The Goethe-Institut proudly announces the return of KinoFest, its annual German Film Festival, now on its fourth edition. From October to November 2025, KinoFest will bring the newest and most compelling German films to audiences across Southeast Asia and the Pacific, including the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Timor Leste, and New Zealand.
This year’s festival offers a diverse and thought-provoking lineup that spans documentary, adventure, drama, comedy, animation, and thriller — reflecting the depth and creativity of contemporary German cinema. In Manila, screenings will take place from October 16 to 19, 2025, at the Shangri-La Plaza Red Carpet Cinemas (Cinema 3 and Premiere Cinema).
KinoFest 2025 presents eight contemporary German films alongside five Filipino short films, highlighting the vibrant dialogue between two dynamic cinema cultures. The selected works explore themes of memory, identity, belonging, and care, while reimagining how cinema captures both personal and collective histories. Through these stories, KinoFest continues to affirm film’s power to connect people and perspectives across borders.
The festival opens in Manila on October 16, 6:00 PM, with the 2024 documentary Riefenstahl, a bold and provocative exploration of the controversial life and enduring legacy of filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl. Featuring rare archival footage and contemporary insights, the film delves into the uneasy intersection between artistic brilliance and political propaganda, asking how cinema can both illuminate and distort history. The screening will be followed by a hybrid Q&A session with renowned producer Sandra Maischberger, offering audiences a chance to engage with one of the most debated figures in world cinema. Riefenstahl will be shown in German with English subtitles.
A special highlight of the Manila program is KinoFest Special: Stories Across Continents, happening on October 18, 2025. This showcase features five Filipino short films that confront the realities of climate change — not merely as an environmental issue, but as an emotional and cultural experience intertwined with love, myth, displacement, and grief. Following the screenings, writer and transfeminist artist Jaya Jacobo will moderate a conversation with the filmmakers, including Krystahl Guina and Miko Reyes (Baradiya), Carl Joseph Lara (Rumbles of the Earth), and Whammy Alcazaren (Water Sport).
The festival will conclude on October 19, 5:00 PM, with another exciting cross-cultural dialogue featuring Svenja Vanhoeffer, producer of the German film Vena, who will join audiences for an in-person talkback session following the screening. Vanhoeffer will share her insights into the making of Vena and discuss the evolving landscape of contemporary German cinema.
KinoFest 2025 is a collaborative initiative jointly organized by eight Goethe-Instituts across Southeast Asia and New Zealand, and presented in Manila under the Culture in Focus program in partnership with Shangri-La Plaza Red Carpet Cinemas, with support from the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP).
For full program details and screening schedules, visit www.goethe.de/manila/kinofest.