DEFA Foundation Prizes and Grants

In full accordance with its mission of promoting German film culture, the DEFA Foundation awards annual prizes in the amount of 60,000 Euro.

The DEFA Foundations hosts its own awards ceremony and honors outstanding people who made a remarkable contribution to promoting DEFA heritage. Since 2013, the DEFA Foundation has awarded the Heiner Carow Prize to a film screened at the Berlinale. The DEFA Foundation also rewards young talented directors at festivals in Chemnitz, Dresden, Leipzig and Schwerin.

Since 2001, the DEFA Foundation has given out annual awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, in an amount of 40,000 Euros at their own annual awarding ceremony.

Every year, the DEFA Foundation awards prizes in the amount of 15,000 Euro at German film festivals in Chemnitz, Dresden, Leipzig and Schwerin.

Since 2013, the DEFA Foundation has awarded a German feature or documentary film with the Heiner Carow Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale). The winner receives a 5,000-Euro award.

From 2000 to 2013, the DEFA Foundation supported a large number of DEFA-related projects with scholarships and grants.

DEFA Foundation Prizes and Grants

DEFA Foundation Awards

DEFA Foundation Awards at Festivals

The Heiner Carow Prize

Scholarships and Project Funds