Press release from 05.04.2024

Filmfest Bremen 2024: A panorama of international film

Filmfest Bremen is one of the fastest growing film festivals in Germany. It opens its doors for the ninth time this year and promises a program that shines with creative diversity and international participation. From 10.04.2024 to 14.04.2024, film enthusiasts will have the opportunity to discover an extraordinary range of themes and genres in the 94 films competing for prizes in the four festival sections. Many films will be screened in the presence of the film teams, who will travel from all over Germany, but also from France, Ireland, the Netherlands and the UK, as well as from China, the USA, Chile, South Africa and Canada, to engage with the audience. A total of 33 films are celebrating their German premiere at this year’s festival, 8 of them even their world premiere.

Opening of the international competitions

On Thursday, April 11, 2024, the US film “Beth + Jeremy and Steve” will open the international competitions at 7 pm in the Schauburg. Director and author Daniel Hill will be traveling to Bremen together with producer Evan M. Gandy to celebrate the international premiere of his film. In this coming-of-age story, a teenager enters into a liaison with a married woman and subsequently comes under enormous pressure when her husband enters the playing field. Despite all the tragedy hidden in this love triangle, there is always a youthful lightness, situational comedy and a large pinch of cinematic nostalgia.

“We are very proud of the top-class feature and documentary films in our international competition of German premieres, which was only established last year,” says festival director Matthias Greving. “The cinematic standard, diversity and internationality of Filmfest Bremen have been further enhanced by the new competition.” This year, a total of ten films from all over the world are competing for the two audience prizes of EUR 7,500 and EUR 2,500.

In the drama “Till love do us part” from China, the audience experiences the emancipation of 30-year-old Shu, who, during a stay abroad in Prague, realizes how much her life is controlled by her family and her fiancé. Slowly, she tries to free herself from the old patterns. Chinese director Ran Li will accompany her film in Bremen.

The German competition entry “Days with Naadirah” by Josephine Frydetzki tells of the encounter between two worlds. On the one side is Daniel, whose dream is to be a writer but who works as a chauffeur, and on the other is Naadirah, who accompanies her family from Qatar on a business and wellness trip to Germany. Daniel becomes her driver and the two begin to grow closer. The film team will be present at the screenings.

The documentary “The Corridors of Power” from Israel critically examines the past 30 years of political trouble spots in 135 minutes, reflecting above all on the special role and responsibility of the superpower USA. Oscar-nominated filmmaker Dror Moreh talks to key decision-makers, including Hillary Clinton, Colin Powell and Madeleine Albright, and examines the patterns of behavior and decisions that led to stagnation and inaction in the face of the genocides in former Yugoslavia, Rwanda and other conflict zones. Moreh combines the interviews with numerous archive images that have never been shown before. A frighteningly topical work and a call for international understanding.

Bremen Film Prize for John Malkovich and retrospective

On Wednesday, the 10th of April, John Malkovich will receive the Bremen Film Prize from Sparkasse Bremen at a festive gala in the Theater am Goetheplatz. The American actor has appeared in over 130 film productions to date. In this respect, a small cinematic retrospective can only be a subjective attempt to offer an insight into the multifaceted work of this exceptional artist. The four films selected for the festival program are both milestones in his career and examples of the genre diversity of his roles.

“The Killing Fields” formed the cornerstone of his career in cinema and is a plea for responsibility and taking a closer look in times of crisis, here using the example of Cambodia. “Dangerous Liaisons” is a classic and at the same time a sophisticated game of intrigue, which impresses with its sharp-tongued dialog and Malkovich’s eloquence and articulation. In the action comedy “R.E.D.”, we can enjoy Malkovich’s joy of acting alongside Bruce Willis and Morgan Freeman, and finally the absurdly funny cult film “Being John Malkovich” is presented once again, in which the disillusioned Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) discovers a secret portal that leads him directly into the head and mind of John Malkovich.

International Humor/Satire Competition

In the international humor and satire competition, prizes are awarded for the best short, medium-length and feature-length films. The short film programs in particular cover the entire spectrum of humor in all its facets: From classic comedy and bittersweet tragicomedy to political satire and dark comedy, everything is included and proves why comedy is still probably the most difficult and diverse film genre. The feature-length films include the South African relationship and self-discovery comedy “I give up”, the equally combative and satirically pointed feminist “Geschlechterkampf” from Germany, the symbolic romantic comedy “Whenever I’m alone with you” from France, which is reminiscent of the Nouvelle Vague, and the dark Canadian suspense comedy “A Shit Day”. Entertainment, reflection on life and human nature, critical stocktaking and romance all find their place in this competition category.

