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New movies starring Amy Adams, Channing Tatum, Pamela Anderson, Callum Turner and Charli xcx and the directorial debut of British rapper-actor Ashley Walters will headline next month’s Berlin film festival, the first major European cinema showcase of the year.
The Berlinale, as the event is known, will spotlight new work on screen from 80 countries in its 76th edition, bringing A-list stars and fresh faces to the German capital during its 12-22 February run.
Berlinale director Tricia Tuttle, a US-born former head of the London film festival, unveiled a genre-spanning lineup of 22 pictures vying for the Golden and Silver Bear top prizes, to be awarded by a jury chaired by veteran German film-maker Wim Wenders.
Contenders include At the Sea by acclaimed Hungarian director Kornél Mundruczó, featuring six-time Oscar nominee Adams in what Tuttle said was an “absolutely enthralling” performance as a dancer who struggles with sobriety at her family’s home on Cape Cod after a stint in rehab.
Tatum will flex his dramatic chops in Josephine by Beth de Araújo based on a traumatic experience she had as a child witnessing a brutal crime in a San Francisco park. Tatum and British actor Gemma Chan play the young girl’s parents seeking justice for the victim.
Rosebush Pruning by Brazilian festival favourite Karim Aïnouz assembles a starry cast including Turner, Anderson, Riley Keough, Jamie Bell and Elle Fanning for what Tuttle called a “twisted thriller” set at a villa in Spain.
A New Dawn, the first solo feature by Japanese anime artist Yoshitoshi Shinomiya, tells the story of boy who lives in a fireworks factory that is about to be shut down as he tries to unravel the mystery of his father’s disappearance.
French screen legend Juliette Binoche joins Britain’s Tom Courtenay in dementia drama Queen at Sea by US director Lance Hammer in what Tuttle called a film “exploring some of the ethical questions that arise around agency and consent”.
Rose stars acclaimed German actor Sandra Hüller, following her acclaimed performances in Anatomy of a Fall and The Zone of Interest, in a period picture about an enigmatic soldier arriving in an isolated village at the end of the Thirty Years’ war.
Rupert Grint of the Harry Potter franchise appears in the dark fairytale Nightborn by Finnish director Hanna Bergholm.
Charli xcx is due on the red carpet in the Panorama sidebar section to present The Moment, billed as a mockumentary by her music video collaborator Aidan Zamiri about her no-holds-barred 2024 summer tour, co-starring Alexander Skarsgård.
Walters will present his directorial debut Animol, a coming-of-age tale set in a tough youth offender detention centre, in the festival’s Perspectives section for first films. The picture features his Adolescence co-star Stephen Graham.
“Somehow, our small, low-budget indie Animol has politely elbowed its way into the Berlin film festival,” Walters wrote on Instagram. “The start of a beautiful journey for this film – and a new chapter for me as a director. Can’t wait to share it with you.”
The festival previously announced it would open with No Good Men by Shahrbanoo Sadat, described as a romantic comedy set in a TV newsroom in Afghanistan on the eve of the Taliban’s return in 2021.
And Malaysian Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh will pick up an honorary Golden Bear for lifetime achievement in films such as Everything Everywhere All at Once and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
As film-makers face the ravages of streaming, industry consolidation and Hollywood dominance, Tuttle told reporters she saw the Berlinale in a “battle for this art form that we love so dearly”.
“It’s a battle to keep independent cinemas open, to keep distributors and exhibitors who champion independent film thriving and making sure they can still take risks,” she said.
She called cinema-going “the most powerful way to see an artist’s creation”.
“But it’s also a really terrific place, a really important place to sit with strangers and friends and try to build a potent and communal experience together,” she said. “And right now we need more communal experiences rather than fewer.”
The Berlinale, which was launched during the cold war as a forum for dialogue between east and west, ranks with Cannes and Venice among Europe’s top film festivals.
English (US) ·