DEFA is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. Since 1946, the East German state film studio has been a place where propaganda was produced and control and censorship were the order of the day—yet at the same time, it was home to great artists who repeatedly fought to carve out creative freedom. We’re celebrating the legacy of these directors where it belongs: at the newly renovated Kino International on Karl-Marx-Allee, the former DEFA premiere theater—now featuring Christie laser projection, 4K, and Dolby 7.1. 

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Over eight Sundays, we’ll be screening outstanding works that have lost none of their power to this day—in the original German version with English subtitles.

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Paula wants to live life to the fullest. Paul wants that too—but doesn’t dare. Two people in East Berlin whose story really shouldn’t end well, yet who refuse to let it be tragic. Heiner Carow’s film THE LEGEND OF PAUL AND PAULA was initially nearly banned, then went on to become the biggest box-office hit in the history of the GDR. A love story full of energy, color, and a soundtrack that sticks in your memory.