Location | Cologne, Germany |
---|---|
Founded | 1991 (as Cologne Conference) |
Festival date | October 17–24, 2024 |
Language | English (and other languages as applicable) |
Website | https://filmfestival.cologne/ |
The Film Festival Cologne (formerly called the Cologne Conference from 1991 to 2016 [1] ) is an international Film and Television Festival that takes place annually in Cologne, Germany. With about 30.000 visitors, the Film Festival Cologne is considered the best attended festival of its kind worldwide. Screenings of independent films as well as debates on media politics and media aesthetic complement the event. [2] The 34th edition of the festival will be held in 2024 from October 17 to 24.
The Cologne Conference was founded in 1991 by journalist and media researcher Lutz Hachmeister while he was the head of the Adolf-Grimme-Institut. In addition to the Grimme-Preis, a national award, an international television festival was originated.
The TV festival was part of German media convention media forum nrw; but it soon developed a momentum of its own [3] and an international reputation. In 1993, the competitive festival section "TopTen" was established, which was, in 2001, divided into two sections, one section for fictional TV and one for documentary TV. In 2007, these two categories were recombined to one category, the "TopTen" section. In the same year, the second competitive festival section "Look", which presents visually extraordinary film and television productions, was created. In 2009, the competitive festival section "Kino" has also become a part of the Cologne Conference. The "Kino" section offers the most interesting aspects concerning film. The presentations and discussions within the Cologne Conference "Lectures" examine the relevant developments on the media market. Beyond that, a workshop discussion with the winner of the "Film Award Cologne" has become an inherent part of the "Lectures" since 2007. Furthermore, there are retrospectives and revivals of legendary television programmes, such as The Monkees , Twin Peaks or The Prisoner .
One of the first TV productions presented at the Cologne Conference was David Lynch's mystery series Twin Peaks . Later almost all groundbreaking US TV series had their German premiere at the Cologne Conference, e.g. Emergency Room, Sex and the City or 24 . Also British television always enjoyed strong presence, for instance with Cracker, The Office or Prime Suspect .
Besides German film and television stars, international celebrities such as Academy Award winners Paul Haggis, [4] Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck and Michael Radford, Anton Corbijn, Nicolas Roeg, D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, Mika Kaurismäki, Ole Bornedal, David Lynch, Todd Haynes, Paul Abbott, Tarsem Singh, Jane Campion, Nicolas Winding Refn or Steve McQueen presented themselves in Cologne.
From roughly 800 international submissions, a jury selects the programmes for the festival sections "Best of Cinema Fiction, "Best of Cinema Documentary", "Look" and "TopTen TV". Since 1997, the Cologne Conference awards prizes in different categories. The TV Spielfilm Award, donated by the identically named TV program magazine, is given to the best contribution of the three festival sections. Furthermore, the German Casting Award goes to the best German casting agent and The Hollywood Reporter Award, sponsored by The Nielsen Company, goes to young and aspiring individuals in the media sector. Until 2007, the award for the best screenplay, sponsored by Network Movie, was also bestowed. Amongst others, it was given to Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck in 2006, who won the Oscar for The Lives of Others in 2007.
In 2007 the main award of the Cologne Conference, the "Film Award Cologne", was originated. This award honors outstanding creativity in film and TV and is worth EUR 25.000. It is bestowed upon those individuals, who best contribute "to the further development of the language of film and media". The award is presented by the Cologne Conference, along with the City of Cologne and States Film Subsidy Body "Filmstiftung NRW". The first laureate of the "Film Award Cologne" in 2007 was Canadian film director and writer Paul Haggis (LA Crash, Casino Royale ) and in 2008, the award was given to the brothers Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne (L'Enfant, Lorna's Silence ). In 2009, the award was bestowed upon Roman Polanski (Chinatown, The Pianist ) but the Polish/French movie director was not able to receive the prize on 3 October in Cologne since he was arrested on 26 September during his journey to the Zurich Film Festival, which caused a worldwide sensation. In 2010 David Lynch was presented with the "Film Award Cologne" for his groundbreaking work in television and cinema. David Simon received the TV Spielfilm Award for his critically acclaimed series Treme . Todd Haynes was awarded the TV Spielfilm Award in 2011 for his extraordinary re-imagination of Mildred Pierce and the "Film Award Cologne" was presented to Tarsem Singh.
