The 75th Berlin Film Festival opened with a fiery speech from honorary Golden Bear recipient Tilda Swinton, in which she called out “state-perpetrated” crimes.
Swinton spent much of her 15-minute speech extolling the virtues of the Berlinale and what she referred to as “the great independent state of cinema.”
“No known address, no visa required,” said Swinton. “It’s so very good for us to wonder at the world, and be surprised by admiration for each other rather than shocked speechless by our cavalier mean spiritedness and cruelty.”
Swinton then criticised the actions of some international governments. Without singling out a particular country or politician, she said: “The inhumane is being perpetrated on our watch. I’m here to name it, and to lend my unwavering solidarity to all those who recognise it. State-perpetrated and internationally enabled mass murder is currently actively terrorizing more than one part of our world.”
The cinema “state” as Swinton described, it is “an unlimited realm, innately inclusive, immune to efforts of occupation, colonisation, ownership, or the development of riviera property”.
“We can do better as human beings,” she continued. “Nothing’s surer. And on our way, we can do worse than foraging in cinema, in art, for the breadcrumbs through the forest, to understand exactly how.”
Swinton also gave warning to major streaming platforms, noting that they should greater support the film infrastructure, from which they benefit.
Her honorary Golden Bear was presented to her by Conclave director and German native Edward Berger.
Tuttle starts
Swinton’s speech was well-received in the Berlinale Palast venue by an audience that also gave a warm welcome to new festival director Tricia Tuttle.
Introduced at the start of the ceremony by the evening’s host, Luxembourgish actress Desiree Nosbusch, Tuttle said, “Berlin has the most incredible cinema culture in the world. Beautifully programmed independent cinemas. This is precious to me.”
Asked by Nosbusch if there was anything that scares her about her new role, Tuttle gestured towards ongoing global conflicts, saying, “Lots of things in the world are scary right now.”
“Also, I’m trying to learn German, and the ‘ich’ sound is impossible,” added Tuttle, to laughter from the audience.
The festival director returned to the global conflicts later in the evening, asking the audience to “hold a minute for all the people who can’t be here with us.” She then mentioned “dear friends, dear colleagues” in Los Angeles, Ukraine, Sudan, Gaza and the West Bank, Israel, Georgia, Lebanon – “and those from places I haven’t named.”
“Cinema won’t solve the myriad of problems we all face, but it can offer moments of grace,” said Tuttle.
With an opening ceremony of over an hour before the world premiere of German director Tom Tykwer’s 162-minute feature The Light, Tuttle kept her words brief, making space for colleagues including programming directors Jacqueline Lyanga and Michael Stutz.
Video montages celebrating the careers of Swinton and international jury president Todd Haynes were also played. Saying that he had become teary-eyed backstage while watching her montage, Haynes suggested he would like to work with Swinton, saying “You are a hero, you are a visionary, and let’s roll in the hay sometime.”
Snow obstacle
A substantial afternoon-early evening snowstorm in Berlin provided no obstacle to either the ceremony or many fans who braved the elements to stand outside the Palast.
Festival staff were seen brushing snow from the cars provided by new headline festival sponsor Cupra; while Tykwer adeptly stopped himself from falling when slipping slightly on an icy patch while signing autographs.
Prior to entering, Tuttle had joined a vigil on the red carpet (see above) calling for the release of Israeli actor David Cunio, who has been held hostage by Hamas since his kidnapping from the Nir Oz kibbutz on October 7, 2023.
Tuttle was joined by German actors including Christian Berkel, Andrea Sawatzki, and Ulrich Matthes in holding up pictures of Cunio and his family. The actor is the subject of Tom Shoval’s documentary A Letter To David, which premieres tomorrow (February 14) as a Berlinale Special title.
Earlier a small vigil was held a short distance away Potsdamer Platz by the Bring David Home Now group, which has published an open letter calling for Cunio’s return with over one hundred signatories.
Jenny Havemann, an Israeli entrepreneur involved in organising the vigil, told Screen that while A Letter To David was an important moment, “not everyone will see the film [so] the hostages need to be mentioned on stage.”
Several filmmakers have boycotted this year’s festival over the handling of the issue of Gaza and due to concerns around free speech. Tonight protestors brought large banner reading ‘Staaträson Ist Genozid’ [suggesting that the German state’s unwavering support of Israel equates to genocide]. They were able to stand close to the Palast venue, but were prevented from being directly in front of it by a large group of police.
One person draped a Palestinian flag over the Berlinale hoardings by the red carpet and held a sign saying ‘Germany complicity in genocide’, which was allowed to remain by the police. With its long tradition of political expression, several guests for the ceremony wore outfits with political slogans.
The Competition opens tomorrow with Huo Meng’s Chinese title Living The Land
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