Urban living

  • The Braves

    The Braves

    Drama

    2021

    1h.40min

    16+

    They dream, fail, celebrate—together. But when life gets in the way, their friendship is put to the ultimate test.


  • Nemesis

    Nemesis

    Documentary, Independent

    2020

    2h.11min

    0

    The freight yard is making way for a prison: a place of mobility is becoming a place of stagnation.


  • Spa Night

    Spa Night

    Drama, Queer

    2016

    1h.33min

    12 FSK

    Secret glances, quiet longing: in a Korean spa, David navigates between a sense of duty and identity as he discovers a new desire.


  • Sons of Ramses

    Sons of Ramses

    Drama

    2022

    1h.38min

    16

    A fraudulent fortune teller, a genuine miracle: Ramses struggles with chaos, kids, and his own role in a neighborhood full of faith and violence.


  • Paranoid Park

    Paranoid Park

    Drama

    2007

    1h.27min

    16 FSK

    Gus Van Sant's atmospheric study of teenage skater Jake, who tries to come to terms with a traumatic death.


  • Sophia Antipolis

    Sophia Antipolis

    Drama

    2018

    1h.38min

    16

    The discovery of a woman's body in the retort city of Sophia Antipolis reveals the dystopian, dehumanized underbelly of the slick, technology hub.


  • 24 City

    24 City

    Drama

    2008

    1h.47min

    0

    In China, an arms factory has to make way for the luxury residential project “24 City”. Three generations of factory workers report on the change.


  • Green City Life

    Green City Life

    Documentary, Independent

    2023

    1h.25min

    0

    Cities are growing relentlessly. But how can we keep places livable in times of climate change?


  • Symphony of Now

    Symphony of Now

    Documentary, Independent

    2018

    1h.2min

    0 FSK

    Discover the rough and vibrant Berlin, accompanied by music from Gudrun Gut, Modeselektor and Frank Wiedemann.


  • Harald Naegeli - The Zurich Sprayer

    Harald Naegeli - The Zurich Sprayer

    Biography, Documentary

    2021

    1h.37min

    0 FSK

    A tribute to the uncomfortable artist and utopian Harald Naegeli, who was supported by Joseph Beuys and Willy Brandt.


  • Dog Days

    Dog Days

    Drama

    2020

    16

    Mysteries and supernatural events heat up the Saint-Henri neighborhood in a sweltering Montreal summer.


  • Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster

    Almost Entirely a Slight Disaster

    Comedy, Drama

    2023

    1h.28min

    16+

    Director Umut Subaşı deftly captures the essence of millennial malaise in contemporary Istanbul.


  • Infinity According to Florian

    Infinity According to Florian

    Documentary, Independent

    2022

    1h.10min

    16+

    Before the war, one of Kyiv's hottest subject was one of Trump’s cronies turning a masterpiece concert hall into a shopping mall.


  • Alice and the Mayor

    Alice and the Mayor

    Drama

    2019

    1h.40min

    16+

    After thirty years, the Mayor of Lyon is running out of ideas, and thanks to a young and brilliant philosopher, he is now getting new hope.


  • Allesandersplatz

    Allesandersplatz

    Documentary, Independent

    2021

    53min

    16+

    In the heart of Berlin, a GDR ruin is given a new lease on life and becomes a center for art, culture and community.


  • Re-Destruction

    Re-Destruction

    Documentary, Independent

    2021

    45min

    16+

    Acclaimed Lebanese director Simon El Habre paints a vivid portrait of Beirut post-Civil War, highlighting the impact of the 2020 port explosion.


  • Pacifiction

    Pacifiction

    Drama, Thriller

    2022

    2h.45min

    6 FSK

    The mesmerizing world of Albert Serra's PACIFICTION departs from the exotic portrayal of Tahiti, presenting an authentic glimpse into its beauty.


  • Sehnsucht nach dem ganz Anderen

    Sehnsucht nach dem ganz Anderen

    Shorts

    1981

    13min

    12 FSK

    A young woman roams through the night. On a train, she rummages through other people's luggage, seeking closeness to them in an unusual way.


  • Notes of Berlin

    Notes of Berlin

    Comedy, Drama

    2021

    1h.43min

    12 FSK

    A film in episodes based on the trend blog "Notes of Berlin" that sheds light on the urban madness of everyday life.


  • 153 Meter

    153 Meter

    Drama

    2022

    1h.11min

    16+

    Two prefabricated buildings facing each other, three women, three generations, one video camera. The story of an obsession.


