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Looking Back at Avant Première 2026: A Stage for Innovation and Exchange
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17 February 2026
Berlin / Germany
From 14–18 February 2026, the international performing arts community gathered in Berlin for Avant Première 2026, organised by our expert partner IMZ International Music + Media Centre. Over four dynamic days of screenings, talks and meetings, the event confirmed its role as a vital platform for exchange, collaboration and forward-looking conversations shaping the future of the performing arts on screen.
We were particularly honoured to participate in the event, represented by our Innovation & Partnerships Manager, Diandra de Lima, who moderated the panel “Opera 2.0: Interactive, Immersive, International,” led by the Guildhall School of Music & Drama’s Immersive Opera research project. The discussion explored how immersive technologies and cross-disciplinary practices are reshaping opera, from innovation and artistic R&D to audience engagement, distribution models and sustainable partnerships, highlighting projects such as Out of the Ordinary, by the Irish National Opera, winner of the FEDORA Digital Prize 2021, supported by Kearney in collaboration with IMZ International Music + Media Centre as part of the FEDORA Prizes competition co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Commission.
The panel brought together a remarkable group of speakers: Amy O’Dwyer, Head of Partnerships & Engagement at Irish National Opera; Dr. Amy Stebbins, Research Scholar at Guildhall School of Music & Drama; Dr. Toby Young, UKRI Future Leaders Fellow & Director of Immersive Opera at Guildhall School of Music & Drama; and Verena Herb, Director of Marketing & Communication DACH at Kearney.
With nearly 500 participants and more than 1,400 meetings scheduled, this final Berlin edition closed on an inspiring note before moving to Vienna in 2027.
We warmly thank IMZ for hosting such an energising and generous platform for dialogue.
Discover some pictures from the event and relive the highlights of these inspiring days!
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IMZ Avant Première 2026
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IMZ Avant Première 2026
Avant Première, organised by the IMZ International Music + Media Centre, is the annual performing arts trade fair for cultural TV and VOD content. Featuring the most recent music and dance films, alongside an extensive conference programme and countless networking opportunities, it serves as a vital platform for industry professionals to connect and collaborate.
