Overview
The Teddy Award is the oldest LGBTQ+ film award in the world. Founded in 1987, it is presented annually at the Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) to films with queer themes across all Berlinale sections. The 40th Teddy Award ceremony takes place on February 20, 2026 at the Volksbuhne Berlin, as part of the 76th Berlinale (February 12 to 22, 2026).
The Teddy is not a separate festival with its own submission process. It is an award given to films already selected for the Berlinale. Any film screened in any Berlinale section - Competition, Panorama, Perspectives, Forum, Generation, Berlinale Shorts, or Encounters - is automatically eligible for the Teddy if it has LGBTQ+ content. This makes the Teddy unique among queer film awards: it is integrated into one of the world's most important A-list festivals rather than operating as a standalone event.
The 2026 edition marks the 40th anniversary. Over four decades, the Teddy has presented 225 awards and programmed more than 1,000 queer-themed films since 2001. The anniversary program includes TEDDY40 Retro screenings at Zoo Palast and Deutsche Kinemathek (E-Werk), the Wild at Heart conversation series on the oral history of the Teddy, and an expanded Queer Academy program with director exchanges, TEDDY Talents Talks, and the Speedy Pitching Event in collaboration with the European Film Market.
Submission Details
Because the Teddy Award is given to Berlinale-selected films, filmmakers do not submit directly to the Teddy. Instead, they submit to the Berlinale itself. Key details for the 2026 Berlinale submission cycle:
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Feature Film Deadline | October 22, 2025 |
| Short Film Deadline | November 13, 2025 |
| Feature Film Processing Fee | EUR 175 |
| Short Film Processing Fee | EUR 75 |
| Eligibility Window | Films completed within 12 months prior to the festival |
| Premiere Requirement | World premieres preferred; minimum premiere status varies by section |
| Notification | By beginning of 2026 |
| Festival Dates | February 12 to 22, 2026 |
| Teddy Award Ceremony | February 20, 2026, Volksbuhne Berlin |
Submissions are made through the Berlinale film entry portal. The Berlinale requires a completed online submission form and a selection screener upload. Re-submissions from previous years are not eligible. The processing fee is charged per film regardless of how many sections you apply for.
Premiere status requirements vary by section. Competition requires at minimum an international premiere (German productions must be world premieres). Panorama, Perspectives, Generation, and Forum accept European premieres. Berlinale Shorts requires an international premiere. The festival does not accept German premieres or films without premiere status.
For the 2027 Berlinale (77th edition), submissions open in September 2026. Feature film deadline is October 21, 2026. Short film deadline is November 4, 2026.
Award Categories
The 40th Teddy Award presents awards in five categories:
- Best Feature Film - jury prize for the best LGBTQ+ feature across all Berlinale sections
- Best Documentary / Essay Film - jury prize for the best LGBTQ+ documentary or essay film
- Best Short Film - jury prize for the best LGBTQ+ short film
- Jury Award - additional jury recognition
- Special Teddy Award - honorary recognition for exceptional contribution to LGBTQ+ cinema
The jury is an independent panel that evaluates all Berlinale-selected films with queer content. The Teddy Award was recognized as an official independent award of the festival in 1992.
Industry Programs
The Teddy Award runs several industry initiatives alongside the Berlinale:
- Queer Industry Reception - a networking event at the European Film Market (EFM), originating from the gatherings that led to the Teddy's founding in 1987
- Speedy Film Pitches - queer filmmakers with finished films pitch in two-minute slots to program designers, distributors, and sales agents at the EFM
- Queer Academy - director exchanges at the Berlinale HUB, TEDDY Talents Talks with Berlinale Talents, and the "Queer Creations" panel
- Wild at Heart Conversation Series - five days of discussions at Deutsche Kinemathek (E-Werk) and silent green, developed with Poligonal, exploring the Teddy's history as a political discursive space
These programs give the Teddy a function beyond the award itself. Filmmakers whose films are selected for the Berlinale gain access to EFM networking, pitching opportunities, and industry connections that can lead to distribution deals.
Festival History
The Teddy Award was founded in 1987 by activists and programmers at the Berlinale, including Manfred Salzgeber, who had been bringing queer films to the Panorama section since its launch in 1980. The original purpose was to promote queer filmmaking to an indifferent majority and to create a hub for global queer film professionals.
The award was recognized as an official independent award of the festival in 1992. Over 40 years, the Teddy has been presented at venues including the Metropol, Tempelhof Airport, the House of World Cultures, and now the Volksbuhne. The ceremony has grown from a small activist gathering into a major event on the Berlinale calendar.
Berlin's queer cultural history predates the Teddy by decades. During the Weimar Republic, Magnus Hirschfeld's Institut fur Sexualwissenschaft conducted some of the earliest scientific research on human sexuality. The city's queer neighborhoods in Schoneberg and Mitte, its Christopher Street Day parade, and its political culture of openness provided the context in which the Teddy was created.
What Filmmakers Should Know
The 40th anniversary in 2026 brings expanded programming, including retrospective screenings and the Wild at Heart conversation series. Filmmakers attending the 2026 Berlinale should check the TEDDY program schedule, published on February 3, 2026, for industry events and networking opportunities.
