1949 (film)

1949 is an upcoming biographical film directed by Paweł Pawlikowski, based on the 2021 novel The Magician by Colm Tóibín. The film stars Hanns Zischler and Sandra Hüller as Thomas and Erika Mann, respectively, as they embark on a road trip across Germany during the Cold War. The film also stars August Diehl, Anna Madeley, Devid Striesow, and Theo Trebs.

In the midst of the Cold War, exiled German novelist Thomas Mann embarks on a road trip from Frankfurt, West Germany, to Weimar, East Germany, with his daughter, Erika.^[1]

• Hanns Zischler as Thomas Mann
• Sandra Hüller as Erika Mann
• August Diehl
• Anna Madeley
• Devid Striesow
• Theo Trebs
• Kriemhild Hamann
• Waldemar Kobus
• Joanna Kulig

Originally titled Vaterland, director Paweł Pawlikowski co-wrote the film's screenplay with Hendrik Handloegten, based on the 2021 novel The Magician by Colm Tóibín.^[2] The film marks the first project under a three-year co-production, financing, and distribution agreement between Mubi and Our Films.^[3][4]

In February 2025, the film was awarded a grant of €200,000 by the Hessen Film Fund.^[5] Later that year, it was awarded a grant of 41.6 million PLN by the Polish Film Institute and €150,000 from Eurimages.^[6][7] It also received funding from the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg.^[8]

Hanns Zischler, Sandra Hüller, August Diehl, Anna Madeley, Devid Striesow, and Theo Trebs were announced as cast members on 19 August 2025.^[1][9][10] In November 2025, Joanna Kulig announced that she would be singing in the film, marking her fourth collaboration with Pawlikowski.^[11]

Łukasz Żal serves as the cinematographer, having previously shot Pawlikowski's films Ida (2013) and Cold War (2018).^[12] Like Ida and Cold War, the film was shot in black-and-white.^[13]

Principal photography began in Legnica on 13 August 2025.^[14] Later that month, filming moved to Bielsko-Biała and Cieszyn.^{[15][16][17][18]} In early September, filming briefly took place in Warsaw before returning to Legnica.^{[19][20][21][22]} On 30 September, filming took place in Weimar, specifically at the Deutsches Nationaltheater und Staatskapelle Weimar and Goethes Gartenhaus in Park an der Ilm.^[23][24] In early October, filming began at the Feature Film Studio in Wrocław.^[13][25][26] Later that month, filming took place at Kościół Zbawiciela in Wałbrzych.^[27][28]

To recreate the Thomas Mann House in Los Angeles, set designers Marcel Sławiński and Katarzyna Sobańska studied blueprints, photos, and video footage of the home. Furniture and props were sourced from Germany for authenticity. Pawlikowski also wanted the villa to be filled with books and art to emphasize "the quintessence of [Mann's] world: culture, literature, music."^[25][26]

Costume designer Aleksandra Staszko, who had worked with Pawlikowski on Ida and Cold War, recreated 1940s fashion for the film, which required her to emphasize the style differences between West and East Germany, as well as the United States. While the costumes for the main characters were custom-made, costumes for extras were sourced from warehouses in Berlin, Łódź, and Warsaw.^[25][26]

Marcin Masecki will score the film, having previously collaborated with Pawlikowski on Cold War (2018) and Muse (2025).^[12]

The film's premiere is planned for 2027.^[25][29]

• 1949 at IMDb