German Film Awards: The 2021 favorites

Dominik Graf's "Fabian: Going to the Dogs" has 10 nominations, more than any of the other contenders. The literary adaptation starring Tom Schilling and Saskia Rosendahl is nominated, among others, in the categories best feature film, best director and best screenplay. It is based on a 1931 novel by Erich Kästner depicting the hedonism and political turmoil that characterized Berlin at the time.

"The Royal Game" by Philipp Stölzl is a close second, putting two film adaptations of German literary classics right at the top. The film tells the story of a lawyer (Oliver Masucci) who refuses to cooperate with the Nazis and ends up in solitary confinement. To survive, he immerses himself in chess. Or, as the author Stefan Zweig put it, he is overcome by "chess poisoning."

Both Luna Wedler and Jannis Niewöhner (center) are nominated for their performance in "Je Suis Karl." The drama by Christian Schwochow is about an emerging ultra-right European movement. Other nominees in the best leading actors category are Saskia Rosendahl and Maren Eggert, as well as Dan Stevens and Oliver Masucci.

In Sarah Blasskiewitz's drama "Ivie Wie Ivie," Lorna Ishema (photo) plays the half-sister of an Afro-German woman by the name of Ivie. Alongside Meret Becker ("Fabian") and Birgit Minichmayr ("The Royal Game"), she is competing for the Lola for best supporting actress. Nominated male actors include Thorsten Merten ("Curveball"), Hary Prinz ("Enfant Terrible") and Milan Peschel ("Je suis Karl").

Just last year, German director Maria Schrader won the Emmy for her mini-series "Unorthodox." In 2021, alongside Dominik Graf ("Fabian") and Maria Speth ("Mr. Bachmann and his Class"), she is nominated in the best director category for her film about a human-robot romance, "I'm Your Man."

The writers of "I'm your Man," "Fabian" and "Curveball" are in the running for best screenplay. "Curveball" (photo) by Oliver Keidel and Johannes Naber is based on a true story, a bitter political drama about fake news, personal career and political power games — used to justify the Iraq war in 2003.

Maria Speth's documentary "Mr. Bachmann and his Class" (photo) examines the relationship between a teacher and his students, as he leads his sixth graders with various social and cultural backgrounds to believe in themselves. Also nominated are "Space Dogs" and "Walchensee Forever."

The Honorary Award for Outstanding Service to German Film goes to actress and film producer Senta Berger. "Driven by an enormous vitality and striking curiosity, she has given us strong, multi-layered and yet always authentic female characters. For me, she is an icon of German cinema," said German Film Academy President Ulrich Matthes.

With almost €3 million ($3.5 million) in prize money in 19 categories, the German Film Awards are the most highly endowed film accolade in the country. The approximately 2,000 members of the German Film Academy decide who gets to take home the coveted Lola statuette. After last year's online event, the 2021 award ceremony will be held with a live audience again, on Friday in Berlin.