A FADING MAN in the Tiger Competition in Rotterdam

The International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) will take place from January 29 to February 8, 2026. A diverse and exciting program has been put together for the 55th edition. The line-up includes 47 German productions and co-productions.

The German production A FADING MAN by Welf Reinhardt will participate in the Tiger Competition category at the upcoming edition of the IFFR. The dramedy is about the marriage of artist Hanne and pastor Bernd, who face new challenges when Hanne's ex-husband Kurt shows up at their door. Due to dementia, Kurt cannot remember that they have been divorced for years, while Hanne suddenly finds herself attracted to both men.

DISSONANCE by Jordan Strafer is participating in the Tiger Short Competition. In it, the American video artist fictionalizes a famous rape trial that took place in the United States in the 1990s.

The German production WHY HASN'T EVERYTHING DISAPPEARED YET by Stefan Koutzev will be screened in the Bright Future section. It tells the story of Sori, who, after dropping out of college, lives aimlessly in Cologne as a gallery assistant and hides his true self from his family in Seoul. As he drifts through late summer city life, finds solace in drawing, and memories of military service resurface, everything condenses into a quiet question of belonging and the place we call home.

HEART OF LIGHT by Cynthia Beatt will be shown in the Harbour section. In this essay film, starring Tilda Swinton, a narrator returns after a long time to the Fiji Islands, where she once grew up. The elements, Fiji's inhabitants, landscapes, Western travelers, and the narrator form a multi-layered and visually impressive narrative: a fictional story embedded in the reality of the islands. SONGS OF HOPE AND DESPAIR is an experimental music film by the Russian art collective Chto Delat, which stages a flash mob in a former German mining town, reflecting current political tensions.

The Limelight and Cinema Regained sections present films that have been shown at festivals in recent years, including the German productions SILENT FRIEND by Ildikó Enyedi, GAVAGAI by Ulrich Köhler, NO HIT WONDER by Florian Dietrich, and the German Oscar® entry SOUND OF FALLING by Mascha Schilinski (Limelight). Also featured are AMRUM by Fatih Akin, HOLOFICTION by Michal Kosakowski, PETER KAMMERER/PASOLINI by Antonia Weiße, and THE RIVER IS MURDEROUS by Hark Bohm (Cinema Regained).

The Focus: The Future Is Now section aims to explore women's cinema from different eras, showing a mix of classics and world premieres. German productions DUMP by Christina Friedrich, SPINACH AND SUGAR by Laura Laabs, and UNSERE NATUR by Marlene Denningmann will be screened. The Displacement Film Fund was established to support the work of displaced filmmakers or filmmakers who tell authentic stories about the experiences of displaced people. SUPER AFGHAN GYM by Shahrbanoo Sadat will be shown in this section.

The Short & Mid-Length program offers a unique selection of films less than 63 minutes in length. This year's lineup includes the German productions JUGGERNAUT by Friederike Kersten and Michaela Metzger, LIL TWIN by Tibor Koehne, OVERWORK by Céline Berger, and THE MUSCLES ARE TENSE by Mahshid Mahboubifar.

The Education Section is aimed at school and university students and showcases a wide range of cinematic art. German productions here include BACKFLIP by Nikita Diakur, PATCH by Gerd Gockell, DER STACHEL IM PO by Elena Walf, T-REX by Julia Ocker, and TIGER by Kariem Saleh.

All German productions and co-productions in Rotterdam at a glance:

Tiger Competition
A FADING MAN (DER VERLORENE MANN) by Welf Reinhardt (Maverick Film)
SILENT FLOOD by Dmytro Sukholytkyy-Sobchuk (UA/DE, Elemag Pictures)
A MESSY TRIBUTE TO MOTHERLY LOVE by Dan Geesin (NL/DE/BL, Leitwolf)

Big Screen Competition
2m2 by Volkan Üce (BE/DE/TR, 2pilots, filmfaust)
BUTTERFLY by Itone Somier Guttormsen (NO/SE/UK/DE, Nordfilm)

Tiger Short Competition
DISSONANCE by Jordan Strafer

Bright Future
WHY HASN'T EVERYTHING DISAPPEARED YET (WARUM IST NICHT SCHON ALLES VERSCHWUNDEN) by Stefan Koutzev (Academy of Media Arts Cologne)
LET THEM BE SEEN by Nolitha Refilwe Mkulisi (ZA/DE, Brown Flamingo Productions)

