A Chance for a Leopard: North Rhine-Westphalia with Three Productions at the Locarno Film Festival

Big Names: Helena Zengel, Hanns Zischler, and Isabelle Stever

When Locarno once again transforms into a major stage for international cinema from August 5 to 15, 2026, North Rhine-Westphalia will once again be prominently represented in the program. With “I Rarely Wake Up Dreaming” / “I Rarely Wake Up Dreaming” by Isabelle Stever (X Filme) and “The House on the Moon” by Nelson Yeo (Weydemann Bros.), two co-productions funded by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, will celebrate their world premieres in the Concorso Internazionale, the festival’s international competition, and will be in the running for the Golden Leopard. “Bloody Tennis” by Nikias Chryssos (augenschein Filmproduktion), featuring Helena Zengel in an international cast, will be presented in the Fuori Concorso section.

“Selten wache ich träumend auf” / “I Rarely Wake Up Dreaming”

“I Rarely Wake Up Dreaming” by director Isabelle Stever will have its world premiere in the Concorso Internazionale. The film is a co-production by X Filme Creative Pool in collaboration with WDR, as well as in partnership with 2Brave Productions (Ukraine) and Magic Media Productions. The Filmstiftung NRW supported the project with 820,000 euros for production and distribution.

Synopsis: The love between Olya and Oleh, a young queer Ukrainian couple, is put to the test when one of their partners’ gender transition coincides with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As the war draws nearer and redefines the boundaries of masculinity and femininity, they struggle to maintain their closeness and their sense of identity as a couple. What does it mean to be a man in a country fighting for its identity and survival?

“The House on the Moon”

Also in competition is “The House on the Moon” by Nelson Yeo. The film was produced by Weydemann Bros. from Cologne in co-production with partners from Singapore, Taiwan, and Indonesia. The Film- und Medienstiftung NRW provided 60,000 euros in funding. For director Nelson Yeo, returning to Locarno is particularly special: in 2023, he was awarded the Golden Leopard in the Concorso Cineasti del Presente section for “Dreaming & Dying.”

Synopsis: When the legendary archer Hou Yi (Dominick Rustam-Chartrand) disappears on his mission to save the dying sun, Chang Er (Lim Shi-An) sets out from Earth with an astronaut to search for him. Director Nelson Yeo blends Chinese mythology, wuxia storytelling, and science fiction into a poetic journey to the dark side of the moon

“Bloody Tennis”

“Bloody Tennis” by Nikias Chryssos is screening in the Fuori Concorso festival series, which honors films with an exceptional cinematic style and a distinctive artistic profile. “Bloody Tennis” was produced by Cologne-based augenschein Filmproduktion. The Film- und Medienstiftung NRW supported the project with 500,000 euros. Filming took place in North Rhine-Westphalia and the Canary Islands.

Synopsis: Sophie (Sandra Guldberg Kampp) is accepted into a prestigious tennis academy, where her dream of reaching the world’s elite is soon overshadowed by competitive pressure and the bleak atmosphere of the boarding school. The international cast includes Helena Zengel, Elina Löwensohn, and Zlatko Burić, among others. Nikias Chryssos blends sports film, boarding school life, and horror thriller elements into a story about ambition, morality, and the price of success.

Film- und Medienstiftung NRW at the Locarno Film Festival

The Locarno Film Festival is one of Europe’s most important international film festivals. Numerous films supported by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW have already celebrated their world premieres here, screened in competition or on the Piazza, and won awards. Last year, the thriller “Dead of Winter,” starring Emma Thompson and supported by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, was screened on the Piazza Grande; and the actress was honored with the Leopard Club Award in Locarno. In 2023, “Touched” by Claudia Rorarius and “Ein schöner Ort” by Katharina Huber received awards in the Concorso Cineasti del Presente competition for emerging filmmakers.