Past Winners
Recent Teddy Award winners across categories:
2026 (40th Teddy Award):
- Best Feature Film: Ivan & Hadoum (dir. Ian de la Rosa) - world premiered in Panorama at the 76th Berlinale. Also won Silver Biznaga Special Jury Prize and Best Screenplay at the Malaga Film Festival. Spanish theatrical release by Avalon on June 12, 2026. Ian de la Rosa is the second Spanish fiction director to win the Teddy, following Pedro Almodovar in 1987.
- Best Documentary / Essay Film: Barbara Forever (dir. Brydie O'Connor)
- Best Short Film: Taxi Moto (dir. Gael Kamilindi)
- Jury Award: Der Heimatlose (Trial of Hein) (dir. Kai Stanicke)
- Special Teddy Award: Celine Sciamma (Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Petite Maman)
2025 (39th Teddy Award):
- Best Feature Film: Lesbian Space Princess (dirs. Emma Hough Hobbs, Leela Varghese) - Australian animated debut. Blue Finch Films handled international sales. Cineverse's Fandor acquired US rights with a theatrical rollout. Umbrella Entertainment released in Australia and New Zealand. Peccadillo Pictures picked up UK and Ireland. Also won Audience Award at Sydney Film Festival.
- Best Documentary / Essay Film: Satanische Sau (Satanic Sow) (dir. Rosa von Praunheim) - German theatrical release November 27, 2025
- Best Short Film: Lloyd Wong, Unfinished (dir. Lesley Loksi Chan)
- Special Teddy Award: Todd Haynes - won his first Teddy in 1991 for Poison and served as president of the 2025 Berlinale international jury
2024:
- Best Feature Film: All Shall Be Well (dir. Ray Yeung) - acquired by Strand Releasing for North America. Theatrical release in late summer 2024. Also available on the Criterion Channel.
Starting in 2025, winning the Teddy for Best Documentary / Essay Film entitles a film to compete for the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature.
Notable Alumni Films and Where They Ended Up
The Teddy Award has tracked queer cinema through four decades:
- Poison (Todd Haynes, 1991 Teddy winner) - launched the New Queer Cinema movement. Haynes went on to direct Far From Heaven (four Oscar nominations), Carol (six Oscar nominations), and May December (one Oscar nomination). He received the Special Teddy in 2025.
- The Celluloid Closet (Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, 1996 Teddy winner) - became the foundational documentary on LGBTQ+ representation in Hollywood cinema. Distributed by Sony Pictures Classics.
- All Shall Be Well (Ray Yeung, 2024 Teddy winner) - Strand Releasing acquired North American rights. The film played the Hong Kong International Film Festival as its opening film.
- Lesbian Space Princess (2025 Teddy winner) - secured distribution across at least seven territories. The film emerged from FilmLab: New Voices, a South Australian initiative backing first-time feature filmmakers.
Submission Tips Specific to This Festival
Filmmakers do not submit to the Teddy. They submit to the Berlinale, and any Berlinale-selected film with LGBTQ+ content is automatically eligible. The practical implication: your film must first clear Berlinale's section programming, which is highly competitive.
The Panorama section is the primary home for queer cinema at the Berlinale. Programmer Michael Stutz and his team actively seek LGBTQ+ themed films for Panorama, making it the most likely section for queer filmmakers targeting the Teddy. However, Teddy-eligible films also appear in Competition, Forum, Perspectives, Generation, Berlinale Shorts, and Encounters.
For the Speedy Film Pitches at the EFM, filmmakers with finished queer films can pitch in two-minute slots to program designers, distributors, and sales agents. This is a separate industry opportunity, not a Berlinale submission. Bring a finished film and a clear two-minute pitch.
The TEDDY program schedule is published in early February. Filmmakers attending the Berlinale should review it for industry events, networking receptions, and the Queer Academy program schedule.
Industry Reputation Notes
The Teddy Award occupies a unique position: it is the only LGBTQ+ film award integrated into an A-list festival. Outfest Los Angeles, by comparison, is a standalone festival with strong US industry connections but no A-list festival infrastructure. Frameline (San Francisco) operates similarly as a standalone queer festival with deep community roots but less direct industry market access.
The Teddy's position within the Berlinale gives it dual authority. A Teddy win means both queer cinema recognition and validation from one of the world's top three festivals. Strand Releasing, Salzgeber, Peccadillo Pictures, and Blue Finch Films have all acquired Teddy-winning films, with the EFM providing a market context for deals.
The 2025 change adding Oscar eligibility for Best Documentary / Essay Film winners increases the Teddy's industry weight, making it a strategically valuable target for LGBTQ+ documentary filmmakers.
Watch
See Also
Calculate your total festival submission costs and projected return using the Festival ROI Calculator. For the Berlinale itself, see Berlin International Film Festival. For LGBTQ+ festival alternatives, see Outfest Los Angeles. For festival strategy guidance, see Film Festival Strategy. Submit through the Berlinale film entry portal or visit the official Teddy Award site.
