– Julia Jentsch, Karoline Herfurth and Natasha Petrovikj lead the cast of this adaptation of Zsuzsa Bánk’s bestselling novel, which is set for a 2027 theatrical release
Die hellen Tage by Maggie Peren (© Constantin Film/Luis Zeno Kuhn)
Filming wrapped last week on Die hellen Tage (lit. “The Bright Days”), the new feature by German filmmaker Maggie Peren, based on the bestselling novel by Zsuzsa Bánk. The drama explores friendship, loss and the passage of time across several decades, as experienced by three families, and the friendship that binds them together.
Set in a small town in southern Germany during the late 1960s, the story follows Seri, who grows up alongside her closest friends, Aja and Karl. Beneath the surface of their seemingly idyllic childhood, each family carries its own emotional burden: Seri never knew her father, who died shortly after her birth; Aja’s dad works on the other side of the world; and Karl’s brother mysteriously disappears. The three children find stability through the close bond between their mothers, Evi, Ellen and Maria, who gradually overcome their differences and become a close-knit family. Years later, their paths lead them to Rome, where Seri, Aja and Karl confront their shared past, their parents’ choices and the question of who they ultimately want to become.
The ensemble cast features Emilia Maier (School of Magical Animals) as Seri, Samirah Breuer (Berlin ER) as Aja and Ruben Meiller as Karl. The roles of the three mothers are played by Natasha Petrovikj (Only Human) as Evi, Karoline Herfurth (Wunderschöner) as Ellen and Julia Jentsch (What Marielle Knows) as Maria. The supporting cast includes Marko Cindric (The Wrath of God), Corinna Kirchhoff (Casting) and Jakob Diehl (The Conference). The younger versions of the central trio are portrayed by Flavia Winderlich, Sofia Önder and Anton Landau.
Peren, whose previous directing credits include The Forger, Colour of the Ocean and School of Magical Animals 4, also penned the screenplay. Die hellen Tage is based on Bánk’s acclaimed novel of the same name, which, since its release, has sold more than one million copies and spent several months at the top of Germany’s Der Spiegel bestseller list. The shooting took place in Bavaria and Estonia, and the movie is now moving into post-production.
Die hellen Tage is being produced by Jochen Laube, Fabian Maubach and Sophie Cocco for Munich-based Sommerhaus Filmproduktion, alongside Viola Jäger and David Kehrl for Constantin Film, with Oliver Berben serving as executive producer. The film is a co-production with ZDF and ARTE, in collaboration with Bewegte Bilder, while Tallinn-based Nafta Films acts as the Estonian service producer. The production has received support from FilmFernsehFonds Bayern (FFF), MFG Medien- und Filmgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg, the German Federal Film Board (FFA), the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM), the German Motion Picture Fund (DFFF), Film Estonia and the Tartu Film Fund. Constantin Film will distribute the film theatrically in Germany in 2027.
