Berlin

"The aim of the Berlinale 2024 is once again to spark enthusiasm for cinema as well as create enjoyment and a festive mood. A film festival is more than the sum of its programmes," the Berlinale's co-directors Mariëtte Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian said ahead of this year’s festival. Nevertheless, the sections from the Competition and Encounters through Berlinale Special, Panorama, Forum, Forum Expanded to Generation and the Retrospective will be featuring special and extraordinary films. A total of about 250 films will be screening at 15 venues throughout Berlin over the 10 days, with the Berlinale Palast once again being the festival’s centrepiece as the venue for the Competition and Berlinale Special Gala’s films.

The Competition will see three German films vieing with 17 others for the Golden Bear. FROM HILDE WITH LOVE (IN LIEBE, EURE HILDE, Pandora Film) is about the young resistance fighter Hilde Coppi. Director Andreas Dresen’s drama tells the story of a short life, love and death in Berlin in 1942. ARCHITECTON (ma.ja.de) by the director Victor Kossakovsky takes audiences on a visually impressive journey into the future of architecture. The documentary seeks to provide an insight into what our cities will look like and how we can plan for them today.

STERBEN (Port au Prince, Schwarzweiss Filmproduktion, Senator Film Produktion) by Matthias Glasner is a drama about a family who no longer functions like a family after the members grew apart. But they meet up again when Death knocks on their doors in an positively grotesque plethora of guises.

The other competition section Encounters will be presenting the two German productions DIRECT ACTION and IVO. DIRECT ACTION (CaskFilms) by Guillaume Cailleau and Ben Russell documents the everyday life of one of the most important activist communities in France to show how the success of a radical protest movement can offer a path out of the climate crisis. IVO (Trimafilm, Studio Zentral) by Eva Trobisch is about a palliative carer who is looking after her sick female friend, but then starts an affair with the woman’s husband and subsequently finds herself caught in a balancing act between giving genuine care and concealing her actions.

The European Film Market (EFM) will be opening its doors for seven market days from 15 to 21 February alongside the film screenings. More than 11,500 market participants, exhibitors, rights holders, producers, buyers and investors are expected to be coming to Berlin again this year. German Films will also have a presence in the Gropius Bau with a stand (#18). 

In addition, the Berlinale Co-Production Market will again be providing an important networking platform from 16 to 19 February. As a central meeting point, it is geared to meeting the specific needs of internationally experienced producers and financiers and also offers an interesting programme of panels and case studies. 34 projects were selected from 600 submissions. This year saw German Films selecting five producers without any international co-production experience - Virginia Martin (Contando Films), Vincent Edusei (Carousel Film), Claus Reichel (filmfaust), Michael Kalb (Michael Kalb Film Production) and Kamran Sardar Khan (East End Film) - to have access as visitors to some of the Berlinale Co-Production Market’s events so that they can expand their international network for future co-productions.

All of the German productions and co-productions in Berlin at a glance:

Competition 
STERBEN by Matthias Glasner (Port au Prince, Schwarzweiss Filmproduktion, Senator Film Produktion)
FROM HILDE WITH LOVE (IN LIEBE, EURE HILDE) by Andreas Dresen (Pandora Film, Ziegler Film, Iskremas Filmproduktion)
ARCHITECTON by Victor Kossakovsky (DE/FR, Ma.ja.de.)
FOREIGN TONGUE (TANDEM) by Claire Burger (FR/DE/BE, Razor Film Produktion)
MY FAVOURITE CAKE (KEYKE MAHBOOBE MAN) by Maryam Moghaddam, Behtash Sanaeeha (IR/FR/SWE/DE, Watchmen Productions)
THE EMPIRE (L’ EMPIRE) by Bruno Dumont (FR/IT/DE/BEL/POR, Red Balloon Film)
PEPE by Nelson Carlos De Los Santos Arias (DOM, NAM/DE/FR, Pandora Film Produktion)
THE DEVIL’S BATH (Des Teufels Bad) by Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz (AT/DE, Heimatfilm)

