RAFF 2026 Opens with Belgian Thriller 'Heysel 85', 12 Films in Competition
The eighth edition of RAFF brings seven Croatian premieres, with Belgium as this year's partner country. The festival runs from August 22 to 26 on Rab.
The eighth edition of RAFF brings seven Croatian premieres, with Belgium as this year's partner country. The festival runs from August 22 to 26 on Rab.
The eighth edition of the Rab Film Festival (RAFF) will open on August 22, 2026, with a screening of the Belgian football thriller "Heysel 85." This year's festival, running until August 26, is held under the motto "Truth Needs an Audience," and the competition program will feature 12 films, seven of which are Croatian premieres.
The partner country for this edition is Belgium, and audiences will have the opportunity to see works that have already been screened at prestigious festivals in Cannes, Berlin, Venice, and Pula. The program brings diverse stories from around the world. The film "Sundays" by director Alauda Ruiz de Azúa explores the relationship with faith, while "Marinka" by Pieter-Jan De Pue is a Croatian premiere of a war story. "Zlatan's Nose" by Nils Toftenow delves into true crime stories from the world of football.
Among the films, the documentary "Vjesnik - The Last Edition" by director Dražen Klarić stands out, telling the story of the end of a journalistic era. "Three Weeks Later" by Miroslav Terezić brings a story about escalating peer violence, and the thriller "Like at Home" by Gábor Holtai deals with the hijacking of others' lives. There is also the docu-comedy "Yugo Goes to America" by directors Filip Grujić and Aleksa Borković about, as highlighted, the worst possible car ever.
Love stories emerging from immigrant narratives are explored by directors Janay Boulos and Abd Alkader Habak in the film "War Birds." The drama "Koke" by Igor Jelinović speaks about families and inheritance, while "Amazomania" by Nathan Grossman tells of colonial legacy. The program also includes the musical biography "Avalanche Man" by Slobodanka Radun, the documentary "Tigers" by Alberto Rodríguez about the underwater world, the film "Minotaur" by Andrei Zvyagintsev, and the documentary "What Needs to Be Done" by Srđan Kovačević about union struggle.
The best films will be decided by a jury consisting of director Vinko Brešan, director of the French festival FIPADOC Anne Georget, and actor Luka Peroš. The side program RAFF Talk brings conversations dedicated to journalism in the artistic and acting professions. Participants will include, among others, Dražen Klarić, Silvana Menđušić, Zoran Kesić, Goran Navojec, Luka Peroš, Tena Perišin, Marko Stričević, and Igor Mirković, with journalist Elizabeta Gojan moderating the talks.
The educational program for students, RAFF Generation, will host journalist Barbara Štrbac, Đelo Hadžiselimović, Danish film critic Tue Steen Müller, and Belgian producer and distributor Thierry Detaille, who is also a mentor for the RAFF Residency program for directors and producers. For the youngest, the RAFF Junior program screens two children's films: the live-action "Pixie" and the animated "Crystal Planet." The festival's music segment at Festival Square Pjaceta will be complemented by a performance by Elvis Stanić and Aires Collectiv. The entire program is free for visitors.
RAFF is jointly organized by the City of Rab and the Rab Open University, with support from the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, the Kvarner Tourist Board, and numerous partners and sponsors.
