46th Max Ophüls Film Festival to Showcase Emerging Talent and Premiere New Award

The Saarbrücken-based festival will feature 151 films, a new €10,000 prize, and open with a political satire by Jan Henrik Stahlberg.

The 46th Max Ophüls Film Festival, a key event for German-speaking filmmakers, runs from January 20 to 26, 2025, in Saarbrücken.
A total of 151 films will be screened in 225 showings, with 38 world premieres among the 57 competition entries across four categories: feature, documentary, medium-length, and short films.
The festival introduces a new €10,000 'Treatment Development' award to support research and development for debut feature films, in collaboration with ZDF/Das kleine Fernsehspiel.
The opening film, 'Muxmäuschenstillˣ,' directed by and starring Jan Henrik Stahlberg, is a political satire exploring party politics and populism, and serves as a sequel to the 2004 cult film 'Muxmäuschenstill.'
The festival's budget has risen slightly to €1.6 million, with major support from Saarbrücken’s city government, regional sponsors, and various partners.