Harbour
HEART OF LIGHT by Cynthia Beatt (DE/FR, Black Forest Films)
SONG OF HOPE AND DESPAIR (LIEDER VON HOFFNUNG UND VERZWEIFLUNG) by Chto Delat (Kunstmuseum Moritzburg Halle (Saale), Werkleitz Gesellschaft, Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg, Institute of Global Reconstitution)
EARTH SONG by Erol Mintaş (FI/DE, Elemag Pictures)
A USEFUL GHOST by Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke (TH/FR/SG/DE, Mayana Film)
CALLE MÁLAGA by Maryam Touzani (ES/FR/DE, One Two Films)

Limelight
SILENT FRIEND by Ildikó Enyedi (DE/FR/HU, Pandora Film)
SOUND OF FALLING by Mascha Schilinski (Studio Zentral)
GAVAGAI by Ulrich Köhler (DE/FR, Sutor Kolonko)
ROMERÍA by Carla Simón (ES/DE, Ventall Cinema)
TWO PROSECUTORS (ZWEI STAATSANWÄLTE) by Sergei Loznitsa (FR/DE/NL/LV/RO/LT, LOOKSfilm)
NO HIT WONDER by Florian Dietrich (PANTALEON Films, Warner Bros. Entertainment, Erfttal Film- und Fernsehproduktion, Koryphäen Film, Magic Media Production)
THE LITTLE SISTER by Hafsia Herzi (FR/DE, Katuh Studio)
RETURN TO SILENT HILL by Christophe Gans (UK/DE/RS, Maze Pictures, Supernix)

Cinema Regained
AMRUM by Fatih Akin (bombero International, Rialto Film, Warner Bros. Film Productions Germany)
HOLOFICTION by Michal Kosakowski (DE/AT, Kosakowski Films)
PETER KAMMERER/PASOLINI by Antonia Weiße
THE RIVER IS MURDEROUS (NORDSEE IST MORDSEE) by Hark Bohm (West Germany, Hamburger Kino-Kompanie Hark Bohm Filmproduktion, Maran Film)
FETISCH by Malga Kubiak (SE/PL/UA/FR/DE)
HABIBI HUSSEIN by Alex Bakri (PS/DE/SA/SE)

Focus: The Future Is Now
THREE WAYS OF RETURNING by Mania Akbari, Xiaolu Guo, Andrea Luka Zimmerman (CN/DE/IR/UK)
DUMP by Christina Friedrich (Madonnenwerk)
SPINACH AND SUGAR (ENKEL DER GESCHICHTE) by Laura Laabs (Filmuniversität Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF)
UNSERE NATUR by Marlene Denningmann (Kirberg Motors)

Displacement Film Fund / Specials
SENSE OF WATER by Mohammad Rasoulof (IR/DE, Run Way Pictures)
SUPER AFGHAN GYM by Shahrbanoo Sadat (Adomeit Film)
WHISPERS OF A BURNING SCENT by Mo Harawe (SO/AT/DE, Lost Frames Films)

Short & Mid-Length
JUGGERNAUT by Friederike Kersten, Michaela Metzger (NEOZOON)
LIL TWIN (PICCIN GEMELLONE) by Tibor Koehne
OVERWORK by Céline Berger
THE MUSCLES ARE TENSE by Mahshid Mahboubifar (DE/IR)
FORGET THE DIRECTOR, THIS IS EMMY'S CUT! by Marion Desmaret (UG/DE)
DETRITUS by Deborah S. Phillips, Zuzanna Marczak

Art Direction: Immersive Media
AFTER THE GAME by Jana Stallein (Fantastic Foe, Filmuniversität Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF)

Art Directions: Sound//Vision
VJ EMMY: UGANDAN LIVE DUBBING by VJ Emmy (UG/DE)

Education
BACKFLIP by Nikita Diakur (DE/FR, Ugly Film)
PATCH by Gerd Gockell (Gerd Gockell Filmproduktion)
DER STACHEL IM PO by Elena Walf
T-REX by Julia Ocker
TIGER by Kariem Saleh

Contact:
Sylva Häutle (Head of Festival Relations & Producers Liaison)
Angela Sonntag (Head of Press & Public Relations)

Impressum

German Films Service + Marketing GmbH
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80331 München/Deutschland

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