Melissa Leo [pictured] stars in US independent drama Francine.

The Berlinale has announced the 38 selections for its Forum section, with 26 world premieres.

They include Ann-Kristen Reyels’ Formentera, about a couple on holiday who realise their ideas about life diverge; Spanish gay love story Sleepless Knights; five-vignette Austrian story What Is Love; shepherds story Winter Nomads; Amman taxi driver story The Last Friday; family drama The Wait from Uruguay; and school documentary Normal School set in Buenos Aires.

Among US indies, Kid-Thing is about the fantasies of a neglected girl; Francine stars Melissa Leo as an ex-convict with an affinity for animals; and So Yong Kim’s For Ellen stars Paul Dano as a musician trying to build a relationship with his daughter.

From Japan three films deal with the March 2011 tsunami: No Man’s Zone, friends after 3.11 and Nuclear Nation.

Special screenings will be announced later.

FORUM Main Programme

The Last Friday (Al Juma Al Akheira) by Yahya Alabdallah (Jordan/United Arab Emirates)

The Woman in the Septic Tank (Ang Babae sa Septic Tank) by Marlon N. Rivera (The Philippines)

Avalon by Axel Petersén (Sweden)

Soldier / Citizen (Bagrut Lochamim) by Silvina Landsmann (Israel) [WP]

Bestiaire by Denis Côté (Canada/France)

Negotiating Love (Beziehungsweisen) by Calle Overweg (Germany) [WP]

The Wait (La demora) by Rodrigo Plá (Uruguay/Mexico/France) [WP]

Normal School (Escuela normal) by Celina Murga (Argentina) [WP]

Espoir voyage by Michel K. Zongo (France/Burkina Faso)

For Ellen by So Yong Kim (US)

Formentera by Ann-Kristin Reyels (Germany) [WP]

Francine by Brian M. Cassidy/Melanie Shatzky (US/Canada) [WP]

Friends after 3.11 by Iwai Shunji (Japan)

Living/Building (Habiter/Construire) by Clémence Ancelin, France [WP]

Hemel by Sacha Polak (The Netherlands/Spain) [WP]

Winter Nomads (Hiver nomade) by Manuel von Stürler, Switzerland [WP]

Jaurès by Vincent Dieutre (France) [WP]

Choked (Kashi) by Kim Joong-hyun (Republic of Korea)

Our Homeland (Kazoku no kuni) by Yang Yonghi, Japan [WP]

Kid-Thing by David Zellner (US)

The End of Puberty (Koi ni itaru yamai) by Kimura Shoko (Japan)

Condition (Die Lage) by Thomas Heise (Germany) [WP]

No Man’s Zone (Mujin chitai) by Fujiwara Toshi (Japan/France)

Nuclear Nation by Funahashi Atsushi (Japan) [WP]

Parabeton - Pier Luigi Nervi and Roman Concrete (Parabeton - Pier Luigi Nervi und römischer Beton) by Heinz Emigholz (Germany) [WP]

Modest Reception (Paziraie Sadeh) by Mani Haghighi (Iran) [WP]

A Night Too Young (Příliš mladá noc) by Olmo Omerzu (Czech Republic/Slovenia) [WP]

Revision by Philip Scheffner (Germany) [WP]

Salsipuedes by Mariano Luque (Argentina) [WP]

Sekret (Secret) by Przemysław Wojcieszek (Poland) [WP]

Sleepless Knights by Stefan Butzmühlen/Cristina Diz (Germany) [WP]      

Golden Slumbers (Le sommeil d’or) by Davy Chou (France/Cambodia)

Spain (Spanien) by Anja Salomonowitz (Austria) [WP]

Beyond The Hill (Tepenin Ardı) by Emin Alper (Turkey/Greece) [WP]

Keep Me Upright (Tiens moi droite) by Zoé Chantre (France) [WP]

Everybody in Our Family (Toată lumea din familia noastră) by Radu Jude (Romania/The Netherlands) [WP] 

What Is Love by Ruth Mader (Austria) [WP]

Tomorrow (Zavtra) by Andrey Gryazev (Russia) [WP]

Topics