Geheimnisse einer Seele ( | Dir: Georg Wilhelm Pabst | Germany 97′
Georg Wilhelm Pabst’s Geheimnisse einer Seele (Secrets of a Soul) is considered one of the earliest films about Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytical theories. Berlinale 2026 presents a new 4k digital restoration as part of the 76th edition, in cooperation with the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Stiftung
It centres on a traumatised chemist who develops a phobia about knives (rather like Claude Chabrol who had a fetish about them). But the scientist turns to a psychoanalyst for help. The 1926 silent film combines expressionist dream sequences with the prosaic realism of the New Objectivity (Neue Sachlichkeit) in and is a groundbreaking attempt to visualise the unconscious on film.
The score will be provided by South Korean composer Yongbom Lee and produced by 2eleven music. The composition will be performed by Broken Frames Syndicate, an ensemble of solo viola, flute, clarinet, violoncello, and percussion. The acoustic music will be augmented by electronic sound — produced by the brain activity of the violist. The neural activity is measured and processed using fNIRS (functional near-infrared spectroscopy), which uses near-infrared light to detect changes in cerebral blood flow. The resulting data are analysed in real time with a machine-learning system developed by the aiar collective in Leipzig.
Analogous to the juxtaposing of the real world and the unconscious in Geheimnisse einer Seele (Secrets of a Soul), the music develops into a remarkable interplay of the new music ensemble’s acoustic playing and the electronic sounds and light effects triggered by neural impulses, resulting in a unique experience for the audience.
The digital restoration of Pabst’s film was done using a combination of two 35 mm dupe negatives from the Cinémathèque Royale de Belgique/CINEMATEK and the German Federal Archives, as well as a 16 mm print held at the Harvard film archive. The digital restoration was funded by the FFE Film Legacy Subsidy Programme.
The world premiere of the 4K digitally restored version of Geheimnisse einer Seele (Secrets of a Soul) is a cooperative venture between the Berlin International Film Festival, the Deutsche Kinemathek, the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Stiftung, and public broadcasters ZDF/ARTE. The film’s television premiere will be on ARTE in May, 2026.
BERLINALE FILM FESTIVAL 2026 | 12 -22 DECEMBER 2026