Best of German film announced

Culture Minister Bernd Neumann and the president of the German Film Academy, Iris Berben, on Friday announced the nominations for the German Film Awards in Berlin.

The awards, known as the Deutscher Filmpreis, are Germany's highest honor in film. Since 2005, the coveted Lola statuettes have been given by the German Film Academy.

The epic film "Cloud Atlas" starring Hollywood legends Tom Hanks and Halle Berry snagged nine whopping nominations. The film, directed by the German born Tom Tykwer, is the most expensive German-directed film of all time.

Director Jan Ole Gerster and his Berlin film "Oh Boy" followed close behind with eight nominations.

Three women are in the running for Best Actress: Martina Gedeck for her role in the novel adaptation of "Die Wand," Birgit Minichmayr for her performance in "Mercy" and Barbara Sukowa for the title role of "Hannah Arendt."

Best Actor nominees include Tom Schilling ("Oh Boy"), Sabin Tambrea ("Ludwig II") or Edin Hasanovic ("Schuld sind immer die anderen"). The awards are set to take place on April 26 in Berlin.

Literature on the silver screen

Tykwer, who also directed “Run Lola Run" and "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer," co-directed "Cloud Atlas" along with US directors Lana and Andy Wachowski (directors of "The Matrix" trilogy).

Their screen adaptation of the bestseller by David Mitchell is all about love, death and rebirth that bends aesthetic and narrative boundaries through six nested stories.

The winner of the German Film Prize receives almost 3 million euros ($3.8 million) in prize money, making it the most valuable German Culture Prize.

hc/rc (AFP, dpa)