Berlinale reboots German films

Festival director Dieter Kosslick is mooting a reorganisation of the way German films are presented at the Berlinale from 2011.

Speaking in one of the official 60th anniversary publications, Kosslick suggested that the departure of Alfred Holighaus from the Perspektive Deutsches Kino sidebar would provide “a unique opportunity to combine all German activities, in order to become stronger and clearer.”

At this point, it is unclear whether this might mean that Perspektive Deutsches Kino and the European Film Market’s (EFM) German Cinema programme could be merged.

According press spokesperson Frauke Greiner, there are “no concrete plans as yet” on how such a reorganisation might proceed.

Meanwhile, Germany’s political establishment is calling for the Berlinale to go national for a day in future years.

Speaking on the eve of the 60th festival, Wolfgang Börnsen, spokesman for arts and media policy at the conservative CDU and CSU parties, argued that there was “need for reform” at the Berlinale.

“It is commendable that the Berlinale is going into all of Berlin’s boroughs with its film screenings,” he noted. “But, as a national event with $8.7m (€6.3m) funding from the Federal Government, it ought to also include decentralised elements and be of benefit to all of the federal states”