Critics’ Week Berlin : February 5-12, 2015

Cannes has got one, Venice and Locarno have got one, and in 2015 Berlin will finally get a Critics' Week, too. On seven nights during the Berlin International Film Festival, film critics will screen a programme of remarkable international feature films. Films which spark subsequent debates concerning aspects of cinema and film criticism. 

“A feature of other film festivals that's missing in Berlin is a place where instead of piling masses of films onto each other, 'cinema' as a whole is considered and discovered in single screenings.“ – Dietrich Brüggemann about the Critics' Week Berlin

From February 5 to 12, 2015 the Critics’ Week Berlin presents seven evenings of international short and feature films at Hackesche Höfe Cinema. The following discussions are meant to address a broad audience that finds joy in questioning the cultural significance of cinema and discussing its potential.

Admission will be free for holders of a Berlinale accreditation and members of the German Film Critics Association (the availability of free seats will be limited).

News about our schedule and guests as well as essays can be found on our website (www.wochederkritik.de).

The Critics’ Week Berlin is an initiative of the German Film Critics Association (Verband der deutschen Filmkritik e.V.) in collaboration with the Heinrich Böll Foundation (Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V.)

Passion for cinema

“Lively, smart, experimental, joyous and true-to-life filmmaking can only be reinforced and advanced by thinking and seeing cinema with knowledge of its history and its possibilities.” – Dominik Graf about the Critics' Week Berlin

During the Berlin Film Festival the Critics' Week creates a hub for everyone who connects intellectual reflection with the sensual pleasure of watching films. The Critics' Week Berlin is supported by a network of international film critics and film professionals, featuring fresh voices as well as established names. At the discussions following the screenings participants with controversial opinions are invited to contribute, question the programming choices and open up their own topics. How are we watching films? What kind of films do we long for? What constitutes cinema?

Spectrum of films and selection commission

The selection is based on two concepts: stirring, daring, surprising cinema and a potential for cultural and critical discussion. The ten features selected for the first edition of the Critics' Week Berlin cover a wide spectrum of topics ranging from ACTIVISM, RESISTANCE and PROVOCATION to GENRE, STATUS, CONTROVERSY and the imperative of PLEASURE. All films are recent productions, with independent features and graduate works presented on equal billing with big international star vehicles. All films will be screened in their original language with English subtitles.

The selection committee consisted of five members: three authors of the “Pamphlet for Activist Film Criticism” that was published in Oberhausen in May 2014 - Dunja Bialas, Frédéric Jaeger and Dennis Vetter - as well as two critics equally engaged in aesthetic experiments and cinematic tradition, Lukas Foerster (Perlentaucher, taz, Freitag) and Michael Kienzl (critic.de).

We are proud to present Bernard Émond's new film as a world premiere. The trained anthropologist presented his first two feature films at the Semaine de la Critique at Cannes and has since been invited to Locarno and Toronto, among others. His latest film, recently finished and entitled Le journal d’un vieil homme (The Diary of an Old Man) was adapted from the Chekhov novella “A Dreary Story” as a calm appeal against cultural pessimism. It's a film that presents resistance as an act of quiet aplomb.

On the other end of the spectrum of chosen films is the new movie by Johnnie To, a dazzlingly fast-paced romantic comedy satirizing not only the capitalist financial system but also the gender clichés that come attached to its genre. Don’t Go Breaking My Heart 2 will be presented as a double feature together with its first episode. The film works as a stand-alone sequel to one of the most successful recent franchises from Hong Kong. It features a whole flock of superstars and a psychic octopus. It premiered in Toronto in September 2014.

Dates and facts

Location: Hackesche Höfe cinema, Rosenthaler Straße 40/41, 10178 Berlin

Date: February 5-12, 2015 (daily except for Monday)

Starting each night at 8.30 pm, with an additional event on Sunday at 6 pm

Panel discussions will be held in English.

On Monday, February 9, the ceremony of the German Film Critics Award will be held (invitation only).

Free admission for holders of a Berlinale accreditation and members of the German Film Critics Association (limited seats).

Program Announcement of the first Critics' Week Berlin

Dear Journalists, dear colleagues, dear supporters,

We are happy to announce the complete program of the first Critic’s Week Berlin (February 5-12, 2015). During seven nights we will screen a total of 11 films from seven different countries. There will be panel discussions with international guests and the audience after the screenings.

Topics ranging from ACTIVISM, GENRE, RESISTANCE to PLEASURE, PROVOCATION, STATUS and CONTROVERSY will nurture the debates.

The Critics’ Week will present a total of eight feature-length films and three short films, including three world premieres.

Program

Brûle la mer (Burn the Sea)

France 2014, 75 min. 

D: Nathalie Nambot, Maki Berchache

German premiere

Transformers: The Premake – A Desktop Documentary

USA 2014, 25 min.

Idea: Kevin B. Lee

German Premiere

On the Job

Philippines 2013, 121 min.

D: Erik Matti, C: Piolo Pascual, Gerald Anderson, Joel Torre, Joel Marquez

Le journal d’un vieil homme (The Diary of an Old Man)

Canada 2015, 82 Min.

D: Bernard Emond, C: Paul Savoie, Marie-Eve Pelletier

World premiere

Don’t Go Breaking My Heart 1 (Daan gyun naam yu)

Hongkong 2011, 115 min.

D: Johnnie To, C: Louis Koo, Yuanyuan Gao, Daniel Wu

German premiere

Don’t Go Breaking My Heart 2

Hongkong/China 2014, 113 min.

D: Johnnie To, C: Vic Chow, Louis Koo, Yuanyuan Gao, Daniel Wu

European premiere

Un jeune poète (A Young Poet)

France 2014, 71 min.

D: Damien Manivel, C: Rémi Taffanel, Enzo Vassallo, Léonore Fernandes

German premiere

Hochzeitsvorbereitungen auf dem Lande 

(Wedding Preparations in the Country)

Germany 2014, 20 min.

D: Youdid Kahveci, C: Youdid Kahveci

World premiere

Revivre (Hwajang)

South Korea 2014, 89 min.

D: Im Kwon-taek, C: Ahn Sung-ki, Kim Qyu-ri, Kim Ho-jung

German premiere

Die Lügen der Sieger (The Lies of the Victors)

Germany 2014, 110 min.

D: Christoph Hochhäusler, C: Florian David Fitz, Lilith Stangenberg

Man müsste Räuber sein oder zumindest Sprengmeister 

(You Would Have to Be a Robber or at Least a Demolitions Expert)

Germany 2014, 25 min.

D: Jan Bachmann

World premiere

The Critics’ Week Berlin is an initiative of the German Film Critics Association (Verband der deutschen Filmkritik e.V.) in collaboration with the Heinrich Böll Foundation (Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V.) 

We are looking forward to seven nights with exciting films and debates.

The complete program can be found on our website www.wochederkritik.de soon. 

The screenings and discussions will take place from February 5th to February 12th, 2015 at 8:30 p.m. (Sunday, February 8th already at 6 p.m.) at Kino Hackesche Höfe, Rosenthalerstr. 40/41, 10178 Berlin