The German Film Award (), also known as Lola after its prize statuette, is the national film award of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It is presented at an annual ceremony honouring cinematic achievements in the

German film industry The film industry in Germany can be traced back to the late 19th century. German cinema made major technical and artistic contributions to early film, broadcasting and television technology. Babelsberg became a household synonym for the early 2 ...

. Besides being the most important

film award Film award is a cinematic award which can be awarded in several categories. Unlike the film festival, the film award is not accompanied by a public screening of competitive films. Film awards are usually awarded based on the results of a secret vo ...

in Germany, it is also the most highly endowed German cultural award, with cash prizes in its current 20 categories totalling nearly three million euros. From 1951 to 2004 it was awarded by a

commission In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

, but since 2005 the award has been organized by the German Film Academy (

Deutsche Filmakademie The Deutsche Filmakademie is a German independently run organization with a focus on filmmaking. History The academy was founded in 2003 in Berlin, on the initiative of Helmut Dietl, Bernd Eichinger, and Ulrich Felsberg. It initially compris ...

). The Federal Commissioner for Cultural and Media Affairs has been responsible for the administration of the prize since 1999. The awards ceremony is traditionally held in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

History

The award was created in 1951 by the Federal Ministry of the Interior and was first given out during the

Berlin Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

. A practice that was kept for the upcoming decades. Since 1999 it is commissioned by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. In the first years the awards had numerous trophies that were handed out for different categories. Aside from the main categories for Best Picture, Director and Screenplay most others from the inaugural edition have been short lived such as ''Film that promote democratic values'' due to the constant change of the awards constitution in the early years. As a rule stated that awards would only be awarded for outstanding achievements, not every category had a winner each year. Over time, the award in the shape of a film tape became the most common trophy, either in gold or silver. The Golden Bowl became the highest honour for Best Picture, however due to not being handed out for more than 17 years, the award was abolished in 1996. Due to the confusing mechanism as well as changing categories, the award lost its relevance. With only a press conference and no televised broadcast, it did not attract the public's interest in

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

. Since the reunification of Germany in 1990, constants efforts have been made to underline the award's significance as a national correlation to similar awards honours such as the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

or the Césars. In 1995 for the first time, winners were announced during a glamorous telecast in

Friedrichstadt-Palast The Friedrichstadt-Palast, also shortened to Palast Berlin, is a revue theatre in the Berlin district of Mitte (German for "middle" or "center"). The term Friedrichstadt-Palast refers both to the building as well as the institution and its ensem ...

, one of the most prestigious venues of former East-Berlin. In the following years, other locations were chosen that were symbolic for the once divided city such as the

Berlin Tempelhof Airport Berlin Tempelhof Airport () was one of the first airports in Berlin, Germany. Situated in the south-central Berlin borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg, the airport ceased operating in 2008 amid controversy, leaving Tegel and Schönefeld as the ...

or the

Brandenburg Gate The Brandenburg Gate ( ) is an 18th-century Neoclassical architecture, neoclassical monument in Berlin. One of the best-known landmarks of Germany, it was erected on the site of a former city gate that marked the start of the road from Berlin t ...

. Since 1999, the various category winners are awarded a statuette, the LOLA. The name refers to

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however, Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

's role in ''

Der blaue Engel ''The Blue Angel'' () is a 1930 German musical comedy-drama film directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring Marlene Dietrich, Emil Jannings and Kurt Gerron. Written by Carl Zuckmayer, Karl Vollmöller and Robert Liebmann, with uncredited ...

'',

Rainer Werner Fassbinder Rainer Werner Fassbinder (; 31 May 1945 – 10 June 1982), sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder, was a German filmmaker, dramatist and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema moveme ...

's film ''

Lola Lola may refer to: Places * Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama * Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States * Lola Prefecture, Guinea * Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture * Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands People * Lol ...

'' and

Tom Tykwer Tom Tykwer (; born 23 May 1965) is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, and composer. He is best known internationally for directing the thriller films ''Run Lola Run'' (1998), ''Heaven (2002 film), Heaven'' (2002), ''Perfume: The Sto ...

's very successful movie ''Lola rennt''. Mechthild Schmidt, Partner of HouseWorks digital media, New York about her 1999 design: "I wanted to symbolize motion. Film IS movement. I wanted the statue to express confidence without being stern, strength without being static. It was important to me to give the "Deutschen Filmpreis" its own identity, not trying to borrow what other awards already successfully symbolize. While the Oscar is the strong, firm standing fighter and winner, I wanted the Filmprize statue to symbolize the dynamics of movement, the muse, the inspiration necessary to make a work of art, to become a winner. The movement is carried through to the asymmetrical conical base. Stylistically, I was looking for a timeless modern design as well as a historical reference to the first golden era of German film, the Art Deco in the 1920s." From 1999 to 2002 the show was televised by a private broadcaster

ProSieben ProSieben (, ''sieben'' is German for "seven"; often stylized as Pro7) is a German free-to-air television network owned by ProSiebenSat.1 Media. It was launched on 1 January 1989. It is Germany's second-largest privately owned television company ...

. Since 2003 it has rotated each year between the two major German public broadcasters ARD and

ZDF ZDF (), short for (; ), is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. Launched on 1 April 1963, it is run as an independent nonprofit institution, and was founded by all federal states of Germany ( ...

