ⓒCourtesy of MUBI

Academy Award–nominated director Paweł Pawlikowski (known for ”Ida” and ”Cold War”) is known for creating historical dramas with concise storytelling that is emotionally and philosophically rich. His newest film, which won him a Best Director award at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, may be his most impactful and challenging yet.

Set post-WWII, “Fatherland” centers on Nobel Prize-winning novelist Thomas Mann (played by Hanns Zischler) and his daughter Erika Mann (Sandra Hüller) on a hypothetical 1949 trip along a Germany still divided, that’s in both shock at the devastation of the conflict and deep denial regarding its evils and responsibility.

As Pawlikowski moves from the East to the occupied West, he explores the complex interpersonal dynamics and familial tragedies of Thomas and Erika to reflect on a Poland grappling with a constantly changing moral urgency. Combining Łukasz Żal’s stunning black-and-white shots with the restrained performances of Hüller and Zischler, the cinematography and acting together evoke a Europe beginning to reckon with a new historical reality.

Poland-born Pawlikowski reflected on the early days of his career, which began while he was living in the UK and making documentaries at the BBC, after an unsuccessful music career and unfinished PHD at Oxford University. His first experiment was a formative experience making low-budget TV docudrama, “Twockers,” in 1998, ahead of his fiction feature debut, 2001 BAFTA winner “Last Resort,” and 2005 BAFTA winner “My Summer Of Love.” “Twockers” is about teenage car thieves living on an estate in the north of England.

Mubi is releasing “Fatherland” in several territories, including UK-Ireland, North America and Germany.