Best Friend Forever boards Geneviève Dulude-De Celles’ ‘Nina Roza” — a Locarno First Look drama about a viral child painting prodigy and a man’s return.
Geneviève Dulude-De Celles — the award-winning Canadian director behind A Colony — is back with a vivid new feature, Nina Roza, a globe-spanning drama that’s already turning heads on the festival circuit.
Brussels-based sales outfit Best Friend Forever has boarded the film, which was selected for Locarno Pro’s First Look (the work-in-progress showcase), and is currently in post-production with an early-2026 premiere planned.
At its heart Nina Roza starts from a tiny, viral moment: an eight-year-old Bulgarian painting prodigy whose videos flood the internet and attract the attention of a hungry collector.
To properly appraise the child’s paintings, Mihail — a sexagenarian with a complicated past — must return to Bulgaria for the first time in nearly 30 years. What begins as an art world errand quickly morphs into an intimate reckoning, with family ghosts and questions of belonging trailing every frame.
Dulude-De Celles, who won the Berlinale Crystal Bear for her debut feature A Colony and saw her short The Cut honored at Sundance, says she made the film to populate “a gallery of colorful characters” and to probe “the fragile feeling of belonging” — the push and pull of finding a home. Her description frames Nina Roza as much a personal voyage as a critique of contemporary art’s commodification.
The cast blends emerging international talent with veteran faces: Galin Stoev, Ekatarina and Sofia Stanina, Chiara Caselli (Ripley’s Game), Christian Begin (The Infiltration Problem) and Michelle Tzontchev lead an ensemble shot between Montreal and Bulgaria.
Editor Damien Keyeux and cinematographer Alexandre Nour are aboard, and the film marks Dulude-De Celles’ fifth collaboration with Colonelle Films and her second with Best Friend Forever.
Produced by Fanny Drew and Sarah Mannering of Colonelle Films, and co-produced across Europe (Italy’s Umi Films, Belgium’s Echo Bravo, Bulgaria’s Ginger Light and Premier Studio among them), Nina Roza will be released in Canada by Entract Films.
Best Friend Forever’s founders — Martin Gondre and Charles Bin — framed the picture as “an investigation exploring the contemporary art world while raising self-identification elements,” calling the reunion with Dulude-De Celles “thrilling” after their early success with A Colony.
For cinephiles who love festival discoveries, Nina Roza feels like a slow-burn gem: socially aware, quietly moving and visually curious.
If the Locarno First Look reaction is any sign, early-2026 could be a very good year for Dulude-De Celles. What do you think — excited to see an art world mystery with heart? Tell us in the comments and share this story with fellow film fans.
Source: Variety
