11.8 Million Euros for High-Quality Content from North Rhine-Westphalia

In the second funding round of 2026, the Film and Media Foundation NRW is awarding 11.8 million euros to 32 projects.

The top grant went to“Der Lappen” by Yasemin and Nesrin Şamdereli, who had previously received a screenplay grant. Like their award-winning film “Almanya,” their new comedy is once again deeply rooted in the Ruhr region and their own life stories there. This story of emancipation is set within a family of Turkish descent in the 1980s, yet remains universal and timeless.
Cologne-based filmmaker Stefan Titze, creator of “How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast),” makes his directorial debut with his young and provocative satire“The Unexpected Red.” He intelligently weaves the current discourse on social inequality, housing, and critiques of capitalism with architectural theory and design history. The project, starring “Maxton Hall” star Harriet Herbig-Matten in the lead female role, has already received project development funding.
The successful coming-of-age series“Euphoria” is heading into its second season. Directed by Stella Marie Markert , the stories—rooted in the Ruhr region and centered on the ensemble cast established in Season 1— are relentlessly continued, navigating between excess, downfall, and the longing for belonging. Golden Globe winner Ari Folman received funding for two projects. For his feature film“Thousand Yard Stare,” he is once again filming in North Rhine-Westphalia. For his documentary“The Hottest Place in Hell,” he seeks out people who resist radicalization and hold fast to reconciliation and connection—despite personal risks.

Feature Films

DER LAPPEN – 1,770,000 euros Production : Kordes & Kordes Film Süd, Munich
Distributor: Leonine
Director: Yasemin Şamdereli
Screenplay: Yasemin Şamdereli, Nesrin Şamdereli
Cast: Meltem Kaptan

In the Ruhr region of the 1980s, Fidan finally wants to get her driver’s license—for freedom, self-determination, and a bit of comfort. But standing between her and that “license” are her husband Ibo and seven failed driving tests.

DR. CALIGARI'S CABINET OF WONDERS – 1,000,000 euros Production : augenschein Filmproduktion, Cologne
Co-production: Anton Capital Entertainment, UK; Dowdle Brothers Production, USA; Novo Entertainment, USA
Distributor: Plaion Pictures
Director & Screenplay: John Erick Dowdle
Cast: Michael Shannon

Two-time Oscar nominee Michael Shannon stars in this modern reimagining of the silent film classic. Filming takes place entirely in North Rhine-Westphalia, including at Cologne’s MMC Studios.

FRANKIE – 950,000 euros Production : Wiedemann & Berg Film, Munich
Distributor: Leonine
Director: Philipp Stölzl
Screenplay: Caroline Bruckner, Michael Gutmann, Philipp Stölzl, based on the novel of the same name by Jochen-Martin Gutsch and Maxim Leo

This tragicomedy tells the story of a talking stray cat, a depressed former Michelin-starred chef, and their unusual friendship. Filming will take place primarily in North Rhine-Westphalia.

PAWS OFF THE TABLE – 900,000 euros Production : Westside Filmproduktion, Krefeld
Co-production: Rat Pack Filmproduktion, Bavaria; Honeybird Film, Hamburg
Distributor: Constantin
Director: Sven Unterwaldt
Screenplay: Michael Gantenberg, Sina Flammang, Doris Laske, based on the book of the same name by Hape Kerkeling
Cast: Hape Kerkeling

Hape Kerkeling, this year’s Honorary Award recipient at the Kinofest Lünen, will also appear in the film adaptation of his bestseller. Spanning three decades, the film tells not only the story of his life but also of his special relationship with cats.

THE BOOK WALKER AND LOVE – 900,000 euros Production : Wüste Film West, Cologne
Co-production: Wüste Film, Hamburg
Distributor: Studiocanal
Broadcaster: ARD Degeto
Director: Chau Ngo The
Screenplay: Andi Rogenhagen & Carsten Henn, based on the novel by Carsten Henn
Cast: Christoph Maria Herbst, Yuna Bennett, Ronald Zehrfeld

Following the success of “Der Buchspazierer,” Carl finally embarks on his long-planned trip to Italy. Meanwhile, everything is turned upside down for his best friend Schascha: she is supposed to move to Sweden with her grandmother.

