On Stage at OMR27: Actor Matthias Schweighöfer, DHDL judge Janna Ensthaler and Rewe Group CEO Lionel Souque
Torben Lux10/27/2026
You can learn from these speakers at the OMR Festival 2027, taking place in Hamburg from 3 to 5 May
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Matthias Schweighöfer is one of the most recognizable faces in German cinema, has long achieved success on the global stage, and is a key partner for major brands. Janna Ensthaler invests not only in small startups as a judge on Die Höhle der Löwen (Germany's Shark Tank), but also in global players like Anthropic and SpaceX. And as CEO of REWE Group, Lionel Souque stands at the helm of a multi-billion-euro corporation, directing massive investments into digitalization and sustainability. All three will be sharing their insights with you on the main stages at the OMR Festival in Hamburg from May 3 to 5, 2027.
Slowly but surely, everything is revolving around the OMR Festival once again. That is why today we are unveiling the next speakers set to share their knowledge with you from May 3 to 5, 2027, in Hamburg. Many more will naturally follow in the weeks and months ahead. And to help you navigate over 800 speakers, more than 1,000 exhibitors and partners, Masterclasses, Guided Tours, and Side Events—and find your own personal takeaways—we are once again organizing everything into our Journeys next year. They bundle the dozens of topics and interests featured across the festival under nine overarching themes, helping you find exactly what drives you forward and turning OMR into your own festival experience.
From German Cinema to the Global Stage: Matthias Schweighöfer
For more than two decades, Matthias Schweighöfer has left an indelible mark on the film and entertainment industry—as an actor, director, producer, and entrepreneur. What began with major hits in German cinema like Keinohrhasen (Rabbit Without Ears) and What a Man has long since grown into an international career. Roles in global productions have introduced him to audiences worldwide: from Zack Snyder’s Netflix hit Army of the Dead and Army of Thieves—which he not only starred in, but also directed—to Christopher Nolan’s Oscar-winning feature Oppenheimer.
His work extends far beyond his roles in front of the camera. As co-founder of the film production company Pantaleon Films and the AI film studio Storybook Studios, Schweighöfer actively shapes stories and productions behind the scenes. He is just as active entirely away from the screen, pairing entertainment with an entrepreneurial mindset—for example, as co-founder of the wine brand III FREUNDE alongside Joko Winterscheidt, or through partnerships with selected brands such as Tiffany & Co., XXXLutz, Omega, and Leica.
At the OMR Festival 2027 in Hamburg, Matthias Schweighöfer will discuss how stories can still be told effectively in a world saturated with content and stimuli, how to stay creative and relevant, and what it truly means to work both in front of and behind the camera.
The Investor on the DHDL Panel: Janna Ensthaler
On television, she invests in healthy gummy bears and collagen porridge. Behind the scenes, her investments focus on global players like Anthropic, ElevenLabs, and SpaceX: Janna Ensthaler points out that few German families have as much access to deals and startups in Silicon Valley as hers. In Germany, however, her public image remains largely defined by her role as an investor on Die Höhle der Löwen, where she has spent several seasons meeting founders—and regularly backing them.
Her work as a columnist for various media outlets also contributes to her public profile. Restarting nuclear power plants, streamlining government, boosting birth rates: with her conservative-liberal viewpoint, Ensthaler does not shy away from critiquing current economic policies. When Manager Magazin published a story titled "Startups and Outrage – The Business of Janna Ensthaler," she responded candidly on LinkedIn—generating more impressions than the magazine has in total circulation, as she later noted. Expect an equally opinionated presence at the OMR Festival 2027 in Hamburg.
From the Penny Checkout to the Helm of a Multi-Billion-Euro Giant: Lionel Souque
Lionel Souque initially planned to stay for just a couple of years, but that brief stopover turned into a lifelong journey. He joined REWE Group in 1996, starting in international discount retail at Penny, where he learned the ropes from the ground up and quickly advanced to senior roles in procurement and sales. In 2001, he took on management responsibilities for Billa supermarkets abroad, and in 2007, he was appointed to the Executive Board of REWE International in Vienna. Today, he steers the entire corporation: in 2009, he became CEO of REWE Germany and a member of the REWE Group Executive Board, and on July 1, 2017, he took the reins as CEO of the entire REWE Group—a retail powerhouse with 380,000 employees and approximately €100 billion in annual revenue.
Souque’s mandate is to navigate one of Europe’s largest food retailers through dynamic market conditions. He is driving massive multi-billion-euro investments into digitalization and sustainability while reinforcing the cooperative core model in which independent local merchants take the lead. At the same time, he champions a cultural shift adapted from the group’s Dertour tourism division: customers walking into a supermarket should not simply be treated as shoppers, but as welcomed guests. At the OMR Festival 2027 in Hamburg, Lionel Souque will discuss the role technological innovation plays in modern retail—and how tough procurement negotiations and genuine hospitality can go hand in hand.
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