About Schiwago Film
Schiwago Film GmbH was founded in Berlin in 2000 by Martin Lehwald and Michal Pokorny. 2007 Marcos Kantis joined as an executive producer and partner. Since 2020 Martin Lehwald and Marcos Kantis are the co-managing directors and executive producers of Schiwago Film GmbH.
Schiwago’s portfolio includes a wide range of feature films and short films, many of which have won several awards. Its greatest success to date came in 2012 with the feature film A COFFEE IN BERLIN.
Other outstanding Schiwago productions such as LARA (2019), STYX (2018), MUXMÄUSCHENSTILL (2004) and TOUBAB (2021) also complement the film production’s portfolio as internationally acclaimed and award-winning films. With TV film series such as OSTFRIESLANDKRIMIS, FLUSS DES LEBENS and TATORT, Schiwago has established itself in the German media landscape as an esteemed production company.
With currently produced international co-productions such as INSIDE (2023) and AMERICA (2021) Schiwago Film GmbH continues to open the global market of film productions.
Conviction
The promotion of young directors and up-and-coming talents is just as much a focus at Schiwago Film as successful regular collaborations with established filmmakers.
The company philosophy lies in the realization of ambitious, sophisticated, and varied material and in the close cooperation with authors and directors already in the early development phases of the films.
Prizes and awards
Over the past years, films have been created that deeply resonate with audiences and have received wide recognition at international festivals — from Europe to the United States.
The feature film Inside (dir. Vasilis Katsoupis) was awarded the Best Director Prize in the International Competition at the Sofia International Film Festival in 2023. In 2024, Willem Dafoe received the award for Best Actor at the Hellenic Film Academy Awards for his performance in the film.
When Will You Come and Kiss My Wounds (dir. Hanna Doose) also enjoyed an especially strong response from audiences and was honored with the Audience Award at the 39th Munich Film Festival in 2022.
With Layla M. (dir. Mijke de Jong), this recognition extended over several years. The film won the Jury Special Prize for the outstanding performance of Nora El Koussour at the Philadelphia Film Festival in 2016. Further awards followed, including the Audience Award at the Les Arcs European Film Festival in 2017.
