Berlin International Film Festival

In Hamburg, a maternity clinic and art school provide a setting for exploring the experiences of three generations of German women balancing motherhood and careers.

Reproduction

My Two Voices

Three Latin American women share their experiences of immigrating to Canada, confronting violence and the search for belonging in a new country.

My Two Voices

My Father the Guest Worker

My Father the Guest Worker

From 1968 to 1984, a Kurdish man worked as a guest worker at a Hamburg shipyard, rarely leaving a routine that included the fish market and a coffee house.

The Empty Grave

Two individuals work to reclaim the stolen remains of their ancestor from Germany and return them to Tanzania.

The Empty Grave

Sirens Call

A nomadic siren named Una travels through drought-stricken landscapes of the United States, exploring identity and belonging amid the Trump-era and activist merpeople in Portland.

Sirens Call

Monk in Pieces

Sixty years after her first major work, Meredith Monk reflects on her artistic legacy and the future of her performance practice.

Monk in Pieces

Bear

Two filmmakers discuss the ethics of observation while editing 20 minutes of footage about bears, revealing differing views on gender roles and psychology.

Bear

Waters of Pastaza

Children along the Pastaza River engage in traditional fishing and hunting while also using smartphones to watch videos.

Waters of Pastaza

Rising Up at Night

In Kinshasa, residents share personal stories of faith and perseverance while living with limited access to light in their vibrant nightscapes.

Rising Up at Night

Ancestral Visions of the Future

Ancestral Visions of the Future

A €30,000 production grant from Berlinale's World Cinema Fund supported the making of this 90-minute docufiction film, which premiered on 20 February 2025.

Wilfred Buck

Wilfred Buck, an Indigenous Elder from Canada, shares his experiences with displacement, racism, and addiction while reclaiming ancestral star knowledge and celebrating cultural ceremonies.

Wilfred Buck

The Periphery of the Base

The Periphery of the Base

A large-scale infrastructure project in the Gobi Desert faces extreme temperatures and logistical challenges as workers build vital transportation links.

BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions

BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions

W. E. B. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey are portrayed in a blend of historical and fictional narratives that explore Black consciousness through various artistic expressions.

Calls from Moscow

Four queer Cuban exiles make moving telephone calls from a prefabricated estate in Moscow as Russia invades Ukraine, revealing their stark realities.

Calls from Moscow

The City and the City

Six chapters detail the near-total extermination of Thessaloniki's Jewish community in 1943 during the Holocaust, reflecting on its cultural heritage and loss.

The City and the City

The Memory of Butterflies

The Memory of Butterflies

A single photograph of two indigenous boys taken during the rubber trade prompts an investigation into their lost histories and the filmmaker's family ties.

Under the Flags, the Sun

35 years of dictatorship under Alfredo Stroessner left a legacy of abandoned media archives that reveal the regime's propaganda tactics in Paraguay.

Under the Flags, the Sun

Henry Fonda for President

Henry Fonda for President

Henry Fonda's life and career are explored through a 1981 interview with journalist Lawrence Grobel, alongside a historical overview of the United States.

Yalla Parkour

Areeb Zuaiter returns to Gaza to reconnect with her heritage and her mother's legacy while exploring parkour with athlete Ahmed Matar.

Yalla Parkour

The Man Who Drove with Mandela

The Man Who Drove with Mandela

1999•Official selection

Cecil Williams, a British-South African theatre director, played a crucial role in the anti-apartheid movement by posing as Nelson Mandela's chauffeur in the 1960s.

1999 • Official selection

The Moelln Letters

Hundreds of forgotten letters of solidarity resurface thirty years after a racist arson attack in Mölln, Germany, that killed three family members of İbrahim Arslan.

The Moelln Letters

Sirens Call

A nomadic siren named Una travels through drought-stricken landscapes of the United States, exploring identity and belonging amid the Trump-era and activist merpeople in Portland.

Sirens Call

2019 • Official selection

What We Left Unfinished

2019•Official selection

Five incomplete Afghan films from 1978 to 1992 reflect the political turmoil of the Communist regime and its impact on the country's cinema.

