Every year, our enthusiasm for films by, about and for women inspires us to select the most beautiful, bizarre and special ones. This is our choice for 2021:

This is a portrait of journalist Masih Alinejad, who has supported Iranian women in fighting against the ultra-conservative mullah regime and the hijab compulsion for years. Despite daily threats against her and her family, giving up is not an option for Masih Alinejad.

The life of singer-songwriter Bettina Wegners is also the story of a century. It's in her bones, in her soul, in her thoughts and in her songs.

By going to prom night wearing her brother's tuxedo, young Katja causes quite a scandal in her small hometown. Cross-dressing classic from 1926 by Swedish director Karin Swanström, with live accompaniment by accordion player Michaela Dietl.

A soccer club as a safe space. "How the room felt" tells the story of a group of queer youngsters from Georgia who are united through their love of soccer, persisting in a hostile environment thanks to their team spirit.

Based on Patricia Highsmith's personal writings and accounts by her family and lovers, Eva Vitija's documentary sheds new light on the life and work of the notorious queen of suspense.

Nelly and Nadine fall in love "head over heels" on Christmas Eve of 1944 in the Ravensbrück concentration camp. In Magnus Gertten's sensitively narrated documentary, Nelly's granddaughter, who for many years did not dare to tell her real name, takes us on a journey to discover this great love story.

A family vacation without internet. Seventeen-year-old AJ prepares for the worst seven days of her life and swiftly spirals into an identity crisis on the Dorset coast. It's not until she meets lifeguard Isla that she experiences an unexpected and amorous change of course.

Trapped in her everyday life of being a mother and doing casual jobs, young Marlene's urge to break free just keeps getting stronger. When she meets rebellious Sonne, it seems like her time has come—if it weren't for the ghosts of the past.