An exceptional edition of the European Film Market (EFM) at the 72nd Berlinale ended successfully yesterday, Thursday, February 17. The international trading platform for audiovisual content had to be moved online for the second time due to the pandemic. But even in virtual space, countless business meetings were organized and a record number of deals concluded during the EFM, which ran from February 10 to 17. Around 600 exhibitors (2021: 504) from 62 countries (60) presented themselves on the EFM platform, and around 1,300 market screenings (1,452) and 827 films (821) were shown, including over 600 market premieres (578). For the first time, companies from Costa Rica, Malaysia, Mongolia, and Uruguay were amongst the exhibitors.
Dennis Ruh
“The EFM has again created clear, vital momentum for the film and content trade at its traditional date at the beginning of the film year,” says EFM director Dennis Ruh, summing up. “In the wake of the already noticeable easing and lifting of restrictive measures in Europe and other parts of the world, the incentive to acquire new films and content is being felt more strongly once again, even if rights trading still had to take place largely in virtual space this year. We look forward to meeting our market participants in person in Berlin next year.”
The EFM was complemented by a six-day conference program, the “EFM Industry Sessions”, which were held under the heading SHAPING CHANGE. In the three core areas of Future, Diversity & Inclusion, and Sustainable Development, participants discussed the challenges of the film and media industry in times of digital transformation in a results-oriented three-part think tank series, among other events, and thus lent impulses to help shape the business’ shared future.
“We have the tools to drive the necessary changes in the industry. This has been shown by the results of the numerous talks and discussions at the ‘EFM Industry Sessions’. Not least the pandemic has acted as a catalyst, especially in the areas of technology and sustainability,” EFM director Dennis Ruh continued. “Now we need to use these tools purposefully and turn our motto into MAKING CHANGE. We need to take action and align our mindset with imminent change.”
The final event presented the results from three think-tanks headlined “Future”, “Production” and “Distribution”. Among other things, the theses were put forward that integrating technology and sustainable strategies as well as representation and inclusion play a decisive role in the sector’s positive future development. The pandemic has proven to be a driver and motor for both. Transparency, consolidating mental fitness, participation, and the creation of structural and institutional conditions for the inclusion of people with disabilities in front of and behind the camera are also of key importance.
In the field of production, the issue of intellectual property (IP) protection and the still existing grey area when working with streaming providers play a central role, especially for independent producers. A protective regulation might be a kind of “code of fair practice” that offers a solution for all producers. In the field of distribution, the panelists noted resistance and resilience to change processes, contrary to the current trends. Curation of content is the distinguishing feature between distributors and festivals in relation to streaming services.
The full report summarising the key findings of the think tanks can be read here.
(Press release provided by Berlinale Press Office)
The members of the Children’s Jury in Generation Kplus– Tilda Aue, Maria Fock, Connar Beck Lowe, Henri Marioth, Leonardo Urrutia Schwarze, Kerstin Teichmann and Ida Lilli Zschaubitz – have awarded the following prizes:
Crystal Bear for the Best Film: Comedy Queen by Sanna Lenken, Sweden
A great protagonist, powerful and vulnerable at the same time, provided us with her captivatingly told, bittersweet story of loss, grief, anger and healing. This film was a rollercoaster ride full of emotions: sometimes sad, sometimes funny, sometimes embarrassing. The music was always most appropriate and appealing. The camera was occasionally stable, yet also shaky. In a word, the film was superb.
Special Mention: An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) by Colm Bairéad, Ireland
A beautiful film led us into an emotional, natural world full of love. The acting performance of the protagonist truly impressed us. The profoundly explored feelings were accompanied by sensitive music.
Crystal Bear for the Best Short Film: Vlekkeloos(Spotless) by Emma Branderhorst, Netherlands
A taboo subject is finally being addressed. Something which all of mankind knows about, but hardly addresses. Stress, panic and desperation just because you don’t have enough money for tampons. That has to change!
Special Mention: Luce and the Rock by Britt Raes, Belgium / France / Netherlands
A sweet animated film takes us to a fairy tale-like, colourful and yet literally rocky world. It reminds us that home is not necessarily where you were born, but where you have friends.
Awards of the Generation KplusInternational Jury, sponsored by the Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk (The Children’s Charity of Germany)
The members of the Generation Kplus International Jury – Daniela Cajías, Nicola Jones, Samuel Kishi Leopo – have awarded the following prizes:
The Grand Prix of the Generation Kplus International Jury for the Best Film, endowed with 7,500 Euros:
An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) by Colm Bairéad, Ireland
As many films in this year’s Generation Kplus competition, the winning film deals with the hardships of family life. It is a film with a delicate story full of details about childhood, grief, parenthood and rebuilding a family. The very strong narrative is combined with a stunning cinematography. The sound and the images create a unique atmosphere.
Special Mention: Shabu by Shamira Raphaëla, Netherlands
A film full of life, music and endearing characters. Freshness and energy are the main narrative elements, which transfer directly from the screen to the audience.
