Join The Yard at the 2026 edition of NIFFF, the only Swiss festival dedicated to genre films !
Founded in 2000, the Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (NIFFF) has grown over the last quarter-century into an unmissable pillar of the global film calendar. Celebrating its landmark 25th edition in 2026, the Swiss festival has built national and international acclaim thanks to its prestigious, demanding, and forward-thinking programming.
While NIFFF is explicitly devoted to the fantasy genre, its unique multidisciplinary approach expands far beyond typical tropes. The main theme is intricately complemented by two key pillars: digital creation and Asian cinema. Because fantasy cinema has been fundamentally linked to technological progress since its inception, NIFFF launched the Imaging the Future symposium in 2004, cementing itself as a pioneer in digital art. Over the last decade, as digital technologies revolutionized audience interaction, the festival launched NIFFF EXTENDED to track media convergence and the future of creative processes. Today, the symposium serves as a masterclass hub where international expertise meets innovative artistic discourse.
Behind the Scenes with The Yard VFX
This year, we are extremely proud at The Yard to be invited at the 2026 edition of NIFFF to share our art and expertise. On Tuesday, July 7, Laurens Ehrmann, the founder and creative director of The Yard, will host two exclusive conferences during the Imaging the Future track, offering an insider look at some of contemporary fantasy’s biggest productions.
At 3:45pm, let’s meet at the Theatre du Passage (Room 2) for a behind-the-scenes presentation of The Yard’s contributions to the latest entry in the iconic franchise, Predator: Badlands (directed by Dan Trachtenberg). Attendees will get a first-hand look at how advanced visual-effects technology was used to build a wholly alien world from scratch. Laurens Ehrmann, founder and creative director of the studio, will break down the studio’s work on creating spectacular, harsh environments, bringing ruthless new CG creatures to life, and constructing the film’s most epic action sequences.
At 5:30pm, at the Theatre du Passage (Room 2), Laurens Ehrmann will join legendary artist, illustrator, and concept artist John Howe (famed for his work on Middle-earth architecture and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power series). This exclusive, collaborative talk will dive deep into contemporary fantasy filmmaking. The pair will explore the intricate pipeline of modern world-building—tracing the line from initial concept art and traditional illustration to final, complex visual effects. They will reveal exactly what it takes to bring J.R.R. Tolkien’s mythical universe to screens with cinematic weight.