  • Féminin/Féminin

    Féminin/Féminin

    Independent, Queer

    2014

    16+

    A refreshingly realistic, contemporary, and self-ironic look at the lives of 10 lesbian women in Montreal, Canada.


  • God's Neighbors

    God's Neighbors

    Drama

    2012

    1h.38min

    16

    Israeli filmmaker Meni Yaesh tackles the complex yet always renewable thematic triangle of religion, violence, and sex.


  • Exhibition

    Exhibition

    Drama

    2013

    1h.44min

    12 FSK

    An intimate examination of a contemporary artist couple whose living and working patterns are threatened by the imminent sale of their home.


  • Paris Prestige

    Paris Prestige

    Drama

    2015

    1h.46min

    16+

    A powerful tale of two brothers at odds in Pigalle, Paris directed by the two French rappers Hamé and Ékoué.


  • Motorcity

    Motorcity

    Documentary, Independent

    2021

    1h.27min

    12

    A compelling exploration of the complexities of American life, history, and society through the lens of the unique and fascinating sport drag racing.


  • Zwischennutzung

    Zwischennutzung

    Documentary, Independent

    2022

    1h.35min

    16+

    Discover the hidden world of the former meat factory in Vienna's Sonnwendviertel through the lens of filmmaker Dariusz Kowalski.


  • Uncomfortably Comfortable

    Uncomfortably Comfortable

    Documentary

    2021

    1h.12min

    16+

    This experimental video portrait delves into questions of homelessness, the impact of incarceration, trauma, and living on the fringes of society.


  • A Pile of Ghosts

    A Pile of Ghosts

    Documentary

    2021

    1h.10min

    16+

    An exploration of the eerie interplay of reality and fiction in contemporary China, where cities are built on speculation and capitalist fictions.


  • Heiko's World

    Heiko's World

    Independent, Comedy

    2021

    1h.58min

    12 FSK

    From YouTube to the cinemas: In this loving homage to Berlin's pub culture, Berlin original Heiko must win a darts tournament.


  • Museum of the Revolution

    Museum of the Revolution

    Documentary, Independent

    2022

    1h.31min

    16+

    In the basement of the never completed Museum of the Revolution, Belgrade dwell the outcasts of a society that is being transformed by capitalism.


  • Thirty

    Thirty

    Drama, Independent

    2019

    1h.54min

    16+

    A senistive drama that authentically and lovingly captures the lifestyle of a group of young urbanites on the brink of a quarter-life crisis.


  • Alipato: The Very Brief Life of an Ember

    Alipato: The Very Brief Life of an Ember

    Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thriller

    2016

    1h.27min

    16 FSK

    Filipino enfant terrible Khavn (de la Cruz) paints a frightening vision of a world running headlong towards the abyss.


  • Survival in New York

    Survival in New York

    Documentary, Independent

    1990

    1h.30min

    16 FSK

    Three German women go to New York City in the early 1980's and try to get established there.


  • Rent Boys

    Rent Boys

    Documentary, Queer

    2011

    1h.23min

    12 FSK

    This authentic documentary follows male sex workers from Bahnhof Zoo in Berlin as they work, shedding light on the issue of male prostitution.


  • Akilla's Escape

    Akilla's Escape

    Crime, Drama

    2021

    1h.30min

    16+

    Neo-noir thriller set to the soundtrack of Massive Attack's 3D


  • H6

    H6

    Documentary

    2022

    1h.54min

    6

    This documentary about everyday hospital life in China combines the serious and the amusing in a very balanced ratio.


  • Away You Go

    Away You Go

    Drama, Independent

    2018

    1h.16min

    6 FSK

    Compassionate mumblecore-style drama about a young woman's struggles with the expectations placed on her by her partner and friends.


  • To Live to Sing

    To Live to Sing

    Drama, Music, Dance, Theater

    2019

    1h.47min

    16+

    Faced with the imminent destruction of their opera house, a traditional Sichuan opera troupe plans a big show to save their opera house.


  • Lichter der Stadt

    Lichter der Stadt

    Drama, Comedy

    2020

    1h.42min

    16+

    Joscha is on high alert. He wants to take a pill, but chance encounters with old friends keep him from swallowing it. Shot in a single t ake!


  • Parabeton: Pier Luigi Nervi and Roman Concrete

    Parabeton: Pier Luigi Nervi and Roman Concrete

    Documentary, Icons & Media Art

    2012

    1h.39min

    0 FSK

    PARABETON shows in chronological sequence 17 buildings by the Italian engineer and architect Pier Luigi Nervi (1891-1979) in Italy and France.


