| The feature film ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT by Edward Berger (Amusement Park Film) will enter the race for Germany for the 95th Oscars® in the category Best International Feature Film. The decision was made by an independent jury whose members were appointed by various associations working within the German film industry. A total of nine films were submitted for consideration and then watched on the big screen by the following committee members.
The jury members were:
- Produzentenverband e.V.: Christiane Sommer (Razor Film)
- Allianz Deutscher Produzenten - Film & Fernsehen e.V. / Sektion Kino: Corinna Mehner (Blue Eyes Fiction)
- Verband deutscher Filmexporteure e.V.: Julia Weber (Global Screen)
- Verband der Filmverleiher e.V.: Jasna Vavra (Leonine Filmdistribution)
- Hauptverband deutscher Filmtheater Kino e.V.: Susanne Fläxl (Cineplex Neufahrn)
- Verband der Deutschen Filmkritik e.V.: Dunja Bialas
- Bundesverband Regie e.V.: Katrin Gebbe
- Deutsche Filmakademie e.V.: Maria Furtwängler, Heide Schwochow
About the film:
ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT is a great German anti-war novel and a classic of world literature from 1928, its authenticity and power drawing upon Erich Maria Remarque's own experiences in the trenches.
ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT tells the gripping story of a young German soldier on the Western Front of World War I. Paul and his comrades experience first-hand how the initial euphoria of war turns into desperation and fear as they fight for their lives, and each other, in the trenches.
Even years later, the story set in 1918 has lost none of its power and relevance. As the first German-language screen adaptation, the story is told from the German point of view of the war occupying a relevant position in the confrontational tone of the current discourse since no other society has succumbed to its destructive impulses as often as Germany did. There are no heroes in war. No victors, only lost innocence and dashed hopes. The utter futility, the losses suffered in war and the danger posed by the principles of nationalism and separation is a message that the film aims to convey to the world as an anti-war film.
ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT is a production by Amusement Park Film for Netflix. The film will have its world premiere in the section Special Presentations at the Toronto International Film Festival on 12 September, 2022. The European premiere will be held as a gala premiere during the Zurich Film Festival. Netflix will cooperate with distribution partner 24 Bilder for the film’s nationwide theatrical release in Germany on 29 September, 2022. ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT will then open in US cinemas in October and can be seen on Netflix starting October 28, 2022.
Here is the statement of the chairwoman Maria Furtwängler (German Film Academy):
“The jury recognises a radical work with its choice of ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT. It is unsparing in its portrayal of the machinery and dehumanisation of war through the material symbolism of bullet-ridden uniforms, trenches collapsing and shattered bodies. The violence of the events translates into powerful imagery from which there is no escape. The Iron Generation of the 1910s presents itself as the Lost Generation whose individual destinies mercilessly perish in teeming battle scenes. Edward Berger exposes with clarity how those vainglorious decision-makers detached from the real world display an arrogant vanity in sending the young soldiers into battle and sacrificing them without any feelings of conscience. The first German film adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque's almost hundred-year-old novel is startlingly topical and makes a powerful statement against war.”
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will publish a list of all titles submitted in the Best International Feature Film category in the second week of October 2022. On December 21, 2022, the Academy will announce a shortlist of the 15 selected films still in the running for the Oscar® in this category. The five nominated films will then be selected from this shortlist and announced on January 24, 2023.The award ceremony will take place on March 12, 2023. | |
| The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the finalists of this year’s Student Academy Awards®.
In the category „Animation“ one German film produced by Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF is preselected. In the category „Narrative“ the German film schools are represented with four of seven finalists – an outstanding success. This year, for the first time, there are no separate categories for US and international films, all university films compete in the four categories "Narrative", "Documentary", "Animation", "Alternative/Experimental" for three gold, silver and bronze prizes each. The winners are announced in September. The award ceremony will take place in October in Los Angeles.
The German finalists are:
Animation
LAIKA & NEMO by Jan Gadermann, Sebastian Gadow (Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF)
Narrative
ALMOST HOME by Nils Keller (University of Television and Film Munich HFF)
THE BOY WHO COULDN’T FEEL PAIN by Eugen Merher (Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg)
ROOMS (EIGENHEIM) by Welf Reinhart (University of Television and Film Munich HFF)
SONGS OF A CARETAKER (AUF PLATTE) by Pascal Schuh (Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF) | |
| The Festival de Cine Alemàn in Buenos Aires will be back in the Cinepolis Recoleta cinemas again for its 22nd edition! Film buffs will be able to discover new German feature films, documentaries and short film highlights here from 8 to 14 September, 2022.
German Films will be collaborating with the Goethe Institut and Argentinean distributors to present a week of film screenings and will also have the opportunity to welcome a guest from Germany again this year. Matti Geschonneck will present the film THE CONFERENCE to Argentinean audiences and answer their questions after the screenings.
