News
05. April 2024
Saksa Kevad
Every year, one federal state uses the German Spring Festival to present itself in Estonia. In 2024, Brandenburg is a partner of the German Spring Festival (April 9 to May 9). For the opening of the Saksa Kevad, the German Film Orchestra Babelsberg will make a guest appearance in Tallinn with guest conductor Christian Köhler and set the silent film classic "Nosferatu - A Symphony…
22. March 2024
Sofia International Film Festival
Sofia Film Fest Bernd Buder, Program Director FilmFestival CottbusLilla Puskas, Medienboard Berlin-BrandenburgKatharina Stumm, connecting cottbusMarcus Rabelo, German FilmsMira Staleva, Director Sofia MeetingsStafan Kitanov, Director Sofia International Film Festival The "Sofia Meetings" also take place parallel to the Sofia International Film Festival. Filmmakers and producers come together here to present their new projects and show excerpts from films that are currently being completed.The audience includes festival…
14. March 2024
Czech Lion Awards
Czech Lion AwardsThe cyberpunk science fiction film Restore Point by Robert Hloz received 4 awards, including Best Cinematography and Best Editing:Robert HlozCZ/SK/PL/RS, 2023, 107 Min2041: In the "Restore Points" - a backup technology for human lives - people who have died a violent death are revived. While investigating a double murder case, Detective Trochinowska stumbles upon a system of conspiracies, corruption and abuse of power…
28. February 2024
Call for submission will be open from April, 30th
The call for submissions for the festival will be open from April 30th 2023. You are welcome to submit your film online. the link to the submission will be open then.
16. February 2024
Berlinale
Film and film festivals are bridge builders and platforms for dialogue. There must be no room for hatred, hate speech and marginalisation here. This was emphasised yesterday by Berlinale Managing Director Mariette Rissenbeek, Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth and Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner in their speeches at the ceremonial opening of the Berlinale. Humanity and cultural diversity are enormously important for a…
12. February 2024
MIOB Network meeting in Vienna
MIOB - Moving Images Open Borders - is a network of seven film festivals: FilmFestival Cottbus (DE)Crossing Europe Film Festival Linz (AT)Festival de Sevilla (ES)European Film Festival Palić (RS)Les Arcs European Film Festival (FR)Scanorama European Film Forum (LT)Trieste Film Festival (IT) A network meeting was recently held in Vienna to develop activities for the next two years. Current projects were discussed and new ideas for…
07. February 2024
Winners of Czech Film Critics' Awards 2023 announced
Excellent films will be screened at the FilmFestival Cottbus! The Association of Czech Film Critics has honoured seven films this year: The animated film Tony, Shelly and the Magic Light by director Filip Pošivač won the Audiovisual Achievement Award and Pošivač received the Newcomer of the Year Award. The film was screened in the KIDS IN CINEMA section in 2023. Directors Ivan Ostrochovský and Pavol…
25. January 2024
When East Meets West
With over 500 guests, the co-production market "When East Meets West" at the Trieste Film Festival once again set a record number of participants.Here, the film projects of tomorrow were pitched and excerpts from new films were shown that will soon be screened at international film festivals - perhaps in Cottbus too? Projects were discussed, ideas exchanged and partnerships forged in lively conversations - a…
After the festival is before the festival - the preparatory phase for the 34th FFC (5-10 November 2024) starts at the beginning of the year, and with it the scouting season.Charlotte Kühn, curator of the youth film competition, will be at the Max Ophüls Preis film festival in Saarbrücken (20-28 January) to look for German entries for her section. The festival in Cottbus' twin city…
14. December 2023
European Shooting Stars: Margaryta Stoykova
Margarita Stoykova, the lead actress in DYAD, which won the FFC Youth Film Competition, is one of the EUROPEAN SHOOTING STARS 2024. The European Film Promotion will present the ten selected actors at the upcoming Berlinale. In DYAD, Stoykova plays a high school student who will do anything to pay for a plane ticket to America to visit her mother, who has emigrated there. This…
