North American Premiere
A glamorous icon full of poise and style, Hildegard Knef was one of the 20th century’s true film stars. From her childhood growing up in Nazi Germany and rise to fame amidst the fallout of the war, to her public scandals and career reinventions, Knef pursued success above all else, and Luzia Schmid’s candid documentary offers a compelling look at Knef’s life in her own words. Narrated from her autobiography, Knef divulges her innermost thoughts and secrets, reflecting on her professional and personal lives: her time in Hollywood, her daughter, and her various high-profile romances. Fiercely independent and forthright, Knef was also surprisingly vulnerable and self-conscious about how the public perceived her, often drawn into despondency and periods of isolation. Moving back and forth through her life via archival footage, behind-the-scenes rehearsals, and extensive interviews with her friends and family, I Want It All reveals the multi-faceted layers beneath Knef’s larger-than-life persona, piercing the masks she hid behind.
Presented by
Media Partner
Community Partner
Christina Palastanga, Paul von Schell, Nina Kunzendorf (narrator)
Germany
2025
In German and English with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Credits & Director
Executive Producer
Ulli Pfau
Producer
Thomas Kufus
Screenwriter
Luzia Schmid
Cinematography
Hajo Schomerus
Editor
Yana Höhnerbach
Original Music
Danielle De Picciotto, Alexander Hacke
Luzia Schmid
Luzia Schmid (born 1966 in Zurich, Switzerland) studied journalism and worked as editor, author, and moderator for Swiss radio and television before pursuing a directing degree at the Academy of Media Arts Cologne. Now an established documentary filmmaker, she received acclaim for her 2022 film Trained to See: Three Women and the War, about the experiences of three female correspondents during the Second World War. Her newest film, I want it all. Hildegard Knef, premiered at Berlinale 2025.
Filmography: Trained to See: Three Women and the War (2022)
Photo by Hajo Schomerus
Missing VIFF? Check Out What's Playing at the VIFF Centre
Possible Love
Lee Chang-dong’s first film since Burning (2018) is a sardonic, slow-burning satire about two couples: a documentary filmmaker married to a wealthy businessman, and a working-class family struggling to make ends meet after the husband has been laid off.
Once Upon a Time in Harlem
Once Upon a Time in Harlem splices together footage shot by William Greaves in 1972 of a group of Harlem Renaissance luminaries in conversation at Duke Ellington’s townhouse. The film is a living archive of memory, disagreement, style, and Black genius.
The Secret in Their Eyes
This month's Talking Pictures screening is a multi-layered, poignant thriller interweaving the personal lives of a prosecution investigator (Ricardo Darin) and a judge, with a manhunt spanning twenty-five years. Stay for cookies, coffee and a chat after!
The Haunting
Directed by Robert Wise in 1963, The Haunting is a classic exercise in the suggestive power of cinema, adapted from Shirley Jackson's 1959 best-seller, The Haunting of Hill House, a provocative blend of supernatural and psychological horror.
