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Opening Ceremony
As the official kick-off for the festival week, the opening ceremony brings together filmmakers, students, and invited guests.
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Who Decides What We Watch?
Who decides which films we get to see? In this panel, Sooner and Sehsüchte explore curatorial processes across festivals, platforms and audiences. We discuss how film programs take shape and what defines strong curation today.
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TEENS Future (12+)
Between childhood and adulthood lies a time full of questions and change. These films follow teenagers as they navigate inner and outer conflicts, finding their voice in a challenging world.
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Virtual Reality Projects
The virtual reality programme gives our visitors the opportunity to physically experience creative audiovisual narratives. Eight outstanding works from the fields of 360-degree films and interactive Virtual Reality can be experienced, ranging from fictional abstract worlds to documentary scenarios.
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Music Video Loop
Feel the bass, watch the flicker – we’re showcasing music videos that don’t just illustrate the sound, they make it visible. Some visuals lean into the sound, others hit back. A visual mixtape of different genres and styles.
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Exhibition
The exhibition invites you to explore worlds where screens lose their boundaries and the imagination ventures into the digital unknown. Join us for immersive installations and live performances, followed by discussions with the artists.
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Moving Out, Moving On
Five films about people facing change. Leaving home, crossing borders, or encountering unexpected worlds, they must sometimes leave parts of their lives behind in search of identity, freedom, and the courage to imagine another future.
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XRBB x Sehsüchte: The Current Market for XR Productions
How is the market for XR productions evolving? What interfaces exist for filmmakers and what new stories can be told? This panel offers insights into industry structures, distribution pathways, and opportunities for new immersive projects.
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Staging Intimate Scenes Safely: The Role of Intimacy Coordination
Intimacy coordination is increasingly becoming standard. Drawing on experiences from productions such as EUPHORIE, SCHWARZE FRÜCHTE or THE HUNGER GAMES – SUNRISE ON THE REAPING, this panel discusses safe working conditions for intimate scenes.
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Fragments Of Reality
This program brings together films in which reality appears as a collection of personal fragments. Between solitude, inner monologues, and acts of self-assertion, identity is renegotiated - visionary and multifaceted, sometimes quiet, sometimes loud.
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Showcase: Tashkent Film School
Three films, followed by a discussion featuring excerpts from unreleased productions by the Tashkent Film School, offer insight into the curriculum and filmmaking at Uzbekistan’s first independent film school.
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What’s Next? – A Conversation with Film University Alumni
Film University – and then what? Alumni from different programs and graduating years at the Film University Babelsberg share insights into their career paths, experiences, and offer advice for students starting their professional journeys.
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International Get-Together hosted by StuRa Filmuni
Welcome to the International Get-Together, hosted by the StuRa Filmuniversität! A place for international filmmakers and students to connect, get to know each other and celebrate the start of Sehsüchte.
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Capturing Light And Darkness
Film is known to be truth in 24 frames per second. The search for this truth leads to distant lands, seeks to deceive or attempts to prove, provokes us to look into the mirror, and makes it clear that reality has many faces.
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Breaking The Shell
Hiding in a shell may feel safe, yet something always cracks it open. Now is the moment to face fears and embrace a new way of living. Life’s going to hurt, but it’s meant to be felt. This block is about confronting reality and breaking free.
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Retrospective: Frauen in Berlin
14 East-Berlin women reflect on their aspirations, opportunities and the mundane during the early 1980s. Being unusually candid, the film offers unique glimpses into both individual and generational female struggles.
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Exhibition: Vernissage
The exhibition invites you to explore worlds where screens lose their boundaries and the imagination ventures into the digital unknown. Join us for immersive installations and live performances, followed by discussions with the artists.
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Exhibition: Live Performance
The exhibition invites you to explore worlds where screens lose their boundaries and the imagination ventures into the digital unknown. Join us for immersive installations and live performances, followed by discussions with the artists.
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Haunted
The past as a haunting presence. Cold hands reaching out, the silent question of why, which rears its head every day. National and individual ghosts and the question of hope: whether we can live with the past.
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Showcase: Filmuniversität Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF
Personal stories meet wider social realities. From intimate relationships to local conflicts and intergenerational memory, these works offer a glimpse into the voices shaping the next generation of cinema.
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Projection Mapping
Every evening after sunset, the courtyard’s façade transforms into a projection screen. A variety of visual works, some of which interact with the audience, are accompanied by atmospheric sounds, creating an immersive experience.
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Impact Film: A Catalyst for Social Change
How can a film create impact? This panel explores the journey of an impact film – from impact producing and campaign strategies to the role of festivals – and takes a look at funding structures in Germany in an international context.
