Blog, News 2015, Teddy 2015

Last Week in Review

January 27, 2015 Jenny Leave a comment

Missed the last TEDDY-news? No time to check our daily updates on our blog and social media? Don’t worry! Here’s everything you shouldn’t have missed.

Just eight more days, then it’s Berlinale time! Today, the big Berlinale press conference was held today, and the TEDDY team represented.

We are proud to announce two great new events. Ingrid Caven und Udo Kier will come together for a unique conversation as part of the Berlinale Talks. They will talk about their time with Rainer Werner Fassbinder. We are looking forward to a special evening with two exceptional artists. The talk will take place on February 12^th from 8 to 9 pm at the Audi Berlinale Lounge on Marlene-Dietrich-Platz. The entry is free and everyone’s invited!

Before Udo Kier meets Ingrid Caven, he will join another Berlinale Talk, this time with Deutschlandradio Kultur. On February 6^th from 2 pm he will talk about his life work, his love for art and what the Special TEDDY AWARD means to him. The talk will be broadcasted on February 9^th at 9 am by Deutschlandradio Kultur. Everyone who witnessed Udo Kier live before knows that he is a great entertainer and that the interview is a must-go for every film buff. Here’s a little taste of Udo (his one-man-show starts at minute six):

The program for the TEDDY AWARD ceremony is now complete! We are looking forward to the cycle artists Felix and Flow. The brothers perform tricks on their bike that others couldn’t even do on the ground. A unique and breathtaking act!

After the award ceremony, the party continues at the TEDDY AFTERSHOW LOUNGE. The newly founded l’ensemble transes continentales and the DJs Das blaue Wunder feat. Magnus und Norbert will create a great atmosphere. The latter are resident DJs of the Kreuzberg institutions Südblock and Möbel Olfe. L’ensemble transes continentales will play vibraphone, piano, saxophone and many more instruments and invites us to dream to their music.

SAMSUNG CAMERA PICTURES — L’ensemble transes continentales

On our blog, Audrey has written a piece about a new law in Russia, that forbids trans*persons to drive and we collected voices in memory of Suzy Capó, founder of the Felix Award. More information about the artists performing at the TEDDY AWARD Gala can be found here. All the events for the TEDDY 2015 can be found here. All the TEDDY films 2015 are now online as well!

Our website and blog will be constantly updated with news about the TEDDY 2015, the lazy ones can read the next Last Week in Review with all the important news.

See you next week!

Blog, Teddy 2015

David Kato 4th Memorial Anniversary

January 26, 2015 beate Leave a comment

‘David Kato was a hero not just to LGBT Ugandans, but to all Ugandans and to all supporters of human rights worldwide.’*

He was a teacher, human rights activist and founder of the LGBT commuinity in Uganda . As the speaker of the Ugandan LGBTI rights organization Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), David Kato campaigned tirelessly for human rights, and for the rights of LGBTI Africans in particular. He was was murdered in his home on 26 January 2011.

You will find a detailed article about the 4th anniversary of David Kato’s death on www.slate.com (english)

David Kato Award

Following David’s death , his colleagues from around the world came together to establish the David Kato Vision and Voice Award. Since 2014, the David Kato Award has been giving at the anual TEDDY ceremony. Winner of the last year’s award was the Cambodian transgender activist Sotheavy Sou.

*Frank Mugisha, Executive Director of SMUG

News 2015

In Memory of Suzy Capó

January 26, 2015 Sebastian 1 Comment

On the 9th of January this year Suzy Capó decided to end her life. She was among the epicenters of Queer Cinema: a strong, passionate, flamboyant, generous, spirited, resourceful, creative ball of energy, circling many universes, connecting worlds, people, films, lives and everything else, that always just barely fit into her gigantic suitcase that she took wherever she went. Suzy was a co-founder and for many years the artistic director of MIX Brazil, the largest LGBT film festival in Latin America, she programmed and curated for PopPorn Festival, the Asian Film Festival in São Paulo, Rio Int’l Film Festival, the São Paulo Int’l Short Film Festival, and the Latin American Film Festival in São Paulo. In 2009, Suzy Capó founded Festival Filmes, the first LGBT film distribution company in Brazil and most recently took in a key position in creating the Brazilian version of the Teddy: the Felix, which was presented for the first time at the Festival do Rio in 2014. She was a member of numerous film juries, including of course the TEDDY Jury in 2004. She was also a journalist, an actress, and a cultural producer in the truest sense of the word. She seemed to possess an endless capacity to create, to host, to facilitate: festivals, films, artists, filmmakers, transnational exchange. Continue reading In Memory of Suzy Capó →

Blog

Russia’s streets should become safer

January 22, 2015 beate Leave a comment

In many parts of the world the people think, that especially the women are the worse car drivers. In Russia, they go one step further. In order to reduce the accident statistics, not everybody will be allowed to get a driver’s license in the land of Putin.

Mental disorders are listed and can lead to a driving ban. These include also transsexuals and transvestites. It’s new that the sexual orientation decides on the fitness to drive and that minorities are an danger to the traffic.
Besides this obvious discrimination there are more potential troublemakers on the traffic in Russia, according to the interdiction catalogue there are also pedophiles, kleptomaniacs and gambling addicts a danger on the roads. A sexual minority is lumped together with people having mental disorders and criminals.

But Putin even abides by an official list of the WHO. Disorders of adult and behaviour are listed in the ICD-10 under subsection F60 to F69 . Besides a number of mental disorders, transsexualism and transvestism are also listed. Although, the list will be edited in May it gives rise to some questions. Even homosexuality was listed for many years.

Blog, News 2015, Teddy 2015

Last Week in Review

January 20, 2015 Jenny Leave a comment

Missed the last TEDDY-news? No time to check our daily updates on our blog and social media? Don’t worry! Here’s everything you shouldn’t have missed.

The Berlinale is getting closer and closer. The films for Panorama and the competition are selected and we can expect many stars and starlets on the red carpet. And many great films and filmmakers as well, obviously. Here at the TEDDY office, we are also working hard to make the next Berlinale a great one. Right now we’re working on the TEDDY program magazine.

This year, we’ll have lots of great numbers with the dancers and the orchestra of the Komische Oper Berlin featured in the TEDDY Gala. The opening number is a piece from Jacques Offenbachs crazy opéra bouffe La Belle Hélène. We are looking forward to two great soloists.

Agnes Zwierko is a world-renowned mezzo-soprano, who has sung in Milan, London and Buenos Aires. She performs the Tangolita in piece from the iconic operetta Ball at the Savoy.

The second soloist is Katharine Mehrling, who sang the lead in countless musicals. Berliners should especially know her name from the production of Cabaret at the Bar jeder Vernunft, where she performed the part of Sally Bowles more than 250 times. At the Gala she will perform the piece “Kangaroo-Fox” from Ball at the Savoy.

There are news from SchwuZ club as well: POP:SCH will perform live at the Closing Party! Many of the great SchwuZ DJs are there as well: Gloria Viagra & Pa$cha, Black Cracker & Friends and Disco Gessner & hintergrundrauschen will play many genres of music. We can hardly wait.

For everyone who wants to read more, Audrey has written a piece about the perfect work of art that is Udo Kier and Sebastian about his love for Tocotronic and Rainer Werner Fassbinder. More information about the artists performing at the TEDDY AWARD Gala can be found here.

Our website and blog will be updated with news about the program, the lazy ones can read the next Last Week in Review with all the important news.

See you next week!