The Special Prize of the Generation Kplus International Jury for the Best Short Film, endowed with 2,500 Euros:
Gavazn (Deer) by Hadi Babaeifar, Iran
Through an amazing and poetic cinematography as well as authentic acting, this film tells a story about a boy who uses an ancient tale as a means of empowerment to save his brother. The storytelling was magnetic, mystic and truthful.
Special Mention: To Vancouver (Vancouver) by Artemis Anastasiadou, Greece
A film full of life, music and endearing characters. Freshness and energy are the main narrative elements, which transfer directly from the screen to the audience.
Awards of the Youth Jury Generation 14plus
The members of the Youth Jury in Generation 14plus – Luise Dahns, Christian Fock, Quintus Gramowski, Viola Weiser and Helene Zschaubitz – have awarded the following prizes:
Crystal Bear for the Best Film: Alis by Clare Weiskopf, Nicolas van Hemelryck, Colombia / Chile / Romania
A moving film which, utilising the simplest of means, creates an unbelievable closeness and intimacy. The protagonists and the audience are all confronted with pain and memories, albeit in a gentle manner. How do I manage to come to terms with my past without falling apart beneath it? The film answers this question with impressive honesty and directness.
Special Mention: Stay Awake by Jamie Sisley, USA
Raw and frighteningly concrete, the film thrusts us into an everyday life that is shaped by a recurring traumatic event. Throughout their common journey, the actors and their characters became our confidants while alternating between hope and disappointment. The film left us speechless and agitated.
Crystal Bear for the Best Short Film: Born in Damascus by Laura Wadha, United Kingdom
Impressive and intimate in its narrative style, this short film convinced us and also prevailed against the strong competition. By virtue of this film, we have gained access to a new reality that we had never encountered before in everyday life. In an impenetrable style, the film examines the influence that repressed memories have on our identity. Long after the end of the film, each one of us had something to think about. We were all touched by this film in a very special way, and now we want to award this with our Crystal Bear for the best short film.
Special Mention: Nada para ver aqui (Nothing to See Here) by Nicolas Bouchez, Portugal / Belgium / Hungary
This short film is a work of art! Expressive and rich in contrast to the fast pace of daily life; at the same time observing and value-free, it allows itself the freedom to connect its own self to the images. The film conveys its content in a playful way, mostly without many words, and it invites you to think. Through the interaction of shapes, colours, edges, curves, sections, light and shadows, it clearly stands out from the other films.
Awards of the Generation 14plusInternational Jury, sponsored by the Bundeszentrale für Politische Bildung (the Federal Agency for Civic Education):
The members of the Generation 14plus International Jury – Paolo Bertolin, Rubika Shah, Dash Shaw – have awarded the following prizes:
The Grand Prix of the Generation 14plus International Jury for the Best Film, endowed with 7,500 Euros:
Kind Hearts by Olivia Rochette, Gerard-Jan Claes, Belgium
The first of two equal Grand Prix goes to a film that effortlessly plunges us into the lives of two ordinary young people, sharing a delicate insight in their emotional growth, while reminding us of the unpredictable and elusive nature of that thing called love.
ex aequo
Skhema by Farkhat Sharipov, Kazakhstan
The film is an intimate lens into some of the darker challenges facing young people today. But its strength is in its universality and strong and authentic performances. It explores the vulnerability of teenage girls at that pivotal moment in their lives when they are neither child nor adult. With moments of lightness and darkness — and a fantastic ending.
Special Prize of the Generation 14plus International Jury for the Best Short Film, endowed with 2,500 Euros:
Au revoir Jérôme ! (Goodybye Jérôme !) by Adam Sillard, Gabrielle Selnet, Chloé Farr, France
When this short film appeared on screen, all of us gasped with delight. The dark theatre was illuminated by brilliant colours, strange kaleidoscopic creatures in trees, hot dog dogs, and a fragile man who ultimately plummets and shatters to pieces. To the filmmakers, we say: Thank you for this trip.
Special Mentions:
Blaues Rauschen (Blue Noise) by Simon Maria Kubiena, Germany / Austria
We awarded a special mention to a film that, with just a few neat and precise strokes, portrays the struggle of a young conflicted man trying to finding his footing and his place in the world.
Tinashé by Tig Terera, Australia
Part of the joy of watching short films is to transport one into new worlds. There is an interesting truth in this film, where it reveals something about young people that feels fresh. It is complex and deep — and taps into a side of life in Australia we don’t usually see on screen.
The Homage of the Berlinale 2022 is dedicated to French film and stage actor Isabelle Huppert, who is also the recipient of the Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.
Unfortunately, today Isabelle Huppert has been tested positive for the coronavirus in Paris and therefore she will not be able to attend the Berlin International Film Festival.
While informing the festival, she emphasized that she feels very dedicated to the Berlinale and wants to participate in any possible way also to support her latest film À Propos de Joan.
“Considering that Isabelle Huppert is not feeling sick and she is willing to support the festival we have decided to go on with the award ceremony. As she cannot come, we will send our love and admiration to her home in Paris. We look forward to having her in Berlin another time”, say Berlinale directors Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian.
