Perspectives Regulations

Perspectives is an international competitive strand for fiction feature debuts aiming to showcase genuine breakthrough talents.

To be considered a debut fiction feature film, the director must not have previously made a fiction film with a running time of over 60 minutes that has been screened publicly (at a festival, in the cinema, on television, on the internet/VOD). This also applies to previous fiction films they have co-directed. However, any documentaries made previously by the director (including feature-length documentaries) do not affect the eligibility.

1. Eligibility

Eligible for Perspectives are fiction feature debuts which

• are of at least 60 minutes running time.
• are available as world, international or European premieres. World premieres are prioritised (see General Guidelines for Film Submission and Participation).
• have neither participated at any European film festival outside of their country of origin nor have been released theatrically or presented publicly in Europe outside their country of origin. The film’s country of origin is determined by the registered office address of the production company. In case of international co-productions, the main country of production will be considered as country of origin.
• have not been presented publicly in Germany. German films applying for Perspectives need to be a European premiere as minimum requirement and may not have been presented publicly in Germany (festival, theatrical release, etc.).
• have neither been broadcast on television nor presented on the internet/VOD.
• were completed within the 12 months prior to the start of the festival.
• are intended for theatrical release.
• have never been submitted for selection to the Berlinale.

In case of a co-directorship, the submitted film must be the debut feature of all participating directors.

Animated films and hybrid films with documentary elements are permitted, provided that the narrative component predominates and the film is officially submitted as a fiction film.

For all applications, the General Guidelines for Film Submission and Participation apply. The Festival Director reserves the right to decide on any eventuality not foreseen in the guidelines.

2. Selection and Programming

Films selected to participate in Perspectives will be curated by the Festival Director together with the Co-Directors of Film Programming. The selected films compete for the Best First Feature Award – funded by GWFF.

3. Language Version and Subtitles

All films invited to participate in Perspectives must be made available in the formats DCP or QuickTime ProRes – 35mm or other formats only upon request.

The films are screened in their original language with English subtitles. The version (to be) released in the country of origin is regarded as the original version. An additional version of the screener with subtitles in both German and English, or with German subtitles (if the film is in English), is desirable but not essential.