In 2007, the Cologne Conference was chaired by festival founder Lutz Hachmeister, along with Maybritt Illner, Stefan Aust, Marc Conrad, Michael Schmid-Ospach and Dieter Gorny.
In 2008, the Cologne Conference was chaired by Lutz Hachmeister, along with, Stefan Aust, Marc Conrad, Michael Schmid-Ospach and Dieter Gorny.
In 2009, the Cologne Conference was chaired by festival founder Lutz Hachmeister, along with Stefan Aust, Marc Conrad, Michael Schmid-Ospach and Dieter Gorny.
Gus Green Van Sant Jr. is an American filmmaker, photographer, painter, and musician who has earned acclaim as an independent filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultures, in particular homosexuality. Van Sant is considered one of the most prominent auteurs of the New Queer Cinema movement.
Senta Verhoeven is an Austrian-German actress. She received many award nominations for her acting in theatre, film and television; her awards include three Bambi Awards, two Romys, an Adolf Grimme Award, both a Deutscher and a Bayerischer Fernsehpreis, and a Goldene Kamera.
David Yates is an English filmmaker, who has directed feature films, short films, and television productions. He is best known for directing the final four films in the Harry Potter series and the three films of its prequel series, Fantastic Beasts. His work on the Harry Potter series brought him critical and commercial success along with accolades, such as the British Academy Britannia Award for Excellence in Directing.
Vera Ann Farmiga is an American actress. Farmiga began her professional acting career on stage in the original Broadway production of Taking Sides (1996). After expanding to television and film, Farmiga's breakthrough came in 2004 with her starring role as a drug addict in the drama Down to the Bone. She received praise for starring in the 2009 comedy-drama Up in the Air, for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Brothers Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne, collectively referred to as the Dardenne brothers, are a Belgian filmmaking duo. They write, produce, and direct their films together. They also own the production company Les Films du Fleuve.
Thomas Michael Wright is an Australian actor, writer, film director and producer. He is the co-founder (2006) and director of theatre company Black Lung and director of the feature films Acute Misfortune (2019) and The Stranger (2022). As an actor he came to attention in Jane Campion's series Top of the Lake, for which he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the (US-Canadian) Critics' Choice Awards. The Stranger premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival.
The Shanghai International Film Festival is the largest film festival in Asia and China's longest-running international cinema event. The first festival was established in October 1993. It is the only Chinese festival accredited by the FIAPF.
Seyyed Shahabedin Hosseini Tonekaboni is an Iranian actor, producer, director and screenwriter. He is known for his collaborations with Iranian Academy Award-winning director Asghar Farhadi in About Elly (2009), A Separation (2011), and The Salesman (2016). His accolades include a Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor, a Silver Bear for Best Actor, and a Crystal Simorgh for Best Actor.
Adam Wingard is an American filmmaker. He has served as a film director, producer, screenwriter, editor, cinematographer, actor, and composer on numerous American films.
Louis Hofmann is a German actor. He first gained attention as the lead in the 2011 German film Tom Sawyer and won the Bodil Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a teenage German prisoner of war in the 2015 Danish film Land of Mine. He is also known for playing Jonas in the 2017 German Netflix series Dark.
Casting By is a 2012 American documentary film directed by Tom Donahue. It combines over 230 interviews, extensive archival footage, animated stills and documents to tell the untold tale of the Hollywood casting director, Marion Dougherty. Dougherty died before the film's release; it is dedicated to her memory.
Finsterworld is a 2013 German motion picture drama directed by Frauke Finsterwalder, her debut feature film. Co-written by Finsterwalder and Christian Kracht, it follows interconnected, parallel stories over the course of one day in Germany.
Jan Bonny is a German film director and screenwriter.
Two Days, One Night is a 2014 drama film written and directed by the Dardenne brothers, starring Marion Cotillard and Fabrizio Rongione. It is an international co-production between Belgium, France and Italy. The film had its world premiere at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival where it competed for the Palme d'Or.
Ilan Moskovitch, is an Israeli filmmaker, producer, director, casting director and acting instructor.
The 73rd annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 31 August to 10 September 2016.