German cinema is once again represented this year with productions and co-productions across various sections of the festival. A total of 22 German films have been selected for the festival line-up, including the Immersive sections, while a further twelve projects will be presented at the Venice Production Bridge. Their selection highlights the artistic diversity, international connectivity and strong presence of German filmmakers within contemporary world cinema.

The German production DAU by Ilya Khrzhanovskiy has been selected for this year’s main competition, Venezia 83 Competition. Inspired by the Soviet physicists who developed the atomic bomb, DAU tells the story of a Greek-born physicist who lived in the USSR from 1928 to 1968 and is forced to put his scientific genius at the service of the state. Spanning four decades, the film is both an intimate portrait of one man and a monumental depiction of a society in which personal decisions and everyday compromises are inextricably linked to the major upheavals of history. Among the 20 films in the main competition is also the Irish-American production BUCKING FASTARD by German director Werner Herzog, a drama based on the true story of English twin sisters Freda and Greta Chaplin.

The Venezia Open – Out of Competition – Non Fiction section features two German documentaries: FROM INSIDE OUT – THE ARCHITECTURE OF PETER ZUMTHOR by Wim Wenders and IMPERIUM by Sergei Loznitsa. Wenders’ 3D documentary portrays Zumthor’s radical approach to designing buildings from the inside out and rooting them deeply within their local surroundings. IMPERIUM is a visual journey across the vast expanses of the Soviet Union, composed entirely of archival footage shot between 1970 and 1973 by a group of Italian filmmakers.

Orizzonti, another competitive section, is dedicated to discovering new aesthetic and expressive trends in independent cinema from around the world. The majority German production OASIS by Jannis Lenz has been selected for the section. The drama centres on a conflict that escalates in a schoolyard. Rather than facing the accusations of the adults around them, three outsiders seek refuge in nature, where, removed from society, they create their own rules and norms.

Two further German productions will compete in the parallel section Giornate degli Autori. CAMOUFLAGE by Mykyta Gibalenko follows Vitaly, a Ukrainian who hopes to build a new life for himself as a student in Munich. With the outbreak of the war on February 24, 2022, that dream is shattered. I PLANT MY HAND IN THE GARDEN by Hoda Taheri and Boris Hadžija is a fictional drama based on autobiographical experiences and follows Hoda, an Iranian refugee living in Berlin, and Boris, a queer gay man from Serbia. The two attempt to build a life together but encounter numerous challenges along the way.

A total of seven German productions and co-productions will be presented across different sections of Venice Immersive. These include the majority German projects OCTOPOCALYPSE by Max Sacker and Arite Szadkowski and RAJ’IN (WE SHALL RETURN) by Faiz Abu Rmeleh and Keren Manor, both screening In Competition, as well as IN 36,000 WAYS by Karim Ben Khelifa and THE AMUSEMENT by Marc Barnes, which will be shown Out of Competition.

As the official film market of the Venice International Film Festival, the Venice Production Bridge is specifically dedicated to supporting unreleased projects and advancing their development, financing and completion throughout the entire production process. This year, twelve German productions have been invited to present their work-in-progress projects.

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

Venezia 83 Competition
DAU by Ilya Khrzhanovsky (DE/FR/UA/SE, Phenomen Berlin, Essential Filmproduktion)

Venezia Open – Out Of Competition - Non Fiction
FROM INSIDE OUT – THE ARCHITECTURE OF PETER ZUMTHOR by Wim Wenders (DE/CH, Road Movie, DCM)
HOLY WOOD DUST by Victor Kossakovsky (IT/ES/DE, Doppelplusultra Filmproduktion)
IMPERIUM by Sergei Loznitsa (DE/IT/FR/LT, Essential Filmproduktion)
LISTY (LETTERS FROM THE SILENCED COUNTRY) by Andrei Kutsila (PL/DE/LT, Inselfilm Production)

Orrizonti
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF JO: CHAPTER PHAEDRA by Jacqueline Lentzou (GR/DE/FR, Kelek Film)
MORAGHEB (FALLING HOUSE) by Mohsen Gharaei (IR/US/DE, BASIS BERLIN Filmproduktion)
OASIS (OASE) by Jannis Lenz (DE/AT, Zeitgeist Filmproduktion, Third Picture)
THE DIFFICULT BRIDE by Rubaiyat Hossain (FR/BD/PT/NO/DE, Tandem Production)
LA RAGAZZA CON LA LEICA (THE GIRL WITH THE LEICA) by Alina Marazzi (IT/DE, Komplizen Film)
DO KRAJA DANA (UNTIL THE DAY ENDS) by Jelena Maksimović (SRB/BUL/SLO/MNE/DE, Kelek Film)

Venezia Spotlight
EU CONTEZ (I MATTER) by Alina Șerban (RO/DE/BE, Untold Stories)

Venezia Classics
YESTERDAY GIRL (ABSCHIED VON GESTERN) by Alexander Kluge (Kairos-Film)

Venice Immersive – In Competition
OCTOPOCALYPSE by Max Sacker, Arite Szadkowski (Luma Octo)
RAJ’IN (WE SHALL RETURN) by Faiz Abu Rmeleh, Keren Manor (DE/PS, NowHere Media)
SOLWATA by Felix Gaedtke, Gayatri Parameswaran (US/DE/SB, NowHere Media)

Venice Immersive – Out Of Competition
IN 36.000 WAYS by Karim Ben Khelifa (Atelier Non-Fiction)
THE AMUSEMENT by Marc Barnes (DE/FR, Curvature Games)

Biennale College Cinema – Immersive
LIBRARY OF DREAMS by Zhenya Rzheznikova, Alina Savelyeva (IL/DE)
THE WHITE SABOTEUR by Barthelemy Antoine-Lœff, Hugo Arcier (FR/DE)

Giornate degli Autori
CAMOUFLAGE by Mykyta Gibalenko (Kalekone Film, HFF Munich University of Television and Film)
DEAR AJAYI by Damilola Orimogunje (NG/DE, MAYANA FILMS)
I PLANT MY HAND IN THE GARDEN by Hoda Taheri und Boris Hadžija (DE/RS/US, German Film and Television Academy Berlin)

VENICE PRODUCTION BRIDGE

Final Cut
MEHAL SEFARI by Abraham Gezahagne (ET/CA/DE/NL/NO/SA, 2Pilots)

Gap Financing Market
A YEAR WITHOUT SUMMER by Flurin Giger (CH/DE, Heimatfilm)
ALL CLEAR by Christina Tynkevych (UA/DE/LU, Fiction Park)
CHOCOLAT AMER by Valentin Merz (CH/DE)
KURINJI by Payal Sethi (IN/FR/DE, 70 Steps)
LA MANCHE by Damian Kocur (PL/DE/FR, Oma Inge Film)
LIONFISH by Thanasis Trouboukis (GR/DE, Studio Zentral)
THE HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE by Lene Berg (NO/SE/DE, ALMA BANG)
TOXIC by Jessica Hausner (AT/DE/FR/SE, Schubert Film)

Immersive Projects
AFTER THE FLOOD by Chloé Lee (Reynard Films)
THE BERLIN WALL by Karim Ben Khelifa and Tina Ahrens (FR/DE, Filmtank)

Biennale College Cinema – Immersive Projects
ISABELLA, MAD WITH LOVE by Giulia Falciani (DE/IT, Studio Fazi)