Berlin Film Festival Lineup: Richard Linklater, Jessica Chastain, A$AP Rocky & Marion Cotillard Movies Among Vibrant Selection
The Berlin Film Festival on Tuesday unveiled the full list of titles set for its official competition alongside perspective and specials sidebars.
A total of 19 films have been selected for the international competition. It’s a buzzy selection with multiple titles that have been anticipated and boast high-profile names. Highlights include Richard Linklater’s latest feature Blue Moon, starring Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley, Bobby Cannavale and Andrew Scott. Mexican filmmaker Michel Franco launches his latest title Dreams in competition. The film stars Jessica Chastain, Isaac Hernández and Rupert Friend. Franco last worked with Chastain on the Venice competition title Memory.
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Elsewhere, Romanian filmmaker Radu Jude lands in competition with Kontinental ’25. Rebecca Lenkiewicz’s Hot Milk starring Emma Mackey, Fiona Shaw and Vicky Krieps also secures a spot alongside Hong Sangsoo’s latest What Does that Nature Say to You, and Mumblecore veteran Mary Bronstein returns as a director with If I Had Legs I’d Kick You starring A$AP Rocky and Rose Byrne.
Scroll down for the full lineup.
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In the sidebars, standout titles include BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions by Kahlil Joseph, which arrives from Sundance, and Little Trouble Girls by debut filmmaker Ur?ka Djuki?. The Berlin Specials program has been rounded out with the German premiere of Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, Lucio Castro’s latest After This Death starring Rupert Friend and Gwendoline Christie, and Tilda Swinton will screen her 1987 flick Friendship’s Death directed by Peter Wollen as part of her Honorary Golden Bear celebrations.
The Berlin Film Festival takes place February 13-23. This year marks Tricia Tuttle’s first edition at the helm. Tuttle replaced the festival’s former dual-directors Carlo Chatrian and Mariette Rissenbeek. Chatrian and Rissenbeek faced many cultural challenges during their final edition last year alongside financial hardships. Tuttle was last head of the BFI’s London Film Festival.
The Berlinale has this year secured an additional $2 million (€1.9 million) in funding from the German government. The extra cash was announced Monday by German Culture Minister Claudia Roth. The cash injection takes the festival’s overall budget to just over $12 million.
Here’s the full lineup:
Competition Films
Ari by Léonor Serraille | with Andranic Manet, Pascal Rénéric, Théo Delezenne, Ryad Ferrad, Eva Lallier Juan France / Belgium 2025 World premiere
Blue Moon by Richard Linklater | with Ethan Hawke, Margaret Qualley, Bobby Cannavale, Andrew Scott USA / Ireland 2025 World premiere
La cache (The Safe House) by Lionel Baier | with Dominique Reymond, Michel Blanc, William Lebghil, Aurélien Gabrielli, Liliane Rovère Switzerland / Luxembourg / France 2025 World premiere
Dreams by Michel Franco | with Jessica Chastain, Isaac Hernández, Rupert Friend, Marshall Bell Mexico 2025 World premiere
Dr?mmer (Dreams (Sex Love)) by Dag Johan Haugerud | with Ella ?verbye, Selome Emnetu, Ane Dahl Torp, Anne Marit Jacobsen Norway 2024 International premiere
Geu jayeoni nege mworago hani (What Does that Nature Say to You) by Hong Sangsoo | with Ha Seongguk, Kwon Haehyo, Cho Yunhee, Kang Soyi South Korea 2025 World premiere
Hot Milk by Rebecca Lenkiewicz | with Emma Mackey, Fiona Shaw, Vicky Krieps, Vincent Perez United Kingdom 2025 World premiere | Debut film
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You by Mary Bronstein | with Rose Byrne, A$AP Rocky, Conan O’Brien, Danielle Macdonald, Ivy Wolk USA 2024 International premiere
Kontinental ’25 by Radu Jude | with Eszter Tompa, Gabriel Spahiu, Adonis Tan?a Romania 2025 World premiere
El mensaje (The Message) by Iván Fund | with Mara Bestelli, Marcelo Subiotto, Anika Bootz, Betania Cappato Argentina / Spain 2025 World premiere
Mother’s Baby by Johanna Moder | with Marie Leuenberger, Hans L?w, Claes Bang, Julia Franz Richter Austria / Switzerland / Germany 2025 World premiere
Reflet dans un diamant mort (Reflection in a Dead Diamond) by Hélène Cattet, Bruno Forzani | with Fabio Testi, Yannick Renier, Koen De Bouw, Maria de Medeiros, Thi Mai Nguyen Belgium / Luxembourg / Italy / France 2025
Sheng xi zhi di (Living the Land) By Huo Meng │with Wang Shang, Zhang Chuwen, Zhang Yanrong, Zhang Caixia, Cao Lingzhi People’s Republic of China 2025 World premiere
Strichka chasu (Timestamp) by Kateryna Gornostai | with Olha Bryhynets, Borys Khovriak, Mykola Kolomiiets Ukraine / Luxembourg / Netherlands / France 2025 World premiere | Documentary form
