On Wednesday 30 September 2026, CinEast announced further details of its 2026 programme, including two avant-premières of Luxembourg co-productions and the festival's first Luxembourg-CEE Short Film Night, all taking place at Ciné Utopia, as well as the participation of several Luxembourg-based guests.
The festival will present the avant-première of 3 Weeks After by Miroslav Terzić on Friday 16 October 2026. The Serbia-Bulgaria-Italy-Croatia-Luxembourg co-production, co-produced by Paul Thiltges Distributions, will be presented in the presence of actor Jovan Ginić and one of the co-producers.
A second Luxembourg co-production, Guria by Levan Koguashvili, will have its avant-première on Wednesday 21 October 2026. The Georgia-Switzerland-Luxembourg-Bulgaria co-production, among others, was co-produced by Tarantula Luxembourg and will be presented by the Georgian director together with co-producer Donato Rotunno.
For the first time, the festival will organise a Luxembourg-CEE Short Film Night on Thursday 15 October 2026. The evening will feature four short films, each followed by a question-and-answer session.
Luxembourgish actress Jeanne Werner and photographer and filmmaker Fabrizio Maltese will join the International Jury, while journalist Paulo Lobo will join the Press Jury. The Young Talents Jury will be composed of four students from the BTS Cinéma et Audiovisuel at the Lycée des Arts et Métiers.
The CinEast Pro event for producers will also mark its fifteenth edition at neimënster on Monday 19 October 2026.
As part of the festival's special Ukrainian programme, former Luxembourg’s Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Jean Asselborn will participate in the discussion titled "Ukraine and the EU" following the screening of The Eukrainian at neimënster on Sunday 11 October 2026.
Another discussion, focusing on resilience and recovery, will follow the screening of Masha Kondakova's Second Wind at neimënster on Sunday 18 October 2026. The film follows amputated war veterans climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
Further films in the Ukrainian programme include: Mariinka by Pieter-Jan De Pue at Ciné Utopia on Friday 9 October 2026; U Are the Universe by Pavlo Ostrikov on Wednesday 14 October 2026; Camouflage by Mykyta Gibalenko on Saturday 17 October 2026; and Hirnyk by Mykola But at Cercle Cité on Sunday 18 October 2026.
CinEast has also provided further details about this year's Bulgarian programme. Photographer Pepa Hristova will present her documentary Strandzha during the Bulgarian evening at neimënster on Friday 16 October at 19:00. The screening will be followed by a tasting of Bulgarian specialities and wine.
The screening of Ralitza Petrova's Lust will be presented with producer Nikolay Todorov at Ciné Utopia on Monday 19 October 2026, while Petar Valchanov will present Black Money for White Nights at Ciné Utopia on Thursday 22 October 2026. Petar Valchanov will also serve on the International Jury.
Other additions include The March of the Amazons by Borislav Kolev. Photographer Vesselina Nikolaeva will meanwhile take part in the festival's "Crossroads" exhibition.
CinEast has also announced that its CinEast4Ukraine charity initiative raised €12,400 in 2025, which was used to send an ambulance to Ukraine. The festival aims to raise a similar amount in 2026.
