An expert demands that politicians should recognize cinema as a cultural asset and promote it accordingly. The film festivals he directs in Mannheim and Heidelberg show the high quality of titles from all over the world.
Mannheim (dpa / lsw) - According to an expert, cinema should be valued as a cultural asset like theaters, museums or orchestras. "In perspective, the cinemas must receive funding similar to that of other cultural forms," said the director of the International Film Festival Mannheim - Heidelberg, Sascha Keilholz, of the German Press Agency. While the municipal cinemas are supported in the long term by their local communities, art house cinemas are dependent on awards. Large cinema complexes such as the Mannheim Cineplex, which will close next year, are also at risk. "Politicians have to think about how these cinemas can be helped," said Keilholz.
From November 17th to 27th, the International Film Festival Mannheim - Heidelberg will show films from over 40 countries, making it one of the largest of its kind in Germany. Last year the festival attracted 18,000 viewers in person and online; Due to the corona, 60 of 80 titles were also available online, this time there are only 21. Keilholz expects the number of guests to remain at least the same.
A survival strategy for cinemas is close cooperation with other forms of artistic expression, explained Keilholz. At the festival, there is a cooperation with the Kunsthalle and the Nationaltheater in the "Facing new Challenges" section. The "Landscapes and Bodies" series by artist Daniel Kötter about the overexploitation of resources can be seen - both as 360-degree films with VR glasses and projected with live accompaniment by an Estonian techno band.
In urban development, cinema locations would have to be considered, Keilholz suggested. City marketing can emphasize the cinema landscape more strongly. Cross-border offers such as joint subscriptions for drama and film could open up new audiences and additional sources of income for the cinemas.
At the festival in the two neighboring cities, 65 strips will be shown, ranging from love stories such as the opening film "Diary of a Parisian Affair" to a look into the abysses of the South Korean working world and a critical portrait of Ukraine before the war. A striking number of stripes put strong women in the spotlight. They direct 7 out of 16 films in the International Competition. This "One the rise" competition is the core of the festival, in which filmmakers compete with their first or second work for the International Newcomer Award, which is endowed with 30,000 euros, and the Rainer Werner Fassbinder Award, which is endowed with 10,000 euros, for the best screenplay.
