Opening this year’s Festival is much loved director Wolfgang Becker’s (Good Bye, Lenin!) final film BERLIN HERO (Der Held vom Bahnhof Friedrichstraße). The captivating comedy about an unwitting GDR hero revealed 30 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, is adapted from the 2022 novel by Maxim Leo, and features an all-star ensemble cast including Leonie Benesch, Christiane Paul, Peter Kurth and Daniel Brühl.
Closing the Festival and celebrating its 45th anniversary is Wolfgang Petersen’s DAS BOOT – DIRECTOR’S CUT, screening in 4K nationally and 35mm exclusively at The Astor Theatre in Melbourne. The landmark anti-war epic plunges viewers into the claustrophobic ordeal of a U-boat crew, sustaining extraordinary tension with physical realism, moral gravity, and devastating force.
Three films arrive direct from the 2026 Berlinale, including a duo of powerful female led dramas. Winner of the 2026 Berlinale Audience Award, PROSECUTION (Staatsschutz), follows a self-assured young German-Korean state prosecutor who takes her own case to court, confronting the perpetrators and a justice system that turns a blind eye to far-right extremism.
Set in provincial eastern Germany, HOME STORIES (Etwas ganz Besonderes), is a poignant exploration of inter-generational tensions. When sixteen-year-old Lea auditions for a TV talent show, an identity crisis rises to the surface, and she must decide who she is and what home story she can create from her family’s history.
FOUR MINUS THREE (Vier minus drei) from Austria is a deeply moving drama featuring an outstanding lead performance from Valerie Pachner as Barbara, a professional entertainer forced to face an unspeakable loss. Based on the bestselling novel and incredible true story, FOUR MINUS THREE is tenderly directed by Adrian Goiginger (The Fox, GER23).
This year’s festival Centrepiece is AMRUM, the celebrated new feature from multi award-winning director Fatih Akin starring Laura Tonke, Diane Kruger and Matthias Schweighöfer. A deeply poignant drama about hardworking Nanning (brilliantly played by the young Jasper Billerbeck), a 12-year-old boy who lives on Amrum Island during the final days of WWII. Life on the beautiful, windswept island almost feels like paradise but in the shadows a deeper threat is revealed: the enemy is far closer than he imagined.
In celebration of the premiere of Fatih Akin’s latest work, a selection of three of the acclaimed auteur’s previous films will be screened. HEAD-ON (Gegen die Wand) which, amongst other awards, won the Golden Bear at the 2004 Berlinale, follows two troubled strangers drawn together through a marriage of convenience; THE EDGE OF HEAVEN (Auf der anderen Seite), winner of the Best Screenplay prize at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, a quietly powerful drama in which intersecting lives are reshaped by loss, migration, and chance encounters and GOODBYE BERLIN (Tschick), a warm, offbeat road film about two teenage outsiders whose impulsive summer journey becomes a funny, tender portrait of friendship.
The 2026 Festival Special Presentation is Cannes Film Festival Jury Award winner SOUND OF FALLING (In die Sonne schauen), directed by Mascha Schilinski. The haunting drama follows four girls across four generations experiencing their youth on the same farm in northern Germany. A sensory and poetic epic, this beautifully crafted film has garnered much critical acclaim and was Germany’s entry into the 2026 Academy Awards©.
Also featuring in the New German Cinema selection is 22 LAPS (22 Bahnen), a tender coming of age drama about love and loss. Based on the bestselling novel by Caroline Wahl and from the producers of September 5, the film explores the unbreakable bond between two sisters growing up in a small town.
Set in 1956, HELLO BETTY (Hallo Betty) follows Emmi Creola, a talented copywriter who defies a male dominated workplace by inventing “Betty Bossi”, a fictional housewife who becomes Switzerland’s culinary icon and in turn, a Swiss cultural phenomenon. As Betty’s popularity skyrockets, Emmi struggles to balance the expectations of her public persona with her role as a wife, mother and professional.
From acclaimed director Ulrich Köhler, GAVAGAI is a meta cinematic drama about a film adaptation of Medea being shot in Senegal, starring Maren Eggert (I’m Your Man, GER21) and Jean-Christophe Folly (Triangle of Sadness). The lead actors seek solace in a romance amidst a strained environment on set, then reunite at the film’s premiere in Berlin only to find tensions resurfacing, in this fascinating exploration of identity, privilege and power dynamics.
