Archiv der Kategorie: Berlinale

The Berlinale Bears and Berlin’s Parties

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Golden Bear for Semih Kaplanoglu

After ten days of original films, special events and high society, the sixtieth film festival Berlinale came to a closing this weekend.

Saturday evening’s award-ceremony highlighted the best films in the Berlinale-competition with an Oscar-like distribution of “Golden and Silver Bears“. The international judging panel, with eminent names like Renée Zellweger and others, awarded the Turkish-German production “Bal“ (“Honey“), by Semih Kaplanoglu, with the Golden Bear for Best Film. “Bal“ is the final part of a trilogy and tells the story of an enchanting relationship between a father and his young son through the eyes of the six-year old boy. The director chose to employ the rich sounds of nature rather than bland music in his film, which gave the film a very personal touch and a “real feel“.

The personal touch was intensified on Sunday at the “Berlinale-Panorama“, an award for the best film elected by the audience. Over the ten-day course of the Berlinale, there were public voting booths, both online and at the participating cinemas. This year, the audience awarded the Brazilian/English film “Waste Land“ with the Panorama-prize.

Unfortunately, the Berlinale as a whole was not highly rewarded. There were many disappointing occasions: From the opening with a rather unspectacular film that didn’t draw any celebrities to the red carpet, to a similar situation with the anticipated closing premier of “Nine“. The Berlinale did not manage to attract even one star from this grand Hollywood-production. No Pénelope Cruz, no Judi Dench, no Nicole Kidman, not even the director Rob Marshall appeared to his own premier. What a slap in the face for reputation of the Berlinale…

But like I said in an earlier blog, it’s not all about the stars! Berlin was a wonderful host to many visitors who came to enjoy the Berlinale and its special events. Especially the parties proved themselves as successful. Two parties were in my main focus during the Berlinale; one of them was the celebration of the German film “Die Fremde“ (“The Stranger“) at the Cookies. The Cookies is a renowned club on Friedrichstraße, which is probably the most expensive shopping avenue in Berlin. Famous for its Berlinale-parties, the Cookies is known for an exceptional collaboration of DJ’s. And I must admit, this party really did knock me off my feet. With one room solely dedicated to the deepest house and electro music, while the other room exclusively played the finest hip-hop tunes, I couldn’t believe that this was one and the same party. Also, the diversity amongst the guests was a very pleasant surprise. I guess it is this diversity which creates the perfect symbiosis for a perfect party. Unluckily, the club was too full too soon. In spite of that, I had a lot of fun at the Cookies.

Then there was another celebration that exceeded everyone’s expectations: “Lieblingstag“ (“Favorite Day“) is a weekly party at the glorious Puro, and is located on the 20th story of a sky-scraper on the “Ku’damm“, which is probably the most popular shopping avenue in Berlin. The loft-like location offers a rare 360° view of Berlin – what could be better than partying over the roof tops of Berlin?!

During the Berlinale, the Lieblingstag-party was THE talk of town. Even some people at the Berlinale Talent Campus asked me if I had heard of the so-called Lieblingstag. Hundreds of people were queuing till late into the night, one guest even told me she waited for one hour before she could hit the dance floor, and still it was worth waiting for. This legendary celebration mixes the best of 70ies and 80ies with hip hop and house. No wonder no one wanted to miss out. Lieblingstag is Berlin’s best party.

That was it for the Berlinale, I hope you enjoyed my blog. If you decide to visit Berlin, please don’t hesitate to contact me at Young Germany or on Twitter, it would be my pleasure to give you some tips for Berlin.
Thank you for following my blog!

by Yolanda Rother

Party impressions from the Berlinale – watch the short video:
http://blog.young-germany.de/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/video-short.flv.