  • Acasă

    Acasă

    Documentary, Independent

    2020

    1h.26min

    16+

    In the wilderness of the Bucharest Delta, a family lives in perfect harmony with nature for 20 years until being chased out.


  • AIDE MÉMOIRE - ein schwules Gedächtnisprotokoll

    AIDE MÉMOIRE - ein schwules Gedächtnisprotokoll

    Biography, Queer

    1996

    16min

    16+

    Two years before his death, the HIV-positive Baldiga reviews his life, in selected episodes.


  • The Hardness of Avocado

    The Hardness of Avocado

    Love & Sex, Romance

    2020

    1h.40min

    16+

    After five years of relationship, Shimi calls it quits with the young actor Mizuki. His initial acceptance of the break-up soon turns into defiance.


  • Los Reyes

    Los Reyes

    Documentary

    2019

    1h.15min

    6 FSK

    The real kings of LOS REYES ("The Kings"), the oldest skate park in the Chilean capital Santiago, are the two stray dogs Futbol and Chola.


  • Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets

    Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets

    Drama, Independent

    2020

    1h.38min

    16+

    The last round in Sin City. In the shadow of Las Vegas, filmmakers spend the last 24 hours before they close the Roaring 20s bar.


  • Ghosts

    Ghosts

    Drama

    2020

    1h.30min

    16+

    During a black out, social and personal conflicts culminate in an Istanbul neighborhood threatened by gentrification.


  • Where to, Miss?

    Where to, Miss?

    Documentary, Independent

    2016

    1h.23min

    12 FSK

    A Delhi woman's rocky road to her own cab license.


  • 9 Lives

    9 Lives

    Documentary

    2011

    1h.46min

    12 FSK

    9 LIVES portrays the fate of young people who decided at the age of 11, 12 or 13 to leave home and to live on the streets.


  • For Nothing

    For Nothing

    Drama

    2014

    1h.35min

    0 FSK

    A political and sociological look at the transformation and gentrification of Berlin through teenage eyes.


  • Der Stoff, aus dem Träume sind

    Der Stoff, aus dem Träume sind

    Documentary, Independent

    2019

    1h.16min

    16+

    Housing is a human right. How can we guarantee housing in the increasingly difficult real estate markets in Europe's major cities?


  • Siblings - Kardeşler

    Siblings - Kardeşler

    Drama

    1997

    1h.22min

    16 FSK

    The first part of Thomas Arslan's "Berlin Trilogy", which shows young people with a Turkish migration history from their own perspective.


  • The Sun Is Burning

    The Sun Is Burning

    Independent, Love & Sex

    2021

    1h.15min

    16

    It's summer. Zou and Anselm are newly in love and spend their afternoon at the lake. A fairy tale seems to have come true.


  • Chasing Paper Birds

    Chasing Paper Birds

    Drama, Independent

    2020

    2h.3min

    16+

    Driven by their obsessions and fears, three Berliners lose themselves in the urban jungle.


  • The Phantom of the Sauna

    The Phantom of the Sauna

    Music, Dance, Theater, Queer

    2021

    1h.33min

    16+

    This LGBTQ musical revolves around Javi, a young sex worker, and his quest for love and happiness.


  • Flood

    Flood

    Drama

    2019

    1h.40min

    16 FSK

    When Jonas loses his job at a Hamburg startup he doesn’t have the heart to tell his girlfriend Katharina.


  • Berlin 4 Lovers

    Berlin 4 Lovers

    Documentary, Love & Sex

    2019

    1h.12min

    16+

    Tinder users in Berlin talk openly and honestly and about real-life encounters, both the good and the bad, with dates made using the famous dating app


  • Afternoon Woman

    Afternoon Woman

    Drama, Icons & Media Art

    2012

    59min

    16+

    With camera angles reminiscent of paintings, up-and-coming star from Brazil Afonso Uchôa explores the beauty of everyday gestures and moments.


  • The Hidden Tiger

    The Hidden Tiger

    Documentary

    2016

    1h.35min

    16+

    They skate, smoke, rap and compare their bullet scars. A surreal portrait of Brazil's fallen youth.


  • Araby

    Araby

    Drama

    2018

    1h.36min

    16+

    With his at once contemporary and timeless drama, Affonso Uchôa confirms his reputation as one of the most promising talents in Brazilian cinema.


  • Was ich von ihr weiss

    Was ich von ihr weiss

    Crime, Thriller

    2006

    1h.32min

    12 FSK

    After the death of her grandmother Kati meets her biological mother Iris, who is just twice as old as she is and also a professional pickpocket.


