The Berlin International Film Festival has announced the full lineup for its 2025 Generation section, which highlights children and youth films.
The Generation 14plus 2025 competition will open with Christy, directed by Brendan Canty. The film portrays a teenage boy from Cork, Ireland, navigating the shadows of his family’s past while seeking a place in the world. In the Generation Kplus section, the opening film The Nature of Invisible Things explores a community’s support for two girls as they grapple with moments of farewell and new beginnings.
The competition lineup features Seaside Serendipity by Satoko Yokohama, an episodic film set on a nameless Japanese island, which blends magical realism with everyday life, questioning the intersection of art and life. Also highlighted is Wrong Husband by Zacharias Kunuk, which transports viewers to a mystical world in the Canadian Arctic, where human and spirit realms collide in a fairy tale about young love. The emotionally evocative Sunshine, directed by Antoinette Jadaone, follows a young girl on an important journey of self-discovery, and in Paternal Leave, Alissa Jung delves into a teenager’s quest to uncover her unknown father, a journey that ultimately leads to personal revelations.
Three documentaries bring unique perspectives on the present. Circusboy, directed by Anna Koch and Julia Lemke, offers a glimpse into the circus world through the eyes of a young boy and his great-grandfather’s stories. Playtime by Lucia Murat presents a bold narrative that intertwines violence, racism and misogyny as experienced by mostly Black youth in Rio de Janeiro schools, while Robin Petré’s Only on Earth explores humanity’s relationship with nature and wildlife, featuring stunning visuals of horses threatened by forest fires.
The Generation 2025 program also includes several animated features. French fantasist Michel Gondry (The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of Sleep) will bring his latest animated film, Maya, Give Me a Title, described by Gondry as a “stop-motion love letter to his daughter Maya,” to Berlin. The omnibus feature Tales from the Magic Garden, another stop-motion production, explores three children using the power of imagination to deal with grief; and the Chinese feature A Story about Fire, from director Li Wenyu, re-tells the legend of Ran Bi Wa, a monkey raised by humans, who sets off to the Holy Mountain to steal fire for humankind. In a special screening, Underage, directed by Caru Alves de Souza, explores youth and conflict with state authorities through an anti-naturalistic lens, reflecting on justice and systemic injustice.
The full list of 2025 Generation titles is below.
Generation 14plus
Beneath Which Rivers Flow by Ali YahyaIraq 2025, World premiere, Documentary form
Christy by Brendan CantyUnited Kingdom / Ireland 2025, World premiere, Debut film
Daye: The Tale of Daye’s Family by Karim El ShenawyEgypt / Saudi Arabia 2024, European premiere
Fantas by Halima ElkhatabiCanada 2024, International premiere
Hora do recreio by Lucia MuratBrazil 2025, World premiere, Documentary form
Our Wildest Days by Vasilis KekatosGreece / France 2025, World premiere, Debut film
Paternal Leave by Alissa JungGermany / Italy 2025, World premiere, Debut film
Sandbag Dam by Čejen Černić ČanakCroatia / Lithuania / Slovenia 2025, World premiere
Sunshine by Antoinette JadaonePhilippines 2024, European premiere
Sunset over America by Matías Rojas ValenciaBrazil / Chile / Colombia 2025, World premiere, Documentary form
Têtes Brûlées by Maja Ajmia Yde ZellamaBelgium 2025, World premiere, Debut film
Underage by Caru Alves de SouzaBrazil 2025, World premiere, Series
Village Rockstars 2 by Rima DasIndia / Singapore 2024, European premiere
Wrong Husband by Zacharias KunukCanada 2025, World premiere
Generation Kplus
A Story About Fire by Li WenyuPeople’s Republic of China 2025, World premiere, Debut film, Animation
Circusboy by Julia Lemke, Anna KochGermany 2025, World premiere, Documentary form
Little Rebels Cinema Club by Khozy RizalIndonesia 2024, International premiere
Maya, Give Me a Title by Michel GondryFrance 2024, International premiere, Animation
On a Sunday at Eleven by Alicia K. HarrisCanada 2024, International premiere
Only on Earth by Robin PetréDenmark / Spain 2025, World premiere, Documentary form
Seaside Serendipity by Satoko YokohamaJapan 2025, World premiere
Space Cadet by Eric SanCanada 2025, World premiere, Debut film, Animation
Tales From the Magic Garden by David Súkup, Patrik Pašš, Leon Vidmar, Jean-Claude RozecCzechia / Slovakia / Slovenia / France 2025, World premiere, Animation
The Leap by Roberto TarazonaCuba 2025, World premiere, Documentary form
The Nature of Invisible Things by Rafaela CameloBrazil / Chile 2025, World premiere, Debut film
White Ochre by Marlikka PerdrisatAustralia 2025, International premiere, Documentary form
