The Goethe-Institut in Nicosia opens up its garden this summer to present Sommerkino: Between Waves. For the seventh consecutive year, it will screen a selection of films from Germany, between July 6 and 10.

Following the introduction of a theme in the previous edition of Sommerkino, this year’s series is dedicated to water. With lounge chairs, a big screen and the famous Ledra Palace Hotel as a backdrop, each film and their protagonists is set to take audiences on a different cinematic journey.

Between Waves starts with the film 22 Lengths, directed by Mia Maariel Meyer and based on Caroline Wahl’s debut novel of the same title. The film tells the story of two sisters who, despite the weight of their circumstances, hold on to the quiet beauty of life, and to each other.

On the following night, July 7 is the film Skin Deep, by Alex Schaad. A young couple, played by awarded actors Mala Emde and Jonas Dassler, travels to a remote island hoping to solve their problems, a place where you can quite literally become another person. 

Beyond the Blue Border on July 8 is a literary adaption of the book by the same title authored by Dorit Linke. Sarah Neumann’s film observes a border crossing from East to West Germany: Hanna and Andreas have to swim 50km across the Baltic Sea. The film is about the close friendship between three 15-year-olds, whose everyday lives reflect different ways of dealing with the structures of the GDR: one protests and is constantly sanctioned, the second has to put all her talents at the service of the state, the third is lucky enough to receive permission to leave.

The series continues with Alaska on July 9 by Max Gleschinski. Stoically, Kerstin drifts across the Mecklenburg Lake District in her red kayak. Aimlessly, she glides for days over the water, somewhere between tourism and desolation, determined to remain alone. The monotony of her journey breaks when Alima appears, the first person to finally ask the solitary paddler the right questions.

The screenings conclude on July 10 with the film Afire by award-winning German film director Christian Petzold. The film brings four young people together in a holiday home by the Baltic Sea in the summer, telling a story about self-reflection, and understanding each other and oneself, against the background of the climate crisis.

Sommerkino: Between Waves

German film screenings. July 6-10. Goethe-Institut, Nicosia. 8pm. Free admission. In German/original language with English subtitles. Tel: 22-674606, www.goethe.de/cyprus/sommerkino2026