PROGRAM: THE OPENING INDUSTRY CONFERENCE 2026

PROGRAM

This year’s m:brane conference invites the industry to take a leap — into new ways of imagining, creating, and sharing stories for young audiences. We explore the spaces where storytelling expands: across formats and platforms, between art and technology, and through collaborations that reshape how stories are made and experienced.

m:brane is a place for crossing borders — where film meets games and immersive worlds, where learning and wonder intertwine, and where ideas are nurtured into future-ready models. It is an ecosystem for curiosity, courage, and connection, built on the belief that the most powerful stories emerge in the spaces in between.

We invite you to join us in shaping what comes next.

Programmer: Founder & Creative Director: Annette Brejner
Producer: Prami Larsen
Moderator: Klara Nilsson Grunning 

Welcome by Annette Brejner, Creative Director & Programmer and Lennart Ström, Managing Director / m:brane
Presentation of moderator: Klara Nilsson Grunning

KEYNOTE: Crossing Origins / Foundations & Vision

Keynote speaker: Jeanne Dompierre, Executive Director, Xn Québec and Founder of NUMIX LAB, Canada

Jeanne Dompierre will examine how necessity can give rise to entirely new creative infrastructures through the story of NUMIX Lab and its role in building ecosystems for immersive storytelling.

From animation to immersion
Introduction by moderator Klara Nilsson Grunning

Speakers: Julie Dalbec, Content producer and consultant, CA Ludovic Langlois-Thérien, Strategy & Ops @ Supply + Demand Studio, CA Denys Lavigne, Multimedia Entrepreneur and Strategist, @ OASIS, CA

FORM / Crossing Screens

Screen-based storytelling expanding beyond the flat frame.
Immersive / animation for young audiences – or where animation breaks free from the flat frame! Through groundbreaking works such as The Man Who Planted Trees, Carnival of the Animals and Minecraft immersive, we witness how screen-based storytelling can expand into spatial, sensory, and emotional dimensions tailored to todays young audiences.

Short Coffee Break to stretch your legs and network.

CASE STUDY: FONCE VR
-physical, spatial, and embodied experience-

Speakers: Lilia Paul, Director and IP creator, Germany & David Houston, Producer, Luxembourg

A case study and behind the scenes of *Fonce*, a VR, interactive, immersive film and a classical animated short film. The case study depicts how powerful storytelling can evolve for younger audiences without losing emotional depth and despite the engagement of a difficult topic like war and peace!

Delegates will encounter physical, spatial, and participatory storytelling — from Fonce VR’s embodied environments.

*Fonce* pitched at m:brane 2024, a major grant from European Education and Culture Executive Agency – Video games and immersive content development and was presented at Venice Immersive 2025.

From viewing to experiencing

Speaker: Julie Parisi, multidisciplinary designer and lead for Innovation at MUNCH, Norway

Julie L. Parisi from MUNCH, the museum for the art of Edward Munch, the world famous painter of The Scream – in Oslo, Norway, will share how MUNCH think about their audience and especially their young audience and future audience and how they are working with experimentation, pilots and innovation in relation to these objectives and goals.
MUNCH’s fusion of music, poetry, objects, and visuals, redefining how audiences meet art and performance.

Games play as a Design Logic for Immersive Culture

Speaker: Björn Flintberg, Researcher at RISE | Head of GameNode at RISE | Gaming Lead at MIMER AI Factory, Sweden

Positions play not as entertainment alone but as cultural infrastructure. Here, we explore how interactivity, systems thinking, and game logic can deepen narrative impact and reshape relationships between creators and audiences.

Catch your breath, have a sandwhich and something to drink – and don’t forget to network!

Reframing authorship, process, and imagination through AI

Speaker: Iris Magdalene Schmidt, Director, Denmark

Authorship and process in the age of AI. Through the making of the animated documentary GRAVITY, we consider how AI can function as a creative collaborator rather than a mere technical aid.

Challenging Gravity: A Film Director Pushing Creative Possibilities with AI.
Film director Iris Magdalene Schmidt presents the making of TYNGDEKRAFT, her latest film in Danmarks Radio’s TÆNKEPAUSER series. In this talk she shares insights into how the project grew from an idea into a fully realized 10 minute story crafted through AI-generated visuals. She traces the journey from concept to execution, opening the metaphorical engine of the film and showing how AI shaped its visual and narrative direction. The talk explores the creative possibilities and challenges, and the practical realities of using new technology to support a filmmaker’s story.

Speaker: Clara Sætren, Project Manager for Nordic Animation Association

Building the conditions for what comes next:
Strengthening Nordic Children’s Animation on TV: A Call to Action

The Nordic children’s animation series sector stands at a critical juncture, characterized by a paradox of robust creative potential and systemic fragmentation. Broadcaster engagement is inconsistent, co-production frameworks are underutilized, and funding gaps limit growth. Yet, success stories like DR’s FredagsTamTam prove that Nordic animation can outperform global franchises when supported by aligned commissioning, strategic IP development, and coordinated marketing.

This session presents the Nordic Animation Association’s White Paper, offering actionable insights to unlock the industry’s potential. We’ll explore how pan-Nordic collaboration, streamlined funding, and investment in talent and infrastructure can transform challenges into opportunities. By championing Nordic values as a global differentiator, we can build a future where Nordic children’s animation thrives, both locally and on the world stage.

Join us to reimagine how producers, broadcasters, and funders can collaborate to create an ecosystem where Nordic stories resonate globally on the small screen. The time to act is now.

THINK BIG – NEXT STOP: FULL DOME
Dome is not just a space — it’s an entire perceptual world.

Panel curated in collaboration with Christine Reisen, Vice-Chair & Secretary, ESFA – The European Science Film Association.

17.15 – 17:20 Introduction
by moderator Klara Nilsson Grunning

17:20 – 17:45 Jena FullDome Festival
Speaker: Micky Remann, Founder and Director of the International Jena FullDome Festival, Germany

17:45 – 18:00 Dome Distribution & Young Audiences
Speaker: Domingo Escutia Muñoz, Director of Sales and Distribution in Europe for Giant Screen Films, Spain

18:00 – 18:15 Dome Production from the Producer’s Perspective
Speaker: Fredrik Edström, Immersive Director and Producer, Sweden

18:15 – 18:25 Darkness Matters Dome
Speaker: Costanza Julia Bani, Artist, Filmmaker and Producer, Sweden

18:25 – 18:35 Cell Worlds Dome
Speaker: Renaud Poupre, Founder and Director of Exaltia, a science communication studio, France

18:35 – 18:45 Round off: THINK BIG
by moderator Klara Nilsson Grunning and the panelists

by moderator Klara Nilsson Grunning

By Founder, Creative Director Annette Brejner & Managing Director Lennart Ström