Berlinale
   Berlin, Germany - February

German, Hollywood and World Cinema

The Berlin International Film Festival takes place in early February. The 58th Berlinale took place February 7-17, 2008 (photo below). Generally ranked number two in the world after Cannes, Berlin now features some 400 films attended by over 400,000 people (public and accredited guests). In 2000 the 50th Berlinale moved to the new Berlinale Palast at the Potsdamer Platz complex for the first time.

The Berlinale Palast on Marlene-Dietrich-Platz has been the main venue for the Berlinale since 2000. The
58th Berlinale, pictured above, opened with Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Stones documentary Shine a Light.
PHOTO © Hyde Flippo

First established in 1951, the Berlin International Film Festival, also known as the Berlinale, has evolved over the years to become one of the most important international film festivals. On June 6, 1951 Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca, starring Joan Fontaine and Gary Grant, opened the first Berlin International Film Festival (already dubbed the “Berlinale”) in the Titania-Palast cinema. With much of Berlin still in ruins from the recent war, Fontaine came to Berlin as the festival’s first “star guest.”

In the early years the Berlinale struggled to survive in difficult postwar conditions. German films in particular had a hard time gaining favor with the public or the press. It would take until 1955 before a German film won the German festival’s top prize. Robert Siodmak’s adaption of Hauptmann’s Die Ratten (The Rats), starring a young Maria Schell, is voted the best film by the audience. (Until 1956, the Berlinale was prohibited by the international film body FIAPF from having a jury. That was reserved only for Cannes and Venice.) Another problem was the east/west division of Germany and Berlin. Although there was no Berlin Wall until 1961, the German film industry was already split by the Cold War.

Not many people know that the biggest German film festival came about through the efforts of an American. Oscar Martay (1920-1995) was a “film officer” with the US Army in Berlin. It was at his suggestion that a committee met on October 9, 1950 to set up the Berlin International Film Festival. Martay also used his influence to push the American military administration to help fund the festival with loans during the initial years of the Berlinale. He was one of the first recipients of the festival’s now-famous Golden Bear award in 1951 for his efforts. After leaving the army Martay stayed in Germany, working in film production. He married the German actress Renate Barken in 1955.

	The Zoo Palast Kino in West Berlin was the main Berlinale venue from 1957 until 2000. Photo © Hyde Flippo

In 1957 the Berlinale got a brand new festival venue: the Zoo Palast Kino across from the Zoologischer Garten train station became the large inner city festival cinema in West Berlin. The Zoo-Palast would remain the Berlinale’s central location until its move to Potsdamer Platz in 2000. But political and financial strains were weakening the Berlinale. It was a problem that Alfred Bauer (1911-1986), the director of the Berlinale until 1976, always dealt with.

Although it began as a summertime festival, since 1978 the Berlinale has taken place in February. The festival is now considered the world’s largest by attendance. Although it is often difficult to get tickets for certain films, most of the Berlin festival’s screenings are open to the public. Over 200,000 tickets are sold for over 400 films during the event in February. More than 19,000 film professionals from 120 countries, including 4,000 journalists, are accredited for the Berlin International Film Festival every year.

In 2002 the Berlinale welcomed a brand new director and a new direction. Although Dieter Kosslick wanted to stress continuity in his first year and not immediately do everything differently from his predecessor Moritz de Hadeln, there were changes. Although the Berlinale has always undergone some change, under Kosslick it took on a stronger role for both German and international cinema. Various Berlinale events help develop new German cinema talent and encourage filmmakers to be more creative.

Over the next few years, partly because of the first Gulf War and September 11, 2001, the festival took on a more political tone. In accepting her award for lifetime achievement, Anouk Aimée commented: “I’m a part of Old Europe.” — a pointed reference to a phrase that had been uttered by US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

The 2008 Berlinale introduced another first: A documentary film, Martin Scorsese’s filming of a Rolling Stones concert Shine a Light, opened the festival.

N E X T > Berlinale Photos

B A C K > German Film Festivals

Berlinale Web Links

• Berlinale - Official site
• Berlinale Archives - Historical chronolgy of the Berlinale (in English)
• Berlinale - Wikipedia

N E X T > Berlinale Photos

Home| Film People | Film Studios

Also visit our Video Shop

Copyright © 2008 Hyde Flippo