The award ceremony of the Honorary Golden Bear will take place on February 15, 2022, at 9.45 pm at the Berlinale Palast as planned. Isabelle Huppert will tune in live from Paris to assist the ceremony and to speak to her audience.
The film À propos de Joan (About Joan, dir: Laurent Larivière), in which she is playing the leading role, will be screened as a Berlinale Special Gala afterward.
Unfortunately, the event Berlinale Homage: In Conversation with Isabelle Huppert planned with her at Berlinale Talents has been canceled.
(Press release provided by Berlinale press office)
The 2022 Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) has announced upcoming awards and honors ceremonies. (See below.)
Presentation of the European Shooting Stars
European Shooting Stars 2022 will be presented on Monday, February 14 at 6 pm in the Berlinale Palast: . The world premiere of the Competition entry One Year, One Night by Isaki Lacuesta will be shown afterward.
The Honorary Golden Bear for Isabella Huppert
French film and stage actor Isabelle Huppert, who will be awarded an Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.. (Photo cr. Berlinale)
The Homage of the Berlinale 2022 is dedicated to French film and stage actor Isabelle Huppert, who will be awarded an Honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement.
The Award Ceremony of the Honorary Golden Bear will take place February 15, 2022 at 9.45 pm at the Berlinale Palast. Lars Eidinger will hold the laudatory speech. The film À propos de Joan (About Joan, dir: Laurent Larivière) will be screened as a Berlinale Special Gala afterward.
Award Ceremonies
The Award Ceremony will take place on February 16 at 7 pm in the Berlinale Palast, where the Golden and Silver Bears, the Encounters awards, as well as the GWFF Best First Feature Award and the Berlinale Documentary Award will be presented.
The award ceremony will be transmitted in CinemaxX 3 for accredited journalists. Tickets will be available from 14.02. at 7.30 pm in the online ticket shop for accredited visitors.
The award ceremony can also be seen from 7 pm live on 3sat and on www.berlinale.de.
The press conference with the award winners will take place at around 8.40 pm in the Press Centre. Tickets can also be booked in the online ticket shop for accredited visitors.
The prizes in the Generation Kplus and 14plus competitions will be awarded on February 16 at 3 pm in the Haus der Kulturen der Welt. In the Perspektive Deutsches Kino section, the Heiner Carow Prize will be presented on February 16 at 4 pm and the Compass-Perspektive-Award and the Kompagnon-Fellowship at 7 pm at Kino International.
The list of the award winners will be sent after the award ceremony at the Berlinale Palast.
Prizes of Independent Juries
The jury decisions of the Independent Juries will be announced on February 17 in a press release.
Announcement of the Panorama Audience Award.
The winner of the Panorama Audience Award will be announced on February 19.
On February 20, the awarded films will be shown at Zoo Palast.
The 2022 Berlinale held fast and opened in person. On February 10, the start of the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival was celebrated in the Berlinale Palast. The massive red carpet was aglow with plenty of glitz and glamour as well as the film world’s top talent!
Iris Berben featured on the Red Carpet and Big Screen at the 2022 Berlinale Opening Gala (Photo cr. Berlinale)Claudia Roth, Minister of State for Culture and the Media, on the 2022 Berlinale Red Carpet. (Photo cr. Berlinale)Connie Nielsen arrives on the 2022 Berlinale Red Carpet. (Photo cr. Berlinale)Jella Haase, left, and Albrecht Schuch on the 2022 Berlinale Red Carpet (Photo cr. Berlinale)Opening Night Film Director, Francois Ozon, on the 2022 Berlinale Red Carpet (Photo cr. Berlinale)
All press conferences, galas, and red carpets are being streamed live!
* Featured image: The Executive Director and the Artistic Director of the Berlinale with the International Jury at the Opening Ceremony. )Photo cr. Berlinale)
On February 10, the start of the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival will be celebrated in the Berlinale Palast. Minister of State for Culture and the Media, Claudia Roth, Governing Mayor of Berlin Franziska Giffey, this year’s Jury President M. Night Shyamalan, as well as the Festival Management Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian will kick off the Berlinale with a festive opening.
During the Opening Gala, the International Jury will be introduced. The event will be broadcast on ZDF/3sat from 7.20 pm and streamed live on the Berlinale website.
The opening film, the world premiere of François Ozon’s Peter von Kant, which is in Competition for the Bear Awards will be shown directly after. The director and his film team – Denis Ménochet, who plays the main part, and members of the cast, Khalil Garbia and Stéfan Crépon – will introduce the film in the Berlinale Palast.
A number of prominent German politicians and ambassadors have also announced their attendance.
