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What happens when emotions mirror the elements? Christian Petzold’s new film “Afire” explores the associations between nature’s powerful force and humanity’s deepest emotional layers. It follows a writer who —along with his friend — is paired with two people during an increasingly destructive wildfire.

The Berlin Film Festival officially kicked off this evening with an eventful opening ceremony at the Berlinale Palast theater in the German capital. 

feisty press conference, the Berlin Film Festival is about to get even more political with a demonstration defending democracy that will be held right before the start of opening night festivities. Berlinale organizers have planned this demonstration to highlight their decision to disinvite members of the far right political party AfD. “By disinviting the AfD, the Berlinale has clearly positioned itself against the right wing extremism in Germany.

Ellise Shafer During a press conference on Thursday, Berlinale jury president Lupita Nyong’o responded to the festival inviting and then disinviting politicians from far-right group AfD to its opening ceremony. “I’m a foreigner here. I don’t know the ins and outs of the political situation here,” Nyong’o said in response to a question asking if she would have attended the ceremony had the politicians still been invited.

EXCLUSIVE: Big World Pictures has acquired U.S. and Canadian rights from Paris-based sales firm Charades to Giacomo Abbruzzese’s debut feature, Disco Boy.

Christian Petzold’s Afire and Wim Wenders’ Anselm are among movies on Germany’s longlist for the Best International Film Oscar.

Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) head Kate Taylor has put together what she describes as an “eclectic and lively” mix of titles for her first year at the helm. 

Christian Petzold’s Afire and Celine Song’s Past Lives are among the titles set to screen at this year’s scaled-down Edinburgh International Film Festival (Aug 18-23), which is being mounted as part of Edinburgh’s wider cultural Festival.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Warwick Thornton’s “The New Boy” has been set as the opening title of next month’s Sydney Film Festival, which will celebrate its 70th edition, June 7-18. The film, a tale of sprituality and survival in 1940s Australia, starring Cate Blanchett, Deborah Mailman, Wayne Blair and Aswan Reid, will also play in the festival’s competition section.

This year’s Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF) will open with two local films – Soi Cheang’s noir thriller Mad Fate and the world premiere of Ann Hui’s Elegies, a documentary about contemporary local poetry.

Sideshow and Janus Films have picked up the North American rights to “Afire,” which won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at Berlinale 2023. A theatrical release is planned for Summer 2023.From writer-director Christian Petzold, the film follows four young people who convene at a holiday house by the Baltic Sea.

Sideshow and Janus Films have acquired North American rights for German director Christian Petzold’s new film Afire, following its award-winning world premiere in competition at the Berlin Film Festival.

The competition winners of the 73rd Berlinale are about to start rolling in as the festival draws to a close Saturday evening.

Billed as the second installment of an elemental triptych, “Afire” comes after Christian Petzold’s 2020 film “Undine” where Paula Beer gave a Silver Bear-winning performance at Berlinale as the titular character, an urban historian and a mythical water spirit. As if the transition between them needed any smoothing out, the new film also relies on aquatic imagery to reinforce the claustrophobic premonition of smothering fires.

A cottage in the woods: isolated, idyllic and unavoidably reminiscent of some half-forgotten fairy tale. Unfortunately, Leon (Thomas Schubert) is not a country person. When his friend Felix’s car breaks down on the forest road on the way to the family holiday house where they both plan to work in peace and quiet, all Leon can hear are unnerving crackles in the undergrowth. Wild boar. Leon is definitely not a wild boar kind of guy.

Guy Lodge Film Critic If any writer has ever retreated to a remote, idyllic rural pad with the intention of getting some work done, and proceeded to have a productive and creatively fulfilling time, it has certainly never happened in the movies. Leon, the callow young novelist at the center of Christian Petzold’s canny, many-layered new film “Afire,” is the latest in a long line of onscreen scribes to learn that lesson. But over the course of a hot, rainless summer by the Baltic coastline, the elusiveness of his imagined masterwork turns out to be far from his greatest problem: Writer’s block spills over into bitter social paralysis, exposing every facet of life he doesn’t yet know how to live, let alone write about. All the while, the surrounding woodsy landscape wilts and scorches, the threat of natural disaster lending an urgent pull to this dry, elegant comedy of manners — so dry, in fact, it’s just a breath of wind away from tragedy.