What We Left Unfinished

Evidence

Lee Anne Schmitt reflects on her father's involvement with the Olin Corporation while exploring the influence of conservative think tanks on American political discourse.

Evidence

Scars of a Putsch

A military putsch on September 12, 1980, left scars on Turkish democracy, paving the way for an authoritarian regime and political Islam.

Scars of a Putsch

When Lightning Flashes Over the Sea

When Lightning Flashes Over the Sea

Principal photography took place over 175 days in Odesa, Ukraine, capturing the lives of residents amid the challenges of war and loss.

America: Land of the Freeks

America: Land of the Freeks

2018•Official selection

Ulli Lommel travels across the United States, documenting the extremes of life in Donald Trump's America through encounters with unconventional characters.

2018 • Official selection

Towards the Sun, Far From the Center

Towards the Sun, Far From the Center

In sweltering Santiago, two women seek refuge for their blossoming romance amid the rhythms of daily urban life.

Eastern Front

On February 24, 2022, Yevhen and his friends joined a first aid squad on the front line, providing life-saving support and evacuating the wounded for six months.

Eastern Front

Traces of Movement Before the Ice

Traces of Movement Before the Ice

Twenty years after the closure of Swiss publishing house Pendo, its founders' descendants examine and lose sight of its legacy through media experimentation.

Well Ordered Nature

Catharina Helena Dörrien, an 18th-century botanist from Orange-Nassau, shaped nature philosophy and social policy through her innovative floral formulas and regulations.

Well Ordered Nature

Unwanted Kinship

A filmmaker from Belarus investigates Russian and Belarusian war crimes in Ukraine against the backdrop of his Berlin neighborhood.

Unwanted Kinship

Year unknown • Official selection

How to Disappear

•Official selection

In the online war game "Battlefield V," the film explores the history of deserters and the potential for peace through creative audiovisual interventions.

How to Disappear

Leaving and Staying

Uwe Johnson's literary legacy is explored through conversations with readers and acquaintances in Pomerania, highlighting the profound connection between his life and work.

Leaving and Staying

The Secret Drawer

Sicilian journalist Giuseppe Quatriglio's life is documented by his daughter, who films him from his 90th birthday until after his death, revealing family and history.

The Secret Drawer

City Museum / My Paradise

City Museum / My Paradise

A 26-minute essay film presents the city as a subjective paradise where order and chaos continuously interact.

Baldiga: Unlocked Heart

Over 90 minutes, diary excerpts and photographs reveal the life of artist Jürgen Baldiga, who documented the queer scene in West Berlin during the 1980s and 1990s.

Baldiga: Unlocked Heart

Notes from Eremocene

Viera Čákanyová engages with a virtual alter ego to explore themes of isolation and disconnection in the context of Edward O. Wilson's Eremocene.

Notes from Eremocene

The Undergrowth

Three sisters navigate life on the Canary Islands, employing distinct strategies in a world without a breadwinner.

The Undergrowth

Year unknown • Official selection

A Demonstration

•Official selection

Early Modern Europe's scholars cataloged fantastical creatures, prompting a reevaluation of how historical taxonomies shape contemporary perceptions of nature.

A Demonstration

In Ukraine

Bombed-out streets and destroyed Russian tanks fill the screen as the film reveals life in Ukraine since February 24, 2022.

In Ukraine

Alis

Ten teenage girls at a Bogotá boarding school imagine a new classmate named Alis to share their personal stories and experiences.

Alis

The Moon Also Rises

In a quiet harbor, a retired couple navigates the impact of artificial moons on their daily life while reflecting on the origins of light and modernity.

The Moon Also Rises

Baldilocks

Twenty years after surviving childhood cancer, Marthe examines her past through her father's camera, searching for memories of her illness.

Baldilocks

The Long Road to the Director's Chair

The Long Road to the Director's Chair

Fifty years after its filming, lost footage from the 1973 First International Women's Film Seminar in Berlin was rediscovered in the Norwegian National Library.