Three acclaimed European films have been selected as the finalists for this year’s Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films: Lukas Dhont’s Coward (Belgium, France, The Netherlands), Markus Schleinzer’s Rose (Austria, Germany) and Myrsini Aristidou’s Hold Onto Me (Cyprus, Denmark, Greece). The award is jointly presented by European Film Promotion (EFP) and the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) and hosted by El Gouna Film Festival. All three finalists have also been selected as their respective countries’ submissions for the 99th Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category.
Lukas Dhont’s Coward turns to the battlefields of the First World War for a story about fear, intimacy and the expectations placed on young men in wartime. In 1916, newly arrived soldier Pierre is eager to prove himself at the Belgian front. Behind the lines, he encounters the charismatic Francis, who stages performances to offer the troops a brief escape from the violence surrounding them. Their growing connection opens up a space for tenderness and self-expression in a world defined by brutality and rigid ideas of masculinity.
Dhont was inspired by historical photographs of soldiers performing in costumes fashioned from military materials and by accounts of the unexpected forms of intimacy and artistic expression that emerged between men at the front. Rather than treating courage and cowardice as opposites, the director describes the film as being “more about questioning than judging.” Coward celebrated its world premiere in Competition at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where newcomers Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagne jointly received the Award for Best Actor. The film is Belgium’s submission for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. Produced by The Reunion in co-production with Lumen, Topkapi Films and Versus Production, Coward is sold internationally by The Match Factory.
Set amid the devastation of the Thirty Years’ War, Markus Schleinzer’s Rose follows a mysterious soldier who arrives in a secluded Protestant village and claims an abandoned farmstead as his inheritance. Gradually accepted into the community as a hard-working and devout man, Rose is concealing an identity that puts this newly acquired existence at constant risk: born a woman, she has created a life for herself as a man. When securing her position ultimately involves an arranged marriage to a farmer’s daughter, her pursuit of freedom increasingly collides with the lives and freedoms of others. Schleinzer drew on extensive research into historical accounts of women who presented themselves as men for reasons ranging from work and education to escaping forced marriage or seeking a more self-determined existence. “There’s more freedom in pants,” Rose says in the film – a thought Schleinzer describes as connecting many of the real-life stories that informed the screenplay. Shot in striking black and white and starring Sandra Hüller in the title role, Rose premiered in Competition at the 76th Berlinale, where Hüller received the Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance. The film is Austria’s official submission for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. Rose was produced by Schubert, ROW Pictures and Walker + Worm Film, with international sales handled by The Match Factory.
Myrsini Aristidou’s debut feature Hold Onto Me centres on 11-year-old Iris, who discovers that her estranged father Aris has returned to their Cypriot seaside town for his own father’s funeral. Determined to get to know him, she tracks him down to the dilapidated shipyard where he lives in isolation. Aris initially resists his daughter’s attempts at reconnection, but an uneasy alliance gradually develops between them, drawing Iris into his chaotic world and small-time schemes. Without resorting to easy sentimentality, Aristidou observes a father and daughter testing the limits of trust, responsibility and affection. The director describes the film as the culmination of a journey that began with her short films Semele and Aria, both of which explored the evolving bond between father and daughter. With Hold Onto Me, she wanted to go “further inward”, tracing “the quiet, often unspoken longing that forms in the absence of a father” and the vulnerability of two people who know of each other without truly knowing one another. Christos Passalis and young Maria Petrova lead the cast. Hold Onto Me premiered in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award. The film is Cyprus’ official submission for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.
The more than 100 Arab film critics from 14 countries will now choose the winning film from the three finalists. The winner will be announced during the ninth edition of the El Gouna Film Festival, taking place from 15 to 23 October 2026.
The Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films was launched in 2019 by EFP and the ACC. A spin-off from the ACC’s well-established Arab Critics’ Awards, the initiative aims to increase the diversity of European films reaching audiences in the Arab world and to raise the interest of distributors and industry professionals in outstanding European cinema. At the same time, it highlights the important role of film critics from Arab-speaking countries in introducing new perspectives and bridging cultural differences.
Previous winners are God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunya by Teona Strugar Mitevska (2019), Undine by Christian Petzold (2020), 107 Mothers by Peter Kerekes (2021), EO by Jerzy Skolimowski (2022), Fallen Leaves by Aki Kaurismäki (2023), The Seed of the Sacred Fig by Mohammad Rasoulof (2024) and Yunan by Ameer Fakher Eldin (2025).
The Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films is made possible thanks to the support of Creative Europe – the MEDIA Programme of the European Union.
about arab cinema center
Organised by MAD Solutions in 2015, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) is a non-profit organisation registered in Berlin. The ACC is an international promotional platform for Arab cinema, providing the filmmaking industry with a professional window to connect with counterparts from around the world through a wide range of activities. These include a presence at international film markets and festivals, networking sessions and one-to-one meetings with companies and institutions specialising in co-production and international distribution, as well as the publication of Arab Cinema Magazine. Through its various initiatives, the ACC promotes Arab cinema internationally and creates opportunities for filmmakers and industry professionals from the region to build lasting international connections.
about el gouna film festival
El Gouna Film Festival (GFF) was founded in 2017 with the mission of showcasing a diverse range of films for a passionate and knowledgeable audience while fostering communication between cultures through the art of filmmaking. The festival connects filmmakers from the region with their international counterparts in a spirit of cooperation and cultural exchange. Dedicated to discovering new voices and supporting the development of cinema in the Arab world, GFF also provides a key industry platform through CineGouna. Its ninth edition takes place from 15 to 23 October 2026.
