Without actors and actresses: Berlin Film Festival changed nominations to "gender-neutral"

The organizers of the Berlin International Film Festival announced changes in the rules of the show in 2021. In particular, new names for acting prizes have been introduced, which the international jury awards to the films presented in the main competition. 

Starting next year, the awards given to the performers will become "gender neutral".

So, instead of the traditional prizes for the best female and male roles, the panel of judges will award Silver Bears for the main role, as well as for the supporting role, regardless of the gender of the performers. 

“We believe that the move away from gender-based acting awards signals a more gender-sensitive film industry,” said Berlinale executives Carlo Shatriana and Mariette Rissenbeck.

Also at the 71st Berlin International Film Festival will present a new award - "Silver Bear - Jury Prize". She appeared instead of the Alfred Bauer Prize for "Opening new paths in the art of cinema." The organizers have suspended the presentation of the award in 2020 "in connection with new information about the position of the first director of the Berlinale, Alfred Bauer, during the years of National Socialism", and now they have finally abandoned this prize.

The reason for this was a study published in January by the German newspaper Die Zeit. In it, Bauer is characterized as a "staunch member of the SA" (the paramilitary forces of the NSDAP, known as the "Storm Troops". - RT ). After 1942, Bauer became a high-ranking official of the Film Directorate of the Third Reich, which was part of the Ministry of Public Education and Propaganda headed by Joseph Goebbels. He oversaw film production in the country, hired actors and directors, and also decided who to release from military service and who to send to the front. After the war, Bauer systematically erased the traces of his Nazi past.

In a statement, the organizers of the Berlin Film Festival noted that an assessment of an independent expert study on Alfred Bauer will be available and published at the end of the summer.

The rest of the awards at the Berlin Film Festival remained unchanged. 

Thus, from 2021, the international jury of the Berlinale will award awards in eight nominations: for the best film (awarded to producers), directorial work, lead role, supporting role, script, outstanding achievements, and the panel of judges will also choose the Grand Prix winners. jury and jury prize.

It is already known that the 71st Berlin International Film Festival will be held offline from 11 to 21 February 2021. At the same time, the organizers undertake to comply with all sanitary norms and rules that will be in force at that time in order to ensure maximum safety for guests.

Commenting on the decisions on the physical format of the show, Carlo Shatrian and Mariette Rissenbeck emphasized that the festivals feature live communication, the importance of which became especially evident during the pandemic.

In the coming weeks, the festival management will inform about other changes in the structure of the festival and the show program. However, it is already known that the Generation program will only feature feature films with a duration of at least 60 minutes. There will be no short films in the competition sections Generation Kplus and Generation 14plus.

The Berlin International Film Festival has been running since 1951. Over the past decades, it has become one of the largest film shows in the world.

The festival hosts tens of thousands of guests every year. Several hundred films of all genres and formats, presented in different sections, are shown on its sites. The organizers sell more than 400 thousand tickets for them every year. Also, viewers can participate in the events of the festival through numerous discussions, expert panels and other events.