In 2019, a total of 12 Chinese-language works appeared in the history of the Berlin Film Festival, which has been surpassed by the grandeur of this year's 15 films, and it is also quite rich in terms of genre and subject matter. This also makes domestic fans feel the connection with the world again, which is not only in the field of film art, but also in the spiritual connection in the wider fields of culture and society.
Author: Yichao
Editor: Blue Two
Format: Wang Wei
The main creator of "Light of the White Tower" is on the scene
As the first international film event after the film market is gradually on track, the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, which is currently underway, lit up the first bouquet of flowers on this year's international film stage as scheduled.
For the domestic film and television industry, this Berlin Film Festival also marks the return of Chinese film and television in the international vision - a total of 15 Chinese-language works, including 8 feature films, 6 short films and 1 drama, were shortlisted for each unit; Among them, "The Light of the White Tower" directed by Zhang Lu and "Art Academy" directed by Liu Jian occupy 2 places in the main competition unit with 19 works.
Everything started to start again.
The world has changed, and the film and film festivals are still there
For the Berlin Film Festival, which will be held offline again three years later, Mariette Riesenbeck, one of the overall leaders of this film festival and in charge of marketing and sponsors, said in an interview that the film industry and fans finally ushered in this meaningful reunion after three difficult years, and her greatest enthusiasm and urgent desire is to "celebrate for movies and cinemas".
Another general director and artistic director Carlo Chatrian believes that the sections of the Berlinale will once again bring together the audience those groundbreaking, expressive and interesting films, so it is not only a stage for guests and stars to shine, but also a rare grand festival for the public.
The return of the Berlinale is, on the one hand, a party worth celebrating, helping to boost people's love and confidence in film; On the other hand, images will also help carry the weight of reality in the past three years, reconnect with the world through the window of the screen, reflect on the past, recognize the present, resolve the isolation and loneliness accumulated over the years at the moment of shoulder to shoulder with strangers, and re-establish the way of getting along with the real world, which may be especially important for people at the point of 2023.
Hailed by many international media as "a symbol of the recovery of the film industry", this Berlin Film Festival is actually hard-won, as Riesenbeck admits that "we thought we would go back to normal, but in fact everything has changed". It is said that due to the war and the energy crisis, the festival's cooperation in venues, technical services, catering and hotels has repeatedly faced budget overruns, and moviegoers are also in the process of returning.
However, from the scale and current influence of this Berlin Film Festival, it can be seen that the organizers still strive to show a "recovery" posture: more than 400 rich participating films cover many countries and regions, genres and themes, and there is still a strong appeal among film practitioners and fans around the world; The main competition unit also adheres to the consistent idea of film selection, and still does not include large studio films.
"Academy of Arts"
For Chinese films, the full recovery of the degree of appearance at this festival is also a gratifying signal: in terms of quantity, a total of 12 Chinese-language works appeared in the history of the Berlin Film Festival in 2019, which has been surpassed by the grandeur of this year's 15; In terms of work type and theme, this year's Chinese-language films are also quite rich, such as "Art Academy" was shortlisted for the main competition unit as a relatively rare animated film, "Moses on the Plain", which has been broadcast on iQiyi's "Misty Theater", became the first Chinese drama in history to be shortlisted for the Berlin Film Festival drama unit, and the short film "My Friend" was shortlisted for the short film unit, and so on.
"Moses on the Plain"
Movies are the telling of reality and the escape of dreams
"We combine real-world films like Sean Penn's war documentary Superpower with films like Spielberg's The Fabelmans that take viewers away from harsh realities." Artistic director Chatrien's words about the selection of films from this year's Berlin Film Festival once again remind the uniqueness of film art - it reflects reality and reserves the right to dream.
Among the major international film festivals, the Berlinale has always been the one that pays the most attention to international current affairs and politics, and this time is no exception; On the other hand, the festival's focus on reality doesn't stop at the headlines.
For example, "Coming of age" has become an important topic at this year's Berlin Film Festival: the Spanish film "20,000 especies de abejas" tells the story of three generations of women; Chinese director Liu Jianjian's hand-drawn animation "Art Academy" goes back to the university in the early 90s and tells the story of a group of growing young people - in Schiatrien's view, the protagonists in this story try to find themselves and their identity in society at the same time in the context of reform and opening up and the influx of Western influence.
"Light of the White Tower"
For example, "family relationship" is also a topic covered in many films - following "Boundary" in 2007, director Zhang Lu, who returned to the main competition unit in Berlin after 16 years, tells the search and connection triggered by a father-son relationship in "Light of the White Tower", triggering emotional resonance across geographical and time limitations.
