This is a new record for TorinoFilmLab: the upcoming edition of the Berlin International Film Festival (20 February – 01 March), celebrating this year its 70th anniversary, will showcase no less than 5 TFL Films.
We are extremely proud of the selection in Competition of BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ, the new feature film by Afghan-German acclaimed director Burhan Qurbani.
Three more titles will premiere in Panorama – the “sexy, edgy, daring” section of Berlinale: the sophomore film by Danilo Caputo (Italy), SOW THE WIND, as well as the debut features WILDLAND by Jeanette Nordahl (Denmark) and PARI by Siamak Etemadi (Greece).
Last but not least, the Generation14plus section will welcome the European premiere of Massoud Bakhshi’s YALDA, A NIGHT FOR FORGIVENESS (Iran).
All of these productions were developed in TFL programmes and later participated in the TFL work-in-progress event 'TFL Coming Soon'.
BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ in the race for the Golden Bear
10 years after his first Berlinale experience – with his graduation film SHAHADA, already screened in Competition – Burhan Qurbani returns to the German festival with his new production BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ.
Developed in AdaptLab 2015 together with co-writer Martin Behnke, BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ is a modern adaptation from Alfred Döblin’s 1929 novel. The book had previously inspired Rainer Werner Fassbinder for his eponymous TV mini-series in the 1980s.
The main character in Qurbani’s adaptation is a 30-year-old refugee named Francis, who finds himself in the German capital after illegally crossing the Mediterranean on a boat – ending up as the voyage’s sole survivor. Francis starts realising that making an honest living as a stateless refugee with no papers is virtually impossible and soon gets sucked into the Berlin underworld. The film is produced by Sommerhaus Filmproduktion (Germany) in co-production with Lemming Film (Netherlands).
The ‘Panorama’ welcomes the premieres of SOW THE WIND, WILDLAND and PARI
The Italo-French-Greek production SOW THE WIND by Danilo Caputo, developed in FeatureLab 2015, is one of the 3 TFL Films selected in Panorama. Nica is a 21-year-old student, who drops out of her university course in Agronomics to returns home to Apulia, in southern Italy. She finds her father deep in debt, a polluted, devastated region, and olive trees destroyed by a parasite. Everyone seems to have given up in the face of the vast ecological disaster, while her father is obsessed with uprooting the olive grove to make money from the land. Nica will fight with all her might to save the ancient trees.
SOW THE WIND is the result of a close co-production between by Okta Film (Italy), JBA Production (France) and Graal Films (Greece), with the support of Rai Cinema (Italy). International sales are handled by Pyramide International (France).
As previously announced, the Panorama section will also welcome the world premiere of two debut features films developed with TFL.
WILDLAND is the debut film by Danish director Jeanette Nordahl, written by Ingeborg Topsøe. Developed in FeatureLab 2017 and produced by Snowglobe (Denmark), it follows the story of teenager Ida, who moves in with her aunt and cousins following her mother’s death. All is full of love, but it soon becomes clear that the clan engages in criminal activities.
Siamak Etemadi’s PARI is a production between Heretic (Greece), Le Bureau (France), Topkapi Films (Netherlands) and The Chouchkov Brothers (Bulgaria), in co-production with Bord Cadre films (Switzerland) and Biokon (Greece). Iranian mother Pari’s search for her missing son in Athens will force her on a journey to the dark corners of the city, as well as into the hidden depth of her own self. The film was developed in ScriptLab 2013.
European Premiere in Generation for YALDA, A NIGHT FOR FORGIVENESS
After its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival 2020 on Sunday 26th January, the second feature by Iranian filmmaker Massoud Bakhshi will reach the European screens within the section Generation14plus of Berlinale. YALDA, A NIGHT FOR FORGIVENESS is a tense drama set in one night, during which the main character Maryam will have to gain pardon for killing her older husband, during a TV show broadcasted live.
Developed in FeatureLab 2016, YALDA had triumphed at the TFL Meeting Event, winning the TFL Co-Production Award (€ 50.000) and the TFL Audience Award (€ 30.000).
The film is produced by JBA Production (France), together with Ali Mosaffa (Iran), Tita B Productions (France), Niko Film (Germany), Close Up Films (Switzerland), Amour Fou (Luxembourg) and Shortcut Films (Lebanon).
SOLE in the Special Programme "On transmission"
Last but not least, a special programme celebrating the festival's 70th anniversary will feature a screening of SOLE, the debut feature by Italian filmmaker Carlo Sironi.
Carlo Sironi has been chosen by Berlinale award-winner Paolo Taviani to participate in an open discussion about cinematic art. The special event is scheduled for Saturday 22nd February.