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Heysel 85

Berlinale Special Gala 2026
© Menuetto / Toon Aerts
Heysel Stadium, Brussels, May 1985. Thirty-year-old Marie, daughter and press attaché of the mayor of Brussels, attends the European Cup Final between Juventus and Liverpool FC with her parents. Also present is 31-year-old Luca Rossi, a journalist covering the match for Italian TV, accompanied by family who have arrived from Italy. Before kick-off, hooligans go on the rampage. Dozens of people die; chaos ensues. While continuing to report, Luca searches for his family. And Marie has to step in for her father who, drunk and overwhelmed, is no longer capable of taking command. The politicians and police are faced with the question: cancel the match or let it go on? As fear takes hold that stopping the game could escalate the situation further, a questionable decision takes shape.
by Teodora Ana Mihai (Director, Screenplay), Lode Desmet (Screenplay), Isabelle Darras (Screenplay)
with Violet Braeckman, Matteo Simoni, Josse De Pauw, Fabrizio Rongione, Paolo Calabresi, Bobby Schofield, Ben Segers Belgium / Netherlands / Germany 2026 Dutch, English, Italian, French 91' Colour World premiere

With

  • Violet Braeckman (Marie Dumont)
  • Matteo Simoni (Luca Rossi)
  • Josse De Pauw (Marc Dumont)
  • Fabrizio Rongione (Albert Simons)
  • Paolo Calabresi (Giacomo Ferragni)
  • Bobby Schofield (Alan West)
  • Ben Segers (Filip Mertens)

Crew

Director Teodora Ana Mihai
Screenplay Lode Desmet, Isabelle Darras, Teodora Ana Mihai
Cinematography Marius Panduru
Editing Bert Jacobs
Music Anna Katharina Bauer
Sound Design Senjan Jansen
Production Design Hendrik Van Kets
Costumes Linda Maria Bogers
Make-Up Mariël Hoevenaars
Casting Elien Van Aerschot
Producer Hans Everaert
Co-Producers Frans Van Gestel, Anette Unger, Delphine Tomson, Sven Rudat

Produced by

Menuetto

Antwerpen, Belgium

Co-produced by

Topkapi Films

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Leitwolf Film

Hamburg, Germany

Les Films du Fleuve

Lüttich, Belgium

World Sales

Salaud Morisset

Courbevoie, France

Photos

Press Conference

Teodora Ana Mihai

© Sabina Costinel

The Belgian-Romanian director was born in Bucharest. She made her documentary debut in 2014 with Waiting for August which won several awards and was nominated for a European Film Award. Her first fiction feature, La Civil, which was developed at the Cannes Cinéfondation and co-produced by the Dardenne brothers and Cristian Mungiu, won the Prix de l’Audace in Un Certain Regard at Cannes. Her second feature, Traffic, won the Warsaw Grand Prix and was Romania’s entry for the Oscars. Heysel 85 is her third fiction feature.

Filmography

2014 Waiting for August; documentary 2021 La Civil 2024 Reostat (Traffic) 2026 Heysel 85

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2026