The 42nd Munich International Film Festival, running from 27 June-6 July, will showcase 164 films from 54 countries, including 141 premieres. With screenings across 12 venues, the festival features competition sections such as CineCoPro, CineMasters, CineVision, CineRebels and CineKindl, alongside New German Cinema and New German Television Productions. All movies will be screened in Germany for the first time, with 49 world, four international and eight European premieres taking place in Munich.

Artistic directors Christoph Gröner and Julia Weigl commented: “From grand dramas to momentous documentaries, from indie gems to experimental art films, and from comedies to thrillers, the 42nd Munich International Film Festival offers a rich variety for movie connoisseurs of all ages and tastes. We look forward to ten days of cinema for the whole city and throughout the city, celebrating film in all its diversity, with plenty of surprises, guests and discussions.”

Eleven international co-productions will compete for this year’s CineCoPro Award, endowed with a €100,000 cash prize sponsored by FFF Bayern with the support of the Bavarian State Chancellery. Five films will have their world premieres in Munich: Comandante Fritz by Pavel Giroud (Germany/Spain/Greece), Germaine Acogny – The Essence of Dance by Greta-Marie Becker (Germany/France/Senegal), Leonora in the Morning Light by Thor Klein and Lena Vurma (Germany/Romania/Mexico/UK), I’m Not Stiller by Stefan Haupt (Germany/ Switzerland), and A Land Within by Michael Kofler (Germany/Italy/Austria). Other competition titles include American Sweatshop [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Uta Briesewitz
scheda film] by Uta Briesewitz, Bonjour Tristesse [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Durga Chew-Bose, The Freshly Cut Grass by Celina Murga, The Last One for the Road [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Francesco Sossai
scheda film] by Francesco Sossai, Sentimental Value [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Joachim Trier
scheda film] by Joachim Trier and A Poet [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Simón Mesa Soto
scheda film] by Simón Mesa Soto. The three-member jury comprises Matthijs Wouter Knol, CEO and director of the European Film Academy; Jochen Laube, producer at Sommerhaus Filmproduktion; and Anne Carey, head of the Film and Television Department at Purple Pebble Pictures.

The CineMasters Competition presents 14 titles showcasing acclaimed international auteur cinema, and the selection includes the world premiere of The Exposure by Thomas Imbach (Switzerland/UK) along with New Wave [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Richard Linklater, Sirât [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Óliver Laxe
scheda film] by Óliver Laxe, Yes [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Nadav Lapid, Magellan [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Lav Diaz and When Fall Is Coming [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by François Ozon. The line-up also features Aïcha [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Mehdi M Barsaoui, Sound of Falling [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Mascha Schilinski, Kika [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Alexe Poukine
scheda film] by Alexe Poukine, Militantropos [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Yelizaveta Smith, Alina Go…
scheda film] by Yelizaveta Smith, Alina Gorlova and Simon Mozgovyi, Perla [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Alexandra Makarová
scheda film] by Alexandra Makarová, Promised Sky [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Erige Sehiri
scheda film] by Erige Sehiri, The Baltimorons by Jay Duplass and Hard Truths [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Mike Leigh. The CineMasters Award, worth €15,000, will be decided upon by a jury composed of actress-director Emma Bading, director Eva Trobisch, and director, actress and screenwriter Maria Schrader.

In the CineVision Competition, which highlights fresh and compelling perspectives in international cinema, 14 titles are locking horns. Among them are To the West, in Zapata by David Bim, Brides [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Nadia Fall
scheda film] by Nadia Fall, Bunnylovr by Katarina Zhu, Sleepless City [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Guillermo Galoe
scheda film] by Guillermo Galoe, Don’t Cry, Butterfly by Linh Dương Diệu (see the review), Natural Phenomena by Marcos Díaz Sosa and Hani by Dasheng Hou. Other entries are My Uncle Jens [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Brwa Vahabpour, Peiman Azi…
scheda film] by Brwa Vahabpour, Leave One Day [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Amélie Bonnin, Outerlands by Elena Oxman, Pinch by Uttera Singh, Urchin [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Harris Dickinson, Wind, Talk to Me [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Stefan Djordjević and Winter in Sokcho [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Koya Kamura
scheda film] by Koya Kamura. The award worth €10,000 will be bestowed upon the best director by producer Viola Fügen, screenwriter Moritz Binder and writer-director Leo Leigh.

As for the CineRebels Competition, dedicated to bold and innovative cinema, it features 14 titles, with two of them having their world premieres: Show Me the Pain of the World by Tjaša Kosar and Marc Steck (Germany/Slovenia), and A Whale Can Be Torn Like a Samba School by Marina Meliande and Felipe M Bragança (Brazil). This year’s line-up includes Cyclone by Flávia Castro, Mistress Dispeller by Elizabeth Lo, Morlaix [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Jaime Rosales
scheda film] by Jaime Rosales, I Only Rest in the Storm [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Pedro Pinho
scheda film] by Pedro Pinho, OBEX by Albert Birney, Okamoto by Soujiro Sanada and Pavements by Alex Ross Perry as well as Phantosmia by Lav Diaz, The Vanishing Point [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Bani Khoshnoudi, Un gran casino by Daniel Hoesl, Vittoria [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Alessandro Cassigoli e Cas…
scheda film] by Casey Kauffman and Alessandro Cassigoli, and Zafari [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Mariana Rondón. The winning director of this section and the €15,000 award will be decided upon by writer-director Anna Hints, film composer Dascha Dauenhauer and actor Clemens Schick.

US actress Gillian Anderson will be honoured with the CineMerit Award for her outstanding contributions to the art of film. The prize will be presented during a gala evening at the Deutsches Theater, which will also host the German premiere of her latest feature, The Salt Path by Marianne Elliott. Also among the guests in Munich are Stellan Skarsgård, François Ozon and Jay Duplass.