentors

Throughout the programme, they will be mentored by director, producer and scriptwriter Diana El Jeiroudi (Republic of Silence, producer), director Salomé Jashi (Taming the Garden), director Gianluca Matarrese (GEN_), and producer and documentary consultant Lucila Moctezuma. For biographies of the mentors, click here.

Programme Director Biljana Tutorov shares: "We are overjoyed to kick-start yet another year with a new cohort of talented filmmakers from across Europe and around the world." Co-Head of Studies Brigid O'Shea adds: "This year each of the projects is a very personal, intimate and honest work — it promises to be a year of surprises and courage."

The CIRCLE cohort will continue its journey in Portorož, Slovenia (October 2026, in partnership with the Slovenian Film Centre) and Trieste, Italy (January 2027, in partnership with When East Meets West).

The full announcement can be read on Deadline. 

We wish all ten participants the very best as they embark on this journey — may it be a season of bold discoveries, meaningful connections, and films that find their way into the world.