– Seven up-and-coming talents from the German film industry, hailing from different disciplines, will be introduced at the Berlinale next month
The participants in German Films’ Face to Face 2026 (© Marcus Hoehn)
Since 2016, German Films has maintained its commitment to promoting German talents in TV and cinema through its annual Face to Face campaign. The showcase will take place in Berlin on the occasion of the biggest German film festival, the Berlinale (12-22 February), in order to allow said talents to benefit from the international spotlight. The initiative focuses on some of the most influential creative voices in contemporary German cinema. Once again this year, a total of seven filmmakers from different disciplines, such as directing, acting, make-up design and cinematography, will be able to meet professionals from all over the world. The talents are being introduced to the international film industry at a panel event that will facilitate networking activities.
This year’s talents include the pair of actors Enzo Hermann Brumm and Bayan Layla. Brumm was born in France but grew up in Germany. He began his career as an international model for prestigious fashion labels, before turning to acting and taking his first steps on the stage. When his focus shifted again, this time towards film, he got hired in 2023 for the Amazon Prime series Viktor Bringt’s, alongside veteran German actor Moritz Bleibtreu. For this performance, he received the 2025 New Faces Award for Best Young Actor. In 2024, he took on a leading role in Silent Friend [+see also:
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interview: Ildikó Enyedi
film profile] by Ildikó Enyedi, which premiered at Venice in 2025 and is now being released in cinemas. His next appearance will be in Sönke Wortmann‘s upcoming feature, Die Ältern.
As for Bayan Layla, she was born and raised in Syria, and began studying Architecture at the University of Hama before moving to Germany and gaining her first experience on stage in Leipzig in 2015. She graduated in Acting in 2023 and worked for several ensembles nationwide. Her film breakthrough came with the debut feature Elaha [+see also:
film review
film profile], directed by Milena Aboyan in 2023. She received numerous prizes for this performance, including the New Faces Award, the First Steps Young Talent Award and the Bavarian Film Award. She was also nominated for the German Film Award for Best Actress. In 2026, she will appear in a string of new flicks, such as Hygge by Lena Fakler (see the news) and Zarah Schrade, Wovon sollen wir träumen, and the literary adaptation Drei Kameradinnen – for both of the latter, she once again worked with director Milena Aboyan.
Three directors are part of this year’s Face to Face selection: firstly, Joscha Bongard, who worked as a production assistant before studying Directing at the Film Academy Baden-Württemberg, as well as at La Fémis in Paris and at UCLA. His short film Jung Fragil premiered at Riga in 2020 and was broadcast on German television. In addition to feature films, he has directed numerous adverts. His documentary debut, Pornfluencer, premiered at DOK.fest Munich in 2022, was released in cinemas nationwide and was nominated for the German Documentary Film Award in 2023. His feature-length fiction debut, Babystar [+see also:
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interview: Joscha Bongard
film profile], had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and was screened at other international gatherings.
Next up is Anna Roller, who graduated in Directing at the University of Television and Film Munich. She has made five short films, among which Pan and The Last Children in Paradise, which were screened at over 60 international festivals. She received the German Short Film Award in 2021 for Brat. Her feature debut, Dead Girls Dancing [+see also:
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interview: Katarina Stark
film profile], premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and the Munich Film Festival in 2023, and for it she received the New Faces Award. Her second feature, Allegro Pastell, will be released in 2026 and will premiere at the Berlinale, in the Panorama section.
The third helmer is documentary director Isa Willinger. Her debut, 2019’s Hi, A.I. [+see also:
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film profile], was nominated for the German Film Award and won the Max Ophüls Prize for Best Documentary, among other accolades. Her second theatrically screened documentary, Plastic Fantastic, about the climate crisis, won numerous awards, including the German Documentary Film Award, and had a successful run in cinemas. In 2025, she released her third feature, No Mercy [+see also:
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film profile], and she is currently preparing the documentary The Red Line (working title), about artificial intelligence.
Also among the lucky few is Lydia Geißler, a make-up and special effects artist. After completing her hairdressing training and emerging as the best in her class, she graduated in 2011 as a state-certified make-up artist for film and television. Since then, she has been working in the fields of make-up and special effects with a focus on character design and dramaturgical aesthetics in film. She has worked for a series of productions, such as Air [+see also:
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film profile] by Anatol Schuster, Wer ohne Schuld ist by Sabrina Sarabi, Misty – The Erroll Garner Story by Georges Gachot, Cyberpunk Romance by Joscha Douma and Karla [+see also:
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interview: Christina Tournatzés
film profile] by Christina Tournatzés.
Finally, Lotta Kilian rounds off the participants in the campaign. The Berlin-based cinematographer studies Visual Design at the Konrad Wolf Film University in Babelsberg. Her focus is on fiction features and high-quality TV series, and she also has extensive experience in documentary film. She received a nomination for the German Film Award in 2024 for her work on Luise by Matthias Luthardt. Her films have been screened at numerous international festivals, including the Berlinale. She works regularly with directors such as Leonie Krippendorff (Loving Her, Gepellte Haut) and Faraz Shariat (No Hard Feelings [+see also:
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interview: Faraz Shariat
film profile]), whose latest feature, Prosecution, will premiere at this year’s Berlinale, in the Panorama section. She is also a co-founder of the Cinematographinnen – Women Cinematographers Network.
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