From BZ/dpa
Criticism is mounting at the German Film Academy, which awards the German Film Prize on May 12 in Berlin. Now the program cinema association is also speaking up.
A few days before the German Film Prize was awarded, one of the cinema associations published a critical statement. The AG Kino – Gilde deutscher Filmkunsttheater accused the German Film Academy of lack of direction on Monday.
The association criticized the fact that “Nothing new in the West”, a film from the Netflix streaming provider, was nominated several times, while Christian Petzold’s new film “Red Sky” was not.
“While the film festivals in Berlin and Cannes repeatedly show their attitude and clearly commit themselves to cinema films and independent filmmakers, the German Film Academy lacks a clear compass when it comes to awarding the most valuable German culture prize,” criticized the industry association.
“With “Nothing New in the West”, the Film Academy nominated a film whose four-week cinema run only had an alibi function and thus undermined the mechanisms that are intended to protect the diversity of German cinema films and the cultural place of cinema,” wrote the association, which represents art house cinemas.
The rejection of Petzold’s film in the pre-selection was met with “absolute incomprehension” by the art house cinemas. The need for reform is overdue.
The German Film Prize will be awarded on Friday (May 12) in Berlin. The awards are associated with around three million euros, the money comes from the house of Minister of State for Culture Claudia Roth (Greens).
The approximately 2,200 members of the film academy ultimately decide who gets the prizes. Edward Berger’s anti-war film “Nothing New in the West” received twelve nominations, more than any other film. The production has already won four Oscars.