A standout in the New German Cinema selection is compelling courtroom drama KARLA, based on the powerful true story of the landmark case in Germany. Set in Munich in 1962, twelve-year-old Karla (played by Elise Krieps, daughter of Vicky Krieps, in her exceptional debut), runs away from her family to bring forward serious accusations against her own father. Taking the courageous step of pressing charges, Karla insists on telling her story in court in her own way and is offered quite support by compassionate Judge Lamy (Rainer Bock, The White Ribbon).
The story of KARLA is told with great sensitivity and emotional precision by debut director Christina Tournatzés, who will be a special guest of the Festival and appearing at selected sessions.
I’M NOT STILLER (Stiller) a mystery thriller starring festival favourite Albrecht Schuch (Peacock, GER25). Based on the classic novel by Max Frisch, an American man is mistaken for a Swiss sculptor and arrested for his role in a dubious political affair in 1950s Switzerland.
In A FADING MAN (Der verlorene Mann) Hanne’s orderly life with her partner Bernd is upended when her ex-husband Kurt reappears, completely unaware of their divorce. The couple takes Kurt in temporarily, and what begins as an uneasy coexistence gradually opens up unexpected possibilities for love and life. With sensitivity and quiet humour, first time director Welf Reinhart crafts a drama about getting older and staying young and the comical moments in between.
Delightful documentary film THE TALENTED MR. F. (Der Talentierte Mr. F.) follows two Berlin film students who hoped their animated short film would be their big break. When they discover it has been stolen and submitted to international festivals under another name, they set off on a journey to the USA to confront the culprit.
Adapted from the highly successful German stage play, THE HOLY GRILL (Extrawurst) is a hilarious and witty comedy directed by Marcus H. Rosenmüller. Starring a brilliant ensemble cast, a cultural clash ignites at a tennis club when the committee vote on buying a new barbecue.
And in tribute to the enigmatic German actor Udo Kier who passed away late last year, selected sessions of BLOOD FOR DRACULA will be screened. This delirious cult horror-comedy features a performance from Kier both grotesque and fragile, turning Dracula into a figure of aristocratic decay, doomed appetite, and perversely funny collapse.
The ever popular ‘Kino for Kids’ sidebar, presented by the Goethe-Institut Australia, returns with a superb selection of films for younger cinemagoers and families. From Austria is THE SECRET FLOOR (Das geheime Stockwerk), a playful time-travel adventure shot in stunning Alpine locations; SCHOOL OF MAGICAL ANIMALS 4 (Die Schule der magischen Tiere 4) based on Margit Auer’s bestselling book series, sees the magical phenomenon continue; BARRY & ME (Mein Freund Barry), a breathtaking live-action adventure inspired by the legend of Switzerland’s most famous rescue dog, the St. Bernard; featuring the legendary character Pumuckl, PUMUCKL’S BIG MIX-UP (Pumuckl und das große Missverständnis) combines live action and animation; and in the charming, observant coming-of-age film TOMORROW I’LL BE BRAVE (Ab morgen bin ich mutig) tween angst and young love is explored with a touch of humour and tenderness.
The 2026 HSBC German Film Festival takes place from 6 May – 27 May
Listing details:
Canberra: 6 – 27 May, Palace Electric
Brisbane: 6 – 27 May, Palace James St, Palace Barracks
Adelaide: 6 – 27 May, Palace Nova Eastend Cinemas, Palace Nova Prospect Cinemas
Perth: 7 – 27 May, Luna Leederville, Luna on SX & Palace Raine Square
Sydney: 7 – 27 May, Palace Norton Street, Palace Central, Palace Moore Park
Byron Bay and Ballina: 7 – 27 May, Palace Byron Bay, Ballina Fair Cinemas
Melbourne: 8 – 27 May, Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay, Palace Church St, Palace Cinema Como, Palace Westgarth, The Kino, The Astor Theatre, Pentridge Cinema, Palace Penny Lane
Ballarat: 8 – 27 May, Palace Regent Ballarat
