New Movement will dedicate a business program to the future of the film industry

The third New Movement Young Film Festival, which will be held from May 28 to June 1 in Veliky Novgorod, presents a business program dedicated to key challenges and the future of the film industry, as well as a new applied block of the educational program focused on practical immersion in the profession and the possibility of real agency support.

Over the past three years, the New Movement has become an important point of attraction for young filmmakers and the professional community — a platform where debutants not only present their work, but also receive additional opportunities for professional growth and development in the industry. In 2026, the festival expands this mission, strengthening not only the competitive and business programs, but also adding new formats to the educational program with an emphasis on real career opportunities.

"It is very important for us that the New Movement fulfills not only a cultural, but also a great educational mission. The festival is becoming a space for an open conversation about the most pressing and pressing issues of the modern film industry. At the same time, it is equally important that the educational program of the festival remains open to the widest audience: people of different ages and with different experiences can take part in it. This format makes the festival a living platform for the exchange of knowledge, professional growth and the involvement of new people in modern culture and the film industry," said Alexander Dronov, Governor of the Novgorod Region.

This year, the business program of the festival is united by the theme "Dialogue with the audience", it will become a space for an open professional conversation about how cinema is created, promoted and developed today. The program will once again be curated by producer Lydia Drobysh.

The New Movement suggests considering the industry as a single system where the success of a film is determined not only as an artistic statement, but also by who is behind its creation, how the processes work within the team, how accurately the project understands its audience, what strategies help it go beyond the professional community, and how technology is already changing the familiar ones. the rules of the game.

The program is a consistent conversation about the most important stages of the modern film process. The "Irreplaceable" discussion: Who really makes movies" will be dedicated to people and professions without which the production process itself is impossible — from the team on site to new challenges related to technology and changing the structure of the industry.

The round table "Producers vs Media: an honest conversation without notes" will focus on the painful but fundamental topic of the interaction of cinema, marketing, criticism and the media. It will focus on where the film is losing viewers today and why even strong projects don't always become an event, why trailers no longer work, etc. The discussion will be attended by the heads of the largest rental companies and production studios, representatives of leading online platforms, journalists, film critics, chief editors of media and authors of popular industrial Telegram channels.

The master class "How to pitch your Ideas correctly" from Ivan Kudryavtsev, a leading pitching expert at the Ministry of Culture and the Cinema Foundation, a journalist, and editor-in—chief of the industry publication Film Pro, will be devoted to one of the main practical skills - the ability to accurately, vividly, and professionally present your project so that people believe in it, want to support it, and fight for its implementation.

The round table "From strategy to the viewer: how cinema becomes an event" will continue the theme of promotion at the level of big strategies.: how does a film reach an audience from the first stages of development to release, what marketing tools, research and communication solutions really work, and how can an author's or debut film become not only a festival statement, but also a commercially notable project. Special attention will be paid to the analysis of real cases — successful strategies, unexpected hits and failures of recent years.

A separate section "Rental certificate: from the finished film to the screen" will cover one of the most applied and important stages of the industry — the legal, organizational and technical mechanisms of the film's release. This will not be a theoretical conversation, but an opportunity to directly discuss the process with representatives of structures that are directly involved in reviewing and making decisions: Anna Yarina, Director of the Cinematography Department of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, and Denis Aksyonov, Director General of the Gosfilmofond of Russia.

The business program will conclude with a round table "AI in cinema: a tool, a threat and a new reality", dedicated to the most pressing issue of the industry of the future: how artificial intelligence is changing production, professions, authorship and the very understanding of the film language.

Among the speakers and participants of the business program of the festival are Pavel Vereshchagin, Director of Film Distribution at Central Partnership Film Company; Elena Brodskaya, Head of Global Content and franchises at Yandex Fantech; Dmitry Lednev, Deputy General Director for Strategic Marketing at NMG Kinoprokat; Yasmina Ben Ammar, Head of Marketing and External Communications at Rossiya—1 TV Channel; and Yasmina Ben Ammar, head of the platform. Olga Maikopova, Director of Marketing for Yellow, Black & White Alexander Ilyin, senior researcher at KION Maria Klimko, sound engineer and founder of Flysound Studio Andrey Belchikov, head of the production studio "Locomotive" Alexander Afonasyev, screenwriter and creative producer of "1-2-3 Production" Andrey Smiyan, founder of the special effects studio "Frame Bakery" Leonid Frenchov, directed and written by Konstantin Yeronin, directed by Nikita and Fyodor Kravchuk and others.

This year, the festival also strengthens the educational direction and for the first time adds a special application block focused not only on learning, but also on real interaction with the industry. Natalia Fenkina, an acting actress with 25 years of experience, the founder of an acting agency, the creator of a Film School with a state license and a member of the board of the Guild of Acting Agents, will conduct a three-day program using her author's method "First Steps in Cinema".

The program will be open to everyone, regardless of age and professional experience — children, teenagers and adults can take part, both individually and as a whole family.

Traditionally, an important part of the educational program of the festival will once again be a block of practical classes for children and teenagers, which will be conducted by actor and theater teacher Alexey Flyazhnikov and actress, dancer and choreographer Kristina Pavlova. Over the course of three days, participants will be able to learn the basics of acting, plastic theater, stage speech and filmmaking through game and practical formats.

The program includes acting and plastic training, speech workshops, improvisation and bodywork classes, as well as a two-day master class "STOP! SHOT!", dedicated to creating your own film and getting to know the set design. A separate place will be occupied by the charity master class "SCULPTING THE GOOD", combining creativity and the theme of helping others. The works created at the master class will be presented at the festival charity mini-fair.

Children, teenagers and their families will be able to participate in the program, and the educational program itself will be built as a space for free creativity, teamwork and the first acquaintance with cinema and theater through live practical experience.

"From the very beginning, it was important for us that the festival was not limited to just screenings and a competition. This year, the educational program is becoming even more intense and practice-oriented: participants will be able to gain applied skills directly related to the profession, from acting training and understanding industrial processes to working with agents, preparing professional materials and taking their first steps into cinema. It is important for us that the festival becomes a place where education is as close as possible to a real professional environment," said Artem Mikhalkov, general producer of the festival.

The New Movement Festival is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Novgorod Region.