  • Masala Chai

    Masala Chai

    Documentary, Independent

    2018

    1h.2min

    6

    Whether in Delhi, Pune, Mumbai or Kolkata, street vendors from very different backgrounds sell the country's most popular drink, masala chai.


  • Occidental

    Occidental

    Drama, Queer

    2018

    1h.14min

    16+

    A visually and sonically striking ensemble piece set in a hotel on the city outskirts as Paris is mired in political chaos...


  • Jesus of Montreal

    Jesus of Montreal

    Classics

    1989

    2h.0min

    16+

    This Oscar-nominated drama about a reinterpretation of the Passion of Christ shines in new splendor after being restored and digitized.


  • Tlatelolco

    Tlatelolco

    Documentary, Independent

    2011

    1h.15min

    16+

    A look at the history of Mexico City through the architecture of a housing complex.


  • Istanbul Echoes

    Istanbul Echoes

    Documentary

    2019

    1h.38min

    16+

    Istanbul is being transformed by gentrification. We follow street vendors as they are robbed of more than just their livelihood.


  • The Other Rio

    The Other Rio

    Documentary

    2018

    1h.28min

    16+

    The spectacle of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro are in full swing. But the grim contrast of poverty is only a few blocks away.


  • Valentina

    Valentina

    Documentary

    2016

    51min

    16+

    10-year-old Valentina lives in a rundown one-room shack with her family of 12. A loving, unsparing and touching family portrait.


  • Millennials

    Millennials

    Drama

    2017

    1h.10min

    12

    In this nocturnal urban fairy tale about drifting millennials, in which reality and fiction merge.


  • Concrete Night

    Concrete Night

    Drama

    2013

    1h.36min

    16+

    Awaiting his prison sentence, Ilkka spends his last night of freedom with his younger brother Simo.


  • Cosmos

    Cosmos

    Classics

    1996

    1h.41min

    16

    Six more or less ordinary lives in Montréal, connected by a Greek immigrant cab driver named Cosmos - with Denis Villeneuve.


  • Performance

    Performance

    Love & Sex, Queer

    2014

    1h.3min

    16+

    Paula and Rodrigo are young, queer artists, like many others in Berlin. Outside of their utopian rehearsal room, they have to fight German red tape.


  • From the West

    From the West

    Documentary, Icons & Media Art

    2016

    1h.1min

    16+

    Germany was once a torn country divided into East and West. Post-war architecture keeps the memory of this era alive.


  • Pariah Dog

    Pariah Dog

    Documentary, Independent

    2019

    1h.17min

    16+

    Calcutta, India, one of the most densely populated cities in the world, is home not only to 14 million people, but also to countless stray dogs.


  • My Brother The Devil

    My Brother The Devil

    Crime, Independent

    2012

    1h.52min

    12 FSK

    Two teenage brothers must confront their own personal biases if they are to survive life on the streets as British Arabs.


  • National Avenue

    National Avenue

    Drama

    2019

    1h.28min

    16 FSK

    In the Czech capital, the chav Vandam rises up against capitalism, gentrification and the closure of his local pub.


  • People That Are Not Me

    People That Are Not Me

    Drama, Love & Sex

    2016

    1h.18min

    16+

    Joy is a young woman living in Tel Aviv. She has a love-hate relationship with its casual sex scene.


  • O Fim do Mundo

    O Fim do Mundo

    Crime, Drama

    2019

    1h.44min

    16+

    After years in a juvenile detention center, Spira returns to his neighborhood, but gentrification and demolition excavators are taking hold.


  • Duane Michals: The Man Who Invented Himself

    Duane Michals: The Man Who Invented Himself

    Biography, Documentary

    2012

    54min

    16+

    Self-taught photographer and photography legend Duane Michals is known for the innovation and artistry of his work.


  • Scala Adieu - Von Windeln verweht

    Scala Adieu - Von Windeln verweht

    Documentary, Independent

    2018

    1h.20min

    0 FSK

    After more than 80 years, the "Scala Filmpalast" had to make way for a drugstore.


  • Vote for Kibera

    Vote for Kibera

    Documentary, Independent

    2018

    1h.30min

    12

    Kenya is on the brink of a fateful choice, and in the Kibera slum in Nairobi, 300,000 people are hoping for an improvement in their situation.


