Berlinale 2026: Forum, Forum Expanded, Berlinale Shorts and TEDDY-Talk
Once again, silent green is hosting the Berlinale. As part of the 28th edition, our concrete hall will be transformed into a temporary cinema showcasing films from the Forum, Forum Expanded, and Berlinale Shorts sections. Complementing the screenings, moderated film discussions foster dialogue between film and society, art and reality, and invite audiences to engage in lively exchange. In addition, Forum Expanded will present seven installative works and two performances.
Click here to view the Berlinale-Programme.
Forum
With 32 films in the main program, the 56th Forum offers numerous opportunities to explore the status quo of cinema in all its facets. It sharpens perspectives on films of social relevance and on cinema as an aesthetic form of reflection.
Further information on the Forum programme can be found on the arsenal-Website.
Forum Expanded
This year, selected works from the 21st Forum Expanded will once again be shown at the temporary Berlinale cinema in our Betonhalle as part of the 76th Berlinale 2026.
Gaps and omissions, counter-narratives and revisions: many of the film works selected for the 21st Forum Expanded focus on the ways in which individuals and states write their histories. Against the backdrop of current political developments across the world, increasing uncertainty and ongoing wars, the question of who is granted the authority to make historical assessments and designations is explored, as is the possibility of other perspectives. The installations, films, videos and performances from 31 countries thus bring fissures and ruptures to light, pointing to things seemingly forgotten whose presence remains palpable despite all the attempts made to deny them. Their often personal approaches open up spaces for self-reflection and remembrance.
Further information on the Forum Expanded programme can be found on the arsenal Webseite.
Installationen
In addition to numerous films, 7 installations and 2 performances will be presented. In the group exhibition, Riar Rizaldi’s installation Fanfictie: Volcanology explores the points of friction between Western colonial science and local knowledge production in Indonesia. The convergence of scientific research and colonialism is also addressed in Butterfly Stories: Malaise II by Laurence Favre. Using layered and superimposed slide projections of collaged butterfly species, the artist creates a walk-in space of shimmering, floating images that resist strict categorization. With Land Invaders by Cassandra Gardiner and Juan Mateo Menendez, a video game is presented in the exhibition for the first time. Inspired by the arcade classic Space Invaders, players must prevent Christopher Columbus from reaching the shores of Turtle Island with his ships.
Butterfly Stories: Malaise II – Laurence Favre
Casting for a Film, Ihsan’s Diary – Lamia Joreige
Fanfictie: Volcanology – Riar Rizaldi
Industries of Denial, Stage 10: From Musa Dagh to Port Saïd – Angela Melitopoulos, Kerstin Schroedinger
Land Invaders – Cassandra Gardiner, Juan Mateo Menendez
The Sun That Fell into the Water – Lena Kocutar
We Deh Here – Maybelle Peters
Berlinale Shorts
Twenty-one highly diverse films skillfully explore the full range of possibilities offered by the short form. Short films involving a total of 21 producing countries will celebrate their world premieres at Berlinale Shorts 2026.
Further information on the Berlinale Shorts.
WILD AT HEART: Community as Infrastructure in Queer Film Culture
Talk, 17.2., 11:00 am–12:15 pm
Moderated by: Ana David, Programmer, Berlinale Panorama
TEDDY events are defined by an atmosphere of rare intimacy. Filmmakers, programmers, producers, and distributors from across the world return year after year to cultivate spaces of exchange—whether in cinema foyers, panel discussions, or gatherings throughout the city—disrupting established structures with distinctly queer perspectives. These encounters underscore how queer cinema not only builds and sustains community spaces but also reshapes audiences, programming practices, and the conversations that emerge around them.
Arsenal, one of Germany’s most forward‑looking film institutions, has championed queer cinema from its earliest days. Among its founding members was Manfred Salzgeber—later the inaugural head of the Berlinale’s Panorama section and co‑founder of the TEDDY Award—whose influence helped shape its commitment to queer film culture. In 1971, Rosa von Praunheim’s It Is Not the Homosexual Who Is Perverse, But the Society in Which He Lives premiered there, a watershed moment that reverberated across Germany and soon circulated through queer film communities and festivals worldwide.
The act of gathering to watch films in which one’s own experiences are reflected has long defined the queer film festival as more than a screening venue. It is a communal space where representation becomes shared recognition, and where viewing together becomes an essential part of the cultural and political experience of queer cinema.
Panelists
Kanakan-Balintagos
Director, The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros, TEDDY 40
Manuela Kay
Journalist, Author, Activist
Curator, Porn Film Festival Berlin, Publisher, Siegessäule, L-Mag
Stefanie Schulte Strathaus
Artistic Director, Arsenal Filminstitut
Sarnt Utamachote
Artist, Curator, Film Programmer, XPOSED Queer Film Festival Berlin / Sinema Transtopia
76. Berlinale: Forum, Forum Expanded, Berlinale Shorts and TEDDY-Talk
Friday,13. – Sunday, 22. February
Betonhalle
Installations: Admission free
Tickets Film Programme & Performances via Berlinale-Website