When filmmakers imagine a festival programmer, they often picture someone hunting for perfection.
That’s not what we’re doing.
We’re hunting for films that will work in a room full of people.
A programmer is building a vibe. A series of moments that make an audience laugh, lean forward, get quiet, or stay after the credits to talk about what they just saw.
So what makes a...
A warm welcome to the new year 2026 – and to the 38th edition of our festival. Another challenging year is on the horizon: spaces for art and culture are increasingly under threat, funding continues to be cut, and creators are working under conditions that are often barely sustainable. After last ... Work in Progress - New FFDD26 motif
We are heading towards the 38th edition of FILMFEST DRESDEN – and would like to give you a first glimpse into this year's theme. From 14 to 19 April 2026, our special programmes will be dedicated to the title ‘Work in Progress’ and will ask how our working world is changing: What forms of fairness ... FFDD26 Outlook: Focus Programmes ‘Work in Progress’
This year, our Regional Focus takes us deep into Saxony's cinematic history – and at the same time pays tribute to one of the most influential figures in local documentary filmmaking: Ernst Hirsch, cameraman, director, archivist and passionate chronicler of his city. To mark his 90th birthday, we ... FFDD26 Outlook: Regional Focus with Works by Ernst Hirsch
With our Discourse Europe series, we are opening our doors to Latvia this year. In two programmes, we encounter filmmaking that is as poetic as it is political, as idiosyncratic as it is experimental – and which is still far too rarely seen on the big screen in this country. Together with guest ... FFDD26 Outlook: Discourse Europe Latvia
This year, we are celebrating a special anniversary at FILMFEST DRESDEN: our Focus Québec looks back on 20 years of extraordinary filmmaking from the French-speaking Canadian province. Québec is a creative film region with a distinctive identity. Experimental, documentary and narrative forms come ... FFDD26 Outlook: 20 Years of Focus Québec
UPDATES TO ABOVE THE LINE CATEGORIES
Here's the latest take on the eight "Above the Line " categories for Oscar nominations that are being announced one week from today. TFF #52 films are indicated in Bold.
BEST PICTURE
1) One Battle After Another (1)
2) Hamnet (3)
3) Sinners (2)
4) Marty Supreme...
MTFB OSCAR TAKE: THIRD PREDICTIONS FOR PRODUCTION DESIGN, COSTUMES, MAKEUP/HAIR, SOUND AND VISUAL EFFECTS
Today we update the final five feature categories with new predictions for Production Design, Makeup/Hair, Costumes, Sound and Visual Effects. A film's previous ranking is to he right of the title in parentheses. All TFF #52 films are in Bold. Here they are:
...
MTFB OSCAR TAKE: UPDATES FOR CINEMATOGRAPHY, EDITING, SCORE AND SONG.
Here are MTFB's third predictions for nominations for cinematography, editing, score and song. All TFF #52 films are Bold.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
1) Sinners (1)
2) One Battle after Another (2)
3) Hamnet (3)
4) Train Dreams (5)
5) Frankenstein (4)
Others: F1, Marty...
Top Row L–R: Ana Katz, Natalia Almada, Bao Nguyen, Tatiana Maslany, A.V. Rockwell, Dr. Heather BerlinSecond Row L–R: Sophie Barthes, Azazel Jacobs, Janicza Bravo, Martin Starr, Dr. Andrea Ghez, Ari HandelThird Row L–R:Jennie Livingston, Toni Kamau, Liv Constable-Maxwell, Nisha Ganatra, Trevor Groth, Justin ChangBottom Row L–R: John Cooper, Nicole Perlman, Kirsten Schaffer, So Yong Kim...