Amrum
Directed by Fatih AkinCast: Jasper Billerbeck, Diane Kruger, Kian Köppke, Laura Tonke, Hark Bohm
- Cinema Panorama
- Germany
- Drama
- German, Öömrang
- Subtitled
- 93 mins
- Northern California premiere
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share30th Anniversary Berlin & Beyond Film Festival 2026 Audience Award Winner
Statement by Director Fatih Akin:
Dear Berlin & Beyond Festival, dear audience,
Thank you so much for this wonderful award! I wish I could be there with you to thank you in person, but I’m knee-deep in post-production on my new film, which has to be finished in the coming days. I am thrilled to receive this award for ‘Amrum’ in San Francisco! At the beginning of my career, I attended the Berlin & Beyond Festival with my very first film, ‘Kurz und Schmerzlos’ (‘Short Sharp Shock’). I think that was in January 2000. I will never forget those ten days there. It was my first trip to the West Coast of the U.S. I really wanted to see the Pacific Ocean, which I managed to do. The waves emerging from the gray fog gave me strength. At least, that’s what I imagine. San Francisco is a city where I would have loved to live – and especially to write! Maybe in another life. ‘Amrum’ is a special film in my career; it’s a film by another director. The director is Hark Bohm, who sadly passed away last year. He asked me to shoot the film for him, which I did. This award from the audience itself shows that the work has borne fruit and that we’ve touched your hearts. Thank you again! I hope we’ll see each other again soon with one of my films. Until then: so long!
Film Description: On Amrum Island in spring 1945, twelve-year-old Nanning hunts seals, fishes at night, and works the fields to help feed his family. When the war ends, his mother sinks into depression, and he must navigate new conflicts while struggling to find his own path.