On this evening, other international and national guests are anticipated as well:
Asia Argento, Dario Argento, Emily Atef, Iris Berben, Jonathan Berlin, Denis Côté, Anne-Marie Descôtes, Stéphane Dion, Andreas Dresen, Nancy Faeser, Maria Furtwängler, Martina Gedeck, Helene Hegemann, Annekatrin Hendel, Philipp Hochmair, Jerry Hoffmann, Louis Hofmann, Markus Imboden, Lorna Ishema, Janine Jackowski, Meltem Kaptan, Burghart Klaußner, Wolfgang Kohlhaase, Jessica Krummacher, Heike Makatsch, Ricardo Martínez Váquez, Ulrich Matthes, Arif Havas Oegroseno, Clark Price, Burhan Qurbani, Anne Ratte-Polle, Sophie Rois, Clemens Schick, Wolfgang Schmidt, Jan Schomburg, Maria Schrader, Lilith Stangenberg, Armando Varricchio, Pedro Raúl Villagra Delgado and Julia von Heinz.
Due to the Covid-19 hygiene and security measures, there will be a reduction in seating capacity in the Berlinale cinemas to 50 percent. For the guests at premieres, further hygiene measures will be put in place, which will help to create a safe festival atmosphere. Due to the pandemic, it will not be possible to hold an opening party.
(Press release provided by Berlinale Press Office)
The Berlinale World Cinema Fund (WCF), with its differentiated funding program (WCF, WCF Europe, WCF Africa, WCF ACP), is committed to cultural diversity, cooperation, sustainable development, and the promotion of cinema in regions with weak film infrastructures. Since its foundation in 2004, the WCF has pledged to play a constructive part in the democratization of international filmmaking – taking into account the relations between European countries with well-established film industries and countries of the so-called Global South.
Despite the pandemic, 2021 was – paradoxically – an extremely successful year for the World Cinema Fund. A large number of artistically significant films (16 world premieres in total) were selected at major film festivals and many of them received major awards. The pandemic does not seem to dominate the narratives of the projects submitted, but they do question the cultural complexity of the world.
Already at the start of this year, a WCF-funded film could celebrate a special success: Eami by Paz Encina (Paraguay) was awarded the Tiger Award for Best Film in the competition in Rotterdam.
Vincenzo Bugno, head of the World Cinema Fund.
“Over the years, we have become increasingly aware that this democratization must be viewed as part of a more complex discussion and strategy: the decolonization of cinema – the main theme of the World Cinema Fund last year – with its various structural, cultural-political layers and meanings. This is also about questioning our own identity and our funding strategies in a constructive process. It is a matter of developing decolonizing strategies and making them visible. For this reason, on WCF Day 2022 we have decided to address some essential issues relating to the need for a better balance between the different film industries and film initiatives in the world,” says the head of the WCF, Vincenzo Bugno.
The WCF Day is the World Cinema Fund’s annual public think-tank. The panels and rounds of discussion on February 16, 2022, will be focusing on the further development of funding and decolonizing strategies.
The WCF Day on February 16, 2022, will be taking place as an online event in English, from 1.30 pm to approx. 4.30 pm.
WCF Day: Further Developing Decolonising Strategies for Film Cultures and Film Industries, Re-Thinking Funding Strategies for the Past, Present and Future of Cinema in the WCF Regions
1.30 pmStart / Presentation by Vincenzo Bugno (head of the WCF) and Isona Admetlla (WCF coordinator)
Talks:
NO U-TURN & Generation Africa
Vincenzo Bugno, head of the WCF in conversation with Ike Nnaebue (director of No U-Turn, Nigeria – Panorama 2022,); Don Edkins (producer, South Africa) Tiny Mungwe (producer, South Africa)
Decolonizing Cinema Strategies / South to South
Marjorie Bendeck (International Advisor/head of CoCo, Cottbus) in conversation with Eliane Ferreira (producer, Brazil / Portugal); Bradley Liew (Producer, Malaysia / Philippines); Isabel Arrate (deputy director IDFA / managing director Bertha Fund, Netherlands)
Decolonizing Distribution / Contextualising Visibility
Presentation by the Berlinale Executive Director Mariette Rissenbeek and the Head of the WCF, Vincenzo Bugno
Alaa Karkouti (marketing and creative consultancy expert for the Arab film and Entertainment Industry / CEO MAD Solutions, Egypt) in conversation with Weije Lai (producer/curator, Singapore / Canada), Steven Markowitz (Producer, South Africa); Fiorella Moretti (World Sales LUXBOX, France / Peru), Benjamin Cölle (academic/expert for Audience Design and Story Development, Germany)
Decolonizing Cinema / Decolonising History / Changing the Perspective
Presentation by Lutz Nitsche, German Federal Cultural Foundation and Vincenzo Bugno, WCF
Two Talks on WCF-Supported Projects From Argentina and Kenya
Puan by Maria Alché and Benjamin Naishtat (Argentina)
Testament by Zippy Kimundu (Kenya) and Meena Nanji (USA / Kenya), Wanjugu Kimathi (protagonist, Kenya).
Berlinale Talents: Let’s Get to Work – Public Talks with Adam Stockhausen, Ari Wegner, Zazie Beetz, Isabelle Huppert, Jutta Allmendinger, and Many More!