The festival will open on 8 September with Maggie Peren’s film THE FORGER. The historical drama, starring Louis Hoffmann, premiered in Berlin earlier this year.
A diverse programme of German filmmaking will be presented to the Argentinean audience in compliance with the currently applicable hygiene regulations: internationally renowned directors such as Wim Wenders and Matti Geschonneck as well as young talents like Sabrina Sarabi and Florian Dietrich will feature in the line-up alongside up-and-coming filmmakers from NEXT GENERATION SHORT TIGER’s 2022 programme.
The festival is collaborating with the Goethe Institut on organising a panel discussion, entitled "La Conferencia de Wannsee: a 80 años de un plan Monströse", between Matti Geschonneck and Jonathan Karszenbaum, director of the Holocaust Museum in Buenos Aires, about the highly charged issue of THE CONFERENCE. Entrance to this event will be free.
There are also plans to stage a special screening of THE CONFERENCE with contemporary witnesses and their descendants. This event is being held in cooperation with the Goethe Institut. Wim Wenders’ PINA will be shown in 3D as the closing film.
The festival is being supported this year by MUBI with prizes of annual subscriptions and by Cinepolis with prizes of cinema tickets.
The programme:
THE FORGER by Maggie Peren (opening film)
LIFE ON TAPE by Melanie Lischker
EVERYTHING WILL CHANGE by Marten Persiel
FUTURE IS A LONELY PLACE by Martin Hawie, Laura Harwarth
COMMITMENT PHOBIA by Helena Hufnagel
NO ONE’S WITH THE CALVES by Sabrina Sarabi
PINA by Wim Wenders
TOUBAB by Florian Dietrich
THE CONFERENCE by Matti Geschonneck
NEXT GENERATION SHORT TIGER 2022 programme
Further information about the Festival of German Films in Buenos Aires can be found here. | |
| Short & Sweet! Our latest podcast episode sees #DamagedGoods writer Lene Pottgießer revealing what she has in common with Madonna and the importance of her dog Sissi in her life. Find out more about Lene and her latest work here. SHORT TAKE – THE GERMAN FILMS PODCAST has already reached over 8,000 listeners from various countries since the format was launched - and the number is growing.
All the episodes are available on our website and wherever there are podcasts.
SHORT TAKE is also on Instagram! | |
| The focus of the next session for the English-language KINO! FILM SALON online film club on September 18th will be on Sebastian Schipper’s VICTORIA.
Our film curator Jim Kolmar selected this movie: “Sebastian Schipper’s VICTORIA is a tour de force of filmmaking technique and raw cinematic power. Ostensibly a crime thriller, the film bristles with energy from the first frame, taking us deep into the kaleidoscopic tumult of Berlin’s chaotic nightlife. Shot in one restless, continuous take, VICTORIA’s ambitious structural gambit is a perfect foil for some striking performances, notably from Laia Costa as Victoria, and rising star Franz Rogowski. The intensity never lets up, making VICTORIA an indelible film, and something of a modern classic.”
You can explore more movies with Franz Rogowski in our September SPOTLIGHT: FRANZ ROGOWSKI at Telescope Film.
RSVP: https://bit.ly/kinofilmsalonvictoria
Date and time: Sunday, September 18th at 11am - 12pm PDT, 2pm - 3pm EDT, 8pm - 9pm CET.
Hosted by Jim Kolmar KINO! FILM SALON is a production of Telescope Film, in collaboration with the German Film Office. | |
| As part of its 2022 partnership with German Films, First Look, the international launchpad for films in post-production, selected six titles, giving their producers the opportunity to present them to industry professionals during the festival’s Locarno Pro Days (August 5-7).
ARTHUR & DIANA by Sara Summa (German Film & Television Academy Berlin)
ELAHA by Milena Aboyan (Kinescope Film)
EMPTY NETS by Behrooz Karamizade (BASIS BERLIN Filmproduktion)
ONE LAST EVENING by Lukas Nathrath (Klinkerfilm)
THREE LIVES LONG by Felicitas Korn (Maze Pictures)
LIFE IS NOT A COMPETITION BUT I'M WINNING by Julia Fuhr Mann (Schuldenberg Films) | |
| This year's Jerusalem Film Festival was held from 21 to 31 July, 2022. Jerusalem has been hosting the international film festival every summer since 1983. National and international films were screened over 10 days from 21 to 31 July, 2022 to show viewers the latest trends in world cinema.
As in previous years, the festival opened in the Sultan Pool at the foot of Jerusalem's Old City Wall and directly adjacent to the renowned Jerusalem Cinematheque.
