Taiwan arrived at the 2026 Berlinale and European Film Market with a clear, energized strategy. Spearheaded by the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), the island’s presence combined a physical Taiwan Pavilion, a dedicated Taiwan Spotlight pitching session, and a curated catalogue of finished films, works‑in‑progress and high‑resolution restorations. The goal was pragmatic: turn visibility into deals—connecting Taiwanese directors and producers with buyers, co‑producers and festival programmers.
A more focused market posture
TAICCA brought promotional activity and industry events together under one roof, which made Taiwan’s outreach feel deliberate and efficient. The Pavilion and pitching sessions were built around transactions—rights negotiations, pre‑sale outreach and co‑production matchmaking—while still offering cultural showcase moments. That mix helps accelerate development timelines and increases the chances of securing international financing, particularly for projects that already have festival appeal.
An eclectic slate with commercial smarts
The offerings were wide-ranging. Alongside Zhuang Rong Zuo’s short Tutti (screened in Generation Kplus), the marketplace included action pictures, sci‑fi anthologies, experimental XR pieces and restored classics. Producers pitched clear genre hooks—horror, action, sci‑fi—that sell quickly, but they also presented auteur-driven and hybrid formats (VR/animation blends, time‑loop series) that attract festival programmers and specialist streamers.
Who showed what
– Flash Forward Entertainment presented a varied line-up: a boxing coming‑of‑age drama; Bliss: Beyond the Edge of Time, a sci‑fi animation anthology; and The Island of Shells, a VR/animation‑documentary hybrid. A Dance With Rainbows—noted for its action choreography—has already sold Hong Kong rights to Golden Scene, illustrating how pre‑sales and festival licences can act as early revenue signals. – GrX Studio brought The Photo from 1977, a period romance starring Jung Jin‑Young and Moon Lee. – Pegasus Entertainment offered three finished features: the single‑take horror Suffocation, the romantic drama Summer Blue Hour (which features a new song by Cheer Chen), and Secret Lover (the theatrical cut), a BL adaptation of a Japanese manga.
Pitching highlights and festival potential
At the Taiwan Spotlight session, five features drew attention—No Money No Honey, Lomá, Burning Blossoms, The Lovers Untitled and Girl, Boy, the World’s End. These projects intentionally straddle festival credibility and commercial promise. Many of the producers involved have track records at labs and festivals, which improves their chances of landing slots, advance offers and pre‑sales.
Co‑production and development trends
Co‑production is back in vogue. Body‑horror Lotus Feet (Amanda Nell Eu), supported by the Hubert Bals Fund and Golden Horse Film Project Promotion, is actively seeking partners. Multinational dystopias like Blok 62 and festival‑oriented horrors such as The Daughter are being pitched to European financiers to spread budget risk and widen distribution. Labs and work‑in‑progress forums—FAIR and other co‑production platforms—remain indispensable for de‑risking ideas and attracting international advisers; Millennium Town, for example, lists novelist Ken Liu as a consultant, which helps boost international visibility and pre‑sale interest.
What buyers are watching
Buyers are zeroing in on projects with obvious audience hooks or proven festival credentials. Recent market data show rising participation and a tilt toward commercially scalable formats—genre fare, anthologies and immersive XR. Restorations also command attention: high‑resolution upgrades of classics often re‑enter sales cycles faster than unreleased features, providing immediate licensing and programming opportunities.
Restorations drawing interest
The Pavilion highlighted three restored classics: Yang Li‑kuo’s The Dull‑Ice Flower (2K), Wan Jen’s Connection by Fate (2K), and Tsai Ming‑liang’s Venice Golden Lion winner Vive L’Amour (4K). Distributors and cultural institutions prize 4K restorations in particular; such titles broaden Taiwan’s appeal to art‑house cinemas and heritage programmers.
Factors that will shape outcomes
Several variables will determine how much commercial traction Taiwanese projects achieve:
– Financing: pre‑sales, grants and co‑production commitments strongly affect production timelines. – Festival placement: confirmed premieres speed up pre‑sales and attract distributor interest. – Format and talent: XR and hybrid formats can be costlier but offer unique festival positioning; attaching international advisers or known actors raises export potential. – Market mechanics: language flexibility, casting choices and ancillary rights (soundtracks, choreography) influence negotiating leverage across territories.
What this means for the industry
Taiwan’s coordinated push creates benefits across the ecosystem. Sales agents and exporters gain fresh material to pitch to European buyers; streamers may snap up genre entries with broad reach; smaller producers can shorten greenlight cycles through curated pitching and co‑production introductions. Restoration initiatives add long‑tail value to archives and give programmers new material for theatrical and scholarly programming.
A more focused market posture
TAICCA brought promotional activity and industry events together under one roof, which made Taiwan’s outreach feel deliberate and efficient. The Pavilion and pitching sessions were built around transactions—rights negotiations, pre‑sale outreach and co‑production matchmaking—while still offering cultural showcase moments. That mix helps accelerate development timelines and increases the chances of securing international financing, particularly for projects that already have festival appeal.0