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Die Blutgräfin

The Blood Countess
Berlinale Special Gala 2026
© Amour Fou Vienna, Amour Fou Luxembourg, Heimatfilm, Ulrike Ottinger Filmproduktion / P. Domenigg
Decades after her mysterious disappearance, the Blood Countess re-emerges in modern-day Vienna where she reunites with her devoted underling, Hermine, to track down a dangerous book with the power to destroy all evil – including all vampires such as themselves. The duo embark on a scavenger hunt through the city’s magnificent historic sites, and conscript the countess’s melancholic nephew – a vegetarian vampire named Rudi Bubi – and his psychotherapist as they expand their search to Bohemia. Meanwhile, a pair of vampirologists and a police inspector remain hot on their trail … Filmmaker and visual artist Ulrike Ottinger reinterprets the vampire myth as a sumptuous adventure tale full of morbid black comedy.
by Ulrike Ottinger (Director, Screenplay)
with Isabelle Huppert, Birgit Minichmayr, Thomas Schubert, Lars Eidinger, André Jung Austria / Luxembourg / Germany 2026 German, French 119' Colour World premiere

With

  • Isabelle Huppert (The Blood Countess - Erzsébet Báthory)
  • Birgit Minichmayr (The Maid - Hermine)
  • Thomas Schubert (The Nephew - Baron Rudi Bubi von Strudl zur Buchtelau)
  • Lars Eidinger (The Therapist - Theobald Tandem)
  • André Jung (Theobastus Bombastus)

Crew

Director Ulrike Ottinger
Screenplay Ulrike Ottinger (Dialogues in participation with Elfriede Jelinek)
Cinematography Martin Gschlacht
Editing Pia Dumont
Music Wolfgang Mitterer
Sound Design Karim Weth
Production Design Christina Schaffer
Costumes Jorge Jara
Make-Up Tünde Kiss-Benke
Casting Eva Roth
Producers Alexander Dumreicher-Ivanceanu, Bady Minck, Bettina Brokemper
Executive Producers Alexander Dumreicher-Ivanceanu, Bady Minck, Bettina Brokemper
Co-Producer Ulrike Ottinger

Produced by

Amour Fou Vienna

Wien, Austria

Amour Fou Luxembourg

Luxemburg, Luxembourg

Heimatfilm

Köln, Germany

Co-produced by

Ulrike Ottinger Filmproduktion

Berlin, Germany

World Sales

MAGNIFY

New York, NY, USA

Photos

Press Conference

Ulrike Ottinger

© Anne Selders

Born in Konstanz, Germany in 1942, the filmmaker is one of Europe’s most renowned artists and has received numerous international awards. Her Berlin trilogy comprising Bildnis einer Trinkerin, Freak Orlando and Dorian Gray im Spiegel der Boulevardpresse brought her international acclaim. Her films have been invited to Cannes, Venice and the Berlinale, where she was honoured with the Berlinale Camera in 2020. Her artistic work has also been exhibited at MoMA in New York, the Cinémathèque française, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Documenta, the Museo Reina Sofía and the Berkeley Art Museum.

Filmography (selection)

1979 Bildnis einer Trinkerin (Ticket of No Return) 1981 Freak Orlando 1984 Dorian Gray im Spiegel der Boulevardpresse (Dorian Gray in the Mirror of the Yellow Press) 1985 China. Die Künste – Der Alltag (China. The Arts – The People); documentary 1989 Johanna D'Arc of Mongolia 1990 Countdown; documentary 1992 Taiga; documentary 1997 Exile Shanghai; documentary 2002 Südostpassage (Southeast Passage); documentary 2004 Zwölf Stühle (Twelve Chairs) 2007 Prater; documentary 2008 Die koreanische Hochzeitstruhe (The Korean Wedding Chest); documentary 2011 Under Snow; documentary 2016 Chamissos Schatten (Chamisso's Shadow); documentary 2019 Paris Calligrammes; documentary 2026 Die Blutgräfin (The Blood Countess)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2026