The planned Paramount Skydance acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) is sure to make global waves across various parts of the film industry landscape.
In fact, it already has, being the topic of debate on film studio lots, at sector players’ headquarters, in social meet-ups across the industry and, yes, also at film festivals, such as the recent Karlovy Vary fest.
The 79th edition of the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland is also ready to take on the big issue of consolidation and its fallout, along with other hot-button sector topics, at its 2026 Locarno Pro industry program.
“There are some earthquakes that are shaking up the infrastructure of the global industry,” which plays into this year’s program, Markus Duffner, director of Locarno Pro, tells THR. So, among other themes, he and his team thought: “Let’s see what happens with the merger of Paramount and Warner. Let’s see what happens with everything that AI can do, as groundbreaking technologies will change the industry.”
News of the Paramount-WBD earlier this year came up as the team was in the thick of planning this year’s Locarno Pro program. “We don’t have a crystal sphere, but when we were putting together [the plans for Locarno Pro opening session] StepIn, the Paramount merger news came out,” Duffner recalls. “And we said, ‘Wow, what does it mean with all we’re talking about? But in the end, we felt it’s actually coherent with what we were already dealing with.’ So it’s not something brand new. It’s really a symptom of everything we were dealing with and discussing already.”
Locarno Pro, which will once again mix educational, business and networking opportunities, runs Aug. 6-11 this year as part of the Locarno festival, which takes place in the Swiss lakeside town Aug. 5-15.
“The 2026 edition of StepIn will explore how power structures, human capital, politics, AI and data-driven systems are reshaping the future of independent cinema,” Marcello Paolillo, the StepIn project manager, explains in a brochure. “The first roundtable will focus on the unprecedented pressures that independent cinema is facing today, including the influence of global streaming platforms on creative choices, the increasing use of algorithms, data and AI in decision-making, and the rapid concentration of power through mergers and industry consolidation.”
After all, the Swiss festival’s industry strand is all about exploring challenges and how to address them with an eye on the future. “Locarno Pro is the platform which identifies, anticipates, and addresses the challenges faced by the European film industry, through an open space for dialogue on innovation and social impact, and through a concrete investment in the next generation,” Duffner highlights in a preview of this year’s edition on the Locarno Pro website. “Today’s talents are the leaders, producers, and filmmakers who will shape the coming era of film. This is why Locarno Pro is not a market like any other: it is the place where those who believe in cinema as an art form and a driving force for change find the tools to make it possible.”