BerlinaleTalents opens its doors for the 20th time to celebrate filmmakers and explore new avenues of creativity with the always-welcome involvement of the cinema-loving public. This anniversary year appropriately sees familiar faces appear throughout the broader festival program: no less than 109 alumni have returned either as directors, actors, producers, or in other labors of cinema, and enhance 65 of the films present at the Berlinale with their talent. Take the example of Carla Simón, the director ofAlcarràs, who partook in Berlinale Talents in 2018 and has collaborated now with fellow alumnae, cinematographer Daniela Cajías (BT 2018), editor Ana Paff (BT 2018), and producer María Zamora (BT 2006) for her film in Competition.
Berlinale Talents encourages the exchange between these generations collectively: 20 outstanding alumni have joined this year as jury members, mentors, and colleagues to shape the selection and program; among them, the successful cinematographers Ari Wegner and Elen Lotman in the Camera Studio, while filmmakers Akosua Adoma Owusu, María Laura Ruggiero, Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese, Jennifer Reeder and producer Bianca Balbuena contribute to the script-development labs.
The Joy of Making – The 2022 Focus
Berlinale Talents proposes a thematically connected curriculum of around 50 talks, workshops, labs, and think-tanks (“Talents Tanks”). Under the umbrella of “Labours of Cinema,” 75 filmmakers, activists, and decision-makers join the 200 Talents and the Berlinale audiences. The nine public talks and workshops with renowned guests will be accessible free of charge via live-stream from the website and on social media, while the talk with French actor Isabelle Huppert, to whom the Berlinale Homage 2022 is dedicated, will go ahead as an in-person event with a live public audience at the HAU Hebbel am Ufer (HAU1).
Berlinale Talents 2022 is putting work front and center. Despite the fundamentally digital nature of the event this year, the program has been designed in a “hands-on” spirit: the opening session will take us to the workbench of The French Dispatch with Wes Anderson’s long-standing production designer Adam Stockhausen and the model-making team around Simon Weisse. Alongside this, the focus on work will uncover often overlooked crafts in an array of disciplines: be it the management of background cast on Babylon Berlin or The Matrix Resurrections or the handiwork of Ari Wegner, the artist behind the cinematography of Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog.
Berlinale Talents is also continuing its clarion call for change in the four areas close to the initiative’s heart (Gender Equality & Diversity; Quality Education & Work; Climate Action; Justice & Understanding) and has invited guests and Talents to help bridge thinking and action across their more than 70 home countries: socially engaged actor Zazie Beetz (Joker) and producer Jonas Weydemann (Systemsprenger) discuss new initiatives for more inclusion and diversity on set and in the film with young activists from the industry. Based on an anonymous internal survey, the financial situation of the 200 Talents will also constitute the focus of a session involving Skadi Loist in conversation with Jutta Allmendinger and Lisa Basten. A closer analysis of the facts will provide the basis for a wider assessment of income, livelihood, and equal opportunities in the cultural sector.
Live and for All – An Overview of the Public Events
It Began as a Holiday – Modelmaking for The French Dispatch – A live workshop with Adam Stockhausen, Simon Weisse, and his model-making colleagues from Wes Anderson’s crew.
Crowd Pleaser: How to Work with Extras – A talk with Julia Fidel, head of Berlinale Series, and casting directors and assistant directors Sarah Dickinson, Laura Mihartescu, and Dennis Becker.
Work Arounds: Solutions for Social Sustainability – Actor Zazie Beetz and producer Jonas Weydemann in conversation with the new fellows of the Talents Footprints – Mastercard Enablement Programme 2022.
Berlinale Homage: In Conversation with Isabelle Huppert – This year’s recipient of the Honorary Golden Bear in a live talk on stage with Dennis Lim, Director of Film at the Lincoln Centre in New York. (With live audience. Tickets available at www.berlinale.de)
Kill Your Darlings: Editors in Visibility – Editor Susan Korda (One of Us) offers a passionate appeal for the often-hidden art and craft of film editing.
Paid with Passion: Talents and Their Finances – Skadi Loist from the Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF, in conversation with the President of the Berlin Social Science Centre, Jutta Allmendinger, and Lisa Basten, the Divisional Head of Art and Culture at ver.di, and selected Talents from around the globe.
Before Your Inner Eye: Seeing as a Profession – Talents alumna and Australian cinematographer Ari Wegner (Lady Macbeth) offers her insights into the professional ‘Seeing of a Story’ and her detailed process of preparation and production for Jane Campion’s visually striking film, The Power of the Dog.
Working Titles: Labour Portrayed On-Screen – Dorothee Wenner debates with directors from the current Berlinale program about their cinematic confrontations with labor in contexts of social and political upheaval.
Great Work: Meet the Berlinale Winners – Berlinale’s Artistic Director, Carlo Chatrian, leads a surprise round of 2022 Bear-winners and other awarded filmmakers to this digital “after-work” of the Labours of Cinema week.(The publication of the guests involved will take place on the day of the event.)
