Nor-way Filmfestival 2026

The focus is not only on Norway's spectacular natural beauty, but also on Oslo, the vibrant center of a thriving film scene. This scene is currently gaining international acclaim thanks to directors such as Joachim Trier (The Worst Person in the World), Dag Johan Haugerud (OSLO STORIES: Dreams, Love, Longing), and Hans Petter Moland (A Man of the World).

The festival opens with a special highlight:

a live performance by Sami singer Ella Marie, winner of the TV show Stjernekamp (the Norwegian equivalent of Germany's Next Top Model) and star of the film Let The River Flow + Ella Marie LIVE (2023), which the Sami artist and activist will present herself.

Further screenings of Let The River Flow can also be found in the festival program.

In recent years, Norway has established itself as a significant film nation, thanks in part to a new generation of directors and producers. International awards at A-list festivals such as Cannes (including Armand, Sentimental Value, 2024) and the Berlinale (OSLO-STORIES: Dreams, 2024) underscore this development.

NORWAY is dedicating special attention to the work of Joachim Trier and his fellow director Dag Johan Haugerud. The Babylon cinema will screen Haugerud's OSLO-STORIES and invite the director to a panel discussion with festival curator Friedemann Beyer on January 17. The program is complemented by a small retrospective featuring earlier films such as I Belong (2012) and Beware of Children (2019).


Norway is dedicating special attention to the work of Joachim Trier and his fellow director Dag Johan Haugerud. In addition, classics and box-office hits of recent Norwegian cinema will be screened, including Elling (2001), A Man of the World (2010) starring Stellan Skarsgård, the dystopian film Otherland (2006), and the Sami classic Ofelaš – Wayfinder (1987). Early Norwegian cinema is also represented: the Knut Hamsun adaptation Blessing of the Earth (1921), the crime thriller Café X (1928), and Laila – Daughter of the North (1929), with live commentary by Anna Vavilkina.

A particular festival highlight is Ung Flukt – The Young Sinners (1959) by Edith Carlmar, in which 20-year-old Liv Ullmann made her film debut. The film caused a scandal in prudish post-war Germany and was only shown there in a shortened version under the title Early Marriage. The Babylon cinema is showing the restored, uncut original version.

Bonus: Free sauna for all festivalgoers

With the purchase of a ticket, all visitors receive free access to mobile saunas in front of the Babylon cinema.

Sauna opening hours:

• Daily 5:00 PM–11:00 PM
  
• Visitors to the 10:00 PM showing can use the sauna the following day.
  

Rule: One film = one sauna

Three saunas are located on Hirtenstraße (side street towards Cinema 2):

– one for women
– one for men
– one mixed sauna. There are also two whirlpools – one cold and one hot.

Showers are located backstage. Valuables can be left at the Babylon box office.

After all, what would Norway be without a sauna?

GRAND OPENING:

Thursday, January 15, 7:30 p.m.

Let The River Flow
with lead actress and Sámi singer Ella Marie LIVE in concert


The Norwegian Film Festival NOR-WAY is kindly supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of Norway in Berlin, the Norwegian Film Institute (NFI), and the National Library of Norway (NLN) in Oslo.