Dedicated Section for Emerging Talent and a Tribute to Václav Havel
In line with this year’s festival theme, Dream On! Dreams and Visions, we are introducing a dedicated student zone for the very first time. We are also launching an official collaboration with the Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU). Check the first Highlights of the Signal Festival 2026.
Student Visions → Experiment, Formula Racing & Chemistry
The new Student Visions program section offers a glimpse into the experimental laboratories of the next generation of artists, scientists, and designers. It will feature four projects created by student teams from CTU and the University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague (UCT Prague).
- FACELT, an experimental system developed by the Department of Computer Graphics at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, CTU, transforms human facial expressions into stylized digital characters and animations in real time.
- EFORCE: DNA of Winners, an audiovisual projection, traces more than fifteen years of the CTU student Formula racing team’s development, alongside the stories of alumni who now work at leading global technology and automotive companies.
- Impulse, an object-based installation by Studio Karel at the Faculty of Architecture, CTU, explores a surprising optical phenomenon.
- What Do Chemists Dream About?, a live chemical performance by students from UCT Prague, transforms chemistry experiments into a captivating audiovisual spectacle filled with striking light and sound effects.
Hangout Zone → A Place to Meet
Alongside the exhibition of student projects, Student Visions will also feature a dedicated hangout space where visitors can relax, meet, and enjoy refreshments. We’re keeping the exact location under wraps for now, but we can already reveal one thing: admission will be free throughout the entire festival.
Karolína Schulzová → The Legacy of Václav Havel
The festival will also present a standalone installation by Karolína Schulzová, a student of the Interactive Media Studio at the Faculty of Art and Design, Jan Evangelista Purkyně University. Her work, “What Responsibility Do You Carry?”, is inspired by Václav Havel’s essay The Power of the Powerless.
The installation consists of illuminated panels displaying statements that reflect passivity and the desire to “remain unseen.” Visitors walk through the installation, becoming part of an imagined system. One by one, the panels fade to black until only a single illuminated message remains.
Created in collaboration with the civic initiative Díky, že můžem (“Thanks, That We Can”), the installation also commemorates what would have been Václav Havel’s 90th birthday this year.