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Impressions of the Berlinale

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The Berlinale is slowly coming to an end, and when I look back at the last couple of days, they were filled with exciting, fun and thought-provoking experiences. From running late to a press conference, but ending at a screening of a documentary; from missing Leonardo DiCaprio, but watching a short film in a miniature-cinema; and from being stunned by future film-talents soon coming our way through the Berlinale Talent Campus, I can truly say that the Berlinale was a great success. Then I got to thinking, if I had such wonderful experiences during the Berlinale, what must the experiences of the other five thousand visitors be like?

I took my camera and my notebook and 3 hours of my time and went to the spot where all the action was happening: the Potsdamer Platz. There, I set out on a mission to ask young people what their coolest, most memorable, maybe even most disappointing experience during this year’s film festival was.

Read on to see what they felt about the Berlinale.

Julien, 22, from Berlin – “I work at the entrance of the Berlinale Palast, right next to the red carpet. Every single day, something crazy happens here. Twice or so it happened that the stars stopped right in front of me, so close that I could smell their perfume. But usually, all I see are the fans. These fans are out of their minds, let me tell you. There is a woman who comes here every day. On the first day, she placed herself in front of us {him and his colleague} and preached to us that she was “the elected one, the chosen one“. She thought we would just say “Ok!“ and let her in to the premier. Well, she thought wrong. When I kindly asked her to buy a ticket or to leave, she started singing out loud. Everyone waiting in line looked at her funny. The next day she came back, still singing aloud in front of everyone. She does this every day… And once, a man insisted on entering the exclusive premier of “My Name is Khan“. When I stopped him from entering the Berlinale Palast without a ticket, he put on a show, saying: “Don’t u know who I am? I am Royalty from Magdeburg {a small town in Germany}. Let me in, seriously.“ Of course I could not let him pass. I found it surprising that people went crazy for Shahrukh Khan. The day of his premier was the only day we needed extra-support from the police, because his fans tried jumping the barriers. Some of his loyal fans awaited him from noon, standing at the red carpet with their cameras and pens ready. His premiere started at eight in the evening… “

Magdalena, 22, from Spain: “I love the Berlinale because it gives me a reason to take a vacation to Berlin. All my friends who have drifted of to different corners of the world also come to Berlin. It really is our love for films and the Berlinale that reunites us every year!“

Wiebke, 23, from Leipzig: “I had an embarrassing moment at the Berlinale: I was late to the movie heater, and on my way in, I ran over this guy. He fell, I fell on top of him and I was extremely embarrassed. Only when I stood up to apologize, I realized it was Tom Schilling, the main actor of the film on the screen. I turned red like a tomato, because the only reason I wanted to watch this movie was because him – I had a huge crush on him ever since I was 15.“ (Editor’s note: Tom Schilling is comparable to Robert Pattinson.)

Vanessa and Berenice, both 22, from Peru: “We’ve been waiting in line for more than 30 minutes. But every minute is worth waiting for: the Berlinale is always a great event. Our favourite film so far was “The Killer Inside me“.

Everyone I interviewed was quick to tell me a funny story or talk about their favourite film. Some were disappointed that museums had restricted entry, others were excited that they could also go see a short film in a museum. Some said they had already seen more than 20 films and their eyes hurt, where others had not seen a single film, they only went to the Berlinale-parties and their heads hurt. All in all, the Berlinale and Berlin left a good impression with the people. Let’s hope this last weekend will prove itself one last time!

 by Yolanda Rother

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“By 2031, every film director will have been to a Berlinale Talent Campus“

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The Berlinale Talent Campus is an initiative for talented future filmmakers and was first established in 2002 by Berlinale-director Dieter Kosslick. His goal for the Talent Campus was to assist up-and-coming filmmakers in the film industry. Every year for five days during the Berlinale, the Talent Campus gives 350 participants from all five continents the chance to take part in workshops and discussions as well as to learn from professional film directors.

Since 2003, the idea of the Talent Campus has expanded on international grounds. These Campus International editions share the same structure as the original German Campus, supported by their regional film partners. Today, the Berlinale Talent Campus can count three additional partners to their international program: Kiev (Ukraine,) Cape Town (South Africa) and Delhi (India).

