Oliver Berben Is Taking Constantin Film To New Heights

Oliver Berben refuses to be caught up to now. When the longtime Constantin Film exec stepped into the position of CEO practically two years in the past, he had a transparent imaginative and prescient of how he needed to steer the German production-distribution powerhouse to the following frontier and embrace indie-style fearlessness whereas constructing on the corporate’s 75-year-legacy. 

“The market has been changing rapidly, and I want creatives to see that we are a place where their visions can come to life,” Berben says. “We consider filmmakers as an IP. Besides existing videogame, book or comic IPs, the biggest creative power you can have is a triple-A filmmaker and a package that combines those filmmakers with great cast and great ideas – that’s what we are aiming for.” 

This motto is exemplified within the firm’s most up-to-date launch, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, which sees Rango Oscar-winner Gore Verbinski return to the large display screen for the primary time in a decade. Briarcliff launched the AI comedy this previous weekend, the place it opened to a $3.6M 3-day tally throughout 1,610 theatres. (Deadline’s Anthony D’Alessandro says it was “an almost near topple of Briarcliff’s record opener Honest Thief, from 2020″). On September 18, Sony will release Zach Cregger’s version of Constantin’s prize IP Resident Evil, which is set to be a “complete new set up” of the franchise. Cregger is the writer-director behind $270M international hit Weapons. 

When Deadline speaks to Berben, Constantin Film is coming off the again of a banner 2025 in cinema: It produced and financed the $30M Josh Boone-directed romance Regretting You, an adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s ebook of the identical identify. Paramount launched the undertaking within the U.S. whereas Constantin dealt with distribution for all German-speaking territories. The Allison Williams and Dave Franco starrer ended up hitting $48.9M on the home field workplace and $90.5M globally. 

In Germany, the corporate had the largest film of 2025 with comedy Manitou’s Canoe, a sequel to 2001 hit Manitou’s Shoe. That title amassed greater than 5 million admissions in Germany and earned €50.9M on the field workplace, which noticed Constantin shut the yr as the largest indie distributor of the yr and fifth place general. 

“It’s a sign that the audience is there and you just need to make the movies or shows that they really want to see,” says Berben. “It’s not simply cinema – it’s streaming and conventional TV too – they’ve all developed into one thing totally different. The knowledge of the place the viewers is and what they need is true right here in entrance of us and we’re specializing in precisely that. 

“If you get the right product to right people, they will embrace it. The only thing that has changed is that you cannot rely on the same ideas and patterns you used to release movies 10 years ago. The sooner people accept that, the better.” 

Filmmakers as ‘IP’

Last Friday noticed the European premiere of Verbinski’s Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die at Berlinale. Constantin developed, produced and financed the undertaking – Verbinski’s first indie movie – with Briarcliff taking U.S. home rights and Constantin distributing in Germany, Austria and Swizerland. 

At the EFM this yr, its frequent collaborator north.5.six introduced three Constantin tasks to market: Supernatural thriller Siamese Dream, which sees Constantin reteam with Boone; an adaptation of Cecelia Ahern’s novel If You Could See Me Now from director Peter Segal; and a display screen adaptation of Jennifer Archer’s YA Into the Deep from director Jonathan Wright.

It’s at the moment in edit for Cregger’s Resident Evil, which Berben says is “far away from everything that is connected to Resident Evil, only because Zach Cregger has his own style.” 

Additionally, Constantin not too long ago produced survival horror function Boiúna: Legend of the Amazon (aka Titan) starring Logan Marshall-Green, Jessica Rothe and Kiana Madeira. Lionsgate will launch the movie within the U.S. later this yr. 

For Berben, this slate is reflective of how he’s making an attempt to reshape Constantin for the following technology.  “We have changed a lot on the creative side,” he admits, stressing that Constantin has been actively positioning itself to the worldwide market as inventive producers and never simply financiers. 

“We have strengthened the connections to the creative community in Germany. We are creating paths for new ideas and new creatives to enter the scene and providing them with the groundwork to grow and hopefully be successful in the coming years.” 

He continues: “Our approach on the international front has undergone significant transformation. Over the past decade at Constantin Film, we often worked with the same group of creatives, albeit bringing fresh concepts each time. Now, however, we have fully broadened our horizons and opened our doors to new creative talent and ideas from across the globe.” 

Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, he says, is a chief instance of this. The movie, which was arrange out of Constantin’s L.A. outpost headed up by Robert Kulzer and Pam Kunath, is Verbinski’s first unbiased film after studio movies reminiscent of Pirates of the Caribbean movies and The Lone Ranger. The movie stars Sam Rockwell alongside Haley Lu Richardson, Michael Peña, Zazie Beetz and Juno Temple. It follows a person claiming to be from the long run who takes the patrons of an iconic L.A. diner hostage in quest of unlikely recruits in a quest to avoid wasting the world in opposition to a rogue AI. 

The movie world premiered at Fantastic Fest, an concept pushed by Briarcliff head Tom Oretenberg. “I love working with people who have these bold, new ideas of getting into this new market, which now looks completely different,” says Berben. “This movie has laid the groundwork for where we want to go on the international side – stronger filmmakers with bolder ideas. We want to be the place in the independent market for ‘Triple A’ filmmakers.” 

When it got here to entrusting Constantin’s prize IP Resident Evil with a brand new voice, Berben admits it was a no brainer to offer Cregger “the carte blanche to do whatever he wanted to do with that IP.” 

“With Resident Evil, we have had an incredible journey with one of the most successful international IPs of more than a billion dollars in box office for many years and now we are creating something new, not just a new story idea, but to allow a new generation to take the IP into their own hands and form something different.”  

International alternative

Berben says that the aim for progress within the U.S. and worldwide markets is constructed upon its sturdy foundations in Germany. The firm has ceaselessly collaborated with “wide and diverse” administrators like David Wnendt and Michael “Bully” Herbig on its house turf. “We transferred that to the international market,” he says.

“The opportunity for us in the U.S. is unique. We have an advantage because we are coming with the territories already. We’ll make things work. We can give filmmakers the opportunity to finally make their movies.”  

He continues: “We can’t provide every budget that is possible, but we can come in with a strong international element on the table. We’re not trying to feed the machine, and we are very open in embracing working with third-party producers, doing more co-productions and getting involved with creative communities outside of our own. This is the most important to evolve. We have great producers out there and we offer them the possibility to create and to do what they want to do, because in some ways they might know better than we do.” 

Berben has been steadily constructing a staff that he says are integral to championing new voices, notably empowering a youthful technology of movie and tv workers who contribute closely to the decision-making course of throughout the board. 

“Now we have a bigger team discussing and greenlighting our ideas,” he says. “It’s important to include that next generation in the process but it’s even more important to let them lead it.” 

Most not too long ago, Constantin employed Eric Lehmann as its Chief Technology Officer. He’s liable for constructing the group’s AI operate and steering the strategic growth and deployment of recent AI functions throughout manufacturing and distribution. 

“We’re working with many different kinds of AI tools,” Berben says. “Some of them will work, some of them won’t. But we are learning very quickly. The important thing is not to be the first but the best mover. You have to be open for everything, but it doesn’t mean you have to do everything.”