11. December 2023
European Film Awards
On 9 December, the European Film Academy presented the European Film Awards in Berlin for the 39th time. In view of the current global crisis symptoms, the mood was reflective. German actress Sandra Hüller, who was honoured as Best Actress, called for a minute's silence for peace, while Polish filmmaker and EFA President Agnieszka Holland recalled the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, the…
05. December 2023
Successful network meeting in Leipzig
The end-of-year reception organised by Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (MDM) is considered one of the most important networking events for the German film scene. Last week, they met in Leipzig's "Felsenkeller", including some representatives of the Lusatian film scene, pictured here are filmmaker Grit Lemke, filmmaker Erik Schiesko, the director of the Neisse Film Festival Ola Staszel, film and theatre scholar Cosima Stracke-Nawka and many others. FFC…
24. November 2023
Winning film DYAD continuing its success
The Bulgarian production DYAD (Yana Titova, 2023, 89 min) wins the prize for best youth film at the 27. Black Nights Film Festival in Tallin. DYAD was also honoured at the 33rd FFC. The film centres on the teenager Dida. Dida bullies, steals and cheats on nude photos of her classmates to earn a plane ticket to a new life with her emigrant mother, but…
22. November 2023
Thank you for your donation
Thank you for your donation 363,60 EUR were collected at the screening of the short film THE BOY at the 33rd FilmFestival Cottbus. We are raising the amount to 500 EUR and sending the money to the family of Yahav Winner. In solidarity with Israel and as a tribute to the Israeli filmmaker Yahav Winner, who was murdered by Hamas terrorists, we screened his short…
20. November 2023
Impressions of the 33rd FFC
MONDAY The festival week began on Monday with the presentation of the first Lusatian child protection award, the Gondula Award, in our festival centre, the Stadthalle. This initiative was launched by Cottbus artist Martin Schüler. The prize money collected through donations totalling 10,331 euros was awarded after an online vote. First place went to the SOS Children's Village Lausitz, which received 5,731 euros. The Pusteblume…
16. November 2023
The 33rd FFC on the streaming site Klassiki
The streaming portal Klassiki is the official online partner of the 33rd FilmFestival Cottbus in the UK and the USA. Festival films can still be viewed there until 30 November, including the film THREE THOUSAND NUMBERED PIECES from the Feature Film competition. Interviews with the filmmakers and background articles can also be found on the Klassiki website. Klassiki is a streaming portal that focuses…
15. November 2023
Cinema tour of the film series What remains of history
The films in the FFC series WAS VON GESCHICHTE ÜBRIG BLEIBT are going on tour. The following films can be seen at KINO KROKODIL in Berlin:Click here to go to the Krokodil website and get your tickets. The film series is supported by the Federal Foundation for the Reappraisal of the SED Dictatorship. Wednesday 15.11. 19.30Diary for my father and motherMárta Mészáros, HU, 1990, 111…
12. November 2023
Festivalblog: Sunday
And here it is, the last day of the 33rd FilmFestival Cottbus. However, great films are still being shown in all the venues today. A programme for the whole family is the brand new fairy tale film from rbb, DAS MÄRCHEN VON DER ZAUBERFLÖTE, which will be shown in the Stadthalle at 10 am. Our opening film BEI UNS HEISST SIE HANKA by Grit…
11. November 2023
Festivalblog: Saturday
Saturday is "Ukrainian Day" at the Cottbus FilmFestival. Seven of the ten films from Ukraine will be screened. PHOTOPHOBIA (1 pm in the Kammerbühne, double feature) shows the everyday life of two children in an underground tunnel in Kharkiv while the city's residents seek shelter from Russian bombs. YOU KNOW IT'S GOING TO BE ABOUT WAR is set in Kyiv (1 pm in the Kammerbühne,…
08. November 2023
Festivalblog: Friday (Updated)
