Open Call: Harun Farocki Residency 2026

For the fourth year in a row, KULTUR ENSEMBLE PALERMO, the French-German Cultural Institute curated by the Goethe-Institut Palermo and the Institut français Palermo, is offering a three-month residency for audiovisual practitioners and researchers based in Sicily.

From this year onward, the Berlin component of the program will be expanded and hosted for the first time by ARSENAL FILMINSTITUT, in close cooperation with the HARUN FAROCKI INSTITUT, which was previously the only Berlin partner.

Arsenal Filminstitut is dedicated to preserving, researching, and presenting film history and contemporary cinema. It runs a cinema, a film archive, and a distribution department, organizes the Berlinale sections Forum and Forum Expanded, and offers programs on film culture, education, and international exchange.

The three-months residency will take place in Berlin between July and November 2026.

In September 2026, Arsenal Filminstitut will host the fourth edition of the festival/symposium Archival Assembly. The theme is “Insurgent Archive”. A contribution from the grant recipient in the form of an artistic, academic, or research project is strongly encouraged; this may also take the form of a work-in-progress presentation.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:

• Eligible fields: directors, artists working in the field of film, film curators, critics, and researchers
• Be based in Sicily
• Individual application
• No age limits

The jury reserves itself the right to take into consideration applications not meeting all requirements.

THE RESIDENCY INCLUDES:

• One return journey between the resident’s home in Italy and Berlin
• A grant of 1.500 € per month, for a duration of three months
• Accommodation with possibility of annexed studio
• A production budget of 500 €
• Support in making contacts with international actors and institutions in Berlin and on an international scale
• A public presentation of the work in Berlin as part of the Archival Assembly #4 in September 2026

REQUIRED DOCUMENTS:

All documents must be sent in Italian and in English, or only in English, in a single PDF-file including:

• Curriculum vitae (max. 2 pages)
• Project description (max. 2 pages). The proposal does not have to be final and can evolve during the residency
• Portfolio (max. 5 pages) presenting the applicant’s practice or academic research
• Reference letter if available

The applications must be submitted by 23:59 pm on March 6th 2026, to the email address:
kulturensemblepalermo@gmail.com

In the absence of an English version, the application will be considered ineligible.

TERMS OF SELECTION PROCESS

The pre-selected applications will be presented to a jury also composed of members of Kultur Ensemble Palermo, the Harun Farocki Institut, the Arsenal Film Institut and at least one extern member, wo will decide on the residency’s attribution. The selected applicant will be informed via email. The names of the jury members and the chosen project will be announced by the end of May on the Instagram profile of Kultur Ensemble Palermo (kulturensemble_palermo).

For questions about the residency and the call for projects, you can contact Bianca Bozzeda, Kultur Ensemble Palermo: bianca.bozzeda@goethe.de