The Spain Film Commission promotes the internationalization of the Spanish audiovisual sector at the Marché du Film – Cannes Film Festival 2026

26/05/2026

The organization has driven new strategic alliances with key markets such as the United Kingdom, Italy, India, and Brazil, to foster international co-production and strengthen the global presence of the Spanish audiovisual sector.
The Spain Film Commission consolidates its key role in the international projection of the Spanish industry through high-level meetings with leading international institutions, producers, and film commissions.
Cannes has served to confirm the excellent stage that Spain’s audiovisual industry is going through, a result of its outstanding work at the Marché du Film and its notable participation in the festival’s Official Selection.

Madrid, May 26 – Spain Film Commission has concluded an intense agenda of activities within the framework of the 2026 edition of the Marché du Film, held from May 12 to 20 alongside the 79th edition of the Cannes Film Festival. The organization’s participation has once again shone a spotlight on the internationalization of the Spanish audiovisual sector and the strengthening of strategic relations with some of the international film industry’s leading markets. During this edition, the initiative once again counted on the direct support of the main institutions of the state audiovisual sector: the Secretariat of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (SEDIA) and the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA). Under this institutional framework, the Spain Film Commission centered much of its activity on generating new opportunities for international collaboration, promoting institutional and professional encounters aimed at fostering co-productions, the circulation of talent, and positioning Spain as a major European audiovisual hub for both domestic and foreign production in our country. Camilo Vázquez Bello, Deputy Director General for Promotion and International Relations at the ICAA, highlighted that: “the joint presence of Spanish institutions in Cannes reflects the excellent moment our audiovisual sector is experiencing and the importance of continuing to drive internationalization, co-production, and dialogue with priority markets for Spain”. Among the most prominent activities, the Spain Film Commission participated in the “A New Era of European Collaboration” encounter, organized by Screen International and the British Film Commission, a round table focused on Europe’s joint creative potential as an international production hub and the importance of reinforcing cooperation between European territories. Representing Spain were Piluca Querol, alongside Clara Nieto, producer and CEO of Mediapro Studio, during an intense day shared with representatives from the Film Commissions of Norway, Malta, the Netherlands, and Austria. Italy was another priority focus on SFC’s international agenda. In this context, Xiomara García, member of the Board of Directors of the Spain Film Commission, participated in the “Italy-Spain Networking Breakfast”, a strategic gathering held at the Italian Pavilion that brought together producers, institutional representatives, and professionals from both countries to continue tightening the bonds between the Spanish and Italian audiovisual industries and to generate new avenues of collaboration. The Spanish delegation also included representatives from the ICAA (Ministry of Culture) and SEDIA (Ministry for digital Transformation and the Civil Service). This meeting is part of the internationalization and cooperation strategy with Italy planned for 2026. This line of work began last February at the European Film Market in Berlin and recently continued with the presence of SFC and Turespaña at the 19th edition of La Nueva Ola – Spanish and Latin American Film Festival in Rome. The Ibero-American dimension also played a prominent role during this edition of Cannes. Piluca Querol, Vice President of the Spain Film Commission, and Camilo Vázquez, Deputy Director General for Promotion and International Relations at the ICAA, participated in “Matinée Brasil”, one of the main professional encounters between Europe and Brazil within the Marché du Film, reinforcing relations with a strategic market for the Spanish audiovisual industry and advancing new opportunities for collaboration between both territories, in a context of growing bilateral cooperation between both countries following the recent agreements signed by the Governments of Spain and Brazil during the I Spain-Brazil Summit held in Barcelona. This meeting also served as a prelude to the Spain Film Commission’s upcoming participation in Rio2C, the largest creativity and audiovisual industry event in Latin America, to be held from May 26 to 31 in Rio de Janeiro. SFC will participate for the first time in a forum of these characteristics, and it will do so hand-in-hand with IBEROFIC (the Ibero-American network of film commissions), which also gathered its Board of Directors, of which SFC is a member, during this edition of Cannes. Furthermore, within the framework of the Spain-India Dual Year 2026, the Spain Film Commission participated alongside the ICAA in a meeting held at the Indian Pavilion, promoted by the Government of the Republic of India and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The primary objective of the event was to consolidate the various avenues of cooperation that have advanced significantly in recent months. Following the attendance of SFC and ICAA at the IFFD in Delhi two months ago, and the recent launch of the “Stories that Travel” Laboratory, joint audiovisual commission sessions continue to be held with the aim of boosting co-production and collaboration agreements between both nations. During the Cannes event, progress in updating bilateral audiovisual conventions was made clear, and the planning of trade missions to India and Spain for the second half of the year was promoted. The organization also had a presence in various leading international forums for the audiovisual industry, such as the EUFCN Producers Network, in which Victor Lamadrid, General Secretary of the Spain Film Commission, participated, or the panel “The Power of Place: From Incentive to Execution,” organized by the AFCI and focused on the strategic role of film commissions in the development of major international productions. Spain’s participation in the Marché du Film also featured the presence and activity of members of the network, including: Andalucía Film Commission, Barcelona Film Commission, Bilbao Bizkaia Film Commission, Canary Island Film, Cantabria Film Commission, Catalunya Film Commission, Film Madrid Region, and Madrid Film Office, which carried out various professional activities and meetings with the international industry. In this sense, the presentation of San Diego Comic-Con Málaga 2026 by the Andalucía Film Commission stands out, as well as the presentation of another new edition of Iberseries & Platino Industria by Film Madrid Region and the Madrid Film Office, or the busy cocktail reception hosted by the Catalunya Film Office. Additionally, the Spain Film Commission was once again nominated for the Global Production Awards in the “Emerging Location” category, after having been recognized in the previous edition with the “Film Commission of the Year” award—an accolade that consolidated Spain’s international positioning as one of the most competitive audiovisual destinations in the world. It is worth noting that some of the members of the Spain Film Commission’s Board of Trustees, such as Amazon, Netflix, and Telefónica, actively participated in the Marché du Film through professional meetings and productions present at the festival, such as El ser querido (The Loved One), a Movistar Plus+ original production selected for the Official Selection, thereby reinforcing the international projection of the Spanish audiovisual industry and Spain’s positioning as a strategic partner within the global market. In parallel with the intense professional agenda, the Spanish presence in Cannes was highly prominent from a cinematographic standpoint, making history with three Spanish productions featured in the festival’s Official Selection: El ser querido by Rodrigo Sorogoyen, Amarga Navidad (Bitter Christmas) by Pedro Almodóvar, and La bola negra (The Black Ball) by Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo, who were honored with the Best Director award (ex aequo). In the words of Piluca Querol, Vice President of the Spain Film Commission and General Director of the Andalucía Film Commission: “Cannes is an essential space for strengthening international alliances and continuing to position Spain as a strategic partner for global audiovisual production. Collaboration between territories, institutions, and companies is more necessary today than ever to drive a more solid, connected, and competitive industry, which must capitalize on this great moment of recognition for Spanish cinema.” The Spain Film Commission’s participation in Cannes 2026 once again highlights the entity’s strategic role in the international promotion of Spanish audiovisuals, boosting collaboration between territories, developing new business opportunities, and consolidating Spain as a global benchmark for audiovisual production.