The Special TEDDY Award goes to a filmmaker who contributed extraordinary merits for the characterization of queer film making over the years. Last year the US American producer Cristine Vachon received this award.

Monika Treut coined as an director, producer and writer not only the feminist and lesbian cinema since the 80´s, but also the german-speaking independent film scene and inspired as an pioneer the New Queer Cinema to the US American Indie film. The courageousness and the critical approach of her topics and asthetics are closely related to the liberating energies of the Mao-Spontex movement of the 70´s. Her documentary Gendernauts won the TEDDY-Award in 1999 as Best Documentary and audience awards all over the world.

Since her feature film debut with Elfi Mikesch, Verführung: Die grausame Frau, more then 12 of her movies have been presented at the Berlinale.

On the occasion of the award ceremony within the 31st TEDDY Awards, Panorama shows her second feature film, the classic die Jungfrauenmaschine from 1989.