Queer Cinema in Berlin

The rumors are true. The Berlin cultural scene is unlike any other!

Written by Autumn Scott

Every weekend, there’s a new exhibition or collective popping up with hazy ambient music and a new diaspora coming together. The film world in Berlin is no different. 

Depending on your interests, there’s no shortage of content for you to take in. Looking for something a little risque? No matter, Berlin has adult film festivals for you. Into the mainstream? The Babylon, one of the oldest theatres in Berlin, never fails to program a new screening series or retrospective. 

Recently, we were treated to the Greek Film Festival, and the Human Rights Film Festival is just around the corner. If you’re into live music, you can get the best of both worlds and watch the original (the best one, let’s be honest) Nosferatu with a live orchestra. And, of course, we have the iconic Rocky Horror Picture Show, complete with a shadow cast and tons of audience participation. 

More than this, Berlin is a place where you feel like you can be anything you want. Living in Berlin has allowed me to see a world where big cities can be hubs for queer cinema. Xenon Kino in Schöneber still proudly stands as Berlin’s first queer cinema, and MonGay at our beloved Babylon Kreuzberg, shows queer films every Monday, ranging from current, classic, to niche. 

Yorck Kinos, a mainstream cinema with tons of different locations, holds Queerfilmnacht every second Wednesday of the month, showcasing international queer cinema. Berlin is home to multiple queer film festivals like XPOSED and the Queer Film Festival (aptly named). Not only do we have dedicated spaces to showcase and celebrate queer talent and identity, like the Queer Cinema Archive, dedicated to the preservation of German queer cinema, but we also have the Teddy Awards, the world’s oldest and most significant queer film award, presented yearly at the Berlinale. 

As a queer woman working in film production, there still feels like we have a lot of work to do in terms of equal treatment. But living in a city like Berlin, where being different is celebrated openly, is a sign that maybe we’re moving in the right direction.