07.23.2026

"Diane in the Loop" selected for the Venice Film Festival

Raphaël Balboni and Ann Sirot's new feature film, "Diane in the Loop", has been selected for the Orizzonti Competition at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival. It marks the Belgian duo's third feature, following "Madly in Life" and "The (ex)perience of Love)"

Premiering in the Festival's Official Selection, within the Orizzonti section, Diane in the Loop further confirms Raphaël Balboni and Ann Sirot's distinctive voice in contemporary European auteur cinema. Following the critical success of Madly in Life, which won several Magritte Awards, and Le Syndrome des amours passées, presented at the Semaine de la Critique in Cannes in 2023, the filmmakers continue their exploration of family bonds, intimate trauma and intergenerational transmission through a work that is both sensitive and daring.

Produced by Les Films du Fleuve, the production company founded by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, Diane in the Loop is supported by the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles. International sales are handled by Pyramide International.

The film tells the story of Diane, a young woman who despises men as much as she desires them. When she learns that her mother was raped three years before she was born, she becomes consumed by a single obsession: avenging her. But her mother has only one wish—to finally become the woman she should have been. Between the daughter who wants the past to be remembered and the mother who longs to forget it, tensions reach a breaking point.

The Orizzonti section is one of the Venice Film Festival's official competitions. Often regarded as the Festival's equivalent of Cannes' Un Certain Regard, it showcases emerging trends in contemporary cinema and films that explore new cinematic languages. Over the years, it has introduced or championed early works by filmmakers who are now internationally acclaimed, including Josh and Ben Safdie, Catherine Breillat, Quentin Dupieux, Wang Bing, Robin Campillo and Rodrigo Sorogoyen. The section awards prizes for Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, acting performances and several other categories.

The Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles will also be represented in Venice through several supported co-productions. House of Wind by Auguste Kouemo Yanghu, co-produced in Belgium by Steel Fish Pictures, has also been selected for the Orizzonti Competition. Meanwhile, I Matter by Romanian filmmaker Alina Serban, co-produced by Frakas Productions, will screen in the Venezia Spotlight section.

Finally, the Liège-based production company Tarantula Belgique is represented in the Festival's Official Competition with L'estranea, the new feature by Italian director Paolo Strippoli.

Founded in 1932, the Venice International Film Festival is the world's oldest film festival and remains one of the most prestigious events on the international film calendar. Held each year on the Lido as part of the Venice Biennale, it celebrates the very best of world cinema, from established masters to the emerging voices shaping the future of the art form.