MEDIA films awarded at Cannes include Palme d'Or for Cristian Mungiu's Fjörd
Six films supported by Creative Europe MEDIA won awards at 2026 Cannes Film Festival. Cristian Mungiu's Fjörd won the prestigious Palme d'Or.
Offical Competition Awards
Fjörd by Cristian Mungiu won the Palme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival 2026. The film is about a Catholic Romanian family, the Gheorghius, who settle in a Norwegian village, the mother’s birthplace. They bond with their new neighbours the Halbergs. Despite their very different upbringings, the children of both families become close friends. Until the Gheorghius are suspected of hurting their own children.
Das Geträumte Abenteuer (The Dreamed Adventure) by Valeska Grisebach received the Jury Prize, having benefited from European Co-development support. German filmmaker Valeska Grisebach’s long-awaited return is a realist film noir set in the border zone between Bulgaria and Turkey. A woman agrees to a deal to help an old acquaintance. She follows the him on his adventure but enters dangerous territory when confronted by her own desire. (Source: Cineuropa).
Notre Salut (A Man of His Time) by Emmanuel Marre won the Best Screenplay award. Emmanuel Marre delivers a historical film set in the present day, depicting a Vichy official who dreams big, turning his camera on the flip side of the grand narrative of history. (Source: Cineuropa).
Coward by Lukas Dhont, supported through the film distribution scheme, brought home the Best Actor prize for its two lead performers, Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagne. A story of love, friendship and art in times of war, The film follows Pierre (Emmanuel Macchia), a very young man arriving at the rear of the front line in 1916. On the cusp of adulthood, he discovers both the horror of war and the power of human connection. (Source: Cineuropa).
Un Certain Regard Awards
Elephants in the Fog by Abinash Bikram Shah (a MEDIA 360° supported project) won the Jury Prize. A thriller about a trans Nepalese matriarch searching for her disappeared daughter.
Siempre soy tu animal materno (Forever Your Maternal Animal) by Valentina Maurel earned the Best Actress awards for its three lead performers: Daniela Marín Navarro, Marina de Tavira, and Mariangel Villegas. A young woman returns home to Costa Rica after years abroad to a mother who’s going through an identity crisis, and her broke younger sister who believes in God and the Illuminati.
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, said:
'Congratulations to all European productions in the spotlight of this year's Cannes Film Festival! The work of European filmmakers showcases creativity, collaboration and talent. We celebrate these values and continuously support Europe's creative industries through the current Creative Europe MEDIA programme and the future AgoraEU programme.' Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and DemocracyLearn More
This year, 19 EU-funded films were nominated at the Cannes Film Festival, of which seven were competing for the Palm d'Or. The Creative Europe MEDIA programme supported these works and their distribution with a total of €1.17 million.
For the past 35 years, MEDIA has been supporting European audiovisual content, promoting Europe's cultural diversity and enhancing the competitiveness of its creative industry.
The success of the MEDIA programme paves the way for the proposed AgoraEU programme which will continue supporting European filmmakers and creators, as well as contributing to the expression of Europe's diversity and heritage.