The Norwegian Storytelling Festival

Fortellerfestivalen - The Norwegian Storytelling Festival presents an international programme of high quality oral storytelling performances, workshops and events every spring in Oslo, Norway.

Scroll down for info about our current open call for programme suggestions.

The festival is organised by Fortellersentrum - The Norwegian Storytelling Centre, which works to celebrate, sustain, and renew the traditional art of oral storytelling by presenting artistically ambitious storytelling performances with a range of expressions and formats; from folk tales to storyslam, multilingual performances and site-specific work. Through partnership with a range of venues we seek to grow audiences and highlight different aspects of the artform, including tradition and intangible cultural heritage, dramaturgy and stagecraft, improvisation, personal stories and social connection.

Beyond the festival, a year-round professional programme of workshops, coaching, storytelling and networking events creates opportunities and inspiration for artistic development. Through participation in the national Network for Oral Storytelling in Norway and FEST - Federation for European Storytelling we work to promote and develop storytelling nationally and internationally.

Fortellerfestivalen was started in 2004 and became a foundation in 2013. The organisation expanded to form Fortellersentrum in 2023. The foundation is currently run by a board of directors, a part time Executive Director and an artistic council responsible for programming and artistic development. The board is appointed and supported by a general assembly consisting of representatives of the organisation’s founders.

Open Call - Fortellerfestivalen 2026

We are currently seeking programme suggestions for Fortellerfestivalen 2026 which will take place from 19-22 March in Oslo. The theme for 2026 is Journeys. 

From flights of fancy and personal growth to intrepid travel and the daily commute, next year’s festival will explore the various journeys people make. We will allow stories to transport us and, along the way, reflect on our collective wanderlust and drive towards new places and new goals.

The programme will include stories of journeys of all kinds; internal and external, metaphorical and physical, real and imagined. There will be journeys of choice and journeys of necessity. We will celebrate the experiences, connections and understanding that travel can bring, and acknowledge the subtle changes that even the shortest of journeys can create.

We welcome suggestions for various types of activities related to the theme. While performance storytelling is our primary focus for festival programming, we are also interested in projects that use storytelling within educational, cultural heritage and social contexts. Programme suggestions may include: 

  • storytelling performances for adults

  • shorter tales to be included in a larger event

  • lectures/presentations

  • workshops

  • interactive events

Please note that we encourage international guests to offer both a performance and some form of workshop or practice sharing. You are welcome to submit information about your primary suggestion, with a note about accompanying activities under “Supporting activities.” If you would like us to consider two separate projects, please send two forms.

We programme activities in English, Norwegian and other Nordic languages. Activities in other languages can only be considered if a tested method of translation is part of the proposal.

All submissions should include video documentation. See criteria and conditions under for more information. Contact post@fortellerfestivalen.no if you need further guidance about your submission. 

The deadline for suggestions is 12 August.
We will reply to all suggestions by 15 November.

Click the button below and use our suggestion form to tell us about your project.

Open call criteria and conditions

All performance suggestions must include video documentation. For performances that have had their premiere we require a full filmed version. For productions in development or other activities you may send film from similar projects from the same storyteller/team, or record an excerpt. A short video captured on a phone can sometimes be enough, as long as we get a clear impression of the storytelling style and any other key aesthetic elements. 

Programme suggestions will be considered by the festival’s artistic council. Programme decisions are based on artistic quality, diversity, deliverability and relevance in relation to the theme. Individual choices must also take into account the profile and dramaturgy of the festival as a whole. Financial and practical aspects are also taken into consideration. Multidisciplinary work is welcome, however suggestions without a clear and prominent element of oral storytelling will not be considered.

To ensure an efficient process we ask that all suggestions during the open call be sent through the form. Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to give individual feedback regarding programme suggestions. 

Festival artists and crew are paid in accordance with local union recommendations. Fees and expenses will be negotiated once all programme suggestions have been reviewed.