Mascha Schilinski

Mascha Schilinski (born 1984)^[1] is a German film director and screenwriter. Her second feature film, Sound of Falling (2025), won the Jury Prize at the 78th Cannes Film Festival.

Mascha Schilinski
Schilinski at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival
Born	1984 (age 40–41) Berlin, Germany
Education	Filmschule Hamburg Berlin [de] Film Academy Baden-Württemberg
Occupations	Director screenwriter
Years active	2008–present
Spouse	Fabian Gamper
Children	1

Early life

Schilinski was born in Berlin to a German filmmaker mother and a French construction worker father.^[2][3] She was a child actor in her youth.^[4] After dropping out of high school, she worked for a traveling circus before pursuing film.^[5][6] She graduated from the screenwriting program at the Filmschule Hamburg Berlin [de] in 2008, and later studied directing at the Film Academy Baden-Württemberg.^[7][8]

Career

Schilinski began her career as a casting director and freelance writer.^[5][9] Her first feature film, Dark Blue Girl [de], premiered at the 2017 Berlin International Film Festival and was nominated for the GWFF Best First Feature Award.^[10][11][12] The following year, she served on the jury of Filmkunstfest MV [de].^[13][14] Her second feature film, Sound of Falling, was screened in competition at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize.^[15][16]

Personal life

Schilinski's husband, Fabian Gamper, is a cinematographer.^[6] They have one child.^[3]

Filmography

Schilinski being interviewed at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival

Film

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Notes	Ref.
2012	Wir müssen los!	Yes	No	Short film; co-directed with Roman Schikorsky	[17]
2013	Das Bedürfnis	No	Yes		[18]
2014	Das Gefühl	Yes	Yes	Short film	[17]
2015	Die Katze	Yes	Yes	Short film
2017	Dark Blue Girl [de]	Yes	Yes		[19]
2025	Sound of Falling	Yes	Yes	Co-written with Louise Peter	[20]

Television

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Notes	Ref.
2019–2020	Cologne P.D.	Yes	No	2 episodes	[21]

Awards and nominations

Award	Year	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
Berlin International Film Festival	2017	GWFF Best First Feature Award	Dark Blue Girl [de]	Nominated	[22]
Cannes Film Festival	2025	Palme d'Or	Sound of Falling	Nominated	[23]
		Jury Prize		Won
LA Film Festival	2017	World Fiction Award	Dark Blue Girl [de]	Nominated	[24][25]
Red Rock Film Festival	2017	Best Fiction Feature	Dark Blue Girl [de]	Won	[26]