La Tour de Glace (The Ice Tower) by Lucile Had?ihalilovi? | with Marion Cotillard, Clara Pacini, August Diehl, Gaspar Noé France / Germany 2025 World premiere
O último azul (The Blue Trail) by Gabriel Mascaro | with Denise Weinberg, Rodrigo Santoro, Miriam Socorrás, Adanilo Brazil / Mexico / Chile / Netherlands 2025 World premiere
Was Marielle wei? (What Marielle Knows) by Frédéric Hambalek | with Julia Jentsch, Felix Kramer, Laeni Geiseler, Mehmet Ate??i, Moritz Treuenfels Germany 2025 World premiere
Xiang fei de nv hai (Girls on Wire) by Vivian Qu | with Liu Haocun, Wen Qi, Zhang Youhao People’s Republic of China 2025 World premiere
Yunan by Ameer Fakher Eldin | with Georges Khabbaz, Hanna Schygulla, Ali Suliman, Sibel Kekilli, Tom Wlaschiha Germany / Canada / Italy / Palestine / Qatar / Jordan / Saudi Arabia 2025 World premiere
Berlinale Special Gala
After This Death by Lucio Castro | with Mia Maestro, Lee Pace, Rupert Friend, Gwendoline Christie, Philip Ettinger USA 2025 World premiere
A Complete Unknown (Like A Complete Unknown) by James Mangold | with Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro, Boyd Holbrook USA 2024 German premiere
Heldin (Late Shift) by Petra Volpe | with Leonie Benesch, Sonja Riesen, Urs Bihler, Margherita Schoch, Jürg Plüss Switzerland / Germany 2025 World premiere
Lurker by Alex Russell | with Théodore Pellerin, Archie Madekwe, Zach Fox, Havana Rose Liu, Sunny Suljic USA / Italy 2025 International premiere | Debut film
Das Deutsche Volk by Marcin Wierzchowski Germany 2025 World premiere | Documentary form
Kein Tier. So Wild. (No Beast. So Fierce.) by Burhan Qurbani | with Kenda Hmeidan, Verena Altenberger, Hiam Abbass, Mona Zarreh Hoshyari Khah, Mehdi Nebbou Germany / Poland / France 2025 World premiere
Leibniz – Chronik eines verschollenen Bildes (Leibniz – Chronicle of a Lost Painting) by Edgar Reitz, Anatol Schuster | with Edgar Selge, Aenne Schwarz, Michael Kranz, Lars Eidinger, Barbara Sukowa Germany 2025 World premiere
Michtav Le’David (A Letter to David) by Tom Shoval | with David Cunio, Eitan Cunio, Sharon Aloni-Cunio, Silvia Cunio, Luis Cunio Israel / USA 2025 World premiere | Documentary form
My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow by Julia Loktev | with Anna Nemzer, Elena Kostyuchenko, Ksenia Mironova, Sonya Groysman, Alesya Marokhovskaya USA 2024 International premiere | Documentary form
Perspectives Films
Baksho Bondi (Shadowbox) by Tanushree Das, Saumyananda Sahi | with Tillotama Shome, Chandan Bisht, Sayan Karmakar, Suman Saha India / France / USA / Spain 2025 World premiere
BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions by Kahlil Joseph | with Kaneza Schaal, Hope Giselle, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Funmilayo Akechukwu, Peter Hernandez USA 2025 International premiere | Debut film
Come la notte (Where the Night Stands Still) by Liryc Dela Cruz | with Jenny Llanto Caringal, Tess Magallanes, Benjamin Vasquez Barcellano Jr. Italy / Philippines 2025 World premiere
El Diablo Fuma (y guarda las cabezas de los cerillos quemados en la misma caja) (The Devil Smokes (and Saves the Burnt Matches in the Same Box)) by Ernesto Martinez Bucio | with Mariapau Bravo Avi?a, Rafael Nieto Martínez, Regina Alejandra, Donovan Said, Laura Uribe Rojas Mexico 2025 World premiere | Debut film
How to Be Normal and the Oddness of the Other World by Florian Pochlatko | with Luisa-Céline Gaffron, Elke Winkens, Cornelius Obonya, Felix P?chhacker, David Scheid Austria 2025 World premiere | Debut film
Kaj ti je deklica (Little Trouble Girls) by Ur?ka Djuki? | with Jara Sofija Ostan, Mina ?vajger, Sa?a Tabakovi?, Nata?a Burger, Sta?a Popovi? Slovenia / Italy / Croatia / Serbia 2025 World premiere | Debut film
Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo) by Joel Alfonso Vargas | with Juan Collado, Destiny Checo, Yohanna Florentino, Nathaly Navarro USA 2025 International premiere | Debut film
Mit der Faust in die Welt schlagen (Punching the World) by Constanze Klaue | with Anton Franke, Camille Moltzen, Anja Schneider, Christian N?the, Johannes Scheidweiler Germany 2025 World premiere | Debut film
Al Mosta’mera (The Settlement) by Mohamed Rashad | with Adham Shoukry, Ziad Islam, Hajar Omar, Mohamed Abdel Hady, Emad Ghoneim Egypt / France / Germany / Saudi Arabia / Qatar 2025 World premiere
On vous croit (We believe you) by Arnaud Dufeys, Charlotte Devillers | with Myriem Akheddiou, Laurent Capelluto, Natali Broods, Ulysse Goffin, Adèle Pinckaers Belgium 2025 World premiere
Le rendez-vous de l’été (That Summer in Paris) by Valentine Cadic | with Blandine Madec, India Hair, Arcadi Radeff, Matthias Jacquin, Lou Deleuze France 2025 World premiere | Debut film
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