Zurich is once again becoming a focal point for the international film industry. Alongside prominent guests from Hollywood and European cinema, around 500 filmmakers are expected to attend and personally present their latest films in Zurich. “With the ZFF, we celebrate cinema, which is currently enjoying great popularity again, particularly among younger generations. With our program, we want to encourage audiences to experience films together on the big screen more often again,” said Christian Jungen, CEO of the Zurich Film Festival, at the official press conference.

At the heart of the 22nd Zurich Film Festival are its two competitions, the Feature Film Competition and the Documentary Film Competition. In the feature film section, Fabian Stumm’s THE IDEAS is competing for the Golden Eye. The drama tells the stories of people facing personal transitions across six episodes. Moving between lightness, melancholy and absurdity, the film explores relationships, past decisions and the question of what comes next.

In its Gala Premieres section, the Zurich Film Festival presents some of the year’s most eagerly anticipated highlights of auteur cinema. This year, the section includes seven majority-German productions. Three German films will celebrate their world premieres. In Andreas Dresen’s LOVE, AFTER ALL, Lore and Harry repeatedly clash over their past, retirement and their future after almost 40 years of marriage. When their daughter announces plans to marry for the third time, further turmoil enters their family life. Frauke Finsterwalder’s road movie EUROTRASH follows writer Philipp and his terminally ill mother Helene on a journey through Switzerland, where they intend to get rid of their fortune. The trip turns into a personal reckoning with family, the past and their difficult relationship. Doris Dörrie’s HOW CAN I HELP? tells the story of an elderly actress who receives assistance from a care robot and unexpectedly begins to trust it. At its centre are questions of self-determination, loneliness and the relationship between humans and artificial intelligence. The section also includes the Cannes successes VISITATION by Volker Schlöndorff, MINOTAUR by Andrey Zvyagintsev and FATHERLAND by Pawel Pawlikowski, as well as the Sundance title THE WEIGHT by Padraic McKinley and AGNES & AMIR by Helena Hufnagel, which celebrated its world premiere in Munich.

The Signatures section features the Oscar entry EVERYTIME by Sandra Wollner and THE DREAMED ADVENTURE by Valeska Griesebach, both of which also had their world premieres in Cannes.

In cooperation with the EurAsia Heart Foundation and Dementia Research Switzerland, the Now/Future section presents current films addressing human rights, social conflicts and sustainable development. The majority-German productions MATERIA PRIMA by Jens Schanze and RESCUE by Sine Plambech are included in this section. Jens Schanze’s documentary follows farmers, herders, miners, activists and political figures in Bolivia, examining their differing expectations regarding lithium mining. In RESCUE, director Sine Plambech follows a man searching for his wife and their two children, who were abducted by Libyan militiamen during the rescue of an overcrowded refugee boat.

Each year, the Hashtag section focuses on a current social issue that shapes or influences public debate. This year’s theme is #artificialintelligence. Among the German productions in the section is FINDING CONNECTION. Florian Karner’s documentary follows people who seek emotional connection and support through artificial intelligence. The film explores how relationships with algorithms develop and the opportunities and conflicts that can arise from them.

Outstanding children’s and family films from around the world are presented in the ZFF for Kids section. This year’s titles include SECRET OF THE STOLEN MASK by Nancy Mac Granaky-Quaye. In the film, Johanna teams up with her friends Anton and Sweta to investigate the disappearance of a special mask connected to her grandfather from Tanzania. DER REGENBOGENFISCH by Florian Moch is an adaptation of Marcus Pfister’s classic children’s book about a fish with shimmering scales who finds friends in an unusual way.

At the Zurich Summit, held in parallel with the festival from 25 to 27 September 2026, several prominent German filmmakers and industry representatives will also take part, including director Edward Berger, Constantin Film CEO Oliver Berben, Komplizen Film producer Janine Jackowski, and Martin Moszkowicz, President of the Zurich Film Festival and Transcontinental Entertainment Studios CEO. Berger will lead the conversation with FilmNation founder Glen Basner on the occasion of the Game Changer Award, while Jackowski and Moszkowicz will discuss global storytelling and the international film market; Berben will join Constantin Film’s Head of Marketing Linda Fiolka for a conversation about TikTok, fandom and film marketing.

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

Feature Film Competition
THE IDEAS (DIE IDEEN) by Fabian Stumm (Postofilm)
HEAD TO HEAD by Ghasideh Golmakani (IR/DE, Ghasideh Golmakani)

Gala Premieres
LOVE, AFTER ALL (ALTE LIEBE) by Andreas Dresen (Kordes & Kordes Film)
EUROTRASH by Frauke Finsterwalder (DE/CH, Walker + Worm)
HOW CAN I HELP? (FRAU WINKLER VERLÄSST DAS HAUS) by Doris Dörrie (Zeitsprung Pictures)
FROM INSIDE OUT – THE ARCHITECTURE OF PETER ZUMTHOR by Wim Wenders (DE/CH, Road Movie, DCM)
VISITATION (HEIMSUCHUNG) by Volker Schlöndorff (Ziegler Film, Volksfilm, STUDIOCANAL, Studio Babelsberg, Mideu Films)
AGNES & AMIR (LIEBLINGSMENSCHEN) by Helena Hufnagel (Nordpolaris)
MINOTAUR (MINOTAURUS) by Andrey Zvyagintsev (FR/DE, Razor Film Produktion)
FATHERLAND (VATERLAND) by Pawel Pawlikowski (PL/DE/IT/FR, Nine Hours)
THE WEIGHT by Padraic McKinley (DE/US, Augenschein Filmproduktion, Construction Filmproduktion)

Signatures
THE DREAMED ADVENTURE (DAS GETRÄUMTE ABENTEUER) by Valeska Grisebach (DE/FR/BG/AT, Komplizen Film, New Matter Films)
THE BLOOD COUNTESS (DIE BLUTGRÄFIN) by Ulrike Ottinger (AT/LU/DE, Heimatfilm, Ulrike Ottinger Filmproduktion)
EVERYTIME by Sandra Wollner (DE/AT, The Barricades)
GENTLE MONSTER by Marie Kreutzer (AT/DE/FR, Komplizen Film)

Now/Future
MATERIA PRIMA by Jens Schanze (Mascha Film, Filmtank)
RESCUE by Sine Plambech (DE/SWE/ISL, Elk Film)

Hashtag #artificialintelligence
FINDING CONNECTION by Florian Karner (DOMAR Film)

ZFF für Kinder
SECRET OF THE STOLEN MASK (DAS GEHEIMNIS DER GESTOHLENEN MASKE) by Nancy Mac Granaky-Quaye (Made For Films)
DER REGENBOGENFISCH by Florian Moch (DE/CH, Claussen+Putz Filmproduktion, STUDIOCANAL)