Germany's Oscar Pick

Sandra Wollner's feature film "Everytime" has been selected as Germany's official submission for the 99th Academy Awards in the International Feature Film category. The decision was made by a nine-member independent jury appointed by German Films, the country's film promotion body, as reported by both Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter.

"Everytime" is Wollner's third feature and premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Prix Un Certain Regard for best film in that sidebar. The jury praised the film for its cinematic treatment of grief, stating that it "succeeds in making grief, as a state of a world that has come undone, tangible through purely cinematic means and with surprising lightness." The full jury statement, carried by Deadline, elaborates: "The outstanding cinematography creates a shimmering and at times ethereal atmosphere without intruding on the characters. The ensemble of actors is convincing in its naturalness, with the characterizations remaining consistently precise and ambivalent. Playing elegantly with form and narrative ellipses, Everytime explores the interstices of the pain of loss."

The Film and Its Journey

The film stars Birgit Minichmayr as a mother who loses her daughter Jesse in a tragic event and struggles with her grief and her complicated relationship with her younger daughter and Jesse's boyfriend, who many blame for her death. What starts as a realistic drama becomes increasingly strange as Wollner mixes the present and the past, memories and imagination in her exploration of a family dealing with loss.

Produced by The Barricades, "Everytime" is a German-Austrian co-production with ZDF, with Austria's Panama Film as a co-production partner. The film received funding from the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF), Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg (MBB), and the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM). German distributor eksystent filmverleih Kijas released it in German cinemas on 6 August 2026.

The film has had a successful festival run, playing at Sydney, Karlovy Vary, New Zealand, and Melbourne film festivals, and was awarded the Heart of Sarajevo Grand Prize at the Sarajevo Film Festival. It had its North American premiere in September at the Toronto International Film Festival, with other festival appearances including the New York Film Festival confirmed.

International Reach

Charades is handling international sales, with the film sold to more than 30 territories, while 1-2 Special has picked up domestic rights and is planning a theatrical release for early 2027.

A Remarkable Year for German Cinema

The selection comes in a notable year for German cinema at the international awards level. Under new Academy rules introduced this spring, films winning significant awards at selected international festivals can become eligible for the International Feature Film category. As a result, two other German productions also qualified: İlker Çatak's "Yellow Letters," which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival, and Visar Morina's "Shame And Money," which received the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival.

In a joint statement, producers The Barricades and Panama Film and director and screenwriter Sandra Wollner expressed their gratitude: "We feel very honoured to be part of Germany's Oscar preselection this year. At a time when German cinema has once again gained international visibility through strong auteur voices, we are particularly pleased to share this honour with our esteemed colleagues from Yellow Letters and Shame And Money."

What's Next

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the 15 films on the best international feature film shortlist on Dec. 15. The five nominees will be announced Jan. 21, 2027, and the 99th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on March 14, 2027.