20 countries and nearly 50 films will be shown this year at the landmark 25th anniversary of the Oldenburg International Film Festival, which began last night in the quaint and picturesque city of Oldenburg, in Northwest Germany. It runs from September 12-16 at various venues throughout the city. The festival first began as an alternative film festival with a focus on independent and out of the ordinary cinema from the United States, but it has clearly spread its wings over the past twenty-five years while never losing its edge. It's the only film festival that screens films at a maximum security prison, with inmates in attendance. The international film presence is quite impressive this year. 

 

 

Festival director Torsten Neumann, who also co-created the festival with Thorsten Ritter in 1994, was in high spirits on the red carpet as were the filmmakers and the anxious German festival-goers. A warm and welcoming ambience was felt throughout the evening. Luckily, I had a pretty good spot to take some decent photos.