Actors and filmmakers have defended the head of the Berlin Film Festival following a media report that her job was on the line over a director's anti-Israel speech at the event.
During Saturday's closing ceremony, as he accepted the GWFF Best Feature Film Debut Award for his film Chronicles from the Siege, the Syrian-Palestinian filmmaker Abdallah Al-Khatib accused Germany of being complicit in genocide in Gaza through its support for Israel.
The German tabloid Bild had reported that Tricia Tuttle was due to be dismissed at an emergency meeting on Thursday, citing sources close to the state-owned KBB, the company that runs the festival.
Culture minister Wolfram Weimer's office confirmed the meeting had taken place but made no mention of Tuttle being sacked, stating that discussions had been "constructive and open" and would "continue in the coming days".
A group of cinema luminaries, including Tilda Swinton, Todd Haynes, Sean Baker, and Tom Tykwer, signed an open letter defending the Berlinale as a forum for free expression.
"As filmmakers in Germany and beyond, we are following the debates surrounding the Berlinale and the discussion about the dismissal of Tricia Tuttle with great concern," they wrote. "We defend the Berlinale for what it is: a place of exchange."
Angry rows over the Israel-Palestinian conflict have repeatedly rocked the Berlinale, held every February as Europe's first major film festival of the year.
Germany's environment minister Carsten Schneider walked out of Saturday's closing ceremony, labelling Al-Khatib's remarks "unacceptable".
Germany, as it has sought to atone for the horrors of the Holocaust, has been a steadfast supporter of Israel, and criticism of Israel's conduct in Gaza has been more muted than in many other countries.
Conservative lawmaker Ellen Demuth was among those who condemned Al-Khatib's remarks at the awards ceremony and urged "a fresh start at the top of the film festival".
In an Instagram post, the Berlinale team defended Tuttle, praising her "clarity, integrity and artistic vision".
The writers' association PEN Berlin said Al-Khatib's comments were protected by freedom of expression and that if Tuttle were to be sacked over them, it would cause "immense damage" to the festival.
"Such wanton destruction of the German cultural scene, such self-inflicted insularity, must not be allowed to happen," it said.
The backdrop of the Middle East conflict led to a tense 76th edition of the festival from the start.
More than 80 film professionals criticised the Berlinale's "silence" on the Gaza war in an open letter, accusing the festival of censoring artists "who reject the genocide" they believe Israel has committed in Gaza.
The award-winning Indian writer Arundhati Roy withdrew from the festival after the jury president, German director Wim Wenders, said cinema should "stay out of politics" when asked about Gaza.
Source: AFP
