The Astra Film Festival has announced the official selection for its 2026 edition, which will be held in Sibiu, Romania, from 17 to 25 October. The event will feature 70 documentaries and more than 200 film-related activities, such as screenings, discussions, concerts, and exhibitions. The festival includes four competitive sections: Romania, Central and Eastern Europe, Emerging Voices of Documentary Film, and DocSchool. These sections aim to bring together both established and emerging filmmakers. Many of the selected films will be shown for the first time. The Romania Competition includes nine films, either produced in Romania, co-produced with other countries, or made in the Republic of Moldova, or international works that address themes relevant to Romania. Some of the highlighted films are Something Familiar by Rachel Taparjan (Romania/United Kingdom), Lenin’s Pawn by Dragoș Turea (Romania/Moldova), A Forest Once Stood Here! by Valentin Anghel (Romania), and A Train Passes Every Day and It Never Stops by Vlad Petri (Romania). Other notable titles include Cabbage, Potatoes and Other Demons. After 10 Years by Șerban Georgescu, So Long Since I’ve Known a Spring by Alexandra Bidian, and The Line by Andreea Dumitriu. The Central and Eastern European Competition focuses on issues related to the former Communist Bloc. Selected documentaries include 80 Angry Journalists by András Földes and Anna Kis, Closure by Michał Marczak, Imago by Déni Oumar Pitsaev, and Last Letters from My Grandma by Olga Lucovnicova. Other entries are To Hold a Mountain by Biljana Tutorov and Petar Glomazić, Steps in Silence by Fariz Ahmadov, and Traces by Ukrainian filmmakers Alisa Kovalenko and Marysia Nikitiuk. In the Emerging Voices of Documentary Film Competition, which showcases first, second, or third documentary features by international filmmakers, the festival will highlight works such as Confessions of a Swedish Man by Hampus Linder, From Dawn to Dawn by Xisi Sofia Ye Chen, If Pigeons Turned to Gold by Pepa Lubojacki, Confessions of a Mole by Mo Tan, and Silent Flood by Dmytro Sukholytkyy-Sobchuk. Other titles include Techplomacy by Susanne Kovács, The Golden Swan by Anette Ostrø, and Birds of War by Janay Boulos and Abd Alkader Habak. Beyond the competition sections, the festival will host thematic film screenings paired with DocTalk and InspirăDoc discussions. Special events and activities for younger audiences will also be included. Astra Film Junior, the festival's documentary education programme, will return with films tailored to various age groups. Additionally, a significant number of the selected documentaries will be available online across Romania through Astra Film Online.