The Berlin Film Festival will occupy two new venues across the German capital during next year's edition.
The festival announced today that it will use the Stage Bluemax theater on Marlene-Dietrich-Platz as its new premiere venue. The festival said that once the venue is modified to suit the event, it will provide a venue with a seating capacity of about 500. The venue will host performances throughout the entire festival. The new venue will also serve as home to the newly created facility Viewpoints First novel competition.
Across the road, but at Marlene-Dietrich-Platz, the festival said it will set up a Berlinale HUB75, a temporary center for festival operations. HUB75 will host a series of free morning talks and events during the festival and provide a networking space for industry guests and filmmakers, the festival said.
“Since the closure and redevelopment of its main cinemas in 2022, Berlin has lost some of its former presence and buzz around our hub on Potsdamer Platz,” Berlin President Tricia Tuttle said this morning in a statement. “These new venues are part of our long-term plans to recreate the walkable heart of the festival, injecting additional energy and visibility back into this central hub.”
The Berlinale estimates that it has lost around 150,000 screening seats in Potsdamer Platz due to the closure of several of the main screens in the area.
Next year's Berlin Film Festival will be held from February 13 to 23. Veteran director Todd Haynes will chair the competition jury. The festival will mark Tuttle's first edition at the helm. Tuttle replaces previous dual festival directors Carlo Chatrian and Mariette Riesenbeek. Tuttle was the last Chairman of the BFI's London Film Festival.