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Film Studios in the Age of AI and Virtual Production
AI and virtual production are transforming film production. What will collaboration look like in the future? Experts discuss new tools and workflows, with insights from productions such as ATHOS 2643 and GUTE ZEITEN, SCHLECHTE ZEITEN.
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TEENS Future Barrierefrei (12+)
Cinema is for everyone! Stories of self-discovery, friendship and the challenges of growing up are being told. The movies have closed captions and audio descriptions. The screening is being accompanied by sign language interpreters.
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Virtual Reality Projects
The virtual reality programme gives our visitors the opportunity to physically experience creative audiovisual narratives. Eight outstanding works from the fields of 360-degree films and interactive Virtual Reality can be experienced, ranging from fictional abstract worlds to documentary scenarios.
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Music Video Loop
Feel the bass, watch the flicker – we’re showcasing music videos that don’t just illustrate the sound, they make it visible. Some visuals lean into the sound, others hit back. A visual mixtape of different genres and styles.
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Exhibition
The exhibition invites you to explore worlds where screens lose their boundaries and the imagination ventures into the digital unknown. Join us for immersive installations and live performances, followed by discussions with the artists.
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Speed Dating – Meet The Industry
The speed dating event offers emerging filmmakers the opportunity to connect with industry professionals, get to know companies and initiatives, and better orient themselves within the German film industry – from distribution and international sales to production and festivals.In 10-minute one-on-one meetings with professionals, you can exchange insights about the current market and the future of film.
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Sheroes
Sheroes brings together stories of women who refuse to stand alone. They uplift, console, support and encourage each other. Across different lives and struggles, these films celebrate solidarity, resilience, the quiet and loud power of community.
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Taken By Nature
How do we see nature? From a distance, we admire its beauty. In its surroundings, we create places of memory and culture. Yet when we come close, it can also fill us with fear.
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Heat Wave
Heat Wave brings together films about rising emotions and shimmering, intense moments. The body becomes a site of exploration, desire, and resistance – understood as something contested and fought over.
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Coffee & Connect
An open gathering for festival visitors and filmmakers to talk about the films they’ve seen, exchange ideas, and make new connections.
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Cut-Out Animation Workshop
Discover the magic of cut-out animation. Characters made from paper and cardboard move frame by frame. In this workshop, children create their own paper puppet and a short animation while learning how animated films come to life.
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Trading Places
Trade and exchange of goods, places, memories and work. From a bustling city of stolen goods, violence, and dance to the calmness of the supermarket on the corner. Caught between routine, deconstruction, and the future remains of its existence.
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(Be)Longing
Between rigid systems, family expectations, and invisible barriers, the characters search for direction and space for themselves. Refusing to quietly accept the roles assigned to them, they long for nothing more than to be seen.
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Showcase: Dar Al-Kalima University
The showcase brings together six films by students from the Dar Al-Kalima University. From creative moments and childlike freedom to checkpoints and travel bans. Palestinian stories of resilience, hope, and dignity.
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Schreibsüchte: Pitch, Please
The nominees in the pitch competition present their concepts to a panel of experts and a live audience.
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Retrospective: 10 Tage im Oktober
In October of 1989, a Berlin Church offered shelter and hosted a hunger strike for those protesting the GDR regime on its 40th anniversary. A portrait of activism, religion and police violence leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall.
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Short First, Feature Next – A Successful Short Film Release as a Bridge to the Debut Feature
This workshop explores how successfully distributed short films can pave the way to a feature film debut. It highlights what matters in festival distribution in order to fully unlock the potential, also financially, of short films.
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Frames and Frequencies: Music Videos (Panel)
Music videos are more than just a companion piece: they are an art form of their own. Our panel explores the art of staging at the intersection of creative vision and commercial reality, followed by a screening of works by international students.
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Where The Waves Took Her
The film follows a midwife on her first rescue mission in the Mediterranean. She takes care of women and children fleeing war and hunger in search of safety in Europe. Survivors share harrowing experiences from their dangerous journey.
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Frames & Frequencies: Music Videos (Screening)
Music videos are more than just a companion piece: they are an art form of their own. Our panel explores the art of staging at the intersection of creative vision and commercial reality, followed by a screening of works by international students.
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Projection Mapping
Every evening after sunset, the courtyard’s façade transforms into a projection screen. A variety of visual works, some of which interact with the audience, are accompanied by atmospheric sounds, creating an immersive experience.
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Off Screen: Get-Together
Following the music video screening, we invite all festival attendees to join us for a get-together. Grab a cold drink, let’s talk about the works we’ve just seen, and get ready for the weekend opener together.
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Weekend Opener
Is there a better place to discuss the films you've seen than at our weekend opener? We will kick off the weekend together with a cool drink in our hands and good music in our ears.