The fourth day of the FFC awaits today and there are great programme highlights to discover! For the second year in a row, the EcoEast series is showing films on ecological topics and sustainability. Aspects such as forestry in the Ukrainian Carpathians (BARTKA) and the melting Tujuksu glaciers in Kazakhstan (VOICE OF THE GLACIER) are the focus of the programme. The documentary film BOTTLEMEN will…
08. November 2023
Festivalblog: Thursday
We are in the middle of the 33rd FFC and there are great event scheduled today. In the evening, a true highlight awaits you with the first Long Night of the Short Lusatians. At 7pm and 9pm there will be a total of ten films from and about Lusatia. BADEN GEHEN (Clemens Schiesko und Matthias Heine) ANKLEIDEZIMMER/HOBLEKAŔNJE (Frauke Rahr) VOM SUCHEN UND FINDEN/PYTAŚ A NAMAKAŚ…
08. November 2023
Festivalblog: Wednesday
The opening ceremony of the 33rd FFC took place yesterday. Many thanks to all guests, participants and sponsors. It was a great start to our festival week! Mayor Tobias Schick with the FFC student jury Programme director Bernd Buder in conversation with presenter Attila Weidemann Director Grit Lemke and protagonists of the opening film BEI UNS HEISST SIE HANKA/PLA NAS GRONJE JEJ HANKA /…
07. November 2023
Festivalblog: Tuesday
At last, the 33rd FilmFestival Cottbus begins today! The FFC will be officially opened at 7pm in the Cottbus State Theatre. Admission is by invitation only. But great films from our programme will already be showing in all venues from 5 pm! You can buy tickets online on our website and at the venues themselves. Simply click on the respective film title! A real…
03. November 2023
Documentaries at the 33rd FFC
Previously untold stories or new perspectives on the familiar - that's what our documentary films offer you this year. Tickets are available in advance up to and including 6 November and then at the venues! Here is an overview (details and ticket purchase possible by clicking on the film title): Russia vs. Lawyers (Masha Novikova DE/NL, 2023, 89 Min) The Constitution of Russia guarantees…
03. November 2023
UKRAINIAN DAY on Saturday, Nov. 11th
The Saturday of the festival is "Ukrainian Day" at the Cottbus Film Festival. Seven of the ten films from Ukraine can be seen on 11 November. As in the previous year, free admission to all films in the FFC programme on this day is available on presentation of a valid Ukrainian passport at the box office. With a total of ten films, the FFC is…
03. November 2023
"Love" at the 33rd FFC
The theme of love in all its facets can be seen in several films at the 33rd FFC. Here is an overview (details and ticket purchase possible by clicking on the film title): Island (Rudolf Havlik Tschechische Republik, 2023, 100 Min) Romcom in picturesque setting: a conflicted married couple has to get it together again in order to survive after a plane crash on…
02. November 2023
"Family" at the 33rd FFC
Many of our films this year focus on the family - and yet they are completely different. From drama to sci-fi to thriller, these films are real highlights in our programme! Here is an overview (details and ticket purchase possible via click on the film title): Tamara (Jonas Ludwig Walter DE, 2023, 97 Min) At some point Tamara left – away from her East German…
26. October 2023
Event: Program director at "Kino für Moabit"
Programme Director Bernd Buder will present the film OTAC/Father (SRB 2020, R: Srdan Golubović, 120 min, OmU) at the travelling cinema "Kino für Moabit" on Friday, 27 October at 7 pm. The event will take place in the Old Lecture Hall of the Moabit Hospital (GSZM). You can read more about the film here. The event is part of the series GEHEN. Screenwriter Ognjen Sviličić…
25. October 2023
FFC Film at the Ukrainian Film Festival Berlin
The opening film of the 32nd FFC, LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG, will be screened at ACUD Kino in Berlin on 28 October at 21:00. LUXEMBOURG, LUXEMBOURG by director Antonio Lukich is about twin brothers Kolya and Vasya who take an adventurous road trip to Luxembourg when news reaches them that their father is dying there. Read more about the film here. A number of Georgian films will also…
17. October 2023
Ticket sale for the 33rd FFC starts today
