Festival

Cinedans 2026

25 — 29 March 2026

In more than forty programmes, Cinedans presents the most urgent, poetic, and groundbreaking dance films of the moment: from international shorts to feature films, documentaries, specials, installations, and VR.

Cinedans FEST returns to Eye with a rich and international film programme that brings together the beauty of dance and the power of film!

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International Competition

In five film programmes, Cinedans presents the best international short dance films from 26 countries. Together, they compete for the prestigious Cinedans Awards!

The films take you on an emotional journey and take you around the world. Dance films that touch both the head and the heart! From intimate encounters to exuberant group scenes, from stillness to bursts of energy. Together they form a rich and compelling programme that shows how dance on the big screen can move, surprise, and connect!

Cinedans Short Docs Award

In three programmes of short documentaries, dance takes centre stage as a means of exploring reality: from connection and resilience to resistance and subjugation. The films offer sharp, personal, and political perspectives on what is at stake in today's world.

New Dutch

In two New Dutch programmes, Cinedans presents a unique selection of recent Dutch dance shorts, in which creators effortlessly switch between absurdity, empathy, and fantasy. With films by Emma Evelein, Miloushka Bokma, breakdance group 155, Siba Sahabi, and others.

Feature films & documentaries

Sulphur Edges by choreographer Meg Stuart is set in the breathtaking landscape of the Azores. Thermal baths, the open sea, and an abandoned hotel, together with the dancers, reveal the relationship between body, landscape, and time. Wider Than the Sky asks the urgent question: is it possible to use AI for a positive future? The film connects dance, science, and philosophy and explores what makes us human in a time of rapid technological change.

In Wicket, Bboy Wicket (Gabriel Jaochico), once a global breakdance icon, spends decades hiding his true identity. After 41 years in the closet, he confronts his past. In Bull’s Heart, we get a rare glimpse into the creative universe of world-renowned director and choreographer Dimitris Papaioannou. In Non Aligned Movement, dancer and choreographer Christian Guerematchi searches for acceptance of the world around him by moving through a labyrinth of contradictions that shape his identity—black and white, male and female, present and past.

Festival programme

Cinedans FEST ’26 takes place 25 through 29 March in Eye Filmmuseum & Tolhuistuin / Solidground. You can buy a ticket per screening, or a passe-partout for the whole festival.

Cinedans FEST '26 is a hybrid festival. You can watch dance films worldwide on Cinedans WEB. The online festival programme will be available from 26 March through 5 April.

Specials

Cinedans FEST '26 presents the following specially curated programmes that offer a broader perspective on dance culture, creators, and history.

Breaking the Chains #2 A programme of dance films that explore postcolonial themes and give space to underrepresented stories. Dance, song, and ritual function here as carriers of cultural identity and as means of healing, reconciliation, and liberation.

Echoes of a Body of Work A special programme from the Netherlands Dance Film Archive presenting exceptional film work by creators who have recently passed away: Krisztina de Châtel, Hans van Manen, Dick Hauser, and René Hazekamp.

Focus: India In collaboration with Ashavari Majumdar and Abhyuday Khaitan, artistic directors of the Manifest Dance-Film Festival in Pondicherry, we highlight the richness of Indian dance and follow the recent development of dance film as an innovative art form in the country.

XXXplicit Dance vol.2 After a successful first edition, XXXplicit Dance returns! The films in this programme explore the historical and contemporary relationship between dance and sexuality. Provocative, confrontational, and playful! (18+)

Installations & Virtual Reality

Cinedans also offers an Installation Programme, accessible free of charge in the public space of Eye. The Installation Programme is accessible free of charge in the public space of Eye. Don't miss the opportunity to book a time slot and experience the latest and most exciting VR dance films.

Cinedans FEST PRO

Cinedans FEST '26 offers an extended programme for professional visitors. For the complete programme and to purchase the Professional Pro Pass, please visit the Cinedans website.

Planning on having a drink or a bite to eat? Book online for Eye Bar & Restaurant.