Together with Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, German Films hosted a dinner for the participants of the industry event. The director Volker Schlöndorff presided over the jury of the Israeli Film Competition, showed his documentary THE FOREST MAKER, and held a master class on working with actors. The jury for the International Competition was made up of Mariette Rissenbeek, László Nemes and Rúnar Rúnarsson. | |
| A total of 41 films from 21 countries were screened in the official selection of the 21st Countryside Animafest Cyprus - Views of the World. Seven German films screened in the International Competition. The country’s main animation film festival was held in the village of Platanistia from 10 to 13 August, 2022.
This was the first time that the international competition was divided into narrative and non-narrative short film categories. Four films were screened in the Professional Films National Competition and 15 films in the Student Films National Competition, while 11 films competed in the Children’s Competition Programme. The selection included works by promising newcomers as well as acclaimed masters.
The festival was organized by the Documentary & Animated Film Festival - Views of the World, the Hambis Printmaking Museum and the Salamiou Youth board, with the official support of the Cyprus Ministry of Education and Culture.
The Grand Prix Dimitris Eipides for narrative and non-narrative shorts in the International Competition, the First Prize in the National Competition, and all the special mentions, were decided by an international jury. This year’s jury was Clémence Bragard (France), an independent programmer and curator specialized in animation, Lucija Mrzljak (Croatia), an award-winning animation filmmaker and illustrator, and Lizzy Hobbs (UK), an award-winning experimental animation filmmaker.
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION 2022:
DAMN IT! by Elena Walf (Germany, 2021/1:09/narrative)
HELLO DARKNESS, MY GOOD FRIEND by Melanie Jilg (Germany, 2022/29:35/narrative)
IN MERCY by Christoph Büttner (Germany, 2022/11:55/narrative)
THE SAUSAGE RUN by Thomas Stellmach (Epeios Productions, Germany, Belgium, 2021/9:50/narrative)
STEAKHOUSE by Špela Čadez (Slovenia, Germany, France, 2021/8:30/narrative)
THE TRAIN DRIVER by Christian Wittmoser (Germany, 2021/5:45/narrative)
CHILDREN FILMS IN COMPETITION 2022
HELLO STRANGER by Julia Ocker (Germany 2021/3:02) | |
| EUROPEAN PRODUCERS CLUB WITH PARTICIPATION FROM GERMANY IN VENICE
The EPC - European Producers Club teamed up with Netflix to launch an initiative to promote women-owned production companies in Europe. More than 40 series pitches were submitted and an independent jury selected six projects that were pitched by women producers to Netflix’s Content Team in Amsterdam. The six selected projects included a series pitch by Gabriele M. Walther, the managing director of Caligari Film- und Fernsehproduktions GmbH - the only one from Germany. The three winners will be announced in Venice on 2 September, 2022, and the prize money of € 50,000, € 20,000 and € 10,000 respectively will be used to develop new projects.
HIROSHIMA ANIMATION SEASON
Two German films competed at this year’s Hiroshima Animation Season (17.8.-21.8.2022): ZOON by Jonathan Schwenk and BACKFLIP by Nikita Diakur both screened in the World Competition. Special lectures about film music and animation were held, starting with Oskar Fischinger’s STUDIE NR 7 and Andreas Hykade with LOVE AND THEFT. The international jury included Florence Miailhe (Animation Director/France) whose first animated feature film THE CROSSING (co-production FR/DE) had won the Jury Distinction at last year's Annecy International Animation Film Festival. | |
| German productions and co-productions in Stony Brook, Los Angeles, Sarajevo and New York. | |
| Prizes for German productions and co-productions in Stony Brook, Guanajuato and Locarno. | |
| International releases of German films in September 2022 supported by the German Films Distribution Support program. DRAGON RIDER in Slovenia (Distributor: Blitz Film & Video Distribution, World Sales: Constantin Film, Theatrical Release: 08 September 2022)
FREIBAD in Switzerland (Distributor: Praesens-Film AG, World Sales: Constantin Film, Theatrical Release: 01 September 2022)
THE CONFERENCE in Argentina (Distributor: Distribuidora Cinematográfica Internacional, World Sales: Global Screen, Theatrical Release: 22 September 2022)
THE CONFERENCE in Chile (Distributor: Distribuidora Cinematográfica Internacional, World Sales: Global Screen, Theatrical Release: 01 September 2022)
THE CONFERENCE in Portugal (Distributor: Films4You - Cinema, World Sales: Global Screen, Theatrical Release: 29 September 2022)
VEINS OF THE WORLD in Spain (Distributor: Surtsey Films, World Sales: Global Screen, Theatrical Release: 16 September 2022) Please note: Correct at time of going to press. Changes may occur at any time. | |
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