Berlinale Talents Press
About this opportunity
Talent Press is Berlinale Talents' intensive programme for emerging film critics, run in collaboration with FIPRESCI and the Goethe-Institut. Eight selected critics from around the world spend a week at the Berlin International Film Festival writing in-depth essays and reviews under the guidance of five mentors, exploring new approaches to film criticism and journalism.
Application tips
Your application should demonstrate a distinctive critical voice and engagement with cinema beyond mainstream releases. The programme values writers who are rethinking what film criticism can be, so highlight any experimental or cross-disciplinary approaches in your work.
Pathway
Helpful prior experience
Related opportunities
Locarno Film Festival
Opens: February · Closes: April
The Locarno Critics Academy is an intensive programme for young film critics held during the Locarno Film Festival. Participants cover the festival for a range of publications including editorial partner MUBI Notebook, Variety, SWI Swissinfo, and the festival's daily. Co-organised by Christopher Small (Locarno) and Chloe Lizotte (MUBI Notebook), the programme combines hands-on reviewing with seminars on the craft and ethics of film criticism.
FIPRESCI / Warsaw Film Festival
Opens: June · Closes: August
The FIPRESCI Warsaw Critics Project is a film criticism workshop held during the Warsaw Film Festival, now in its third decade. The programme brings together young critics from across Central and Eastern Europe for intensive mentorship from established film journalists, with participants writing reviews and features published during the festival. Past participants have gone on to write for Screen International, IndieWire, The Hollywood Reporter, and Cineuropa.
Cineuropa
GoCritic! is a pan-European training programme for emerging film journalists and critics, run by Cineuropa with funding from Creative Europe MEDIA. Since 2022, the programme has partnered with the Animation Festival Network across five Central and Eastern European festivals. Participants write reviews under the mentorship of experienced critics including Boyd van Hoeij, Neil Young, and Dana Linssen, with their work published on Cineuropa and Zippy Frames.