Last Saturday, Dieter Kosslick opened the eighth edition of the Berlinale Talent Campus and welcomed 350 talents from 95 countries. With the largest number of applicants to date (more than 5000), Kosslick then made a projection that in 2031, every film director will have taken part at a Berlinale Talent Campus. With this year’s motto “Straight to Cinema“, the Talent Campus focuses on the importance of cinema culture and encourages filmmakers to “keep it simple, make it grand!“

The Opening Ceremony premiered the five short films competing for the Berlin Today Award, which were realised through financial aid from Medienboard. The winner of the Berlin Today Award was selected on Sunday: Congratulations to the 23-year-old Australian Bryn Chainey and his fantastic and very unique film “Jonah and the Vicarious Nature of Homesickness“.

The coming days are filled with workshops and discussions for the participants. Although only the most talented can join the Talent Campus, many events are open to the public. On Monday, I went to a workshop called “Be Kind – Rewind“, hosted by Mr. David M. Thompson, a well-known British tv and film producer. Four short films were screened and afterwards discussed with the director and Thompson on stage. Thompson pointed out that, in general, shorts are a “fantastic challenge“, because it is more difficult to put a story into ten minutes than into two hours. All four films mastered this challenge and were wonderful productions. The shorts took place in all corners of the world: in Finland, a small town in the U.S., and Chinatown. The film about Chinatown by Shelly Silver, (“Five Lessons and Nine Questions about Chinatown“) brought up some interesting discussion topics about how we don’t know how the “other half“ lives, because we don’t care. The audience was enthusiastically participating in this discussion. All in all, I thought it was an extremely valuable and important opportunity to be able to ask the directors questions about their production. “Be Kind – Rewind“ gave us the chance to do just that. Thank you.

by Yolanda Rother

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Berlinale Delights on a Freezing Night

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The Berlinale-weekend anounced some promising events. Friday night opened with the outdoor screening of long-lost “Metropolis“. Saturday began with the take-off of the eighth Berlinale Talent Campus, followed by the world-premiere of “Shutter Island“, and ending with an afterparty at the hottest club in town.

Berlin was a frozen winter wonderland on friday night, but I had an open-air screening of “Metropolis“ at the Brandenburg Gate on my schedule. I wasn’t expecting to be part of a large audience, but to my surprise hundreds of film-fans joined me. Some clever ones brought folding chairs from home, others got comfortable on the snowy ground with tea or booze to keep them warm.

The screening was introduced with a number of various short clips. One of these clips was of actress Tilda Swinton, wishing the Berlinale a happy sixtieth birthday in her own special way. She decided to congratulate the filmfest sixty (!!!) times: “Happy, happy, happy, happy, happy, …“ I think you get the picture. I found it quite amusing, but I was relieved when she gave up. Finally, the film we were all waiting for began. “Metropolis“ is an epic silent film that hit german cinemas in 1927. Over the years, some parts of the film were lost and only recently someone rediscovered the final missing piece in Buenos Aires. This renaissance of “Metropolis“ marks a spectacular date in the history of cinema and film. I enjoyed the film and the amazing soundtrack.

On my way home, the train was crammed. I guess this is the effect the Berlinale has on the city- everyone wants to go out on the town.

On Saturday, my afternoon began with the Opening Ceremony of the Berlinale Talent-Campus. The organizer of the Berlinale, Dieter Kosslick, held an entertaining speech and I had the chance to see five innovative films of young directors, which I will talk about in depth in my next blog. After the Opening Ceremony, I headed to the Berlinale-Palast to see Leonardo DiCaprio. His premiere started at 8pm, so I figured that if I arrive an hour earlier, it would give me enough time to take his photo. I guess he was playing the “catch-me-if-you-can“ game, because I just missed him. Aaah, it was very aggravating. All I saw was him signing his picture on the big screen infront of the Berlinale Palast. I was so devastated that I even tried my luck with the security-guards and asked them if they could make an exception and let me in, but they were so very stubborn! At least I can say I tried. And hopefully there will be a next time.

