DESIGN and ART MAGAZINE: 76th Berlin International Film Festival Red Carpet Opening Gala

Michelle Yeoh on the red carpet on the opening night of the Berlin Film Festival, with husband Jean Todt, where she was awarded the prestigious Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement. She is the first Asian woman to receive it. Photograph (above) by Jay Zoo and cover picture by Andrea Heinsohn for DAM

On a cold, rain-soaked Berlin evening, the 76th Berlin International Film Festival opens with umbrellas aloft and flashbulbs cutting through the mist outside the Berlinale Palast. Despite the winter chill, the red carpet hummed with energy for the Opening Gala, the premiere of No Good Men, and the presentation of the Honorary Golden Bear to Michelle Yeoh. The weather did little to dampen the sense of occasion. Our photographers Andrea Heinsohn and Jay Zoo braved the elements to capture it all.

Wim Wenders, the president of the international

jury of the film festival, with wife Donata.

Photograph: Andrea Heinsohn

THE Berlinale opened with the kind of ceremony that reminds the industry why it remains one of cinema’s most politically attuned and publicly engaged stages.

At the Berlinale Palast, flashbulbs fractured the winter dark as filmmakers, actors and producers gathered to mark the start of ten days that will celebrate and interrogate the state of world cinema.

Festival Director Tricia Tuttle and International Jury President Wim Wenders lead the proceedings, formally declaring the festival open before introducing a jury that reflects the Berlinale’s global reach.

The presentation of the Honorary Golden Bear to Michelle Yeoh provided the evening’s emotional apex. One of the most versatile actors of her generation, Yeoh is honoured not only for a body of work that bridges continents and genres, but for reshaping what international stardom looks like in the 21st century. Academy Award–winner Sean Baker delivered the tribute, underscoring the festival’s commitment to bold, independent voices.

The gala culminated in the world premiere of No Good Men, the opening film by award-winning Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat. Its debut set an immediate tone: politically resonant, assured and unafraid of complexity. As the cast joined Sadat on stage, the Berlinale signals its priorities, cinema as witness, as provocation, as dialogue.

On the red carpet, Berlin’s Governing Mayor Kai Wegner, Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer and an international guest list spanning auteurs, actors and emerging talents underline the festival’s dual identity: civic and artistic event and global marketplace. With 22 films now in competition and the awards set for February 21, the 2026 Berlinale began with an exciting opening crescendo. ~ Jeanne-Marie Cilento

Scroll down to see the highlights from the red carpet on the opening night of the Berlin Film Festival