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Sandra Hüller Wins Berlinale Acting Award for Cross-Dressing Role in 'Rose'

other · 2026-04-30

Sandra Hüller won the Berlinale's acting award for her role in Markus Schleinzer's film 'Rose', where she plays a woman who successfully passes as a man in 17th-century Germany. The film, a variation on the Martin Guerre story, follows a mysterious soldier returning from the Thirty Years' War with a disfigured face and a document claiming ownership of an orphaned estate. He hires two farmhands and repairs the house and barn. A female voiceover asks, 'What is life in deceit and lies? Can one call it freedom to live like that?' The film explores how the protagonist uses deception to carve out a self-determined life. The soldier's name is never revealed. The article appears in the current issue of Der Freitag.

Key facts

  • Sandra Hüller won the Berlinale acting award for 'Rose'.
  • The film is directed by Markus Schleinzer.
  • Hüller plays a woman disguised as a man in 17th-century Germany.
  • The story is a variation of the Martin Guerre tale.
  • The protagonist returns from the Thirty Years' War with a disfigured face.
  • He carries a bullet around his neck and a document claiming an estate.
  • The film raises questions about freedom through deceit.
  • The soldier's name is never mentioned.

Entities

Artists

  • Sandra Hüller
  • Markus Schleinzer

Institutions

  • Berlinale
  • Der Freitag

Locations

  • Germany

Sources