Competition and Berlinale Special: Agnès Varda, Agnieszka Holland, Hans Petter Moland, Isabel Coixet And Wang Quan’an in The Competition Programme / Feature Film Debut of Chiwetel Ejiofor in The Berlinale Special

Another 11 films have now been invited to the Competition of the 69th edition of the Berlin International Film Festival. Six more have also been selected for the programme of the Berlinale Special.

Joining the seven Competition films and three Berlinale Special titles (see press releases from December 13, 2018 and December 6, 2018) are 17 productions and co-productions from Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Macedonia, Mongolia, Norway, People’s Republic of China, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and the USA.

Further films of the Competition and Berlinale Special programme will be revealed soon.

Competition

Di jiu tian chang (So Long, My Son)
People’s Republic of China
by Wang Xiaoshuai (In Love We Trust, Beijing Bicycle, Chinese Portrait)
with Wang Jingchun, Yong Mei, Qi Xi, Wang Yuan, Du Jiang, Ai Liya, Xu Cheng, Li Jingjing, Zhao Yanguozhang 
World premiere

Elisa y Marcela (Elisa & Marcela)
Spain
by Isabel Coixet (Elegy, The Bookshop, The Secret Life of Words)
with Natalia de Molina, Greta Fernández, Sara Casasnovas, Tamar Novas, Maria Pujalte
World premiere

Gospod postoi, imeto i’ e Petrunija (God Exists, Her Name is Petrunija)
Macedonia / Belgium / Slovenia / Croatia / France
by Teona Strugar Mitevska (When the Day Had No Name, The Women Who Brushed Off Her Tears, I Am From Titov Veles)
with Zorica Nusheva, Labina Mitevska, Simeon Moni Damevski, Suad Begovski, Violeta Shapkovska, Stefan Vujisic, Xhevdet Jahari, Andrijana Kolevska
World premiere

Marighella 
Brazil
by Wagner Moura 
with Seu Jorge, Adriana Esteves, Bruno Gagliasso, Jorge Paz, Luiz Carlos Vasconcelos, Humberto Carrão, Bella Camero, Ana Paula Bouzas
World premiere – First Feature
Out of competition

Mr. Jones 
Poland / United Kingdom / Ukraine
by Agnieszka Holland (Spoor, Europa Europa, Angry Harvest) 
with James Norton, Vanessa Kirby, Peter Sarsgaard
World premiere

Öndög 
Mongolia
by Wang Quan’an (White Deer Plain, Apart Together, Tuya‘ s Marriage)
with Dulamjav Enkhtaivan, Aorigeletu, Norovsambuu Batmunkh
World premiere

The Operative 
Germany / Israel / France / USA
by Yuval Adler (Bethlehem)
with Diane Kruger, Martin Freeman, Cas Anvar
World premiere – Out of competition

La paranza dei bambini (Piranhas)
Italy
by Claudio Giovannesi (Fiore, Alì Blue Eyes)
with Francesco Di Napoli, Ar Tem, Viviana Aprea, Pasquale Marotta
World premiere

Systemsprenger (System Crasher)
Germany
by Nora Fingscheidt (Without this World)
with Helena Zengel, Albrecht Schuch, Gabriela Maria Schmeide, Lisa Hagmeister 
Wold premiere – First Feature

Ut og stjæle hester (Out Stealing Horses)
Norway / Sweden / Denmark
by Hans Petter Moland (The Beautiful Country, A Somewhat Gentle Man, In Order of Disappearance)
with Stellan Skarsgård, Tobias Santelmann, Bjørn Floberg, Danica Curcic
World premiere

Varda par Agnès (Varda by Agnès) - Documentary
France
by Agnès Varda (Cléo from 5 to 7, The Gleaners and I, The Beaches of Agnès, Faces Places)
World premiere – Out of competition

Berlinale Special at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele

ANTHROPOCENE: The Human Epoch - Documentary
Canada 
by Jennifer Baichwal (Long Time Running, Watermark, Manufactured Landscapes), Nicholas de Pencier (Long Time Running, Black Code, Four Wings and a Prayer), Edward Burtynsky (Watermark)
European premiere

Es hätte schlimmer kommen können - Mario Adorf (It Could Have Been Worse - Mario Adorf) - Documentary
Germany
by Dominik Wessely (Reverse Angle: Rebellion of the Filmmakers, Nelly’s Adventure, The Housewife’s Flower)
with Mario Adorf, Senta Berger, Margarethe von Trotta
World premiere

El Norte (The North)
USA (1984)
by Gregory Nava (Bordertown, My Family, Selena)
with Zaide Silvia Gutiérrez, David Villalpando, Ernesto Gómez Cruz, Lupe Ontiveros
El Norte was restored in 2017 by the Academy Film Archive, supported in part by the Getty Foundation.
European premiere of the restored version 
In cooperation with NATIVe

Berlinale Special Gala at the Friedrichstadt-Palast

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind 
United Kingdom
by Chiwetel Ejiofor
with Chiwetel Ejiofor, Maxwell Simba, Lily Banda, Noma Dumezweni, Aïssa Maïga, Joseph Marcell, Lemogang Tsipa European premiere – First Feature

Lampenfieber (Kids in the Spotlight) - Documentary
Germany 
by Alice Agneskirchner (On Hunting – Who Owns Nature?, 20xBrandenburg, Dear Mum, I Hardly Knew You…)
World premiere

Berlinale Special Gala at the Zoo Palast

Celle que vous croyez (Who You Think I Am)
France
by Safy Nebbou (Angel of Mine, Dumas, In the Forests of Siberia)
with Juliette Binoche, François Civil, Nicole Garcia 
World premiere

In light of recent events, Festival Director Dieter Kosslick commented on the previously announced Competition film Grâce à Dieu by François Ozon: “Grâce à Dieu - about the sexual abuse of children that went on for years in the archdiocese of Lyon - shows how relevant cinema can be. The archbishop and other members of the archdiocese have been charged with keeping their knowledge of cases of abuse a secret. Court proceedings began on January 7, 2019, accompanied by extensive media coverage. The Berlinale will show the film at the beginning of the festival.”