  • The Hidden City

    The Hidden City

    Documentary, Independent

    2018

    1h.18min

    0 FSK

    The ground beneath the Spanish metropolis of Madrid is crisscrossed by an invisible network of tunnels, shafts and canals.


  • The Boda Boda Thieves

    The Boda Boda Thieves

    Crime, Drama

    2015

    1h.25min

    16

    Motorcycle taxi driver Abel is the sole provider for his family. When his boda boda is stolen, he has to descend into the underworld of Kampala.


  • Whatever Happened to My Revolution

    Whatever Happened to My Revolution

    Independent, Comedy

    2019

    1h.29min

    16+

    The radical-minded urban planner Angèle neglects her friends and family for her political struggle.


  • The Bicycle

    The Bicycle

    Independent, Romance

    2015

    1h.22min

    12

    Mark and Antonia have a long-distance relationship and are taking a joint holiday in Paris. Their last visit was a long while back. How will it go?


  • Football From Below - A Season with Genclikspor Recklinghausen

    Football From Below - A Season with Genclikspor Recklinghausen

    Documentary, Independent

    2013

    1h.35min

    12

    A documentary look into the world of Genclikspor Recklinghausen, an amateur soccer club in Germany with immigrant roots.


  • Anbessa

    Anbessa

    Documentary, Independent

    2019

    1h.25min

    0

    Asalif and his mother are displaced from their farmland on the outskirts of Addis Ababa. To fight for their livelihood, Asalif taps into his fantasy.


  • Solange and the Living

    Solange and the Living

    Independent, Comedy

    2016

    1h.7min

    16+

    Solange lives a secluded life in her Paris apartment. When one day a delivery man rings at her door, her little world is torn apart.


  • Elon Doesn't Believe in Death

    Elon Doesn't Believe in Death

    Drama, Independent

    2016

    1h.15min

    16+

    Gripping drama with film noir undertones about a man's delusional search for his allegedly missing wife.


  • Only One Blink

    Only One Blink

    Shorts

    2020

    10min

    16+

    This student film about the power of chance was lost for years and only rediscovered by chance.


  • The Sound of Unexpected Death

    The Sound of Unexpected Death

    Independent

    2019

    30min

    16+

    A sequence of everyday-scenarios develops in synchronisation across what seems like a regular night in the city.


  • Berlin Excelsior

    Berlin Excelsior

    Documentary, Independent

    2018

    1h.27min

    0 FSK

    The anonymous Berlin concrete building "Excelsior" is only a temporary stop for its residents, yet some have been living there for more than 50 years.


  • Let the Sunshine In

    Let the Sunshine In

    Comedy, Romance

    2017

    1h.35min

    12 FSK

    Isabelle, Parisian artist, divorced mother, is looking for love, true love, at last.


  • Bikes vs Cars

    Bikes vs Cars

    Documentary, Independent

    2015

    1h.30min

    0 FSK

    Bikes vs Cars highlights a global crisis that we have long been aware of and should be talking about: The climate and mobility crisis....


  • Face_It!

    Face_It!

    Documentary, Independent

    2019

    1h.20min

    16+

    An exploration of facial recognition, a modern fingerprint that provides access to a person's personality like a secret code.


  • Kleptomami

    Kleptomami

    Shorts

    2017

    10min

    12 FSK

    A film about the absurdities of being a mom today.


  • Swim Little Fish Swim

    Swim Little Fish Swim

    Comedy

    2013

    1h.38min

    16+

    The meeting of two extraordinary artistic souls on the streets of New York could be just what they are looking for.


  • The Zernik Murder Case

    The Zernik Murder Case

    Classics

    1972

    1h.35min

    12 FSK

    After meeting the woman on the train Erwin Retzmann kills her in the forest.


  • The Attackables

    The Attackables

    Drama, Independent

    2019

    16

    A modern fairy tale from Berlin, somewhere between patchwork family life, precarious acting jobs and superheroism.


  • Ira - Wrath

    Ira - Wrath

    Crime, Independent

    2019

    1h.23min

    16+

    Ira translates to "wrath," but this feeling is barely voiced by the main characters, who live on the grim fringes of society.


  • Man on Wire

    Man on Wire

    Documentary

    2008

    1h.30min

    6 FSK

    In 1974, a young French high-wire artist named Philippe Petit stepped out on a wire illegally rigged between New York's twin towers, then the world’s tallest ...


  • Lebe schon lange hier

    Lebe schon lange hier

    Documentary, Independent

    2019

    1h.38min

    16+

    A year in the life of an ordinary street in Berlin. With narration by Clemens Schick and music by Till Merten.