The focus on reality also shines into the corners that are not easy to pay attention to: in the "Panorama" section of the film festival, the works are not limited by the so-called tradition and secularity, and real expression and fresh inspiration are used to fill the narrative gap in the world of film and video. Director Han Shuai's work "Green Night", which focuses on women's themes, was selected for the unit and became an integral part of this year's "panorama".
At the same time, in the section such as "Encounter", the Berlinale also encourages new perspectives on describing reality, aiming to cultivate independent and innovative directors and encourage a bold reconstruction of film aesthetics and structure; "Adventure" challenges visual presentation regardless of genre, and provides debate for creators, film critics, and fans at the singularity of film time and space. The festival organizers described the quality of the shots in the selected works in the unit, from Chinese director Wu Lang's film "Snow Clouds": although unobtrusive at first, almost every shot is unexpected - they unfold subtly, accompanied by precise visual communication and the urge of wordless narrative; Therefore, each reunion in the story also means a farewell.
"Snow Cloud"
"We also want to give young directors and young actors a voice." Chatrian expects the Berlinale selection to be fresh enough, and the "Generation" section in particular reflects this will. A number of Chinese-language films have been selected in this section, including "Deep Sea" directed by Tian Xiaopeng and the short film "Xiaohui and His Cow" from newcomer director Lao Xinying. Chatrian said that the selection of films in this unit will be as eclectic as possible, especially at the moment of the resumption of the film festival, hoping to present the various possibilities of film art.
It's not just the Berlin Film Festival that has been restarted
In Berlin, still chilly in February, the temperature of the film warmed up the city: red carpet starlight was once again the talk of the day, people were busy "grabbing tickets" online, fans excitedly sending out "Reuters" on social media platforms, posing for photos with their favorite directors and actors – the festival-like Berlin Film Week was back to life.
In China, the film festival has also become a hot topic for fans: some people are looking forward to seeing the release of "The Light of the White Tower" in domestic theaters as soon as possible, and some people are talking about the fact that "newcomer" Renke has two participating works shortlisted and is the "lucky general" of this year's film festival; In the film reviews that have been released on the Douban platform, the feedback is mixed, and the debate is not lively - word of mouth aside, the familiar atmosphere of watching movies together and discussing movies is indeed gratifyingly reproduced.
The situation of documentaries, feature films, and cartoons competing for the Golden Bear Award has reappeared, and the richness of the film is highlighted. The festival organizers also expressed their great pleasure at the return of works from East Asian countries, because the diversity of film genres and cultural backgrounds will undoubtedly attract a wider audience, which is the original intention of the film festival as an art carnival about film.
For Chinese films, the restart of the world film stage has also made domestic fans feel the connection with the world again, which is not only in the field of film art, but also in the spiritual connection in the wider fields such as culture and society; After a long period of "loss of contact", this "signal recovery" is especially a long-lost comfort.
It's not just the festival itself that is getting off the ground. Lisenbeck once revealed in an interview that because the cost of the film festival was much higher than expected, the government provided an additional 2.36 million US dollars (about 2.2 million euros) in addition to the financial support usually provided by 35% of the total budget, and the total funding amount reached 45% of the total budget of the festival; This shows that the government recognizes the importance of film festivals for the film industry, the country's socio-cultural and economic development. In fact, the impact of the festival on the entire world film industry outside Berlin is self-evident – for example, Chinese film studios are returning to the global film market to participate in a new round of vibrant film industry spring.
The ice in early spring has begun to "thaw", and in the coming year, people's willingness to enter cinemas will become stronger, more film works will spring up, and international film events such as Cannes and Venice are also gaining momentum; Whether for fans or film practitioners, restarting life and enjoying movies is a blessing worth cherishing and looking forward to in 2023.
Resources:
[1] “Everything has changed”: Berlinale co-heads reveal challenges of planning 2023 edition
https://www.screendaily.com/features/everything-has-changed-berlinale-co-heads-reveal-challenges-of-planning-2023-edition/5178837.article
[2] Berlinale 2023: The Art of Shaping Reality
https://www.berlinale.de/en/news-topics/artistic-directors-blog/the-art-of-shaping-reality.html
[3] Competition 2023: Breaking the Chains
https://www.berlinale.de/en/news-topics/berlinale-topics/competition-2023.html
[4] Panorama 2023: Tracking the Unseen - Films as Tools of Resistance
https://www.berlinale.de/en/news-topics/berlinale-topics/panorama-2023.html
Image source: Berlinale official website www.berlinale.de
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