Berlin International Film Festival 1978

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gena Rowlands

The 1978 Berlin International Film Festival took place from February 22nd to March 5th. Festival director Wolf Donner implemented an old plan of his predecessor Alfred Bauer and was able to convince the Berlin Senate that an earlier date for the Berlinale was more correct. So the film fair can be strengthened, since February is a dry spell for the film industry and with the early date, the festival can set itself apart from the Cannes film festival . Donner made the change from summer festival weather to Berlin winter with humor. He distributed bobble hats to the guests.

The festival was opened this year by John Cassavetes and his film The First Performance . His wife, Gena Rowlands, played a Broadway star who was struggling with stage fright before the premiere. She was later awarded the Silver Bear for her acting performance. On the last day of the Berlinale, the festival said goodbye with the German premiere of Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind , which was shown out of competition. Wolf Donner took a big risk by including Germany in the competition in the fall . The film worked on the recent events of the 1977 autumn of terror .

Hans-Christoph Blumenberg in March 1978 in time in his gleanings: Berlin 1978: a weak competition, but not a bad festival. Anyone who was not too confused by the colorful jumbled-up variety in the Zoo Palast , still got their money's worth. On the one hand, Wolf Donner and his team quickly managed to let the Berlinale take place in a relaxed, friendly atmosphere, which, unlike the madhouse in Cannes , invites you to talk and reflect, on the other hand, the attractiveness of this festival is increasingly proving itself as a representative shop window of German cinema.

competition

The following films were shown in the 1978 Berlinale competition:

Movie title Director Country of production Actor (selection)
Apám néhány boldog éve Sándor Simó Hungary
Freaky Richard Benner Canada Craig Russell
The Lionheart brothers Olle Hellbom Sweden
Germany in autumn u. a. Rainer Werner Fassbinder , Alexander Kluge , Volker Schlöndorff Germany
Popsicle Boaz Davidson Israel Yftach Katzur , Zachi Noy
The first performance John Cassavetes United States Gena Rowlands , John Cassavetes , Ben Gazzara
The case Ruy Guerra Brazil
The distant road Sachiko Hidari Japan
Blazing heart Walter Bockmayer , Rolf Bührmann Germany Peter Kern , Barbara Valentin
Flores de papel Gabriel Retes Mexico
The trout José Luis García Sánchez Spain
Conversations with Max Emilio Martinez Lázaro Spain
On a rainy night Lina Wertmüller Italy , USA , Canada Giancarlo Giannini , Candice Bergen
Jörg Ratgeb - painter Bernhard Stephan Germany Małgorzata Braunek
A chapter of love Maurice Rabinowicz France , Belgium Geraldine Chaplin , Sami Frey
The teacher Octavio Cortazar Cuba
Moritz, dear Moritz Hark Bohm Germany Uwe Enkelmann , Michael Kebschull , Grete Mosheim
Pas koji je voleo vozove Goran Paskaljević Yugoslavia
Rheingold Niklaus Schilling Germany Elke Haltaufderheide
The chess players Satyajit Ray India Sanjeev Kumar , Saeed Jaffrey , Shabana Azmi
The death of the president Jerzy Kawalerowicz Poland Zdzisław Mrożewski , Marek Walczewski
The advantage Georgi Djulgerov Bulgaria
The forest ranger Roman Balayan Soviet Union

International jury

That year Patricia Highsmith was Jury President of the International Jury. She presided over the following jury: Theo Angelopoulos (Greece), Antonio Echza Sausinenea (Spain), Frieda Grafe (Germany), Sergio Leone (Italy), Jacques Rozier (France), Larissa Schepitko (USSR), Ana Carolina Teixeira Soares (Brazil) and Konrad Wolf (GDR).

Award winners

  • Golden Bear : This year the jury could not agree on a film and gave the country of Spain a Golden Bear for its overall appearance at the Berlinale. The films The Trout and Conversations with Max received a Golden Bear on behalf of them.
  • Silver bears :
    • The case (special prize of the jury)
    • Georgi Djulgerow (Best Director)
    • Gena Rowlands in The First Performance (Best Actress)
    • Craig Russell in Freaked Out (Best Actor)
    • Jerzy Kawalerowicz (special artistic achievement and for his complete works)
    • Octavio Cortázar (special artistic achievement and for his first work)

Further prices

  • FIPRESCI Prize (competition): Apám néhány boldog éve by Sándor Simó
  • FIPRESCI Prize (forum): Dayereh mina by Dariush Mehrjui
  • Interfilm Award - Otto Dibelius Prize (competition): The first performance of John Cassavetes
  • Interfilm Award - Otto Dibelius Prize (Forum): The Second Awakening of Christa Klages by Margarethe von Trotta
  • Berliner Morgenpost reader award: Freaked out by Richard Benner

Children's film festival

The children's film festival had its premiere this year. Ten films for young audiences were shown under the title Cinema for People from Six . 12,000 spectators in the first year of this section ensured that this series should quickly establish itself.

Sources and web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hans-Christoph Blumenberg : Germany in autumn . In: Die Zeit , No. 11/1978.