Talents Footprints: New Projects for More Sustainability in Film
The Talents Footprints – Mastercard Enablement Programme, enabled by Berlinale Talents’ co-partner Mastercard, successfully enters its second round. German-American actor Zazie Beetz (Joker), Jeannette Liendo, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communication for Mastercard Europe, and producer and alumnus Jonas Weydemann (Systemsprenger) have been appointed to the jury. They will select three fellows from the alumni community who have self-founded social organizations, cultural networks, and educational projects that sustainably and systematically improve gender justice, environmental protection, and inclusion in the film industry. The three fellows will be announced on February 13 during the “Dine & Shine goes Global” event.
Berlinale Talents is an initiative of the Berlin International Film Festival, a business division of Kulturveranstaltungen des Bundes in Berlin GmbH, and is supported by the Minister of State for Culture and the Media, Creative Europe – MEDIA Programme of the European Union, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, the German Federal Foreign Office, the German Federal Film Board, Mastercard, and ARRI.
(Press release provided by Berlinale Press Office)
From February 12 to 18, 2022, Berlinale Goes Kiez will once again bring selected festival films to arthouse cinemas in and around the region of the capital. With the special series, the festival honors the social function of the neighborhood cinemas and the role they play in diverse film cultures.
In the months following the lockdown, the cinemas impressively continued their work, despite all the uncertainties, all the financial worries, and all the organizational challenges, while strictly adhering to hygiene rules. The liveliness of the regional cinema landscape must be supported in particular this year.
In accordance with the well-established concept, Berlinale Goes Kiez will once again be moving from kiez to kiez in Berlin in 2022, and will make a Kiezkino an additional venue for the festival on seven consecutive evenings. This year, the small Red Carpet will be rolled out especially for the cinemas and the audience and is to be understood, more than ever, as a symbol of appreciation for the cinemas and the loyalty of their visitors. The reduced seating capacity to 50 percent also applies in the Kiez. Filmmaker, curator, and lecturer Pary El-Qalqili will be the host this year for the first time.
In 2022, Berlinale Goes Kiez will be a guest in the following cinemas:
Saturday, Feb 12, Eva Lichtspiele (Wilmersdorf)
Sunday, Feb 13, City Kino (Wedding)
Monday, Feb 14, Kino Intimes (Friedrichshain)
Tuesday, Feb 15, Kino Union (Friedrichshagen)
Wednesday, Feb 16, Passage (Neukölln)
Thursday, Feb 17, Neue Kammerspiele (Kleinmachnow)
The conclusion of the 2020 Berlinale marked the beginning of a long pause caused by the pandemic. Since then, people working in an organizational capacity, have repeatedly had to adjust to new conditions: from adapted workplaces and procedures to “new” ways of digital communication.
The 2022 Berlin International Film Festival (The 72nd Berlinale) is offering filmmakers and audiences the opportunity to once again meet and exchange ideas in person, to immerse themselves in the world of cinema, talk about the films and become inspired and motivated. This year, The Berlinale is welcoming the filmmakers for seven days in total, after which audiences will have the opportunity to watch repeat screenings of the films in Berlin cinemas up to February 20.
The Competition, Encounters, and Berlinale Special Programs are out and each features a plethora of excellent films.
Competition 2022
In Competition 18 films are in the race for the Golden and Silver Bears. Productions from 15 countries are represented. 17 films are world premieres. Seven films were directed by women. Human and emotional bonds are a common thread. Almost all films set their tales out of the city center, in the periphery, in the countryside or they follow the characters in their journeys away from towns.
18 films will compete for the Golden and Silver Bears. Productions from 15 countries are represented. 17 films are world premieres. Seven films were directed by women.
Eleven filmmakers have been at the festival before, eight in Competition, and five of them already hold a “bear” in their hands. One film is a non-fiction and animated one, set in an unspecified time.
Artistic Director Carlo Chatrian.
“We are happy to have back artists we cherish and whose work is important to us. We are also happy to welcome for the first time in the Competition filmmakers whose films have thrilled us. More than half of the films selected take place in the present day, but only two deal with the current pandemic times. Human and emotional bonds are a common thread – with half of the selection choosing the family as a context for their tales. Almost all films set their tales out of the city center, in the periphery, in the countryside or they follow the characters in their journeys away from towns”, says Artistic Director Carlo Chatrian.