THE UNEXPECTED RED / FREMDE HÄUSER – 755,000 euros Production : Pandora Film, Cologne
Co-production: Hugofilm Features, Switzerland
Distribution: Pandora Film Medien
Broadcasters: WDR, Arte
Director & Screenplay: Stefan Titze
Cast: Harriet Herbig-Matten

An architecture student and a young caterer break into vacant luxury villas for their dates. Soon, the line between fantasy and reality blurs, until they begin to defend this unfamiliar life. The project has already received development funding and marks Stefan Titze’s feature film debut.

THE CRAZY LABYRINTH - 700,000 euros Production : SamFilm West, Cologne
Co-production: Constantin Film Produktion, Munich; SamFilm Munich; Potemkino, Belgium
Distribution: Constantin Film Distribution
Director: Peter Thorwarth
Screenplay: Jakob Grahl, Fabian Carl, David Benke
Cast: Fahri Yardim, Renée Gerschke
In this action comedy, the fantasy world of a board game becomes reality overnight. But in addition to a treasure, the game also threatens to devour all the players. Following his internationally successful work for Netflix, Peter Thorwarth returns to direct in North Rhine-Westphalia.

IN THE HEART OF VIOLENCE - 450,000 euros Production : Neue Flimmer, Berlin
Co-production: Sunnysideup, Berlin
Distributor: DCM Distribution
Director: Igor Plischke
Screenplay: Oliver Ziegenbalg, based on the novel by Édouard Louis
Cast: Taddeo Kufus, Samuel Schneider, Maria Dragus, Ulrich Mattes
When Jonas and Tariq meet, playful flirting turns into brutal violence. Unable to speak out to the police or those around him, Jonas seeks refuge with his sister in the countryside. Through a blend of memory and literary reflection, he slowly finds his way back to himself. A radical film about shame, power, masculinity, and the struggle to find words after experiencing violence.

SÜDWEST – 275,000 euros Production : Schiwago Film, Berlin
Co-production: Paradise City Films, France; Freibeuter Film, Austria
Distribution: Port au Prince Pictures
Broadcasters: WDR, Arte
Director: Wolfgang Fischer
Screenplay: Ika Künzel
Cast: Anders Danielsen Lie, Toheeb Jimoh

Following the multi-award-winning drama “Styx,” Wolfgang Fischer and Ika Künzel are once again tackling a highly topical subject: Two scientists realize that their discovery could be misused—with devastating consequences for humanity.

THOUSAND YARD STARE - 250,000 euros Production : 2Pilots Filmproduction, Cologne
Co-production: Transfax Filmproductions, Israel; KinoElektron, France; Raav Films, Sehnde; 70 Steps, Stuttgart
Distribution: Cine Cologne Collective
Director, Screenplay: Ari Folman
Cast: Gali Frank, Neomi Harari, Avigail Harari, Roni Kuban

Two wars. Fifty years. A love story. A failed rescue attempt during the October War of 1973 haunts Shai for the rest of his life—the loss of his brother and a sense of guilt he cannot overcome. Fifty years later, during the war of 2023, his daughter is trapped in a kibbutz under attack. To save her, Shai must confront his past and reevaluate the decision he made back then. A visually powerful hybrid of live-action and stop-motion, the film combines an epic love story with a poignant reflection on guilt, memory, and the destructive impact of war. Filming will also take place in North Rhine-Westphalia.

