The German Film Office in New York is pleased to announce the second edition of its KINO! Germany NOW! film program. From April through June 2023, theaters and festivals across the United States are invited to present a curated selection of new films from Germany to in-person audiences. The program includes five striking examples of dazzling talent that continues to emerge from one of the world's great cinematic traditions.

Curated by SXSW film programmer Jim Kolmar, these titles are "idiosyncratic, visionary and inventive, striking a balance between the accessible and the conceptually challenging. It was a true pleasure to curate this selection of films for the KINO! Germany NOW! program. Taken together, the original, substantial pool of potential titles represents a significant berth of themes, influences, aesthetics and, most importantly, talent. Narrowing them down to five was a daunting task, but I believe the results represent a vibrant distillation of the energetic innovation that characterizes German film. While each title is distinct, the selected titles are a collective attempt to reckon with themes of human connection, alienation and emotional intimacy. They aim to tackle the anxieties of the current moment, with an eye on the past, present and future. It's been a thrill and privilege to help make these films available, and I'm looking forward to seeing how audiences respond."

In that spirit, Nicolette Krebitz returns with her latest film, A E I O U: A QUICK ALPHABET OF LOVE, a daring, life-affirming exploration of a complex relationship between an aging actress and her student, asking some difficult questions along the way.

Jöns Jönsson's AXIOM is a curious study of an enigmatic, searching young man who wouldn't be out of place in a Patricia Highsmith novel. Eliding obvious narrative routes, the film grips like a thriller, and has a knack for conveying discomfort. 

KISS MY WOUNDS, a second feature from Hanna Doose, investigates dark family secrets at a Black Forest reunion. Offering a unique spin on the classic chamber drama, the film is another example of subverted expectation, never quite unfurling the way one might expect.

Sophie Linnenbaum's canny exercise in offbeat sci-fi, THE ORDINARIES, employs the daring conceit of a future society rooted in a caste system, and the deep wounds it leaves in human interaction. Despite a surprising sense of humor and an air of wry fable, this is a film with a dark, provocative heart.

Rounding out the selection, Vera Brückner's SORRY COMRADE is an eccentric documentary, a story of unconventional romance across political barriers, and through time. Though steeped in social and historical commentary, the film is fundamentally a film about love.

All films are preceded by a short film selected by the German Short Film Association:

A E I O U: A QUICK ALPHABET OF LOVE by Jan Soldat's STAGING DEATH
AXIOM by Alison Kuhn's FLUFFY TALES
KISS MY WOUNDS by Frédéric Jaeger's THE DELUGE
THE ORDINARIES by Jonatan Schwenk's ZOON
SORRY COMRADE by Jonas Riemer's THE ONE WHO CROSSED THE SEA

From the beginning of April through the end of June 2023, the KINO! Germany NOW! film program is available for in-person screenings in theaters, art house cinemas, regional and local film festivals, film societies, and other venues in the United States. We are pleased to offer special booking conditions for these films, both as a package and individually. For more information, please contact our partner Kino Lorber.

KINO! Germany NOW! introduces up-and-coming and mid-career directors from Germany, each with their own filmmaking background and unique approach to their craft. The German Film Office offers promotional support to venues presenting KINO! Germany NOW! and connects them with filmmakers for in-person and virtual Q&As.

Click here to have a look at the KINO! Germany NOW! 2023 trailer.

KINO! Germany NOW! is presented by the German Film Office, an initiative of the Goethe-Institut and German Films, supported by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, the German Federal Foreign Office, and powered by Kino Lorber and the German Short Film Association.

The German Film Office is an initiative of the Goethe-Institut and German Films. Its mission is to promote films from Germany to New York and US audiences and to strengthen their presence in art house cinemas, cultural and educational institutions, and digital platforms. In collaboration with local partners, its programs give viewers the opportunity to engage with the entire history of German cinema in a variety of formats.

With a library of over 4,000 titles, Kino Lorber has been a leader in independent art house distribution for 35 years, releasing 30 films per year theatrically under its Kino Lorber, Kino Repertory and Alive Mind Cinema banners, garnering seven Academy Award® nominations in nine years. In addition, the company brings over 350 titles yearly to the home entertainment and educational markets through physical and digital media releases. With an expanding family of distributed labels, Kino Lorber handles releases in ancillary media for Zeitgeist Films, Milestone Films, Cohen Media Group, Greenwich Entertainment, Artsploitation, Palisades Tartan, Menemsha Films, Raro Video, and others, placing physical titles through all wholesale, retail, and direct-to-consumer channels, as well as direct digital distribution through over 40 OTT services including all major TVOD and SVOD platforms. In 2019, the company launched its new art house digital channel Kino Now which features over 1300 titles from the acclaimed Kino Lorber library. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kino Marquee initiative was launched pioneering "virtual cinema" releases of art house films with revenue shares that allow audiences to support almost 500 local independent theaters. Kino Lorber was honored with a Special Award from the New York Film Critics Circle for this effort. In 2021, the company launched Kino Cult, an AVOD channel specializing in new and rare, acclaimed genre films. In 2022, Kino Lorber acquired streamer MHz Choice, the leading North American destination for acclaimed international TV.

More information:
Sara Stevenson (Executive Director, German Film Office)
Nick Newman (Film Booking, Kino Lorber)

www.kinogermanynow.com
www.germanfilmoffice.us
www.kinolorber.com

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Contact German Films
Nicole Kaufmann (Head of Regional Desk USA & UK)