Austrian director Adrian Goiginger’s film Four Minus Three, the true story of a professional clown struck by tragedy, has won the Europa Cinemas Label as best European film in the Panorama section of the Berlinale.
The film, based on Barbara Pachl-Eberhart’s autobiographical novel, follows Barbara (A Hidden Life actress Valerie Pachner), a professional clown who lives with her partner Heli (Robert Stadlober), also a clown, and their two children. When Heli and the children die in a car accident, Barbara’s belief in humor, hope and humanity is put to the ultimate test.
The Europa Cinemas jury said the film “succeeds in giving us a very moving and inspiring experience … the excellent script manages to evoke a sense of hope while not hiding away from the despair of loss.”
Four Minus Three will now benefit from promotional support from the Europa Cinemas group, which operates, with its partners, more than 3,200 screens across 39 European countries. The group, backed by funding from Europe’s MEDIA program and France’s national film board, the CNC, is the first theater network focusing on European films with the goal of providing operational and financial support to cinemas that commit themselves to screen a significant number of European films from outside their national territory and to offer promotional activities targeted at young audiences.
Four Minus Three was produced by Giganten Film Productions and 2010 Entertainment, with Beta Cinema handling international sales.
Previous Berlin Europa Cinemas Label winners include Hysteria (2025) from Mehmet Akif Büyükatalay, Dag Johan Haugesund’s Sex (2024) and İlker Çatak’s Oscar-nominated The Teachers‘ Lounge (2023).