THE RAINBOW FISH – 76,500 euros Production : Claussen + Putz Filmproduktion, Munich
Co-production: Zodiac Pictures, Switzerland
Distributor: Studiocanal
Director & Screenplay: Florian Moch, based on the book by Marcus Pfister
Voice Cast: Jannik Schümann, Luna Wedler, Sabine Bohlmann, Mechthild Großmann, Hella von Sinnen

In collaboration with the Augsburger Puppenkiste, this film adaptation of the classic children’s book “The Rainbow Fish” is being produced. Director and puppeteer Florian Moch is creating a marionette film for young moviegoers and their families—exploring themes such as friendship, solidarity, and kindness.

Documentary

OLIVER MASUCCI – ACTING BEYOND FEAR – 350,000 euros Production : Pausefilm, Bonn
Distributor: Majestic
Broadcaster: WDR
Director & Screenplay: Aljoscha Pause

An intimate portrait of actor Oliver Masucci that weaves together his personal biography, family history, and insights into the acting profession.

HANDS OF GOLD (DOCUMENTARY SERIES, 4x30 MIN.) – 150,000 euros Production : Beetz Brothers Film Production, Berlin Broadcaster: ProSiebenSat.1
Director: Jens Pfeifer
Screenplay: Jens Pfeifer, Laura Leick
Featuring: Alfred Gislason, Anett Sattler, Tom Kiesler, Heiner Brand, Julian Köster
In 2007, the German men’s handball team won the World Championship at the home tournament in Germany. Since then, Germany has not won another World Championship medal. Now, a new generation of handball players is preparing for the long-awaited turning point.

THE HOTTEST PLACE IN HELL (TV) - 100,000 euros Production : 7T1 Films, Cologne Co-production: JMAG:productions, Switzerland
Broadcaster: WDR / Arte
Director, Screenplay: Ari Folman
Cast: Rabi Arik Ashermann, Hana Farsi, Kren Or, Prema Michaeli
Amid war, occupation, and social polarization, Ari Folman travels through a torn-apart country and meets Israelis and Palestinians who are resisting the cycle of violence and radicalization and fighting for equality, dignity, and a shared future. A personal documentary observation by the renowned director.

BECOMING AUSTRONAUT - 100,000 euros
Production: Ma.ja.de. Filmproduktion, Leipzig
Co-production: Ensemble Film, Switzerland
Distributor: Real Fiction Filmverleih
Director, Screenplay: Roman Hodel
Cast: Raphaël Liégeois, Kris Capelle, Sophie Adenot, Pablo Alvarez Frenandez
This poetic documentary follows neuroscientist Raphaël Liégeois on his journey to becoming an astronaut. It explores the tension between technological progress and human connection and offers exclusive access to space through the European Space Agency in Cologne.

KEBAB DREAMS (LOW BUDGET) - 80,000 euros
Production: Film Five, Berlin Distribution: Grandfilm
Director, Screenplay: Cem Kaya
Cast: The Kaya family, Gülper Ok, Asik Sah Turna
Grimme Award winner Cem Kaya’s new film centers on the fates of two men. One, Cemal Kemal Altun, is a student facing political persecution. The other, Cemal Kaya, is the director’s father. Driven by a dehumanizing migration debate, both take their own lives. The film’s relevance to today’s debate is unmistakable in this emotionally powerful narrative.

Series and Miniseries

EUPHORIE 2 (Series, 6 x 45 minutes) – 1,500,000 euros Production : Zeitsprung Pictures, Cologne
Broadcaster: RTL
Director: Stella Marie Markert
Screenplay: Jonas Lindt, Raquel Kishori Dukpa, Paulia Lorenz
Cast: Sira-Anna Faal, Eren Güvercin, Dilara Aylin Ziem, Luna Jordan

The second season of this coming-of-age series explores guilt, drugs, and toxic relationships in the aftermath of a fateful night of partying—and captures the collective spirit of an entire generation.