Competition Films
A E I O U – Das schnelle Alphabet der Liebe (A E I O U – A Quick Alphabet of Love)
Germany / France
by Nicolette Krebitz
with Sophie Rois, Udo Kier, Milan Herms, Nicolas Bridet
World premiere
Alcarràs
Spain / Italy
by Carla Simón
with Jordi Pujol Dolcet, Anna Otin, Xènia Roset, Albert Bosch, Ainet Jounou, Josep Abad
World premiere
Avec amour et acharnement (Both Sides of the Blade)
France
by Claire Denis
with Juliette Binoche, Vincent Lindon, Grégoire Colin, Bulle Ogier
World premiere
Call Jane
USA
by Phyllis Nagy
with Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Mara
International premiere
Drii Winter (A Piece of Sky)
Switzerland / Germany
by Michael Koch
with Michèle Brand, Simon Wisler
World premiere
Everything Will Be Ok
France / Cambodia
by Rithy Panh
World premiere / documentary form
La ligne (The Line)
Switzerland / France / Belgium
by Ursula Meier
with Stéphanie Blanchoud, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Elli Spagnolo
World premiere
Leonora addio
Italy
by Paolo Taviani
with Fabrizio Ferracane, Matteo Pittiruti, Dania Marino, Dora Becker
World premiere
Les passagers de la nuit (The Passengers of the Night)
France
by Mikhaël Hers
with Charlotte Gainsbourg, Quito Rayon-Richter, Noée Abita, Megan Northam, Thibault Vinçon, Emmanuelle Béart
World premiere
Nana (Before, Now & Then)
Indonesia
by Kamila Andini
with Happy Salma, Laura Basuki, Arswendy Bening Swara, Ibnu Jamil
World premiere
Peter von Kant
France
by François Ozon
with Denis Ménochet, Isabelle Adjani, Hanna Schygulla
World premiere / opening film
Rabiye Kurnaz gegen George W. Bush (Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush)
Germany / France
by Andreas Dresen
with Meltem Kaptan, Alexander Scheer
World premiere
Rimini
Austria / France / Germany
by Ulrich Seidl
with Michael Thomas, Hans-Michael Rehberg, Tessa Göttlicher, Inge Maux, Claudia Martini, Georg Friedrich
World premiere
Robe of Gems
Mexico / Argentina / USA
by Natalia López Gallardo
with Nailea Norvind, Antonia Olivares, Aida Roa
World premiere / debut film
So-seol-ga-ui Yeong-hwa (The Novelist’s Film)
South Korea
by Hong Sangsoo
with Lee Hyeyoung, Kim Minhee, Seo Younghwa
World premiere
Un año, una noche (One Year, One Night)
Spain / France
by Isaki Lacuesta
with Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, Noémie Merlant, Quim Gutiérrez
World premiere
Un été comme ça (That Kind of Summer)
Canada
by Denis Côté
with Larissa Corriveau, Aude Mathieu, Laure Giappiconi, Anne Ratte Polle, Samir Guesmi
World premiere
Yin Ru Chen Yan (Return to Dust)
People’s Republic of China
by Li Ruijun
with Wu Renlin, Hai Qing
World premiere
Encounters 2022
The competitive section Encounters 2022 comprises 15 films, all of which are world premieres. There is one first feature. This year’s selection includes more films than usual from established filmmakers (Bertrand Bonello, Ruth Beckermann, Mitra Farahani, Sho Miyake, Arnaud des Pallières, Gastón Solnicki, Peter Strickland, Syllas Tsoumerkas), but also welcomes new voices. Many filmmakers have chosen dialogue as the most appropriate form to overcome fences, distances, and confinements.
The competitive section Encounters 2022 comprises 15 films, all of which are world premieres. There is one first feature. 15 countries are represented. This year’s selection includes more films than usual from established filmmakers (Bertrand Bonello, Ruth Beckermann, Mitra Farahani, Sho Miyake, Arnaud des Pallières, Gastón Solnicki, Peter Strickland, Syllas Tsoumerkas), but also welcomes new voices.
Each selected film aims to engage in a conversation, not only with the audience, but also with the other films. Some of the conversations the selected films offer are the dialogue between two old artists or the one between past and present times. A dialogue with sign language and the special connection between two people excluded from “normal life”. The inner communication between twins and the metacommunication between a book and its readers a century after. The dialectic in place between owners and workers and the dichotomy between truth and lies.
Artistic Director Carlo Chatrian.
“We consider Encounters to be a vibrant competitive section and a safe haven for a community. Here, we tend to invite filmmakers that do not consider cinema as a predefined art form, with a standard that has to be reached, but rather as a field in an ongoing expansion – like the universe we inhabit. After a year and a half spent in not-so-splendid isolation, we are moved by seeing that many filmmakers have chosen dialogue as the most appropriate form to overcome fences, distances, and confinements, and they are keen to keep mapping the land we called cinema,” says Artistic Director Carlo Chatrian.
