Berlin Film Festival Kicks Off With ‘No Good Men’—Is Afghan Director Shahrbanoo Sadat’s Dark Tale the Horoscope for 2024 Cinema?
Added on January 16, 2026 inMovie News Cards
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As the stars align under the frosty skies of February 12, the Berlin Film Festival 2026 is gearing up to open its dazzling curtains with a premiere that’s as bold as a Mars-Pluto conjunction—Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat’s “No Good Men.” Now, wouldn’t you say it’s a cosmic flirtation that this film, blooming amid the chill of winter, dares to sprinkle romance and humor on the gritty realities of Afghanistan? Sadat’s third cinematic venture doesn’t just turn the spotlight on Afghan women’s lives—it practically throws a spotlight parade. From Kabul’s uneasy shadows to the bright lights of the Berlinale Palast, this film, based on true events and brimming with risk and resilience, promises a blend of the personal and the political that would make even Saturn raise an eyebrow. Channeling the spirit of Sadat’s earlier acclaimed works, “No Good Men” unspools a narrative as complex as a Mercury retrograde, with sparks flying and beliefs challenged. Ready to dive into a story where the only camerawoman on Kabul TV learns that not all men are villains? I’m already hooked. Curious to see how this international co-production dances across borders and hearts? LEARN MORE
The Berlin Film Festival 2026 will kick off with the world premiere of No Good Men, the third feature film from Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat, on Feb. 12 at the Berlinale Palast.
“Shahrbanoo Sadat is one of the most exciting voices in world cinema, and No Good Men really delivers on the promise of her first two features,” said Berlinale director Tricia Tuttle. “Sadat continues her vital work spotlighting Afghan women’s lives, here bringing romance and touches of humor to a rousingly political story. That it is based on real events, and the director risked so much to get this film made, makes No Good Men even more meaningful as our opening gala of the 76th Berlinale.”
No Good Men follows the filmmaker’s Wolf and Sheep (2016) and Parwareshgah (The Orphanage, 2019), both of which screened at Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight, with the first claiming the top prize. The Orphanage was supported by the Berlinale World Cinema Fund.
One of Afghanistan’s best-known film directors, Sadat spoke to The Hollywood Reporter from the capital Kabul in 2021 when she, like tens of thousands of others, hurried to escape Afghanistan following the fall of Kabul to the Taliban. Now, Berlin will screen her new film.
“Sadat continues her unique cinematic journey as a director, writer, and actor with a film that is both personal and political,” the Berlin fest said. “The film is also the third of five planned films based on the autobiographical writings of author and actor Anwar Hashimi.” In fact, Hashimi stars in the film alongside Sadat, who is playing the lead role.
“Naru (Sadat), the only camerawoman at Kabul TV, is convinced that there are no good men in Afghanistan,” reads a synopsis of the movie. “But when the reporter Qodrat takes her on assignment just before the Taliban’s return, sparks fly – and she begins to question this belief.”
Said Sadat: “Growing up in Afghanistan’s deeply patriarchal society, I believed there were no good men –until I found out another reality exists, and I hope this film offers young women hope and young men an example.”
No Good Men was produced as an international co-production between Germany, France, Norway, Denmark and Afghanistan. The production companies are Adomeit Film, La Fabrica Nocturna Cinéma, Motlys, Amerikafilm and Wolf Pictures. Filming took place in locations across Germany.
The Berlin festival runs Feb. 12-22.
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