Dear friends of the FFC, Ticket sales for the 33rd FFC will officially start today. As of now, you have an overview of the approximately 150 productions in our programme. In the section overview you will find the films of the 11 sections of the FilmFestival Cottbus at a glance. Read detailed film descriptions and for many films you can also see the trailer. The…
12. October 2023
MIOB IN SHORTS AWARD - voting starts
Watch & Vote At the 33rd FilmFestival Cottbus the MIOB in Shorts Award will be presented again. YOU can vote which film will win the award! 1. click here to go directly to the MIOB website 2. vote for the film you like the most You can watch all the films for free. MIOB ist ein Netzwerk aus sieben europäischen Filmfestivals und wurde 2017 gegründet.…
04. October 2023
Dyad wins at the Golden Rose National Film Festival
The film Dyad (Yana Titova, Bulgaria, 2023) won several awards at the Golden Rose National Film Festival in Varna, Bulgaria. Dyad will be screened in the U18 Youth Film Competition at the FFC in November. The Golden Rose National Film Festival has been held every 2 years since 1974 and is the most important gathering of the Bulgarian film scene. Dyad tells the story of…
02. October 2023
Cottbus at the Post Space Camp in Kyrgyzstan
The Post Space Film Camp at the Ashu Guest House in the Kyrgyz nature reserve Chon Kemin Valley gathers young filmmakers from Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Buryatia and Sacha for a one-week workshop. Master classes and talks with experts are offered, the guests include renowned Central Asian filmmakers such as the video artist Saadat Ismailova, Darezhan Omyrbaev and Arym Kubat, who will discuss selected works…
27. September 2023
POST SPACE Film Camp in Kyrgyzstan
Programme Director Bernd Buder is a guest at the POST SPACE Film Camp in Kyrgyzstan until 1 October. POST SPACE is a unique film camp where emerging talents from the Central Asian region can present their works to international experts. By hosting filmmakers of different genres and backgrounds, POST SPACE promotes unique perspectives and creative expressions. The aim is to create a platform that enables…
25. September 2023
Cottbus in Pilsen
Every year in Pilsen: this year Bernd Buder, programme director of the FFC, is again at Finále Pilsen (22nd to 27th Sept), the largest national Czech film festival. He is one of the international experts who advise makers of new film projects as part of the "Czech Springboard". Five feature film ideas are presented and receive feedback from 21 invited experts - how can the…
25. September 2023
FFC at the Gdynia Film Festival
This year our short film curator Lucia Wiedergrün was on the road at the 48th Gdynia Film Festival. The Gdynia Film Festival has been taking place since 1974 and is one of the most important showcases for Polish film. The festival is also important for the international market, as numerous other film festivals, including the FFC, select their films for the coming year here. This…
20. September 2023
Our Children's Films '23 at a Glance
The FilmFestival Cottbus is showing five films for children and the young at heart in its 33rd edition this year. All films are shown in the original language and will be translated live into German for you, headphones are available at the box office. The fairytale film is in German. The flyer is available for download here. Here are our films put together for you…
13. September 2023
Event News "The Last Race"
The film "THE LAST RACE" (Czech Republic 2022, director and screenplay: Tomáš Hodan), winner of the Audience Award at FFC'22, will be screened in Berlin for 2 days! The screening will be followed by a discussion in Czech and German with producer Martina Knoblochová (Punkfilm) and actors Bastian Beyer and Simon Kirschner, moderated by Christina Frankenberg (Czech Centre Berlin). 19.09. KinoKrokodil 19:00 Uhr 20.09. Bundesplatz-Kino…
11. September 2023
films from and about Ukraine: prize in Venice, series in Cottbus
PHOTOPHOBIA, the new film by Ivan Ostrochovský and Pavol Pekarčík, was awarded the "Europe Cinemas" label at the Venice Film Festival. Europe Cinemas is a cinema network for the promotion of European film. Financial support is provided to cinemas that show a set minimum percentage of European films. PHOTOPHOBIA screened in Venice in the "Giornati degli Autori" section. Ostrochovský and Pekarčík observe a group of…
07. September 2023
Looking for event support for the 33rd FFC!
