50 Filmmakers Won a Coveted Azores Residency, Then Came the $10,000 Catch

Fifty filmmakers from around the world paid $10,000 each, plus airfare, for the chance to make short films under the guidance of Werner Herzog on São Miguel Island in the Azores. The program, called Experience Azores Islands 2026 and organized by Extática Cine, had participants working over 11 days, with Herzog guiding all 50 international filmmakers in 25 creative pairs through the full filmmaking process, with a strong focus on writing.

Participants collaborated from concept to shooting, editing, and final screening, combining their diverse skills to produce innovative, high-quality films. The pairs were matched according to shared artistic vision and complementary technical abilities. The structure, grouping directors with cinematographers in equal measure, reflected Herzog's long-held belief in the primacy of collaboration: his own career has relied on a recurring core team, including director of photography Peter Zeitlinger, with whom he has worked for more than 25 years.

The steep price of admission did not appear to dull the program's appeal. Applicants came from across the globe, selected through a competitive portfolio process, and arrived on an island that rarely sees this kind of concentrated filmmaking activity. The effects on the local acting community were immediate. Ana Lopes, a 42-year-old actress from São Miguel who also runs a casting agency, was in Lisbon when she was called in for a role by one of the participants and immediately booked a flight home. "It's really hard, because usually when filmmakers come here, they bring their actors or they only want the people from Azores to do background work," Lopes said. "This is so important for me, but also for the local nonactors, because you have 50 filmmakers working here. When do you get that in an island like this?"

Teresa Carreiro Andrade Raposo, a 20-year-old sociology student from São Miguel, was cast in four different films. "I honestly had never heard of Werner Herzog," she said. "Apparently, he's a really important person, so I'm happy to be a part of this project."

Herzog, now in his 80s, has a long history of running intensive filmmaking workshops in remote or unusual locations, pushing participants to move fast, write from experience, and subordinate technical concerns to vision. The 2026 Azores edition placed writing at the center of the curriculum, consistent with his parallel life as an author of more than 12 books, including his journals from the making of "Fitzcarraldo" and his recent memoir. The $10,000 participation fee covered accommodation and instruction but not travel, a threshold that effectively filtered the cohort toward those with either institutional support or the willingness to self-finance a significant gamble on 11 days with a singular cinematic mind.