The following German co-productions are in the shortlist alongside the German entry:

• ARMAND by Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel (NO/NL/SE/DE, One Two Films) - Norway
• SANTOSH by Sandhya Suri (UK/FR/IN/DE, Razor Film Produktion) - United Kingdom

On January 17, 2025, the Academy will reveal which five of the 15 films in the shortlist will be going forward to the final selection to take part in the competition for the Oscar® in this category. Films from 85 countries were accepted for consideration for the selection.
In August, a nine-member independent jury had selected THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG  from 13 submissions as the German entry for the „Best International Feature Film“ Oscar® category.

About the film:
Iman (Misagh Zareh) has just been promoted as an examining magistrate at the Revolutionary Court in Tehran when a huge protest movement sweeps the country following the death of a young woman. Although the demonstrations increase and the state cracks down with ever tougher measures, Iman decides to side with the regime, upsetting the balance of his family. While the devout father struggles with the psychological strain of his new job, his daughters Rezvan (Mahsa Rostami) and Sana (Setareh Maleki) are shocked and electrified by the events. His wife Najmeh (Soheila Golestani), on the other hand, is desperately trying to keep everyone together. Then Iman realises that his service weapon has disappeared and he suspects his family ...

The film had its world premiere in competition at this year's Cannes Film Festival where it received, among others, the Competition's Special Jury Prize, the FIPRESCI Prize, the European Art House Cinemas Award (AFCAE), the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury and the Prix François Chalais for Best Film. The film was subsequently screened at other film festivals such as Locarno, Telluride, Toronto, San Sebastian as well as important autumn festivals in the USA.
THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG  also won the following prizes - among others: Audience Award for Best International Feature - Sydney Film Festival (Australia), Audience Award For Best European Film - San Sebastian Film Festival (Spain), Silver Hugo for Best Screenplay - Chicago International Film Fest (USA) as well as the Arab Critics‘ Award for European Films.

THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG  was produced by Run Way Pictures (Hamburg) in co-production with Parallel45, ARTE France Cinéma and with the participation of ARTE France and in cooperation with Films Boutique. The film was supported by L' aide aux cinémas du monde, Centre National du Cinéma et de L' image Animée, Institut Français and MOIN Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein.

The German distributor Alamode will release the film in German cinemas on December 26, 2024.  Films Boutique is handling international sales. In North America, NEON is responsible for the film’s distribution in North America and released the film nationwide in US cinemas on November 27, 2024.

Mohammad Rasoulof is a director, screenwriter and producer who was born in Iran and has lived in Germany for many years. In 2011, he received  the award for Best Director in Cannes for his film GOODBYE (BÉ OMID É DIDAR), and won the Golden Bear in Berlin in 2020 for THERE IS NO EVIL.

The shortlist for the short films was also unveiled:

Live Action Short Film
CRUST (KRUSTE) by Jens Kevin Georg (Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF)

Animated Short Film
THE WILD-TEMPERED CLAVIER by Anna Samo (Tiger Unterwegs Filmproduktion)

The German production HOLLYWOOD GATE by Ibrahim Nash'at (DE/US, Rolling Narratives) has entered the race in the BEST DOCUMENTARY category.

In addition, German filmmakers were nominated for the shortlist in the following categories for their participation in these films:

• Best Original Score (Volker Bertelmann) for CONCLAVE
• Best Makeup and Hairstyling (Heike Merker) for MARIA

The Oscar® awards ceremony will be held at the Dolby® Theatre in Hollywood on 2 March, 2025.
Further information about the 97th Oscars® and the regulations can be found here.