ICY NIGHTS (TWO-PARTER) - 1,100,000 euros
Production: elsani film, Cologne
Co-production: Potemkino, Belgium; Sagafilm, Iceland
Broadcaster: ARD Degeto, WDR
Director: Hansjörg Thurn
Screenplay: Christian Demke, Hansjörg Thurn
Cast: Vivian Olafsdottir, Ronald Zehrfeld
This two-part TV miniseries sheds light on one of Iceland’s biggest judicial scandals. After two men go missing, a hippie commune comes under suspicion of having killed them. A German detective travels to Iceland to solve the mysterious crime. It is not until decades later that the mistake is uncovered. The project has already received a screenplay grant.

Screenplay Grant

MISS KELLY - 20,000 euros Production : Mistral Filmstudio, Düsseldorf
Director, Screenplay: Aylin Suhrborg

This debut project is a modern animated fairy tale based on the novel of the same name by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding. In a small U.S. town in the 1950s, Miss Kelly, a house cat, is drawn into the circus world of a Siberian tiger and discovers freedom away from her sheltered home.

THE BOYS IN THE MOOR (SERIES) - 20,000 euros
Production: Goldstoff Filme, Ascheberg
Screenplay: Mark Lorei

A dark crime comedy series: In 1838, in the fog-shrouded Münsterland region, handsome, dead men are found in the moor. The astute Annette von Droste-Hülshoff and her sister get involved in the investigation of this bizarre series of murders—and in the process, find themselves in the killers’ crosshairs.

THE FIRST TIME ATLANTIC – 20,000 euros Production : Peak Point Pictures, Cologne
Director, Screenplay: Paul Hordych

A summer noir drama marking the debut of MGZ fellow Paul Hordych. Two estranged friends go on vacation together. They chase love and the exhilarating adrenaline rush of dangerous car races. Thrills that can end fatally on the steep Atlantic coast.

DIE HEIMIS (SERIES) - 20,000 euros Production : WE OWN YOU, Cologne
Screenplay: Tony Bauer, Kai Klüting

A six-part mockumentary series about a nursing home facing closure. Caregiver Thomas—a pill-loving idealist with a keyboard—hatches a daring plan: on his own. Without rules. Against the system. A workplace comedy that breathes new life into a nursing home and its residents.

Pre-production

FORGETTING SANTA – 65,000 euros Production : GLISK, Cologne
Director: Marc Rothemund
Screenplay: Jens-Frederick Otto, Antonia Rother-Liermann

After receiving a screenplay grant, the project—about a headstrong mail carrier with Alzheimer’s and a streetwise foster child who set out together with no money but a sack full of children’s letters to Santa—is now entering the pre-production phase.

SIGMA BOYS (DOCUMENTARY) - 35,000 euros
Production: CORSO Film and Television Production, Cologne
Directors, Screenplay: Fabiana Fragale, Jens Mühlhoff

The Cologne-based directing duo has already received a working grant from Filmbüro NW for this portrait film about Gen Z men searching for identity and recognition. Now the Film Foundation is also supporting the film, which operates on three levels and addresses the growing “manosphere” and the misogyny and right-wing ideology associated with it.

Distribution

MOTHER MARY - 50,000 euros
Distributor: Leonine Distribution, Munich
Theatrical Release: May 21, 2026

HOW WE LAUGHED - 25,000 euros
Distributor: Port au Prince Pictures, Berlin
Theatrical release: July 16, 2026

I RARELY WAKE UP DREAMING - 20,000 euros
Distributor: X Verleih, Berlin
Theatrical release: July 23, 2026

WATCHING PEOPLE WATCHING BIRDS - 20,000 euros
Distributor: RFF Real Fiction Filmverleih, Cologne
Theatrical release: October 1, 2026

SALT AND WATER - 15,000 euros
Distributor: farbfilm verleih, Berlin
Theatrical Release: June 18, 2026

Film Funding

METROPOL, DÜSSELDORF - 85,000 euros

KAMERA, BIELEFELD - 25,000 euros

COMET-CINE-CENTER, WESEL - 7,500 euros