Once again this year, the Berlinale is drawing a great many filmmakers and cineastes to Berlin. In parallel and by now an insiders’ tip, the Directors Lounge, developed by Berlin artists, is hosting for the 7th year in a row its own very special kind of film festival.
On the Pfefferberg, on the premises of the Meinblau Gallery, a broad audience will be presented an international offering of experimental and short films as well as media art. Out of 700 submissions, a heady program has been put together, to be accompanied by live events, DJs and a lounge bar.
Encounters and discussions between artists and audience are an essential feature of the concept, and so once again this year many national and international artists will be on hand in person to present their projects.
The multiple-award-winning British composer Michel Nyman, known to the general public in particular for his music for The Piano as well as for numerous Peter Greenaway ventures, will personally present his own films.
Guy Maddin, Canadian filmmaker and juror at this year’s Berlinale, will be the subject of a special evening, with his own personal selection of his short films. This program will be complemented by readings by Kenton Turk and films bearing the mark of his influence.
Ten days long, starting daily at 6 pm, issue- and country-specific programs and the best films of the Open Call will be presented. Further highlights include Jean-Gabriel Périot, one of the most important exponents of French experimental film; the Collectif Jeune Cinéma; Alexei Dimitriev (St. Petersburg), shooting star of the international curator scene; Berlin gallerist Fridey Mickel; Kika Nicolela (Brazil); Klaus Eisenlohrs “Urban Research”; the Zebra Poetry Film Festival and films by artists of the Myriam Blundell Project (London), to name only a few.
The 7th Berlin International Directors Lounge
Meinblau, Pfefferberg
Christinenstr. 18 | Schönhauser Allee 176
U Senefelder Platz
10119 Berlin Mitte
February, 11th-20th 2011
daily from 6 pm – open end
Opening Party: Wed, 10th, 8 pm
no admission fee for all screenings
Directors Lounge contemporary art and media.
Directors Lounge organizes screenings of short, experimental works from many different genres.We invite artists, curators, critics to specific discussions and lectures. Special screenings feature highlights of experimental cinema, explore new trends in video-art and emphasize the role of independent filmmaking in culturspecific enviroments.
more information: www.directorslounge.net