Encounters Films
A Little Love Package
Austria / Argentina
by Gastón Solnicki
with Angeliki Papoulia, Carmen Chaplin, Mario Bellatin
World premiere
À vendredi, Robinson (See You Friday, Robinson)
France / Switzerland / Iran / Lebanon
by Mitra Farahani
with Jean-Luc Godard, Ebrahim Golestan
World premiere / documentary form
Axiom
Germany
by Jöns Jönsson
with Moritz von Treuenfels, Ricarda Seifried, Thomas Schubert
World premiere
Brat vo vsyom (Brother in Every Inch)
Russian Federation
by Alexander Zolotukhin
with Sergey Zhuravlev, Nikolay Zhuravlev
World premiere
Coma
France
by Bertrand Bonello
with Julia Faure, Louise Labeque
World premiere
Father’s Day
Rwanda
by Kivu Ruhorahoza
with Mediatrice Kayitesi, Aline Amike, Yves Kijyana
World premiere
Flux Gourmet
United Kingdom / USA / Hungary
by Peter Strickland
with Asa Butterfield, Gwendoline Christie, Ariane Labed, Fatma Mohamed, Makis Papadimitriou, Richard Bremmer
World premiere
I Poli ke i Poli (The City and the City)
Greece
by Christos Passalis, Syllas Tzoumerkas
with Vassilis Kanakis, Alexandros Vardaxoglou, Angeliki Papoulia
World premiere
Journal d’Amérique (American Journal)
France
by Arnaud des Pallières
World premiere / documentary form
Keiko, me wo sumasete (Small, Slow but Steady)
Japan / France
by Shô Miyake
with Yukino Kishii, Tomokazu Miura, Masaki Miura
World premiere
MUTZENBACHER
Austria
by Ruth Beckermann
World premiere / documentary form
Queens of the Qing Dynasty
Canada
by Ashley McKenzie
with Sarah Walker, Ziyin Zheng
World premiere
Sonne
Austria
by Kurdwin Ayub
with Melina Benli, Law Wallner, Maya Wopienka
World premiere / Debut
Unrueh (Unrest)
Switzerland
by Cyril Schäublin
with Clara Gostynski, Alexei Evstratov
World premiere
Zum Tod meiner Mutter (The Death of my Mother)
Germany
by Jessica Krummacher
with Birte Schnöink, Elsie de Brauw, Johanna Orsini, Susanne Bredehöft, Gina Haller, Christian Löber
World premiere
Berlinale Special 2022
The Berlinale Special program comprises 15 films from 12 countries – six documentaries and nine feature films, among them two short films. 12 films are world premieres. Most of the Berlinale Special Gala films work within genre – spanning from horror to musical, from fantasy to gangster movie. Berlinale Special will show mainly documentary forms. In its line-up, the Berlinale Special combines celebrity sparkle with the stories that matter.
Berlinale Special comprises 15 films from twelve countries, among them six documentary forms and nine feature films as well as two short films. Twelve are world premieres.
Artistic Director Carlo Chatrian.
“Despite the pandemic, we are happy to have the Berlinale Special Gala back. Films intended for the widest public will be presented in our biggest venue – the Friedrichstadt-Palast – and accompanied by filmmakers and cast. Most of them work within genre – spanning from horror to musical, from fantasy to gangster movie. Despite often dramatic stories, all of them manage to welcome a bit of lightness, having recourse to irony or comic elements. Berlinale Special makes room mainly to documentaries that are the best way to explore our world and its legacy. From a recording studio during the pandemic to the little-known industry of synthetic diamonds, from a microcosm to be found in and around an old oak tree in France to a controversial political party in Germany, ending with a take on the power and ethics of photography.
Featuring stars including Nick Cave, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau or Emma Thompson alongside talented young actors like Louis Hoffmann, Alia Bhatt or Joe Cole – the Berlinale Special line-up combines celebrity sparkle with the stories that matter”, says Artistic Director Carlo Chatrian.
Berlinale Special Gala films
Against the Ice
Iceland / Denmark
by Peter Flinth
with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Joe Cole, Heida Reed, Charles Dance
World premiere
À propos de Joan (About Joan)
France / Germany / Ireland
by Laurent Larivière
with Isabelle Huppert, Lars Eidinger, Swann Arlaud
World premiere
Gangubai Kathiawadi
India
by Sanjay Leela Bhansali
with Alia Bhatt, Ajay Devgn
World premiere
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
United Kingdom
by Sophie Hyde
with Daryl McCormack, Emma Thompson
European premiere
Incroyable mais vrai (Incredible But True)
France / Belgium
by Quentin Dupieux
with Alain Chabat, Léa Drucker, Benoît Magimel, Anaïs Demoustier
World premiere
Der Passfälscher (The Forger)
Germany / Luxembourg
by Maggie Peren
with Louis Hofmann, Jonathan Berlin, Luna Wedler
World premiere
Occhiali neri (Dark Glasses)
Italy / France
by Dario Argento
with Ilenia Pastorelli, Asia Argento, Andrea Zhang
World premiere
The Outfit
USA
by Graham Moore
with Mark Rylance, Zoey Deutch, Dylan O’Brien
World premiere / Debut
Berlinale Special films
1341 Framim Mehamatzlema Shel Micha Bar-Am (1341 Frames of Love and War)
Israel / United Kingdom / USA
by Ran Tal
World premiere / documentary form
Eine deutsche Partei (A German Party)
Germany
by Simon Brückner
World premiere / documentary form
Le chêne (Die Eiche – Mein Zuhause)
France
by Laurent Charbonnier, Michel Seydoux
International premiere / documentary form
Nest
Denmark / Iceland
by Hlynur Pálmason
with Ída Mekkín Hlynsdóttir, Grímur Hlynsson, Þorgils Hlynsson
World premiere / short film
Nothing Lasts Forever
USA
by Jason Kohn
World premiere / documentary form
Terminal norte (North Terminal)
Argentina
by Lucrecia Martel
International premiere / documentary form / short film
This Much I Know To Be True
United Kingdom
by Andrew Dominik
with Nick Cave, Warren Ellis
World premiere / documentary form