Encounters
DIRECT ACTION by Guillaume Cailleau, Ben Russell (DE/FR, CASKFILMS)
IVO by Eva Trobisch (Studio Zentral, Trimafilm)
DEMBA by Mamadou Dia (SEN/DE, NiKo Film)
CIDADE;CAMPO by Juliana Rojas (BRA/DE/FR, Sutor Kolonko)
SLEEP WITH YOUR EYES OPEN (DORMIR DE OLHOS ABERTOS) by Nele Wohlatz (BRA/ARG/TWN/DE, Blinkerfilm)

Berlinale Special Gala
CUCKOO by Tilman Singer (DE/US, Fiction Park)
TREASURE by Julia von Heinz (DE/FR, Seven Elephants)

Berlinale Special
SUBJECT: FILMMAKING (FILMSTUNDE_23) by Edgar Reitz (if...Productions)
THE EMPTY GRAVE (DAS LEERE GRAB) by Agnes Lisa Wegner, Cece Mlay (DE/TZ, Kurhaus Productions)
BATTLE IN HEAVEN by Carlos Reygadas (MX/DE/BE/FR, Essential Film)
TURN IN THE WOUND by Abel Ferrara (UK/DE/IT/US, Maze Pictures)
ELEVEN TOMORROWS: BERLINALE MEETS FOOTBALL (ELF MAL MORGEN: BERLINALE MEETS FUSSBALL) by Maximilian Bungarten, Anna-Maria Dutoit, Kilian Armando Friedrich, Indira Geisel, Eva Gemmer, Felix Herrmann, Hannah Jandl, Justina Jürgensen, Hilarija Ločmele, Daniela Magnani-Hüller, Sophie Mühe, Camille Tricaud, Marie Zrenner

Panorama
SCORCHED EARTH (VERBRANNTE ERDE) by Thomas Arslan (Schramm Film)
I SAW THREE BLACK LIGHTS by Santiago Lozano Álvarez (CO/MX/FR/DE, Autentika Films) 
FARUK by Asli Özge (DE/TR/FR, EEFilms)
THE OUTRUN by Nora Fingscheidt (UK/DE, Weydemann Bros.)
ZEIT VERBRECHEN 1: DEZEMBER by Mariko Minoguchi (X Filme Creative Pool)
ZEIT VERBRECHEN 2: DER PANTHER by Jan Bonny (X Filme Creative Pool)
ZEIT VERBRECHEN 3: DEINE BRÜDER by Helene Hegemann (X Filme Creative Pool)
ZEIT VERBRECHEN 4: LOVE BY PROXY by Faraz Shariat (X Filme Creative Pool)
EVERY YOU EVERY ME (ALLE DIE DU BIST) by Michael Fetter Nathansky (DE/ES, Contando Films, Studio Zentral/Network Movie)
TEACHES OF PEACHES by Philipp Fussenegger, Judy Landkammer (Avanti Media Fiction)
MY STOLEN PLANET by Farahnaz Sharifi (Jyoti Films)
TONGO SAA (RISING UP AT NIGHT) by Nelson Makengo (COD/BEL/DE/BFA/QAT, Film Five)

Panorama Dokumente
BALDIGA – UNLOCKED HEART (BALDIGA – ENTSICHERTES HERZ) by Markus Stein

Forum
REAS by Lola Arias (AG/DE/CH, Sutor Kolonko)
WHAT DID YOU DREAM LAST NIGHT, PARAJANOV? (WAS HAST DU LETZTE NACHT GETRÄUMT, PARAJANOV?) by Faraz Fesharaki (New Matter Films)
SHAHID by Narges Kalhor (Michael Kalb Filmproduktion)
REPRODUCTION (REPRODUKTION) by Katharina Pethke (Fünferfilm)  
THE INVISIBLE ZOO (DER UNSICHTBARE ZOO) by Romuald Karmakar (Pantera Film, Aden Film)
TRACES OF MOVEMENT BEFORE THE ICE (SPUREN VON BEWEGUNG VOR DEM EIS) by René Frölke (joon film)
WELL ORDERED NATURE (IHRE ERGEBENSTE FRÄULEIN) by Eva C. Heldmann (Eva C. Heldmann Film)
RESONANCE SPIRAL by Filipa César (PT/DE)
THE NIGHTS STILL SMELL OF GUNPOWDER by Inadelso Cossa (MZ/DE/FR/PT/NL/NO, Kaske Film)
HENRY FONDA FOR PRESIDENT by Alexander Horwath (AT/DE, Medea Film Factory)
THE EDITORIAL OFFICE by Roman Bondarchuk (UA/DE/SK/CZ, Elemag Pictures)