Ed Meza @edmezavar German cinema looks set for a major boom this year with a strong lineup of diverse works that span historical dramas, coming-of-age tales, high-octane nostalgia, animation and sci-fi fun. The Berlin Film Festival is bowing a muscular selection of local titles, among them “Afire,” by Berlinale mainstay Christian Petzold (“Undine”), screening in competition. The films centers on a group of young people staying at a holiday house near the Baltic Sea during a hot, dry summer, exploring volatile emotions that start to sizzle when a wildfire spreads through the surrounding forest. Likewise vying for the Golden Bear is Margarethe von Trotta’s biopic “Ingeborg Bachmann: Journey Into the Desert,” starring Vicky Krieps (“Corsage”) as the radical Austrian author. The film examines her relationship with Swiss writer Max Frisch and her 1964 journey of self-discovery through the Egyptian desert.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Cologne-based sales company The Match Factory has expanded and restructured its acquisition and development team. Former head of sales, Thania Dimitrakopoulou, has been promoted to vice president of acquisitions and sales. Claudia Solano comes on board as senior manager of acquisitions, and Cécile Tollu-Polonowski, a long-time partner with the company, has been appointed as head of development. Dimitrakopoulou, who joined The Match Factory in 2007, will now be heading up all acquisitions activities and manage the sales team, reporting to Michael Weber, managing director.

Christian Petzold is no stranger to the Berlin International Film Festival. Three of his last four films debuted at that prestigious event.

Berlinale artistic director Carlo Chatrian and executive director Mariëtte Rissenbeck unveiled the International Competition and Encounters line-ups on Monday for the festival’s 73rd edition, running February 16 to 26.

The Berlin Film Festival unveiled the titles selected for its official competition as well as its sidebar Encounters competitive section this morning. Scroll down for the full lineup.

Acclaimed German filmmaker Christian Petzold (“Transit“) makes films like no one else. While grounded and realistic, they’re also elevated, melodramatic, and sometimes even steeped in ideas of fairy tales.

Christian Petzold has arguably been Germany’s most consistently impressive filmmaker over the past decade, but he comes up more than a bit wet with Undine, a kind of arty variation on Splash.

Leo Barraclough Senior International CorrespondentChristian Petzold’s “Undine,” for which Paula Beer won the Silver Bear for best actress at the Berlin Film Festival, has won the Arab Critics’ Award for European Films. Petzold received the award virtually at the Cairo Film Festival, which is running physically until Thursday.The award, which was launched by European Film Promotion and Arab Cinema Center last year, was voted for by 56 film critics from 14 Arab countries.

Andreas Wiseman International EditorGerman Films has released a list of ten films that were submitted by German producers for consideration to become the country’s International Feature Oscar contender.Among the front-runners for selection are likely to be Julia Von Heinz’s And Tomorrow The Entire World, Caroline Link’s When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, Burhan Qurbani’s Berlin Alexanderplatz and Christian Petzold’s Undine.The ten films:•    WHEN HITLER STOLE PINK RABBIT – Caroline Link (Sommerhaus

The 64th BFI London Film Festival in partnership with American Express on Tuesday unveiled its lineup of Screen Talks and events that will be available for free via YouTube and the fest's social channels, including sessions withLetitia Wright and Riz Ahmed. Among filmmakers, this year's virtual event will feature the likes of Michel Franco, Miranda July, Tsai Ming-liang, Christian Petzold, musician and performer David Byrne and artist Es Devlin discussing their careers.

Andreas Wiseman, Jake Kanter The London Film Festival’s Screen Talks and events program will include speakers Riz Ahmed, Letitia Wright, Michel Franco, Miranda July, Tsai Ming-liang, Christian Petzold, David Byrne and artist Es Devlin, who will each talk about their most recent work.

Cate Blanchett has some criticism for the world’s response to the coronavirus.

Cate Blanchett poses for photos as the Jury President for the 2020 Venice Film Festival photo call on Wednesday (September 2) in Venice, Italy.

With the only major US film festival to happen in 2020 being Sundance, it’s not hyperbolic to say that the New York Film Festival is poised to be one of the biggest events in American film this year. It’s kinda that way by default.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentThe Venice Film Festival has revealed the rosters of its main juries — a move that indicates organizers expect a robust contingent of top international talent and industry executives to make the trek to the Lido for the fest’s planned physical edition in September.The U.K.’s Joanna Hogg (“The Souvenir”), Germany’s Christian Petzold (“Undine”) and Romania’s Cristi Puiu (“Sieranevada”) are among the directors who will join the fest’s main jury, over which

The myth of Undine, the water nymph who has to kill her lover should he ever betray her, gets a 21st-century German makeover courtesy of Christian Petzold in his Berlin competition titleUndine. The major innovation is that the story doesn’t just concentrate on the betrayal of Undine that might cost her man so dearly — she gets a new and true love story that allows her to feel what it is like to be truly loved.

Variety has been given exclusive access to the trailer for Christian Petzold’s “Undine,” which world premieres in competition at the Berlin Film Festival. Petzold won the Silver Berlin Bear for best director for “Barbara” in 2012.

By Andreas Wiseman