FilmFest Hamburg’s new Junior section debuts on 25 September, 4 pm, at CinemaxX Dammtor with Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom. Director Matthew Walker will attend the German premiere in Hamburg. Introducing movies from India and Brazil, two brand-new episodes of Die Pfefferkörner, international guests, school screenings and the Junior Film Workshop, FilmFest Hamburg offers a first look at its new section dedicated to young audiences. 

In Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom, chaos descends on Mossy Bottom Farm just before Halloween: a botched experiment, a missing farmer and a mysterious monster leave Shaun and his flock in quite the predicament. STUDIOCANAL will release the film in German cinemas on 1 October 2026.

Shaun the Sheep, created by the makers of Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run, is one of Aardman Animations’ most successful and beloved characters, with the series broadcast in over 170 countries worldwide for years. The first Shaun the Sheep feature swept up multiple awards, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature, and a BAFTA win, while the follow-up, A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon, also picked up Oscar and BAFTA nominations.

From India comes Pukam Pukai – To Fetch a Pail of Water, in which the paths of three children from very different backgrounds cross during a New Delhi summer. It’s a story about friendship, solidarity, and holding on to one’s dreams. The film won Best Dramatic Feature at the 12th Taiwan International Children’s Film Festival, and director Abhay Punjabi will join audiences in Hamburg for a discussion.

Feito Pipa – Gugu’s World follows twelve-year-old Gugu, a boy with dreams of becoming a professional footballer who also uncovers more about his family’s past along the way. Allan Deberton’s film picked up both the Children’s Jury’s Crystal Bear and the Grand Prix of the International Jury in the Berlinale’s Generation Kplus section. Executive producer Fred Burle will attend the Hamburg screening.

Die Pfefferkörner will make their usual return this year, too – two new episodes from the show’s 15th generation of young detectives will premiere on our Family Sunday, 27 September.

Dedicated screenings for school groups will be offered for Pukam Pukai – To Fetch a Pail of Water and Feito Pipa – Gugu’s World.

The Junior Film Workshop in cooperation with MOIN Film Fund Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein takes place on 26 September at Studio Kino, where the creative team behind Seeräubermoses, together with Hamburg-based production company Ulysses Filmproduktion, will give audiences a behind-the-scenes look at how the animated adaptation of Kirsten Boie’s beloved children’s book is coming together.

FilmFest Hamburg takes place from 24 September to 3 October 2026, showing more than 120 national and international productions as world premieres, European, German or Hamburg premieres. Screenings take place at the cinemas Abaton, CinemaxX Dammtor, Metropolis, Passage and Studio Kino. On 3 October, the festival celebrates its Free Admission Day, with all screenings at the five festival cinemas plus participating “FilmFest ums Eck” venues free to attend.