The development, training and international co-production platform linked to the Galician festival consolidates, in just four years, a track record with results in circuits such as Locarno and Rotterdam, in a context of uncertainty regarding its continuity
The fourth edition of VENTURA, the professional training, project development and international co-production platform of the Play-Doc festival, held within the framework of the festival’s 22nd edition, brought together seven Galician projects in development: Alivio, by Lucía Estévez; Auras. Visións de cegueira, by Nela Fraga; Lebrescura, by Xacio Baño; Leandro Flores (Canto a Leo), by Mateo Kesselman; Praza do Punto, by Aira Portos; Unha película de películas de barcos, by César Souto; and Xente planta, by Xiana do Teixeiro.
The programme also featured the participation of more than twenty industry professionals—including producers, sales agents and experts in fields such as financing, co-production, distribution, marketing and audience design—and concluded with the following awards: the VENTURA 2026 Award, endowed with €2,000, was granted to Lebrescura by Xacio Baño; the NUMAX / DCP Deliveries Award, consisting of DCP production services, was awarded to Praza do Punto by Aira Portos; the VFX CORMORAN Award, offering visual effects services, went to Xente planta by Xiana do Teixeiro; and the Industry Screenings Porto/Post/Doc Award, which enables participation in its industry market, was granted to Auras by Nela Fraga.
A development model with international reach
VENTURA held its fourth edition consolidating its position as a distinctive platform within the European audiovisual ecosystem. Conceived to support independent filmmakers and producers, the programme integrates creative development, specialised training and direct access to the industry within a single process oriented towards the creation and international circulation of projects.
Since its inception, the initiative has evolved as an original proposal within the European landscape of development and co-production, progressively defining its positioning and strengthening its identity from its earliest editions.
Initially supported by European funds, the programme was structured within a broader context of international support for such initiatives; subsequently, following the transfer of these funding lines to regional administrations, VENTURA adapted its financing framework, reinforcing its territorial grounding without relinquishing its international vocation and outlook. At present, the continuity of these support lines is under review.
Support for the Galician audiovisual sector and measurable outcomes
Over these years, the programme has also played a significant role in supporting the Galician audiovisual sector, accompanying filmmakers and production companies at different stages of development and facilitating their projection within international professional contexts. Participants have included, among others, filmmakers such as Eloy Enciso, Diana Toucedo, Carla Andrade, Pela del Álamo, Inés Pintor, and Fran Rodríguez Casal and Coral Piñeiro, among many others.
Across its editions, VENTURA has demonstrated its effectiveness as a bridge between development and the market, with projects gaining access to major international platforms: As Estações, by Maureen Fazendeiro—a co-production with Galician participation (Filmika Galaika)—had its world premiere in the International Competition at the Locarno Film Festival; El alumbre, by Alejandro Tarraf, produced by the Galician company Zeitun Films, was selected for Cinemart, the co-production market of the International Film Festival Rotterdam, where it received the VIPO Award; and Todo es cárcel, by Eloy Enciso, is preparing its world premiere at a major international festival.
These cases form part of a broader group of projects which, following their participation in VENTURA—many of them at early or previously unexposed stages—have secured funding, continued their development in international labs, and been selected for markets and platforms such as TorinoFilmLab, Cannes Critics’ Week and Visions du Réel, consolidating their trajectory within the European professional circuit.
The programme has hosted previously unpresented projects by international filmmakers such as Athina Rachel Tsangari, Alessandro Comodin and Mitra Farahani, alongside a wide generation of authors from diverse European and international contexts. It also benefits from the involvement of leading tutors such as João Pedro Rodrigues and Mariano Llinás, and from a network of professionals connected to some of the sector’s major institutions and platforms, including the Marché du Film at Cannes, Berlinale Co-Production Market, Locarno Pro, TorinoFilmLab, IFFR Pro, EURODOC, ACE Producers and Eurimages, among others.
Territorial grounding and continuity
Based in Tui, in a border region between Spain and Portugal, VENTURA contributes to decentralising access to the audiovisual industry and to strengthening the international circulation of projects developed outside major production centres.
Its impact, beyond individual results, translates into the consolidation of professional networks and co-production dynamics at an international scale, in dialogue with a local ecosystem of companies—including distributors and technical service providers—that participate in the programme through awards in the form of professional support and services.
After four editions, the results achieved—international festival premieres, presence in key markets, and co-production and distribution agreements—position VENTURA as an effective platform for integration within the European audiovisual ecosystem.
In a context in which the continuity of the support structures that made this trajectory possible is currently under review, these results highlight the programme’s significance amid ongoing uncertainty regarding its future.