With Berlin’s International Film Festival, the Berlinale, attracting actors and filmmakers from all over the world to the German capital in February each year, it seemed only right to share some of the city's best cinemas.

Berlin boasts a long legacy of fantastic filmmaking, from the black-and-white expressionist German cinema of the 1920s to recent Hollywood blockbusters using the iconic architectural backdrops of the city for filming locations. The German capital is also home to the National German Museum of Film and Television as well as the nearby Studio Babelsberg, boasting the world's oldest large-scale film studio in Europe. Don’t forget, even the legendary Marlene Dietrich was a Berliner born and raised!

All this considered, it is no surprise that Berlin has a lot of great cinemas to offer. From the historic, intimate arthouse and luxurious premiere movie theatres, this list of our favourites has got something for every style of film aficionado:

1. Kino International

Opened in 1963 as the top premiere cinema of former East Berlin, this beauty of modernist architecture boasts an authentic retro decor behind the historically protected facade. Situated along the Karl-Marx-Allee boulevard, a showcase architectural thoroughfare of the former GDR, the cinema itself has even been used as a filming location in recent years. The programme offers a diverse mix of arthouse and independent films from all over the world combined with the biggest films from Hollywood. Today, the cinema is also one of the locations for the Berlinale Film Festival and has hosted filmmakers such as Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee and Tilda Swinton for premiere events. It is highly recommended to enjoy the vintage feel of the Panorama Bar for a quick drink before taking your seat!

2. Kino Babylon

This cinema in Berlin Mitte, just a short walk from the busy Alexanderplatz square, is an architectural gem of the 1920s Bauhaus school architecture. It unbelievably survived the destruction of World War II without any major damage! It is an arthouse cinema with several small local film festivals throughout the year, such as the Berlin Independent Film Festival and the Berlin Documentary Film Festival. A firm favourite with local film buffs is in fact the regular showings of black and white German film classics of the ‘Golden Twenties’ such as Metropolis or The Cabinet of Dr Caligari with a live orchestra.

3. Zoo Palast

Situated close to the Zoologischer Garten train station, the Zoo Palast cinema is a sumptuous gem of 1950s architecture. As the former premier cinema for West Berlin, the Zoo Palast still literally rolls out the red carpet for big German film releases and when the Berlinale Film Festival is in town. With 7 auditoriums, the largest offering red plush velvet seats for almost 800 moviegoers with state-of-the-art sound and projector technology, the Zoo Palast is really the cinema of Berlin with the biggest Wow factor. Enjoy a Cocktail in the comfy bar before your film or order drinks with a platter of finger food directly via the waiter service to your seat during the showing. Many films are dubbed into German, however, the newest Hollywood film releases are also shown in their original English language version.

4. Kino Central

Tucked away in the back courtyards of Mitte, this intimate and independent cinema offers a great selection of arthouse German and international, English-language films. You might miss the entrance though, as to find the way you must leave the hipster bustle of Mitte behind and journey through the colourful street art-filled alleyways of Haus Schwarzenberg, an alternative non-profit arts organisation founded in the 1990s. In the summer months, an open-air cinema is located in the courtyard, typifying the spontaneous appropriation of urban spaces for cultural showings, that Berlin in the 1990s was all about. Before catching a showing, we recommend a quick drink at the neighbouring Cafe Cinema with its intellectual flair and decorations with old film industry trinkets.

5. Kino Intimes

Intimes cinema is the heart of the trendy Berlin district of Friedrichshain and offers a range of art-house and foreign language films in a compact and cosy setting. Founded as a local movie theatre in 1909, this cinema is one of the oldest still existing ones in Berlin. Visitors to the neighbourhood also love to call by to photograph its bright and colourful exterior covered in paste-ups, stencils and sticker art of some of Berlin’s most well-known street artists. The cinema bar offers a range of snacks and drinks and even serves craft beer from its own brewery. Located a short walk from the buzzing restaurants and bars around Boxhagener Platz and Simon-Dach- Straße, it is well located to enjoy a great evening out in Berlin.