The Berlinale's Perspektive Deutsches Kino sidebar has announced half of the section's programme for the seventh edition.

The opening film on Feb 8will be1st of May - All Belongs To You (1. Mai - Das Ende Vom Lied), an episodic feature directed by Jakob Ziemnicki, Sven Taddicken and the directorial duo Carsten Ludwig and Jan-Christoph Glaser.

The other six films confirmed so far are:

  • Football Under Cover by David Assmann and Ayat Najafi - a documentary following a home match between the Iranian women's national team and a multicultural women's team from Berlin-Kreuzberg.
  • Jesus Loves You (Jesus Liebt Dich) by Lilian Frank, Michaela Kirst, Robert Cibis and Matthias Luthardt
  • Lea by Steffi Niederzoll, a student of the Academy of Media Arts (KHM) in Cologne (short)
  • Lostage (Star-Crossed) by Bettina Eberhard, also of the KHM, a tale of late, but not too late, self-discovery
  • Robin by Hanno Olderdissen, a student of Cologne's International Film School, about a young boy struggling to win his family's love (short).
  • Teenage Angst by Thomas Stuber, a student of the Baden-Wuerttemberg Film Academy in Ludwigsburg, about pupils in an elite boarding school on a journey of self-discovery

'Particularly noteworthy about this year's works is how close they are thematically to contemporary topics,' says programmer Alfred Holighaus about the selection to date.

'They deal with violence between youths and in families. And they deal with spirituality, intersexuality and the clash of cultures. These film-makers are exploring and touching crucial sore spots.'

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