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Karaoke
Karaoke Night! Sing your favorite hits – whether you’re on stage or in the crowd. From musical classics to rap tracks, we celebrate every act!
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Right-Wing Pressure in the German Film Industry: How Do We Defend Artistic Freedom?
Right-wing influence and political polarization are reshaping the cultural landscape. What does this mean for filmmakers and funding structures? This panel discusses how the industry is responding and how artistic freedom can be defended.
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Pitch Perfect: Saying the Right Things to the Right People
Networking at events — we know the struggle. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to start conversations more easily, exit them confidently, and draw attention to yourself and your project.
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Dead End
From one place to another. But what if the path runs in a circle and the place of search becomes the place of violence? Where do you go when the dead end runs in both directions? Streets as rooms of confinement and an uneasy public.
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Virtual Reality Projects
The virtual reality programme gives our visitors the opportunity to physically experience creative audiovisual narratives. Eight outstanding works from the fields of 360-degree films and interactive Virtual Reality can be experienced, ranging from fictional abstract worlds to documentary scenarios.
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Music Video Loop
Feel the bass, watch the flicker – we’re showcasing music videos that don’t just illustrate the sound, they make it visible. Some visuals lean into the sound, others hit back. A visual mixtape of different genres and styles.
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Getting Along
“Getting Along” explores the fragile bonds that connect brothers and sisters in times of crisis. The films focus on relationships under pressure and the feeling of being seen - out of sight, but not out of mind.
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Experimental Films: With All Our Senses
Some films want to be understood. These want to be felt. An experimental film block with shimmering images, pulsating rhythms, and surprising forms to amaze, enjoy, and discover.
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Exhibition
The exhibition invites you to explore worlds where screens lose their boundaries and the imagination ventures into the digital unknown. Join us for immersive installations and live performances, followed by discussions with the artists.
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Pushing Limits
Higher, faster, further! Expectations push us to give our best. But those who fly high can also fall hard. A look at the dark sides of obsession, promises of success, liberation from pressure, and the desire to prove oneself.
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Sustainable Stories: Narrative Responsibility in Film
What does sustainability mean beyond “green production”? This panel turns to storytelling itself: Which narratives shape our visions of the future and how can film develop responsible, forward-looking stories?
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Schreibsüchte: Kopfkino
In the staged reading “Kopfkino”, acting students from the Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF read excerpts from the works nominated for the script competition in the “Schreibsüchte” section.
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KIDS Future (6+)
Children are full of intense emotions! Between curiosity, courage and the feeling of being overwhelmed, the young protagonists discover the importance of solidarity. These films sensitively accompany children on their journey of self-discovery.
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Sehsüchte Alumni Meet Up
Event ProgrammeSehsüchte Alumni Meet Up 25. April 14:30 – 15:30 | T-Werk Coffee Lounge…
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Retrospective: Alles andere zeigt die Zeit
Leipzig shortly after German Reunification. For many, future plans are being challenged by rapid political change. Time will tell whether their goals remain achievable or have become unattainable.
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The New (Talent) Film Funding: The Kuratorium junger deutscher Film
Through the funding reform, the Kuratorium junger deutscher Film now provides €8 million to support emerging talent films. What does this mean for the next generation of filmmakers? How can the transition from film school to the industry be improved?
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Award Ceremony
A glamorous finale for Sehsüchte 2026: We honor this year's winners and revisit the week's highlights with captivating dance and choir performances.
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Special: Queer Film Festival Utrecht
In this year’s cooperation with QFFU, Sehsüchte is showing five films that were submitted in connection with its “10-minute challenge”. They deal with debates and representations of sexuality and identity, as well as self-realization and prejudice.
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Projection Mapping
Every evening after sunset, the courtyard’s façade transforms into a projection screen. A variety of visual works, some of which interact with the audience, are accompanied by atmospheric sounds, creating an immersive experience.
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Closing Party
Let's get this party started! To wrap things up, the festival soundtrack leads you from live performances in Waschhaus Saal straight to hypnotic beats at Kesselhaus. Come join us and celebrate the festival sound of 2026.
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Winning Films I
On Sunday, the award-winning films from the programme sections and some special mentions from the juries will be shown at the Film Museum. So buckle up and make yourself comfortable - after all, there are three blocks of excellent newcomer films in the programme!
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Winning Films II
On Sunday, the award-winning films from the cinema sections and some special mentions from the juries will be shown at the Film Museum. So buckle up and make yourself comfortable - after all, there are three blocks of excellent newcomer films in the programme!
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Winning Films III
On Sunday, the award-winning films from the cinema sections and some special mentions from the juries will be shown at the Film Museum. So buckle up and make yourself comfortable - after all, there are three blocks of excellent newcomer films in the programme!
