Press Release Incentive Award Tegernsee – 13 August 2026

23rd Tegernsee International Mountain Film Festival, 14–18 October 2026

A Boost for the Budget 

Calling all young talent! This October, the Tegernsee Mountain Film Festival will present the LOWA Young Talents Award for the second time. The award supports young filmmakers whose projects explore “Alpine culture”. The €5,000 incentive award is open to filmmakers aged 29 or under. The deadline for submissions is 30 September 2026.

Tegernsee is giving young filmmakers a chance to step into the spotlight alongside some of the biggest names in mountaineering. The opportunity comes through the LOWA Young Talents Award, presented for the second time this year by the Tegernsee International Mountain Film Festival and LOWA. The award is open to filmmakers aged 29 or under whose projects “explore Alpine culture”. Festival director Tom Dauer explains: “We are looking for films that approach the mountain world from a historical, political, social, ecological, cultural or sporting perspective.” Projects must be filmed in the Alps and have a documentary focus, but filmmakers otherwise have plenty of creative freedom. Subjects can range from mountain nature and mountain life to adventure, tourism, the economy, the arts and sports such as climbing, hiking, mountain biking, trail running, ski touring, freeriding, kayaking, slacklining and paragliding. Applications must include a treatment of around ten pages covering the subject, narrative structure, protagonists, locations, film length and the filmmakers’ intentions, along with a schedule and financing plan. A short trailer is also encouraged.

The LOWA Young Talents Award was first presented in 2025, when Hanna Schneider and Paul Schweller received €5,000 for a documentary project on the Alpine tradition of “Strahlen”. Their film follows a young Swiss man searching for mountain crystals, exploring a traditional practice that has long been part of life in the Alpine region. The completed film “will premiere at this autumn’s Tegernsee Mountain Film Festival.

Completed LOWA Young Talents Award project to premiere in October 2027
Festival director Tom Dauer, himself a screenwriter and director, knows how difficult it is for young mountain filmmakers to break into the industry and realise their own projects. “I’m delighted that our long-standing main sponsor shares our commitment to young talent and that we can present the LOWA Young Talents Award again in 2026,” he says. Dauer will also advise the winning filmmakers throughout the project.
The award will go to the most striking project in terms of subject, originality and commitment. An expert jury will assess all submissions, and the winning project will be presented at the 23rd Tegernsee Mountain Film Festival. The winner will then need to complete the film by 30 June 2027, and it will premiere in October 2027 at the 24th Tegernsee Mountain Film Festival.

The submission deadline for the next Tegernsee Incentive Award is 30 September 2026.

Information, terms and conditions, and the application form are available at www.bergfilm-tegernsee.de and www.bergfilm-tegernsee.de/2026-2/young-talents-award-2026.