Science Meets Fiction: When Science Meets Fictional Visions of the Future

From 23 September to 7 October 2026, the “Science Meets Fiction” festival will once again transform Salzburg into a meeting place for science enthusiasts and science fiction fans. Under this year's theme, “Outer Space,” the festival explores the storytelling possibilities that emerge within the infinite expanses of space.

“Think big!” is the guiding principle: dying stars, alien civilizations, and intergenerational voyages provide plenty of material for compelling films and stories. At the same time, the festival addresses questions that are highly relevant to our present day: Are we genuinely interested in the unknown, or are we simply seeking to expand our own reach? Where is the line between scientific curiosity and colonialism? What drives our desire to keep pushing “the final frontier” ever further? And could the exploration of outer space perhaps distract us from the unresolved questions within ourselves?

Elmar Schüll from the Department of Applied Social Sciences conceived the Science Meets Fiction festival and has co-organized it with the Robert Jungk Library for Future Studies since 2018. Held annually in late September and early October, the festival is supported by Wissensstadt Salzburg and brings together contributions from numerous cultural and knowledge institutions in Salzburg, including the Literaturhaus Salzburg, Haus der Natur, the film culture center DAS KINO, AK Salzburg, the artists’ collective gold extra, among many others.

“Our aim is to connect fictional visions of the future with current scientific knowledge. In that sense, the festival’s name says it all,” explains Elmar Schüll. “Entertaining and thought-provoking ideas and motifs from the science fiction genre are contextualized and critically examined through scientific input, discussions, and curated exhibitions.”

Each year, the festival focuses on a new overarching theme that runs through its diverse program. Previous editions explored topics such as ‘Climate Changes’, ‘High Tech & Low Life’, and most recently ‘Inner Space’. Building on these themes, this year’s festival turns to one of the classic, perhaps the classic, subjects of science fiction: journeys into Outer Space.

The full festival program and registration information for individual events can be found at www.sciencemeetsfiction.org.