Openingsfilm: Coward

Name: Openingsfilm: Coward — Lukas Dhont
Start: 2026-10-07T19:00:00+02:00
End: 2026-10-07T21:00:00+02:00
Location: De Vooruit

Lukas Dhont

FilmFest Gent

Wed 07.10

19:00 - 21:00

De Vooruit, Gent

THEATERZAAL

Tickets

Coward, Lukas Dhont’s third feature film, is the official opening film of Film Fest Gent 2026. On Wednesday 7 October, Dhont will kick off the international film festival at De Vooruit. Coward, which previously won awards at the Cannes Film Festival, follows young soldiers trying to keep their spirits up in the trenches during the First World War.

1917. Pierre (Emmanuel Macchia’s acting debut) arrives at the front as a new recruit, driven to prove himself in battle. Behind the lines, he meets Francis (Valentin Campagne), who tries to keep the troops’ morale high with improvised shows. As the war rages relentlessly, they both try to escape reality, if only for a moment.

The film stands out above all for the vulnerable yet poignant performances by Macchia and Campagne. The chemistry between the two sparks off the screen, giving the film a lighter, more tender tone than we are used to seeing in classic war films. They were jointly awarded the prestigious Best Actor prize at Cannes.

Tickets for the screening of 'Coward' for the general audience are available on filmfestgent.be

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– Lukas Dhondt

– Lukas Dhondt

Aline Boyen

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Thomas Nolf

Zoom in

Aline Boyen

Thomas Nolf

Aline Boyen

Thomas Nolf

About Lukas Dhont

Lukas’s debut film, ‘Girl’, was screened at the Cannes Film Festival, in the ‘Un Certain Regard’ official selection, and was awarded the Caméra d’Or. His second film, ‘Close’, was selected for the official competition and won the Grand Prix. Furthermore, in 2023, Close was nominated for an Academy Award in the ‘Best International Feature Film’ category. His third film, 'Coward', had its world premiere at the 79th Cannes International Film Festival, where the two lead actors were awarded the prize for Best Actor. Girl was the official opening film at Film Fest Gent in 2018 and Close in 2022.

Credits

Coward is een productie van The Reunion, Lumen, Topkapi Films & Versus Productions, in coproductie met France 2 Cinéma, VTM, RTBF, Proximus, BeTV & Orange. De film werd geproduceerd in samenwerking met Portobello Productions, The Common Humanity Art Trust en Léger Productions. De film kwam tot stand met de essentiële steun van het Vlaams Audiovisueel Fonds (VAF) van de Vlaamse Overheid, het economisch fonds Screen Flanders, Screen Brussels, de Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles (FWB), Wallimage, CINÉ+ OCS, CNC, PICTANOVO Hauts-de-France, Sacem, het Nederlands Filmfonds, de Netherlands Film Production Incentive en EURIMAGES, en met de medewerking van France Télévisions. Coward kwam tot stand met de steun van de Tax Sheltermaatregel van de Belgische Federale Overheid, Casa Kafka en Lumière Taks Shelter. De film wordt in de Benelux verdeeld door Lumière en in Frankrijk door Diaphana Distribution.

De film beleeft zijn Benelux première op woensdag 7 oktober op Film Fest Gent en zal te zien zijn in de Belgische zalen vanaf 21 oktober 2026 en in Nederland vanaf 22 oktober 2026.