- Title: Berlin Film Festival jury questions decision to uninvite far right
- Date: 15th February 2024
- Summary: BERLIN, GERMANY (FEBRUARY 15, 2024) (REUTERS) ACTOR AND BERLINALE 2024 JURY PRESIDENT LUPITA NYONG'O ARRIVING FOR NEWS CONFERENCE, WALKING PAST FANS FILMMAKER AND JURY MEMBERS CHRISTIAN PETZOLD AND FILMMAKER, ACTOR AND JURY MEMBER BRADY CORBET ARRIVING FOR NEWS CONFERENCE, WALKING PAST FANS BERLINALE 2024 JURY MEMBERS ENTERING NEWS CONFERENCE ROOM AND WALKING TO PODIUM JOU
- Embargoed: 29th February 2024 12:32
- Keywords: 2024 berlinale 74th berlin film festival Berlin film festival Berlinale Luopita Nyong'o Berlin Lupita Nyong'o
- Location: BERLIN, GERMANY
- City: BERLIN, GERMANY
- Country: Germany
- Topics: Arts/Culture/Entertainment,Europe,Film
- Reuters ID: LVA001051614022024RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Two star members of the Berlin Film Festival's jury on Thursday (February 15) criticised a decision to withdraw invitations to hard-right politicians, with one suggesting the event could have broadened the lawmakers' horizons.
Five members of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party were invited to the opening ceremony on Thursday evening alongside other elected politicians.
But organisers withdrew the invites last week amid a nationwide uproar after it emerged members of the party had discussed deportations of ethnic minorities at a secret meeting.
German director Christian Petzold, whose film "Afire" won the festival's Grand Jury Prize last year, and Italian actor Jasmine Trinca both found the decision not conducive to open discussion.
"We are not cowards," Petzold told journalists at a news conference presenting the jury. "If we can't stand five members of the AfD as part of the audience, we will lose our fight."
Trinca, whose TV series "Supersex" about porn star Rocco Siffredi will show at the fest, said cinema had the power to change people's perspectives.
The AfD is an anti-immigrant party that has portrayed itself as a steward of traditional German culture and a voice for those who feel ignored by the political class.
Current affairs reared their head again at the press conference when the sound of an air raid siren blared from the phone of jury member and Ukrainian author Oksana Zabuzhko to signal the end of Russia's most recent round of missile attacks.
Zabushko, Petzold and Trinca are part of a seven-member jury headed by Kenyan-Mexican actress Lupita Nyong'o, which will select the winners of the Golden and Silver Bears from 20 films in competition.
The 74th edition of the Berlin Film Festival will kick off on Thursday evening with the premiere of Tim Mielants' competition film "Small Things Like These", starring "Oppenheimer" 'star Cillian Murphy.
(Production: Maximilian Schwarz, Swantje Stein) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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