Yesterday the starting signal was already given with “Las Mil Y Una”. We hope you all had a good start into the Berlinale. Today is the first day that several films will be shown in one day. The most difficult decision today will be to decide which film to go to, as all films are very promising. But don’t worry, you can find all information about the films on our website. There you will find information such as film descriptions, biographies of the directors and screening data of the films.
After her mother’s death, Ida moves in with her aunt and cousins. Theirs is a loving family, but it soon transpires that the clan is engaged in criminal activities. A female driven exploration of family conflict fuelled by affection and cut-throat ethics.
Nora grows through observation. Always at her big sister’s side, she drifts around the housing blocks and sees people being in love, being high, spiteful and tender. When Nora meets Romy, she suddenly feels trapped in her own skin, and she starts to recognize her true self.
Amber belongs to a queer generation which no longer wants to allow society to dictate their identity. The teenagers proudly inhabit a spectrum of fluid identities and master their first loves and losses.
Curated by Panorama and organised with the Queer Academy, A Directors Exchange analyses the work of filmmakers whose films are being presented at the festival and are in contention for the TEDDY AWARD.
TIMETABLE
11.30am – 12.30pm: A Directors Exchange on Queering the Framework – In conversation with Patric Chiha and Matthew Rankin
Patric Chiha, director of Si c’était de l’amour, and Matthew Rankin, director of The Twentieth Century, use various styles and artistry in their films to queer the framework where stories told through dance and theatrical staging become celebrations of transformation.
Patric Chiha & Matthew Rankin
Patric Chiha: Born in Vienna, Austria in 1975, he studied fashion design in Paris and then film editing at the INSAS film school in Brussels. His short and documentary films have screened at several festivals. His feature film debut Domaine, starring Béatrice Dalle, premiered at the 2009 Venice Film Festival. His documentary Brothers of the Night screened in the 2016 Panorama.
Matthew Rankin: Born in Winnipeg, Canada in 1980. He studied at the Department of History and Classical Studies at McGill University in Montreal, as well as Université Laval in Quebec. In 2011, Rankin participated at Berlinale Talents. Following numerous short films, The Twentieth Century is his first feature film.
Moderation: Ana David
1pm – 2pm: A Directors Exchange on New Queer German Cinema – In conversation with Faraz Shariat and Leonie Krippendorff
Two films with a fresh take on coming of age and coming to terms with ideas of home and belonging in a post-migrant society. Faraz Shariat, director of Futur Drei and Leonie Krippendorff, director of Kokon, talk about their motivations, inspirations and desires for creating their own stories.
Faraz Shariat & Leonie Krippendorff
Faraz Shariat: Born in Cologne, Germany in 1994, he worked first as a director and actor at Schauspiel Köln and on video installations for the Staatstheater Hannover before studying dramatic arts at the University of Hildesheim. His work focuses on post-migrant experiences and stories about immigrant families. His debut feature film, Futur Drei, evolved from his autobiographical documentaries exploring his family history and from his work as a translator for refugees. The film was developed in collaboration with Paulina Lorenz and Raquel Molt in the Jünglinge film collective, where the three have been working together ever since they met at university.
Leonie Krippendorff: Born in Berlin, Germany in 1985, she studied directing at the Film University Babelsberg Konrad Wolf from 2009 to 2016. Her graduation film, Looping, was nominated for numerous national and international prizes and won several. The screenplay for her debut feature film, Kokon, was selected for the 2018 Berlinale Talents Script Station. She is currently working on the screenplays for two new feature film projects. Variety chose her as one of “10 Europeans to Watch 2020.”
The Queer Academy is an annual convention of international filmmakers and festival organizers in the gay-lesbian-transgender context at the Berlinale. The QUEER ACADEMY aims to establish itself as an institute of queer cultural memory. The ACADEMY will become an archive of queer culture and history that binds together queer cultural productions and cooperates with other organizations. Since memories are essential for the identity construction, the QUEER ACADEMY will offer an opportunity for queer people to form and find their identity in queer memory.