On my way home, I was held up at the subway station by this funny-looking guy with a top hat and a box in a wheelbarrow, who caught my eye. People were queuing to take a look into the box, which had “Kinobox“ (“Moviebox“) written on it. The eccentric man explained that this was a miniature cinema on wheels showing “short films against boredom“. The shortest film was one minute long, and the longest lasted for about 10 minutes. The films were funny and creative and I thought the idea was ingenious. These little surprises are typical for Berlin!

My saturday evening ended at the Berlinale-Afterparty at a famous club in town. It was a fun and diverse night, I took many pictures and videos that I plan to share with you in my next blog. On that note, enjoy your weekend and take your valentine to a Berlinale-film!

by Yolanda Rother

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The Berlinale 2010 – Berlin at its best

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Yolanda Rother

Yesterday was the kick-off of the world’s largest public filmfestival: The Berlinale. And it is a special occasion, the celebration of  the filmfestival’s sixtieth birthday. Happy Birthday Berlinale! The opening ceremony showed the world-premiere of the chinese film “Tuan Yuan“ (“Together Apart“) by Wang Quan’an, who already won the much sought after Golden Bear in ’07.

Like in the past years, a number of 400 films will be shown. Of these, twenty films are competing for the Golden and Silver Bears. Like every year, there is a judging panel that awards the best production towards the end of the filmfestival. So if its the same procedure as every year, you might ask yourself what makes the Berlinale so special?

First, there are the films. World-premieres such as Martin Scorsese’s highly anticipated “Shutter Island“, with Leonardo DiCaprio, make the Berlinale a remarkable highlight throughout the world. But also films that usually don’t make their way into the cinema, because they are either too short or too long, can be seen here. The Berlinale gives these smaller productions a chance to be acknowledged, nonetheless.

Then, of course, there are the stars who walk down the red carpet. This years list ranges from bollywood-superstar Shah Rukh Khan over Leonardo DiCaprio to Ben Stiller and Gérard Depardieu. Hopefully I’ll get lucky and can catch a glimpse of Leo at his premiere.

But its not only the stars and the films that draw almost half a million visitors to the Berlinale – it is Berlin. And here I can spill my love for Berlin: During the eleven days of the fimfestival, Berlin undergoes a cinematic transformation. Suddenly, every party is associated with the Berlinale and every café has a “Director’s Cut Deal“. Berlin is on its best behaviour and turns into a large stage for many different performances: Cinemas all over town participate with the filmfestival to show films, a wonderful opportunity for visitors to get a taste of what Berlin has to offer.

Also, the Berlinale takes us beyond the cinema. Great museums take part in the festival, showing art in form of film productions. Then, there are public viewings, like the screening of the 80-year old movie “Metropolis“ at the Brandeburg Gate today. Mostly, I appreciate that the tickets for a show start at three euros. This filmfest insists on making culture and art accessable to everyone and I find this very special.

Finally, I wanted to share an anecdote with you: Yesterday, I was on my way to a press-conference, when I suddenly found myself in a screening of a french documentary about orang-utans. Later I found out it was the film “Nénette“ by Nicolas Philibert. The film was very entertaining and a cool surprise. And this is a perfect example of what the Berlinale and also Berlin is all about: unexpected, fun surprises that await behind every corner.

I encourage everyone in Berlin to go visit the Berlinale, because it is more than just a filmfestival – it is a mix of culture, art and glamour and in a city like Berlin this creates a new and exciting symbiosis. This is Berlin at its best!

Feel free to read my blog about the next days of the Berlinale. My agenda is full, I plan to visit workshops at the Berlinale-Talentcampus (for young people just getting started in the business), as well as going to the public viewing at the Brandenburg Gate and checking out some parties. Stay updated and follow me either here or on twitter!
 

 www.berlinale.de

www.berlinale-talentcampus.de

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