ZINEMALDIA. San Sebastian International Film Festival · September 18–26, 2026
For nine days every September, San Sebastián stops being a beach town and turns into something closer to a small, walkable Cannes. Zinemaldia — the San Sebastián International Film Festival — is celebrating its 74th edition this year, running from September 18 to 26, 2026, and if you happen to be here for it, it changes the whole rhythm of the city. Bars fill up later. Conversations at the next table are about a film you haven’t seen yet. Gros neighborhood, especially, turns into one long, unofficial after-party.
We get asked about this every year by guests planning their trip, so here’s our honest version — not the press release.
What Zinemaldia actually is
Founded in 1953, Zinemaldia is one of only fourteen “Category A” festivals in the world, in the same bracket as Cannes, Venice, and Berlin — and the most prestigious festival in the Spanish-speaking film world. The top prize is the Concha de Oro (Golden Shell), with Conchas de Plata (Silver) awarded to direction, screenplay, cinematography, and performances.
This year’s poster face is Argentinian actor Ricardo Darín, a two-decade regular at the festival. The honorary (San Sebastian Prize) Premio Donostia — recognizing a lifetime of work — goes to German director Werner Herzog, presented during the opening gala at the Kursaal. The festival opens on September 18 with the world premiere of Fatih Akin’s Geister (Ghost Song).
Naomi Watts, one of the most talented and celebrated actresses of her generation, will receive the prestigious Donostia Award on Saturday, September 19, during a gala ceremony at the Kursaal. The acclaimed actress and producer will attend the 74th edition of the San Sebastián International Film Festival to present The Housewife (La esposa perfecta), which marks the feature directorial debut of Canadian filmmaker Ben Shirinian.
Find the full official program here: sansebastianfestival.com
HOW TO GET TICKETS
You don’t need an industry badge to watch films — most of the program is open to the public, but it sells fast, so a little planning goes a long way.
- When: tickets are released in stages in the days leading up to the festival, and same-day tickets open online at 8:00am, subject to availability.
- Price: standard sessions run around €8.75.
- Discounts: a 25% discount applies to bulk purchases of 10+ tickets in one order, and holders of Kutxabank’s Tarjeta Gazte get a 50% discount on two tickets per session (you cannot combine with other discounts).
- Where to buy: SALES POINTS
INTERNET
- Official Festival website and KUTXABANK website. Card purchases only.
- Printed tickets:
- HOME TICKET: There is no need to print your tickets — simply show your Home Ticket or digital ticket on your mobile for entry.
TICKET OFFICE
- ZINEMALDI PLAZATICKET DESKS
Zurriola Avenue, 1, 20002 Donostia-San Sebastian,, Gipuzkoa
September 13 to 26:- From 13 to 17: 09:00 – 20:00
- From 18 to 25: 08:00 – 20:00
- Day 26: 08:00 – 14:00
- KURSAAL CENTER
Zurriola Avenue, 1, 20002 Donostia-San Sebastian,, Gipuzkoa
Ticket sales for K1 and K2 only (the 2 rooms of Kursaal center).
September 18 to 26 - VICTORIA EUGENIA THEATRE
República Argentina, 2, 20004 Donostia-San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa - PRINCIPE CINEMA
San Juan Street, 10, 20003 Donostia-San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa - TRUEBA CINEMA
Secundino Esnaola Street, 2, 20001 Donostia-San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa - ANTIGUO BERRI CINEMA
Zarautz Street, 2, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa - PRINCIPAL THEATRE
Mayor Street, 3, 20003 Donostia-San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa - TABAKALERA
Place las Cigarreras, 1, 20012 Donostia-San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa- September 18 – 26
- September 18 – 26
- VELODROME
Place Anoeta, 14, 20014 Donostia-San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa
Ticket sales for the Velodrome sessions only.- On screening days, you can buy tickets 2 hours before the beginning of the session.
Where the festival happens
The venues are spread across a city small enough to walk between all of them in under thirty minutes:
- Kursaal — the big galas, red carpets, and opening/closing ceremonies
- Teatro Victoria Eugenia and Teatro Principal — Old Town venues with a more intimate, historic feel
- Tabakalera, in Egia — the home of Zabaltegi and the festival’s more experimental sections
- Velódromo Antonio Elorza — open-air screenings
- Cines Príncipe and Antiguo Berri, in Amara — general public screenings
Because everything is this close, you bump into people mid-conversation about the film they just walked out of. That’s part of the charm — there’s very little separation between “industry” and “everyone else.”
What’s on our watchlist this year
The full Official Selection isn’t finalized as we write this, but here’s what’s confirmed and what we’re personally circling:
- Geister (Ghost Song) — Fatih Akin’s opening-night film, a love story that crosses into the afterlife, competing for the Concha de Oro for the first time in his career.
- Mis muertos tristes (My Sad Dead) — the new film from Pablo Larraín, always one of the festival’s most-discussed inclusions.
- El ser querido- Drama film starring Javier Bardem and directed by Spanish filmmaker Rodrigo Sorogoyen
- Sants — Mikel Gurrea’s follow-up to Suro, one of the strongest Spanish debuts of recent years.
- Milo– A drama film starring Marion Cotillard and directed by French filmmaker Nicole Garcia.
- El debut — Jesse Eisenberg’s third film as director, starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti.
And if you care about food as much as we do, don’t skip Culinary Zinema — the festival’s dedicated food-and-film section, which pairs five films with themed dinners at the Basque Culinary Center between September 22 and 25, featuring chefs including Eneko Atxa and Paco Morales.
Programme updates as they’re confirmed: sansebastianfestival.com/agenda
Where we’re eating between screenings
Zinemaldia days move fast — a screening, a walk across town, another screening — so we tend to eat in quick, honest bites rather than sitting down for a full menu. These are the five places we actually go back to during festival week, in no particular order.
Konbini (Gros) Our go-to when we’ve got twenty minutes between a Kursaal screening and the next one. Small, unfussy, exactly the kind of place that doesn’t try too hard — which, during a week this chaotic, is precisely what you want.
Bertakoteka (Parte Vieja) Opened by the team behind Michelin-starred AMA in Tolosa, on Calle Fermín Calbetón. Bar upstairs, sit-down restaurant downstairs. Their hake and their cheesecake have both been singled out by the Michelin Guide, and honestly, both deserve it. Go for the bar if you’re short on time, book the txoko downstairs if you want to actually sit down after a late screening. bertakoteka.com
Alboka (Gros) A quiet, contemporary bistro a few minutes from the Kursaal, run by three young partners trained at the Basque Culinary Center. Seasonal, vegetable-forward cooking with the occasional surprise — we’ve had a memorable scallop-and-borage dish here that had nothing to do with a typical pintxo, in the best way.
None of these need a festival badge to get into. Just good timing and, during the busiest days, a reservation where one’s possible.
And for the coffee in between
Sometimes you don’t need a meal — just a really good coffee and somewhere to pause for a few minutes before the next screening. Simona, Dripper, Roke and Cafes Angiozar are four of our favourites for exactly that.
One last thing
If Zinemaldia is the reason you’re here, we’d genuinely recommend building one evening around a Topa Food Tours experience before or after your screenings — it’s the version of San Sebastián that doesn’t show up in a festival program, and this time of year, the city has a lot to say beyond the red carpet.
*Sources: sansebastianfestival.com, tickets.kutxabank.es.
Programme details subject to change ahead of the festival — check the official site for the final schedule.