The preparations for this year's FilmFestival Cottbus (FFC) are in full swing! The FFC is one of the leading international festivals of Eastern European film. The FFC is an audience festival and with the co-production initiative connecting Cottbus an industry meeting point for Central and Eastern European cinema. For six days, all of Cottbus is in festival fever, with over 150 films to be seen…
07. September 2023
Fools now in the cinema
In cinemas September 7th: FFC Film Fools The film Fools (Tomasz Wasilewski PL/DE, 2022) will be released in Germany! exsystent Filmverleih won with Fools the "From Cottbus to Cinema" award in 2022 . The prize is endowed with 10,000 euros by Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg and helps films find their way into the cinema. Jakob Kijas from exsystent Filmverleih explains: "It takes money to get a film into the…
31. August 2023
Reunion with Cottbus films at FilmPOLSKA
From 6 to 13 September it's that time again in Berlin: for the 18th time FilmPOLSKA, the largest Polish film festival outside Poland, will take place.We have been friends and collaborators with its founder and director Kornel Miglus for many years. We congratulate on the festival's first anniversary and are also pleased about the long-standing, fruitful collaboration with the Polish Institute in Berlin. In addition…
18. August 2023
FFC on the road: Sarajevo Film Festival
A view from the "engine room" of the Sarajevo Film Festival: at the "Cinelink" film market, filmmakers - directors, producers, world sales, festival representatives - come together to talk about films that are currently in production. Some are looking for co-producers, others for festivals or distributors. One of the centrepieces is the "works-in-progress" screenings, where 20-minute excerpts are shown from films awaiting their world premieres.…
16. August 2023
Vote for Pickastory
PickastoryAudience Logline Award at the FilmFestival Cottbus Pickastory is an Award at the FilmFestival Cottbus that focusses on the basic idea for a film, involving THE AUDIENCE from the very beginning, a crucially important point of view when it comes to filmmaking, which is often overlooked. What is a logline? A logline is 25 words maximum, describing your entire story. It goes to the heart…
SAFE PLACE, the winning film of last year's FilmFestival Cottbus, won several awards at the national Croatian film festival in the Istrian port city of Pula. Director Juraj Lerotić was awarded Best Director, Goran Marković Best Actor and Marko Brdar Best Cinematographer. With the award for Best Actress in the Competition for Croatian Minority Productions - to Ksenia Marinković, another prize went to an FFC…
25. July 2023
Postira Seaside Film Festival @Kroatien
The thirteenth Postira Seaside Film Festival will take place from 25.07. - 30.07.2023 in the idyllic coastal town of Postira on the island of Brač in Croatia. In the traditionally very strong international competition, fifteen films are vying for the audience award this year.The focus of the twelfth PSFF is on: "Minorities" and in the popular "Midnight Shorts Competition", as every year, somewhat crazier titles…
20. July 2023
EUROPEAN FILM FESTIVAL PALIĆ
Program coordinator Holger Bergmann is in Serbia for us at the 30th EUROPEAN FILM FESTIVAL PALIĆ. More than 130 films from all over Europe will be shown in 15 different sections. Most of the films will experience their national premiere in Palić. The winners of this year's Aleksandar Lifka Award for an outstanding contribution to European cinema, this year are Serbian actor Bogdan Diklić, he…
17. July 2023
Yerevan - crossroads of cultures between East and West
"The 'Golden Apricot' film festival in Yerevan took place for the 20th time this year. With star guests like the Dardenne brothers, the French director Claire Simon and the Filipino arthouse master Lav Diaz. With the latter two, I, Program Director Bernd Buder, had the pleasure and honor of being on the jury of the International Competition, along with Armenian filmmaker Inna Sahakyan and Raed…
10. July 2023
Golden Apricot Film Festival Yerevan (Armenia)
Program Director Bernd Buder is currently on the jury of the Golden Apricot Film Festival Yerevan in Armenia. It is taking place for the 20th time this year. Armenian cinema, since the country's independence in 1991, has been present at international festivals. Bernd Buder is on the jury of the festival, together with Inna Sahakyan (producer from Armenia), Claire Simon (producer from France), Lav Diaz…
10. July 2023
Review: Karlovy Vary
Together with our co-production market connecting cottbus and the medienboard Berlin Brandenburg we had a successful reception in Karlovy Vary! The main prize of the 57th International Film Festival in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, was awarded on Saturday evening to the Bulgarian-German film "Blagas Lessons" by director Stefan Komandarev. Lead actress Eli Skortcheva was named best actress. In the film, retired teacher Blaga falls victim…