Berlinale 2021
Daniel Brühl's directorial debut is among the competition films
Daniel Brühl with his wife Felicitas Rombold at the Berlinale 2020.
© imago images / snapshot
The competition films for the Berlinale 2021 have been announced. Daniel Brühl's directorial debut "Next Door" is among the 15 films invited.
The competition films for the Berlinale 2021 have been determined. A total of 15 films, including two directorial debuts, are competing for the Golden Bear. Among other things, actor Daniel Brühl (42, "The fat years are over") throws his hat into the ring with his first work "Nebenan". The film, in which Brühl also plays the leading role alongside Peter Kurth (63), is one of four German productions at the Berlinale.
Dominik Graf will take on the film adaptation of Erich Kästner's satire "Fabian", Maria Speth with the documentary "Herr Bachmann und seine Klasse" and Maria Schrader with "Ich bin dein Mensch". With "What do we see when we look at the sky?" (Germany / Georgia) and "Natural Light" (Hungary / Latvia / France / Germany) are also two contributions with German participation. There are also productions from Belarus, Mexico, South Korea, France, Iran and Belarus to choose from.
"If the competition paints a picture of cinema as it is and how it will be, then we can say that the disruption sparked by the events of 2020 has prompted filmmakers to draw strength from this situation and To create deeply personal films, "says Carlo Chatrian, the film festival's artistic director, of the selection. This year's competition is less extensive, but very dense in terms of content and form.
This is how the Berlinale 2021 works
Like many other award ceremonies and film festivals, the Berlinale had to create a new concept due to the corona pandemic. The 71st Berlin International Film Festival will take place in two stages: From March 1st to 5th, trade visitors and representatives of the press can view the selection of films online. From June 9th to 20th, there will be a Summer Special for the audience with numerous cinema screenings in Berlin, at which the filmmakers will also be present.