<\/p>\nListen to this article<\/span>\u00a0|\u00a0<\/span>4 mins<\/span><\/p>\n<\/button>info<\/title><path class=\"icon-main-color\" d=\"M12 0a12 12 0 1 0 0 24 12 12 0 0 0 0-24Zm-.226 3.225a2.039 2.039 0 0 1 2.155 1.924v.193a1.998 1.998 0 0 1-2.155 2.149 2.029 2.029 0 0 1-2.146-2.15 2.039 2.039 0 0 1 1.955-2.122h.193l-.002.006Zm3.227 15.525a.75.75 0 0 1-.752.75H9.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.75h.748V12h-.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.751h3a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.752v6.75h.75a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.749L15 18.75Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>Dozens of actors and directors, including Javier Bardem and Tilda Swinton, have condemned the Berlin International Film Festival for its \u201canti-Palestinian racism\u201d and urged organisers to clearly state their opposition to \u201cIsrael\u2019s genocide\u201d in Gaza.<\/p>\n<p>In an open letter published in Variety on Tuesday, the 81 film workers also denounced comments by this year\u2019s president of the awards jury, Wim Wenders, who \u2013 when asked about Gaza \u2013 said, \u201cWe should stay out of politics.\u201d<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 4 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>They noted that the festival\u2019s stance stands in direct contrast to its policy on Russia\u2019s war on Ukraine and on the situation in Iran.<\/p>\n<p>All of the signatories are alumni of the festival, which is also known as the Berlinale, and include actors Cherien Dabis and Brian Cox, as well as directors Adam McKay, Mike Leigh, Lukas Dhont, Nan Goldin, and Avi Mograbi.<\/p>\n<p>In their letter, the film workers expressed dismay at the Berlinale\u2019s \u201cinvolvement in censoring artists who oppose Israel\u2019s ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza\u201d and the German government\u2019s key role in enabling the atrocities.<\/p>\n<p>They said the festival has been policing filmmakers , and listed several examples from last year\u2019s Berlinale.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLast year, filmmakers who spoke out for Palestinian life and liberty from the Berlinale stage reported being aggressively reprimanded by senior festival programmers. One filmmaker was reported to have been investigated by police, and Berlinale leadership falsely implied that the filmmaker\u2019s moving speech \u2013 rooted in international law and solidarity \u2013 was \u2018discriminatory\u2019, \u2018 they wrote.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe stand with our colleagues in rejecting this institutional repression and anti-Palestinian racism,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n<p>The film workers said they \u201cfervently disagree\u201d with Wenders\u2019s statement that filmmaking is the \u201copposite of politics\u201d, saying, \u201cYou cannot separate one from the other.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Their letter comes days after Indian author Arundhati Roy said she was withdrawing from this year\u2019s festival after what she called \u201cunconscionable statements\u201d by jury members, including Wenders.<\/p>\n<p>This year\u2019s festival runs from February 12 to 22.<\/p>\n<p>The film workers noted that the Berlinale\u2019s actions come at a time when the world is learning \u201chorrifying new details about the 2,842 Palestinians \u2018evaporated\u2019 by Israeli forces\u201d in Gaza through thermobaric weapons made by the United States.<\/p>\n<p>An Al Jazeera investigation, published last week, documented how these weapons \u2013 which are capable of generating temperatures exceeding 3,500 degrees Celsius (6,332 degrees Fahrenheit) \u2013 leave behind no remains other than blood or small fragments of flesh.<\/p>\n<p>Germany, too, has been one of the biggest exporters of weapons to Israel despite the evidence of Israel\u2019s atrocities. It has also introduced repressive measures to discourage people from speaking out in solidarity with Palestinians, including in the arts.<\/p>\n<p>In their letter, the Berlinale alumni noted that the international film world is increasingly taking a stance against Israel\u2019s genocidal actions.<\/p >< p>Last year, major international film festivals \u2013 including the world\u2019s largest documentary festival in Amsterdam \u2013 endorsed a cultural boycott of Israel, while more than 5,000 film workers have pledged to refuse work with Israeli film companies and institutions.<\/p>\n<p>Yet, the film workers said, the Berlinale \u201chas so far not even met the demands of its community to issue a statement that affirms the Palestinian right to life, dignity, and freedom\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>This is the least it can and should do, they said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJust as the festival has made clear statements in the past about atrocities carried out against people in Iran and Ukraine , we call on the Berlinale to fulfil its moral duty and clearly state its opposition to Israel\u2019s genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes against Palestinians, and completely end its involvement in shielding Israel from criticism and calls for accountability,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Listen to this article\u00a0|\u00a04 mins info Dozens of actors and directors, including Javier Bardem and Tilda Swinton, have condemned the Berlin International Film Festival for its \u201canti-Palestinian racism\u201d and urged organisers to clearly state their opposition to \u201cIsrael\u2019s genocide\u201d in Gaza. In an open letter published in Variety on Tuesday, the 81 film workers also […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12578,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12577","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-europe-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12577","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12577"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12577\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12578"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}