08.26.2026

Two Belgian series selected for the 2026 Festival de la Fiction in La Rochelle

Two new Belgian series will be showcased at this major event for television fiction in France and Europe. Every year, the Festival de la Fiction in La Rochelle brings together industry professionals and the general public around a broad selection of series and TV movies. Competitions, premieres and professional meetings make the festival an essential event for French-language fiction.

This year, two series from Wallonia-Brussels have been selected for the International French-Speaking Competition: Vital and Presque Normal.

Produced by Sequel Prod, Proximus and RTBF, Vital consists of six 52-minute episodes and will compete in the “French-Speaking Series over 20 Minutes” category. Written by Fred Castadot and Maud Carpentier and directed by Gary Seghers and Julien Henry, the series is sold internationally by Mediawan Rights.

When a delegation from the Ministry of Health dies under unexplained circumstances during a visit to the striking Alma Hospital, an emergency doctor and her forensic pathologist brother, estranged for many years, must join forces to uncover the source of this mysterious threat. Between a medical investigation, secrets and family tensions, they will also have to confront their own past.

The series stars Alexia Depicker, Douglas Grauwels, Claire Beugnies and Kassim Meesters, among others, and will be presented to the public on Wednesday, September 16.

In the “French-Speaking Series under 20 Minutes” category, Presque Normal is an eight-part, 20-minute comedy produced by Belgian Mafia Films.

Adapted from the Quebec series Les Beaux Malaises, created by Martin Matte, Presque Normal is written by Benjamin Dessy, Grégory Beghin, Martin Matte and François Avard, and directed by Grégory Beghin. Kody plays a fictionalised version of himself, alongside Naïma Rodric, Clément Manuel, Salim Talbi and Dada Stella, among others.

Being famous isn’t always easy… and Kody knows that better than anyone! Blending realism and absurdity, the series follows the “real fake” life of the Belgian comedian, his eventful family and social life, and his questions about the limits of humour. Struggling to find inspiration for his new show, Kody does his best to find his place — and his creative spark — again.

The series, sold internationally by Crazy Cow, will be screened on Saturday, September 19 in the morning.

Also selected is the TV movie Au sein des autres, a French-Belgian co-production produced by Cinétévé (France) and Narrativ Nation (Belgium) in the section Compétition française – Unitaire. Directed by Belgian filmmaker Vania Leturcq, the film is written by Valérie Magis and Johanne Rigoulot, based on an original story and idea by Valérie Magis.

Starring Sofia Essaïdi, Yoann Zimmer, Marc Zinga and Jean Le Peltier, among others, Au sein des autres tells the story of Nour, a driven lawyer in her forties, and Fabrice, a carefree man in his thirties. They would never have met if they had not both been diagnosed with breast cancer. In the chemotherapy ward of a hospital in Lille, an unexpected friendship begins to develop between them.

Through their intertwined journeys, the film explores their relationship with their bodies and identities challenged by illness, as well as denial, the difficulty of asking for help and the solidarity that gradually develops between the two characters.

With Vital, Presque Normal and the co-production Au sein des autres, Wallonia-Brussels will once again be well represented at the Festival de la Fiction in La Rochelle, through three works with very different formats and approaches.