Forum Special 
THOSE DAYS IN TEREZÍN (DIESE TAGE IN TEREZÍN) by Sibylle Schönemann (DE/CZ, Ma.ja.de)
TECHQUA IKACHI, LAND - MY LIFE (TECHQUA IKACHI, LAND - MEIN LEBEN) by Anka Schmid, James Danaqyumptewa, Agnes Barmettler (CH/DE)

Forum Expanded 
THE PERFECT SQUARE by Gernot Wieland (DE/BE, Fluentum)
DETOURS WHILE SPEAKING OF MONSTERS by Deniz Şimşek (DE/TU)
I DON’T WANT TO BE JUST A MEMORY (ICH WILL NICHT NUR EINE ERINNERUNG SEIN) by Sarnt Utamachote (Nordic Media House)

Generation Kplus
WINNERS (SIEGER SEIN) by Soleen Yusef (DCM Pictures, Boje Buck Produktion)
PORCELAIN (PORZELLAN) by Annika Birgel (Problemkind Filmproduktion)

Generation 14plus
ELBOW (ELLBOGEN) by Aslı Özarslan (DE/TR/FR, Achtung Panda!)
DISCO AFRIKA: A MALAGASY STORY (DISCO AFRIKA: EINE MADAGASSISCHE GESCHICHTE) by Luck Razanajaona (MD/FR/DE/MAU/SA/QA, NiKo Film)
MAYDEGOL by Sarvnaz Alambeigi (IN/DE/FR)
THE GREAT PHUKET by  Liu Yaonan (FR/HK/DE/BE, Wood Water Films)

Berlinale Shorts 
TAKO TSUBO by Fanny Sorgo, Eva Pedroza
THE WAITING (DAS WARTEN)  by Volker Schlecht, Alexander Lahl, Max Mönch (mobyDok)
UNWANTED KINSHIP (UNGEWOLLTE VERWANDTSCHAFT) by Pavel Mozhar (Mozhar&Volkmar Film)
THAT'S ALL FROM ME by Eva Könnemann (Eva Könnemann Filmproduktion)
PACIFIC VEIN by Ulu Braun (Studio Ulu Braun)
STADTMUSEUM / МOI RAI by Boris Dewjatkin         

Berlinale Classics Special
KOHLHIESEL’S DAUGHTERS (KOHLHIESELS TÖCHTER) by Ernst Lubitsch 

Berlinale Classics 
TIME OF MATURITY (REIFEZEIT) by Sohrab Shahid Saless

Retrospective
DARK SPRING by Ingemo Engström
JUST DON’T THINK I’LL CRY (DENK BLOß NICHT, ICH HEULE) by Frank Vogel
THE GERMAN CHAINSAW MASSACRE (DAS DEUTSCHE KETTENSÄGENMASSAKER) by Christoph Schlingensief
DIE DEUTSCHEN UND IHRE MÄNNER - BERICHT AUS BONN by Helke Sander
THE ENDLESS NIGHT (DIE ENDLOSE NACHT) by Will Tremper 
ANGELS OF IRON (ENGEL AUS EISEN) by Thomas Brasch
PURGATORY (FEGEFEUER) by Haro Senft 
HERZSPRUNG by von Helke Misselwitz 
ME (ICH) by Bettina Flitner 
IN THE COUNTRY OF MY PARENTS (IM LAND MEINER ELTERN) by Jeanine Meerapfel
JESUS - THE FILM (JESUS - DER FILM) by Michael Brynntrup 
KISMET, KISMET by Ismet Elçi
LITTLE GODARD (Der kleine Godard. An das Kuratorium Junger Deutscher Film) by Hellmuth Costard
THE GOAT'S INTENSITY (LEUCHTKRAFT DER ZIEGE – EINE NATURERSCHEINUNG) by Jochen Kraußer
MACUMBA by Elfi Mikesch
AIN’T NOTHING WITHOUT YOU (NICHT NICHTS OHNE DICH) by Pia Frankenberg
SHIRIN’S WEDDING (SHIRINS HOCHZEIT) by Helma Sanders-Brahms