. Before the founding of the German Film Academy (Deutsche Filmakademie) in 2005 a single prize was awarded for the technical categories of

cinematography Cinematography () is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens (optics), lens to focus reflected light from objects into a real image that is transferred to some image sen ...

film editing Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film stock, film which increasingly involves the use Digital cinema, of digital ...

production design In film industry, film and television, a production designer is the individual responsible for the overall aesthetic of the story. The production design gives the viewers a sense of the time period, the plot location, and character actions and ...

art direction Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to super ...

and musical score in the category "Outstanding Singular Achievement".

Selection process

Borrowing from the American model, the awards have been made by an academy, the Deutsche Filmakademie, since 2005. The academy replaces a much-criticised

jury A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence, make Question of fact, findings of fact, and render an impartiality, impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a sentence (law), penalty or Judgmen ...

which was constituted according to the principle of political proportionality, and on which politicians and

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

men also sat. Now the jury consists of specialised members from of the German Film Academy. The selection process has three main steps: # Registration and pre-selection # Nomination # Election of the award winners Nominations are decided by a pre-determined jury from each branch. Except for the film categories, usually three nominees are announced. More nominees are allowed in case of a tie. The nominations for the film categories are endowed with 100.000 Euro (Documentary), 125.000 Euro (Best Children's Film) and 250.000 Euro (Feature Film). Winners in each individual categories get 10.000 Euro, whereas the main winner in the Film category gets 500.000 Euro (including the nomination reward). The Best Film category features six nominees with the three most voted winning a bronze, silver and gold award respectively.

Ceremonies

Trivia

Films that received six or more German Film Awards

"Big Five" winners and nominees

Winners

*''

Toni Erdmann ''Toni Erdmann'' is a 2016 comedy drama film, produced, written and directed by Maren Ade. It stars Peter Simonischek as an eccentric man who intrudes upon the life of his daughter, a career-focused business executive played by Sandra Hüller. ...

'' (2016) #Best Film: ''Toni Erdmann'' #Best Director:

Maren Ade Maren Ade (; born 12 December 1976) is a German film director, screenwriter and producer. Ade lives in Berlin, teaching screenwriting at the Film Academy Baden-Württemberg in Ludwigsburg. Together with Janine Jackowski and Jonas Dornbach, she ...

#Best Actor:

Peter Simonischek Peter Simonischek (6 August 1946 – 29 May 2023) was an Austrian actor. He was a celebrated stage performer and a regular ensemble member of the Burgtheater from 1999. He often appeared at the Salzburg Festival and had played the title role i ...

#Best Actress:

Sandra Hüller Sandra Hüller (; born 30 April 1978) is a German actress. She has appeared in German, Austrian, British, French, and American films. She has received various accolades, including two European Film Awards, a César Award and three German Film Aw ...

#Best Writing: Maren Ade *''

System Crasher ''System Crasher'' () is a 2019 German drama film directed by Nora Fingscheidt. Plot The nine-year-old Bernadette, known as “Benni”, is considered aggressive and wayward. If anyone but her mother touches her face, she lashes out – a conse ...

'' (2020) #Best Film: ''System Crasher'' #Best Director:

Nora Fingscheidt Nora Fingscheidt ( ) is a German director and screenwriter. She has been a participant of the film festival since 2011 for her short films, winning the prize in 2017 for ''Without This World'' (''Ohne diese Welt''). She became widely known for ...

#Best Actor: Albrecht Schuch #Best Actress:

Helena Zengel Helena Zengel (; born 10 June 2008) is a German actress. She is best known for her roles in the films '' System Crasher'' (2019), ''News of the World'' (2020), and '' The Legend of Ochi'' (2025). Early life Zengel was born and raised in Berlin ...

#Best Writing: Nora Fingscheidt

Nominees

Four awards won *'' Good Bye Lenin'' (2002): Best Actress ( Katrin Saß) *'' Go for Zucker!'' (2004): Best Actress (

Hannelore Elsner Hannelore Elsner (; born Hannelore Elstner; 26 July 1942 – 21 April 2019) was a German actress with a long career in television and film. She first performed on stage in Munich, and later starred in popular films and television series such as ' ...

) *''

The White Ribbon ''The White Ribbon'' () is a 2009 German-language mystery drama film, written and directed by Michael Haneke. Released in black-and-white, the film offers a dark depiction of society and family in a northern German village just before World War ...

'' (2009): Best Actress (

Susanne Lothar Susanne Lothar (15 November 1960 – 21 July 2012) was a German film, television and stage actress. Her work included collaborations with Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke. She was married to fellow actor Ulrich Mühe, with whom she frequently ...

) Three awards won *''

Stopped on Track ''Stopped on Track'' () is a 2011 German drama film directed by Andreas Dresen. It premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. The film won the Prize Un Certain Regard, the top award for best film in the section. ...

'' (2011): Best Actress ( Steffi Kühnert) and Writing (

Andreas Dresen Andreas Dresen (born 16 August 1963) is a German film director. His directing credits include ''Wolke Neun, Cloud 9'', ''Summer in Berlin (film), Summer in Berlin'', ''Grill Point'' and ''Night Shapes''. His film ''Stopped on Track'' premiered at ...

and Cooky Ziesche)

Actors with two or more competitive awards

Notes

References

External links

* *
deutsche-filmakademie.de
Database of recipients 1951 – today *
Promotion of German Film and Cinema by the German Federal Government
*

List of Lola categories and associated monetary awards {{Authority control Awards established in 1951