Paweł Pawlikowski will helm the cold war drama 1949, featuring Sandra Hüller.

      Paweł Pawlikowski's film The Island, featuring Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara, was reportedly just two and a half weeks away from filming when production was halted by the strikes in 2023, as shared by cinematographer Łukasz Żal. Although it appears increasingly unlikely that we will see the film (at least in its initial form), the director of Ida and Cold War has continued to be active: MUBI has announced progress on 1949, which will feature Hanns Zischler and Sandra Hüller as Thomas Mann and his daughter Erika, respectively, during a road trip through post-war Europe. The cast also includes August Diehl, Anna Madeley, Devid Striesow, and Theo Trebs, with the screenplay co-written by Henk Handloegten and production currently taking place across Poland, Germany, and Italy.

      Set during the Cold War, 1949 focuses more specifically on the journey of the Magic Mountain author and his actress-journalist daughter as they travel from the U.S.-endorsed Frankfurt to the Soviet-controlled Weimar. (Expect a landscape filled with overcast skies and piles of rubble.) Żal will return as director of photography for the film, which MUBI characterizes as an exploration of themes such as identity, guilt, family, and love amidst the chaos and moral uncertainty of post-war Europe. Unsurprisingly, a debut at Berlin or Cannes is anticipated.