BETA CINEMA CLOSES KEY TERRITORY SALES FOR BERLINALE AWARD-WINNER FOUR MINUS THREE AS AUSTRIAN BOX OFFICE SURGES
Following its acclaimed world premiere at the 2026 Berlinale, Adrian Goiginger’s deeply emotional true story FOUR MINUS THREE has secured a strong first wave of international sales, with Pyramide acquiring rights for France, Arti for Benelux, A‑Z Films for Canada, Palace Films for Australia and New Zealand, and Swallow Wings for Taiwan. Beta Cinema continues to negotiate further territories.
The deals follow an exceptional festival debut in Berlin, where the film won the prestigious Europa Cinemas Label Award and placed Second in the Panorama Audience Award. Lead actress Valerie Pachner has since been honoured with the Best Actress Award at Diagonale (Graz) for her extraordinary, emotionally layered performance. FOUR MINUS THREE also was nominated in 8 categories at the Austrian Film Awards today: Best Film (Peter Wildling, Martin Pfeil, Adrian Goiginger, David Stöllinger, Gerrit Klein), Best Director (Adrian Goiginger), Best Screenplay (Senad Halilbašić), Best Actress (Valerie Pachner), Best Supporting Actor (Robert Stadlober), Best Casting (Angelika Kropej), Best Sound (Markus Rebholz, Marvin H. Keil), Best Make-Up Design (Tim Scheidig).
In Austria, the film is also proving a breakout theatrical success. Released by Polyfilm/Alamode, it has delivered the best opening weekend for an Austrian film in 2026 and continues to build impressively:
5th weekend: 86 locations
Weekend gross: 6,500 admissions / €71,000
Cumulative total: 70,096 admissions / €730,705
These robust numbers confirm the film’s strong word-of-mouth and audience resonance, particularly among female moviegoers and adult arthouse audiences drawn to its intimate emotional stakes and exceptional central performance.
Directed with a distinctly sensitive, humanistic approach, FOUR MINUS THREE has been widely praised for its nuanced storytelling, and Valerie Pachner’s tour‑de‑force portrayal, which critics have described as “shattering,” “deeply empathetic,” and “one of her finest to date.”
Adrian Goiginger, born in Salzburg, Austria in 1991, is a critically acclaimed writer and director. His debut The Best of All Worlds premiered in Berlinale 2017 and went on to win over 100 international awards, including Best European First Film in Zlín, Best Narrative Feature in New York, and five Austrian Film Awards. His subsequent films — The Fox, based on a true WWII family story, and Rickerl – Musik is höchstens a Hobby — further cemented his reputation. Today, Goiginger is a regular recipient of Austrian, German, and Bavarian film awards and has cultivated a strong following for his emotionally resonant storytelling and authentic character work.
FOUR MINUS THREE is a Austrian-German co-production, produced by 2010 Entertainment and Giganten Film in collaboration with ORF-FFA, BR, SWR and arte. Written by Senad Halilbašić (7500, Souls, Pagan Peak), it is based on the true story and bestselling novel by Barbara Pachl-Eberhart. Robert Stadlober (Goebbels and the Führer, Summer Storm, Crazy), Hanno Koffler (Never Look Away, Babylon Berlin) and Stefanie Reinsperger (Other People’s Money) co-star next to Valerie Pachner (A Hidden LIfe, Egon Schiele, Fantastic Beasts).
Alamode Film will release the film across Germany tomorrow, April 16.