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This year marks the 50th anniversary since Los Angeles and Berlin became sister cities. Two film heritage institutions in these respective cities, UCLA Film & Television Archive and the Deutsche Kinemathek, have collaborated as members of the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) for decades. So it’s finally time to celebrate in style! 10 films from and about Berlin will come to Los Angeles this fall, followed later in the year by a trip to Berlin for 10 films about Los Angeles from UCLA’s vast collection.
The Deutsche Kinemathek was founded in 1963, two years after the wall was built between East and West Berlin. After the fall of the wall in 1989 the Kinemathek grew into a national institution, opened its film museum in 2000, and has continued to collect and restore German and international film heritage. Movies produced in and about Berlin have naturally always been the focus of its attention. In 2013, the Kinemathek also became the distributor for films produced by DEFA (the state-owned film production company in East Germany), finally bringing movies from the two halves of the city together in the Kinemathek collection. The postwar history of Berlin as a divided city with all its conflicts has clearly influenced the program being presented at the Billy Wilder Theater.
We have deliberately avoided showing familiar classics and have chosen to concentrate on films that have rarely or never been presented in Los Angeles before. The films are shown in double features around a common theme, and often express contrasting and conflicting views from the two parts of the city.
Deutsche Kinemathek Film Curator Martin Koerber, who selected the films for this series and wrote the program notes, will also appear in person to introduce all the screenings.
All films in German with English subtitles.