International Innovation Competition

Prizes for the best narrative, visual and technical innovation are awarded in the international Innovation competition. Those interested in expanding their viewing habits and who love unusual stories or surprising visual worlds will find what they are looking for in this category. The program includes such diverse works as the mysterious and suspenseful psychological drama “Hole in the Head” from Ireland, the experimental documentary “The Mother of All Lies” from Morocco, which has already been awarded the “Un Certain Regard” director’s prize in Cannes and deals with the filmmaker’s past in a miniature of the Casablanca district inhabited by dolls, or the Belgian science fiction production “Luka”, a swan song to the last bastion of humanity composed in haunting black and white images with Geraldine Chaplin in a leading supporting role. In addition, the transmedia documentary series “The Soil of the Namib” will be shown live in the cinema for the first time at Filmfest Bremen in a projection that switches from 2D to 3D. In short, the Innovation section includes everything that is not (yet) mainstream – and therefore interesting.

Regional competition Bremen & surroundings

The regional competition with current short and feature-length film productions from Bremen and Lower Saxony has been an integral part of Filmfest Bremen since the first festival edition and a showcase for the diversity and creativity of the regional film scene. In addition to three strong short film programs that cover a wide range of topics, emotions and genres, the program includes eight feature-length films, including many documentary productions that were made by Bremen filmmakers but take the audience to very different corners of the world. One of these films is “Filmmakers on Hold”, which is set in New York and deals with the exceptional situation of filmmakers there during the coronavirus lockdown. The real-life drama of “Greta’s Birth” takes place closer to home. In a long-term study, the filmmaker follows the court case surrounding the death of a baby who died during a home birth. The feature film “Beyond the Blue Border” tells the story of two young people’s escape from the GDR across the Baltic Sea and the film “Bremen”, made in Chile, is a charming adaptation of the world-famous fairy tale “The Bremen Town Musicians” – musically and anarchically realized by a Chilean band.

Award ceremony for the international and regional competitions

On Sunday, April 14, the winners of the competitions will be announced at an entertaining and festive matinée at the Theater Bremen at 11 am. This year’s expert juries for the four competition categories include actor Tom Wlaschiha (Stranger Things Season 4), film producer Viktoria Salcher, director Christian Frosch, cultural journalist Jenni Zylka, filmmaker Sarah Aspinall, Artistic Director of the Hof Film Festival Thorsten Schaumann, Pandora Filmverleih Managing Director Björn Hoffmann, filmmaker and editor Nadine Niemann, filmmaker Patrick Büchting and filmmaker Niclas Mehne. The audience decisions in the “German Premieres” competition will also be announced and all winning films will be awarded the official Filmfest trophy, the “Golden Pug”.

The miracle of the Weser – the Werder short film gala

The supporting program of the 9th Filmfest Bremen also offers top-class highlights, above all the big Werder Bremen Gala in the Theater am Goetheplatz on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the soccer club. In the run-up to the festival, Werder Bremen and Filmfest Bremen have jointly announced a short film competition. On Saturday, April 13 at 7 p.m., the twelve best films from all submissions will be presented on this green and white evening. They cover a wide range of fan love and soccer madness and range from documentaries about ultra culture to memories of the first visit to the Weser Stadium. The jury in attendance is made up of people from the worlds of film and soccer who are all united by the Werder heart: stadium announcer Arnd Zeigler, fan representative Julia Düvelsdorf, actress Sara Fazilat, WerderTV producer Markus Biereichel, film producer Tom Spiess and actor Matthias Brandt. A total of EUR 5,500 in prize money will be awarded on the evening. In addition to the short film program, the rock band “Afterburner” will provide a good atmosphere with Werder songs and Arnd Zeigler will guide the audience through the club’s history in an exclusive Werder excursion. The evening will be hosted by Felix Krömer from Buten un Binnen.

WFB Short Film Award

The Bremen Economic Development Corporation’s short film competition will also be taking place for the second time as part of Filmfest Bremen. Bremen’s theme year 2024 is “FAHRRADja! – Bremen moves you!”. 22 one-minute films that focus on the bicycle within the Hanseatic city will be screened at the awards ceremony on April 14 at 5 pm at Theater Bremen. The audience can look forward to entertaining, creative, musical and typically Hanseatic films. For example, one contribution tells the story of bicycle love at the breakfast table, in another, sounds are created with the help of the bicycle and numerous routes in and around Bremen are explored from new perspectives. EUR 3,000 in prize money will be awarded by a WFB jury. All filmmakers will be present.

Festival passes and individual tickets
The festival pass costs 40 EUR / reduced 35 EUR, one-way tickets 9 EUR / reduced 8 EUR

Further information can be found at
www.filmfestbremen.com
facebook.com/filmfestbremen
instagram.com/filmfestbremen
linkedin.com/company/filmfest-bremen
and directly to the program at www.filmfestbremen.com/programm
Download the program at
https://www.filmfestbremen.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/FFB-23-
147_RZ_Programm24_WEB.pdf