10 December 2019

Akademie President Jeanine Meerapfel supports Cuban film as by chairing jury at this year’s Havana film festival

Akademie president and filmmaker Jeanine Meerapfel is the jury president at the 41st International Festival of New Latin American Cinema in Havana, which features over 300 films before ending on December 15. The Havana Festival is comparable to the Berlinale not only in terms of its size, but in its format as a festival for the public and its negotiation of major sociopolitical issues, also by means of direct discussions between filmmakers and viewers.

On 16 February 2020, the screening of two Cuban film classics at the Akademie der Künste will take a look at the history of the ICAIC and the revolutionary cinematic language of Cuban filmmaking. The films Lucía (1968) from Humberto Solás and Memorias del subdesarrollo (1968) from Tomás Gutiérrez Alea will be shown, followed by a conversation with Iván Giroud, director of the Havana festival.

On 12 February 2020, on the occasion of the Berlin International Film Festival's 70th anniversary, Jeanine Meerapfel will discuss new ideas and future developments with the artistic directors of the most important international film festivals. Her guests will be Carlo Chatrian (Berlin), Thierry Frémaux (Cannes, requested), Iván Giroud (Havana), and Karel Och (Karlovy Vary). Moderation by Andreas Kilb.