Carolina Maria de Jesus, At Your Service and The Daughters Triumph at Goes To Cannes
The Marché du Film has unveiled the winners of the 2026 Goes to Cannes awards, with three projects taking home prizes during this year’s expanded showcase: Carolina Maria de Jesus by Brazilian filmmaker Jeferson De, At Your Service by Estonian director German Golub and The Daughters by Catalan filmmaker Daniel Romero Bueno.
This year’s edition of Goes to Cannes welcomed seven international partner festivals (see the news) and introduced three industry awards presented by AH Media Production, Ciné+ OCS and Sideral Cinema, further strengthening the initiative’s role as a launchpad for emerging international cinema.
The AH Media Production Award, accompanied by a €10,000 prize, went to Carolina Maria de Jesus, presented by the Festival do Rio (read the report). Directed by Jeferson De, and produced by Maria Gal and Clélia Bessa, the Brazilian-French co-production revisits the extraordinary life of Carolina Maria de Jesus, the celebrated writer who rose from poverty in 1950s Brazil to become one of the country’s most influential literary voices. Based on her internationally acclaimed diaries, the film explores themes of racism, hunger and resistance through a deeply personal lens.
The Ciné+ OCS Award, carrying a €15,000 prize, was handed to At Your Service, presented by the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (read the report). The Estonian-German production follows a police officer stationed near the Russian border, whose life spirals into moral conflict after a family member commits a crime. Produced by Evelin Penttilä, Marcos Kantis and Melanie Blocksdorf, the project blends crime-drama with tense geopolitical undertones.
Meanwhile, the Sideral Cinema Award, which includes a €10,000 minimum guarantee, was presented to The Daughters, also introduced by the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. Directed by Daniel Romero Bueno, and produced by Tamara Garcia Iglesias and Ferran Tomas Olalla, the Spanish-UK co-production centres on a young woman abducted and taken to an isolated house in the woods, where she discovers three other women living under the influence of their captor. Combining psychological horror with unsettling family dynamics, the project stood out as one of the showcase’s most striking genre entries.
Goes to Cannes remains one of the Marché du Film’s key industry initiatives, connecting film festivals and markets from across the world with sales agents, distributors and festival programmers through curated presentations of works in progress. By inviting partner festivals to spotlight selected projects in Cannes, the programme offers international filmmakers crucial exposure during the final stages of post-production.
The 2026 edition once again reflected the growing diversity of contemporary world cinema, bringing together projects spanning historical drama, socially conscious storytelling and elevated genre filmmaking. Across four days of presentations at the Palais des Festivals, emerging talents were given the opportunity to position their projects on the international stage while forging new industry connections ahead of completion and release.
Here are the winners of Goes to Cannes 2026:
AH Media Production Award
Carolina Maria de Jesus - Jeferson De (Brazil/France)
Producers: Globo Filmes, Rosane Svartman (RSMTS), Cris Arenas (Buda Filmes), Sara Silveira (Dezenove Som e Imagens), MACT Productions
Ciné+ OCS Award
At Your Service - German Golub (Estonia/Germany)
Producers: Evelin Penttilä, Marcos Kantis, Melanie Blocksdorf (Stellar Film, Schiwago Film)
Sideral Cinema Award
The Daughters - Daniel Romero Bueno (Spain/UK)
Producers: Tamara Garcia Iglesias, Ferran Tomas Olalla (Atakeleun, La Verneda Films, La Charito Films)"
Source
https://cineuropa.org/en/newsdetail/491607
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