The third edition of the Seriesly Berlin confab will take a deep dive into what creative freedom means in scripted storytelling, while adding a creator strand and a new venue for premiere screenings.

The main event returns to the Fotografiska, the museum, gallery and cultural hub in Berlin’s Mitte district, with CineStar Kino in der KulturBrauerei serving as an additional screening venue this time. The 2026 dates for Seriesly Berlin are September 14–17.

As well as pitches and a competition, there will be an initiative called Stories at Risk: Cultural Diversity, Democracy and Debate on Screen, examining creative freedom within scripted programming and co-funded by the Council of Europe.

It will bring together writers, producers, broadcasters, and festival and market reps from across Europe. They will look at how storytelling contributes to democracy and diversity, as well as the challenges to creative freedom. There will be a survey and a series of industry discussions that will culminate in a public presentation and a report.

The initiative is supported by a network including the European Writers Club, Series Mania Forum, Iberseries & Platino Industria, Göteborg Film Festival, Sarajevo Film Festival’s CineLink, Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, the German Producers Alliance (Produktionsallianz), the European Writers Desk and Creative Europe MEDIA Desks Germany.

Also new for this year is a tie-up with the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival exploring the potential of drama co-productions between Western Europe and producers from Central and Eastern Europe.

In terms of the creator economy, a conference track called Seriesly Creators will be dedicated to creator IP and emerging models for series. Seriesly Creators takes place on September 16.

“Seriesly Berlin was created as a place where conversations can happen that are often missing elsewhere in the industry,” says Festival Director Dennis Ruh.

“Traditional structures and formats are being redefined in real time, and we see a clear need to actively respond to these developments rather than follow them. This year’s program, including the launch of new initiatives, is a direct response to this moment of disruption and opportunity.”