The 2025-2026 Academic Year begins for the eighth intake year at EQZE

Students were selected by the school’s Academic Management Team (which includes representatives from the Basque Film Archive, the Tabakalera International Centre for Contemporary Culture, the San Sebastián Film Festival and the EQZE) from among the 170 applications received from 28 different countries during the admissions period (1-29 February). The 45 students who make up the eighth intake year at the school include 7 from the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, 11 from other regions of Spain, 7 from European countries, 19 from Latin America and 1 from Northern Africa. The mean age of this year’s students is 30 years 

The profile of the students in the 2025-2026 intake year is diverse and includes specialists with experience in the school's three areas of knowledge: archiving and preservation, curating and film programming, and filmmaking (both short and feature films). Moreover, the group includes teachers and researchers with training in various disciplines such as anthropology, visual arts, fine arts, audiovisual communication, literary studies, philosophy, art history, international relations and sociology. There are also graduates from film schools and professionals with experience in different areas of the film industry, including production, editing, sound, art direction and photography. Finally, some students come from the world of theatre, dance and music. 

The academic year is organised around six modules. The first five (September-July) are face-to-face teaching modules. The sixth module (August-December) focuses on students’ graduation assignments or hipótesis (‘hypotheses’) and is semi face-to-face in nature. Courses last for a total of fifteen months and are structured in a circular fashion in order to reflect the philosophy of learning and experience that underpins the entire EQZE initiative. 

During this first week, which will also see the start of the 73rd San Sebastián International Film Festival, initial meetings will be held between students on the three postgraduate courses run by the school (Film Preservation, Film Curating and Filmmaking Studies). Other items on the agenda include the presentation of the syllabus, an introduction to the school and the institutions and projects that make it up and activities designed to help students get to know the different areas and spaces in Tabakalera. Classes will commence on 29 September. 

Created and funded by the Gipuzkoa Provincial Council, Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola ls a unique educational initiative comprising three postgraduate courses (Film Preservation, Film Curating and Filmmaking), which stem from the specialist knowledge areas of the three institutions involved in its running: the Basque Film Archive, the Tabakalera International Centre for Contemporary Culture and the San Sebastian International Film Festival. Since 2019, the EQZE has formally been a part of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU).