Berliner Festspiele on Demand
Programme 2020
What’s On
13 to 20 August 2020
Earth and Sustainability
Looking at the world with new eyes, we present four films that offer alternative perspectives on our environment in keeping with the theme of our summer project “Down to Earth” at the Gropius Bau.
To the films
From mid-August
Musikfest Berlin 2020
On Musikfest Berlin on Demand, we will shortly present conversations, interviews and essays about Musikfest Berlin and its programme.
To the programme
Archive
Hamlet
© JU Bochum
9 May to 30 July
3sat “Starke Stücke”
Until the end of July, you could experience three highlights of the 2019 and 2020 Theatertreffen in the comfort of your own home as part of 3sat’s series “Starke Stücke”: 3sat’s recordings of “Hamlet” (directed by Johan Simons, 2020 Theatertreffen), “Persona” (directed by Anna Bergmann, 2019 Theatertreffen) and “Tartuffe oder das Schwein der Weisen” (directed by Claudia Bauer, 2019 Theatertreffen) not only present strong performances, they also illustrate how the devices of picture direction can facilitate the step from the stage to the television screen.
To the films
26 June to 25 July 2020
Katja Fedulova: Kirill Serebrennikov – The Art and the Power in Russia (2018, ZDF/ARTE)
Due to recent events, we showed the documentary “Kirill Serebrennikov – The Art and the Power in Russia” by Katja Fedulova at Berliner Festspiele on Demand. This film portrait of the Russian theatre, film and opera director traces his meteoric rise to fame and uses archive material to show how he has again and again reacted to current social and political developments in Russia, until the tables finally turned and he himself attracted the attention of politicians and the judiciary. The 2018 film offers a glimpse of what has sadly become truth at the end of June 2020.
To the film
12 – 21 June 2020
10 Days of Iranian Cinema
This new series, featuring films as well as background-talks, is an exploration of Iran as a cinematic stronghold. It gives us an insight into Iranian culture that would be impossible to gain through our western political and journalistic discourse alone.
To the programme
El Público. Film still
@ Mariano Pensotti
2 to 11 June 2020
Due to license rights this film was only available for users from Germany.
Mariano Pensotti: El Público (2020)
Only last year, Mariano Pensotti constructed a village inside the Haus der Berliner Festspiele for his work “Diamante”, a unique form of Gesamtkunstwerk. In his film “El Público”, which you could watch at home from 2 June, we follow several members of the audience from the theatre into the urban space. Through their stories and thoughts, we gain fragment-like impressions of their everyday lives and find out what they experienced during this divided evening of theatre. Who are the people who go to the theatre?
To the film
Death Mask 5. Film still
© Ed Atkins
26 May to 1 June 2020
Ed Atkins: Death Mask 5 (2019)
“Death Mask 5” (2019) is a specially compiled mix of Ed Atkins’ works from the past decade. The British artist, whose exhibition “Old Food” was shown at Gropius Bau from September 2017 to January 2018, plumbs the corporeal depths of digital moving imagery in his video works. His unique visual language, both melancholic and absurd, confronts the viewer with intimate, arcane visions that seem caught in a purgatory of afterwards.
To the film
9 to 31 May 2020
40 Years of OEIN (Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos)
OEIN Orquesta Experimental de Instrumentos Nativos celebrated its 40th anniversary on 9 May 2020. The orchestra, together with the team of the Berlin ensemble PHØNIX16, played an anniversary concert from lockdown at the Musikakademie Rheinsberg, which was streamed together with a short film about the ensemble on the day of the anniversary.
Further information about the concert and the short film
18 – 25 May 2020
Magne Furuholmen: This is Now America (2020)
“This is now America / Is there no way to turn?” In February this year, a music video was released to accompany the song “This is Now America” by A-ha co-founder Magne Furuholmen, with footage by Vegard Vinge and Ida Müller. The song is about a woman who finds her records from girlhood in the basement, which draw the picture of a free America – a stark contrast to her experience of the American present.
To the film
© Alexandra Klobouk
1 to 9 May 2020
Theatertreffen virtuell
It was a premiere of a very special kind: For the first time, the Theatertreffen was hosted online. We presented six productions from our selection of 10 as on-demand recordings for a period of 24 hours each. Live talks with artists involved in the production and the audience gave an opportunity to exchange thoughts and ideas. These screenings were complemented by the TT Context-programme “UnBoxing Stages – Digital Practice in the Theatre”, where issues including the risks and opportunities of theatre on the net were explored in panel discussions and tutorials.
To the programme
Many Undulating Things. Film still
9 April 2020, 16:00 – 7 May 2020, 15:59
Sundays for Hong Kong II
Our film series “Sundays for Hong Kong” continued online! The series is a sign of solidarity in view of the violent conflicts prevalent in Hong Kong since the summer of 2019. By presenting lesser known works by remarkable film makers from the famous film city of Hong Kong, it shines a light on the multi-layered backgrounds of the culture, history and reality of the former British Crown colony.
To the programme
Rain – Documentary. Film still
© Savagefilm
1 April 2020, 16:00 – 29 April 2020, 15:59
Rosas in the Camera’s Focus
Extraordinary film productions as a substitute for cancelled performances: We presented a recording of “Rain” (live), a 2016 production by Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker and her company Rosas. The documentary film “Rain” by Olivia Rochette and Gerard-Jan Claes from 2012, which chronicles rehearsals of the Paris Opera Ballet for the choreography of the same name, gave an insight into De Keersmaeker’s working methods. And we also brought the 1994 film adaptation of “Achterland” to you.
To the programme