The 2026 selection brings together actors working across the Baltic Sea region and the Nordic countries. For the first time, the programme invited applications from Iceland and Norway.
Black Nights Stars has selected ten actors for its 2026 edition, which will take place in Tallinn from 16–21 November as part of Discovery Campus at Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event. Celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, the programme received more than 200 applications through the casting platform etalenta.
The Black Nights Stars of 2026 are Mina Dale, Kathy Etoa, Gunnbjörn Gunnarsson, Estrid Gustafsson-Fjellheim, Eduards Johansons, Rūta Jonikaitė, Joonas Koff, Samuel Kujala, Hubert Miłkowski and Jarmo Reha. Their work spans film, television and theatre, from Sámi-language drama and Baltic cinema to international streaming productions and award-winning independent films.
In Tallinn, the actors will meet international casting directors, talent agents, producers and directors. They will also take part in workshops and discussions designed to develop their skills, expand their professional networks and open up new opportunities in the international film industry.
The participants were selected by an international jury of casting directors Pauline Hansson (Sweden), Nina Haun (Germany), Yngvill Kolset Haga (Norway), Anders Nygaard (Denmark) and Lana Veenker (United States), president of the International Casting Directors Association. Talent agents Janey van Ierland (Netherlands) and Richard Cook (United Kingdom) also served on the jury.
The selected actors will receive the Black Nights Stars Discovery Campus ICDA Award in recognition of their selection.
Mina Dale (Norway) began performing with a local youth theatre group and has since built a career across stage and screen. She made her television debut at 16 in the fantasy drama Heirs of the Night, followed by roles in Norwegian productions including Everything You Love, Requiem for Selina and the feature Fuckings Bygda. Her stage work includes the role of Jenny in Oslo Vanker at The Norwegian Theatre, while her voice credits include Irma in Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. In 2026, she wrote and directed the short film Mamma as part of a development programme for young women directors.
Kathy Etoa (Switzerland/Germany) is a Cameroonian-born Swiss actress based in Berlin. After initially training and working in the insurance industry, she moved to Berlin in 2021 to pursue acting and is now studying at the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts. She made her German television debut in WaPo Berlin and has since appeared in the series Supermad, the feature The Total Dream and the Netflix film 23 000 Lives. Etoa also works in theatre: in 2025, she played the lead role of Gabbi in What You’ll Find on the Way to Becoming at Schauspielhaus Zürich. She will next be seen in the Swiss series Blind.
Gunnbjörn Gunnarsson (Iceland) was born in Denmark, raised in Iceland and graduated with a BA in Acting from Cours Florent Berlin. His background in sports has shaped his interest in physical performance and movement-driven roles. In 2023, he wrote, produced and starred in the short film Showers, which received festival nominations in Iceland and the United States. Alongside his acting work in film and theatre, Gunnarsson continues to develop projects behind the camera and recently completed two short films in which he plays the lead roles.
Estrid Gustafsson-Fjellheim (Sweden/Norway) is a Sámi Swedish-Norwegian actress based in Stockholm and working across Sweden and Norway. Bilingual in Swedish and Norwegian, she began her professional screen career at 18 with a supporting role in the television series Håll andan!. She went on to play the lead role of Leah in the feature Fungi. Most recently, she starred in the Sámi-language series Oro jaska – Shut Up, broadcast across Scandinavia by NRK, SVT and YLE and nominated for an International Emmy in 2025.
Eduards Johansons (Latvia) grew up close to the theatre in his hometown of Valmiera and joined the Valmiera Theatre ensemble after graduating from the Latvian Academy of Culture in 2015. His stage work spans comedy and drama; his performance as Uģis in We, Rock, Sex and the USSR earned him a nomination at Latvia’s Spēlmaņu nakts theatre awards and Valmiera Theatre’s audience award for Actor of the Year. His film credits include Despair, The Year Before the War and Flesh, Blood, Even a Heart. The latter had its world premiere in the Baltic Film Competition at PÖFF in 2025.
Rūta Jonikaitė (Lithuania) graduated from the Acting Department of the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre in 2024. That year, she took on her first major screen role in Algimantas Puipa’s feature Night Screening and received a Golden Stage Cross nomination for Best Young Actress for her portrayal of Ester in Victor, or Power to the Children. She has performed with several Lithuanian theatres, including the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre and the National Kaunas Drama Theatre. Her stage work has also taken her to festivals in Italy, Germany and Poland.
Joonas Koff (Estonia) discovered acting at 13 when he was cast in a leading role in Klaus Härö’s film The Fencer, which was nominated for a Golden Globe and shortlisted for an Academy Award. The experience inspired him to continue acting, and he graduated from the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre in 2026. During his studies, he worked with Härö again and gained experience on the production of Sisu 2: Road to Revenge. He has also pursued Meisner training and intensive scene study.
Samuel Kujala (Finland) received the 2026 Jussi Award for Best Leading Actor for his performance in A Light That Never Goes Out. The film premiered in the ACID section at Cannes in 2025 before travelling to international festivals and receiving a theatrical release in France. Kujala first gained recognition in the television series Nörtti: DragonSlayer666, which earned him a Golden Venla nomination in 2018. His subsequent roles have ranged from a professional dancer in Netflix’s Dance Brothers to a gang prospect in Port Poison. He also appeared in Fucking with Nobody, which screened at Venice, SXSW and Rotterdam.
Hubert Miłkowski (Poland) graduated from the National Film School in Łódź and gained wider recognition with a leading role in the Netflix crime series The Woods. He followed it with roles in Operation Hyacinth and the independent drama Braty, for which he received a Zbigniew Cybulski Award nomination. In the international co-production Norwegian Dream, he portrayed a young migrant navigating identity, work and belonging; the performance earned him the Best Actor award at the Iris Prize and further award nominations. His recent work includes the HBO series Women’s Hell and the award-winning short film Song of the Night.
Jarmo Reha (Estonia) studied acting at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre before joining Theatre NO99. He later developed his own experimental theatre work and collaborated with the Brussels-based company [e]utopia on productions that gained recognition in Belgium and France. Reha has received several Estonian theatre award nominations and won the 2026 EFTA award for Best Actor in Film for Mo Papa. His screen work includes three collaborations with filmmaker Eeva Mägi: Mo Papa, Mo Amor and Mo Hunt.
Black Nights Stars is part of Discovery Campus, the education and talent development programme of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) and Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event. The programme connects emerging film professionals with experienced international mentors and industry decision-makers.
Photo: Black Nights Stars 2026.
First row from left: Mina Dale, Kathy Etoa, Gunnbjörn Gunnarsson, Estrid Gustafsson-Fjellheim, Eduards Johansons.
Second row: Rūta Jonikaitė, Joonas Koff, Samuel Kujala, Hubert Miłkowski and Jarmo Reha.