TIMETABLE
1pm – 1.30pm: KEYNOTE – Darick Qin, Director of Operations, ShanghaiPRIDE
Established in 2009, ShanghaiPRIDE has faced extraordinary challenges in its fight to show queer films. Battling censorship and legal issues, every year it is more than a film festival, becoming a central cultural community event sharing screen stories about the love, hardships, growth and triumphs of LGBTQI* in China.
1.30pm – 3.30pm: PANEL: From Shorts to Series – Interdisciplinary Storytelling in Queer Narratives
In conversation with: Athina Rachel Tsangari, Director of Trigonometry, Berlinale Series
Lia Hietala & Hannah Reinikainen, Directors of Always Amber, Berlinale Panorama
Ray Yeung, Director of Suk Suk, Berlinale Panorama
Omer Sterenberg, Director of HaMa’azin (Listening In), Berlinale Shorts Gil Baroni, Director of Alice Júnior, Berlinale Generation
Athina Rachel Tsangari, Lia Hietala & Hannah Reinikainen, Ray Yeung, Omer Sterenberg and Gil Baroni
Moderation: Kristian Petersen
The queer narratives on display are strong examples of the different approaches taken by filmmakers to share their stories. Series delve into the complex layers of a character; fiction features experiment with different forms of storytelling to communicate our desires; documentaries present the courage of people taking authorship of their stories; shorts compress a complex story conveying more with images than words. With the diverse guests from this year’s festival the potentials of cinematic approaches will be analysed and discussed.
Here we are now.. at the end of our ten-day journey. We hope you feel more enriched than before and that you discovered some amazing films that you will further recommend. To all of you film lovers or people who are just discovering the wonders of the cinematic universe, here are some last screenings for today.
The exceptional Brazilian singer Edson Cordeiroand the BABYLON Orchester Berlinunder the direction of the composer and pianist Hans Brandner and the conductor Marcelo Falcão take the audience on a time journey to the Weimar Republic – into the so-called roaring ’20s and ’30s. An exciting era comes to life again.
Countertenor Edson Cordeiro will perform songs with the orchestra from this time singing as if he’d just stepped out of an expressionist silent movie -only with a four-octave voice! A singular and unique experience for eyes and ears.
In 1919, the first educational film about homosexuality – “Anders, als die anderen,” (“Different from the others”) – was directed by Richard Oswald, with Conrad Veidt in the leading role. This film also inspired a hit song of 1919, a hymn of the gay movement of the Weimar Republic “Das Lila Lied”. The lyrics say: “We are just different from the others, ” who only loved in step with morality…”
Holly Schlott
Holly Schlott is the first TransSaxophonist in Germany. Over 40 years in the music business worldwide on her way as Volker she finally decides on the occasion of her round birthday to “come to her own terms”. With her special TransSax she enchants the music world since 2018 now in a new shape. Her vision: a Global Trans Orchestra.
Emma Laule
Emma Laule combines elegance with power and presence in her aerial acrobatics. The Berlin-born artist studied first in Berlin and then in Holland, where she received her Bachelor’s degree in Circus and Performance Art in 2016. In the same year she was awarded the silver medal and the special prize of the Tigerpalast at the International Youth Circus Festival.
Since then she has performed throughout Germany and around the world in variety shows, theatres and at festivals.In her productions she questions the traditional approach of the circus and searches for new possibilities of expression within the medium. As an acrobat in René Pollesch’s “Kill Your Darlings” she has already performed at the Volksbühne. At this year’s TEDDY-Award ceremony she will show her solo on the vertical rope.
LEOPOLD is a statement himself. With his impressive voice, a highly energetic stage presence and extravagant outfits he belongs to a new generation of self-confident queer artists. Musically inspired by geniuses like Janelle Monáe, Lizzo, Prince and Beyoncé, LEOPOLD shines with his stunning vocal skills, musical variety and powerful choreographies.
He breaks down gender boundaries and fights for real equality, acceptance and visibility of LGBTQI+. All songs are self-written and come with very personal lyrics. LEOPOLD creates his Power Pop with lots of heart, humanity and an empowering attitude.
