The academy was founded in 2003 in Berlin, on the initiative of Helmut Dietl, Bernd Eichinger, and Ulrich Felsberg.

Since 2005, the winners of the Deutscher Filmpreis (colloquially known as the Lolas) have been elected by members of the Deutsche Filmakademie.

In 2007, a group of academy critics—including filmmakers Hans-Christian Schmid, Andres Veiel, and Hans Weingartner, several film festival directors, and the German association of film critics—opened talks with German culture minister Bernd Neumann, in an effort to return to the previous system and have politicians and critics, not academy members, decide who gets the Lolas.

[4][5] In 2008, the academy's internet service 24 – Das Wissensportal der Deutschen Filmakademie was launched.

The portal provides an insight into the creation of a movie, with the hope of making the work of independent filmmakers more transparent and accountable.