interfilm : 22 nd International Short Film Festival Berlin
November 7 - 12, 2006

Over 4,000 films and videos from 94 countries were submitted to the interfilm offices in Berlin for the 22 nd International Short Film Festival. 500 entries from diverse genres - feature, animation, documentary, children's film, music clip - were selected for competition or for special programs.

In addition to the International and German Competitions, the festival will again include special Country Focus programs, this year spotlighting short film productions from the Czech Republic and Brazil. The genre of animation will also receive extra attention, with highlight visits from prominent guests like Bruno Bozzetto (creator of Signor Rossi) and Michaela Pavlatova.

Once again this year, over 16,000 visitors are expected to attend Berlin 's second largest film festival, and the competition juries will present a total of over € 35,000 in cash and prizes to the winning films.

International Competition
Approximately 100 films will compete for the interfilm “Short Awards” in the categories of best film, best animation and best camera. In a separate competition, the best documentary will be chosen by an international jury of specialists, and yet another first-class jury will select the “Best Film Against Violence and Intolerance” from the two “Confrontations” programs.

German Competition
Now in its fourth year, the German Competition will again provide a forum for home-grown short films, most of which were produced independently. A jury will select one winner for the interfilm Short Award in the category of best German short film.

KuKi – Kids' Shorts
The KuKi program promises to be a lively filmgoing experience for young and old. An especially sophisticated children's jury will choose three best films for kids, one from each competition, 6+, 8+ and 10+. This year, KuKi also includes a program featuring children's short films from the Czech Republic , as well as the screen debut of a film produced entirely by a group of sixth graders who took part in a special film workshop preceding the festival.

Country Focus: Czech Republic and Brazil
In the country focus on the Czech Republic , the emphasis lies on something for which our Eastern neighbor is especially well known: excellent animation. Animated realities created at the renowned Prague film school FAMU, a selection of entries from “Anifest” in Prague , and a retrospective on the the Czech animation artist Jan Švankmajer will provide a look at the wide spectrum of Czech animation.
In cooperation with the “Cachaça Cine Club“ in Rio de Janeiro, interfilm Berlin offers visitors the opportunity to experience the diversity of the Brazilian short film scene in five thematic programs. The selection varies widely – from documentative perspectives to short films from the Brazilian slums to an early work by the Oscar-winning director Fernando Mereilles (“City of God ”).

Eject
interfilm calls once again upon the audience to pick their favorite among the strangest short films at “Eject – Midnight Movie Madness” at the Volksbühne. A party will follow the competition at Roter Salon.



Special Programs

ICONS
Two programs are dedicated to the Italian animation filmmaker Bruno Bozzetto , whose most famous creation is Signor Rossi. Bozzettos feature-length film “Allegro non troppo” will open the program, and the director will be present at the film presentations. In addition, a retrospective on Jan Švankmajer spotlights the work of this significant Czech animation artist. Švankmajer's surreal, nightmarish, and yet comical films penetrate the depths of the soul with fantastical images, plucked straight from childhood fears and obsessions.

LOCAL HEROES
Berlin in Brief presents stories from the capital. There's something for every Berlin-lover, from a historical time-lapse film on the Wall to social criticism on Potsdamer Platz, or performances in public spaces.

TOP OF THE LEAGUE
A selection of award-winning European short films will be shown in the Zebra Poetry Film Award and Best of Cartoon D'Or programs.

DIGITAL TRACKS
The special program Clipped – Music and Animation shows collages of music, images and animation, and there will be programs featuring international and national music videos.

interfilm +
Documentaries that blur the defining lines of the genre are the subject of Reality Bites . Clichés, bizarre characters and events presented in a documentative style beg the question: What makes a documentary a documentary?
The program AsianDeli will show contemporary Asian productions, while AsiAnima will focus on animation trends from East Asia .
The New York television station Thirteen/WNET presents a regular series of film productions by local, independent filmmakers and video artists on the label Reel N.Y. . Curator Garrison Botts will present an exquisite selection of groundbreaking, award-winning, experimental film classics from the fifties and sixties at the interfilm Festival.
The short film nominees for the European Academy Short Award (Prix UIP) will be presented in two programs. The Prix UIP is a short film initiative of United International Pictures and the European Film Academy , in cooperation with 14 European festivals.
Cortidos presents current productions from Spain and Latin America , and Oz Shorts offers a selection of Australian productions from 2005.
The international program Hands up! focuses on the subject of deafness and deaf culture, with animation, documentaries, experimental and classic short films.



Forum
Accompanying the film programs will be visual presentations, podium discussions and lectures by international visitors.

Panel: Focus on Animation
Animation is also the central theme of the discussion rounds this year. Participants in the discussion “A life in motion: Careers in animation film” can exchange views on developments in animation with the filmmakers Bruno Bozzetto and Michaela Pavlatova, with selected animated shorts as examples. Workshops providing insights into the genre will also be offered beforehand.

Lecture/Panel : YouTube & Co.
The wide spectrum of films available on internet platforms will be presented, followed by a discussion on its consequences for short film.

Flipbook
The self-described flipbookographer Volker Gerling combines film, photography, and performances for his photographic flipbooks. The images, brought to life using the thumb, learn how to run on screen by video technique, and the flipbook becomes a mini-blockbuster. Accompanied by poetic stories of his travels through Germany , Gerling draws sensitive perceptive portraits of people and places.

Children's Workshop
As a part of KuKi, and in cooperation with selected Berlin schools, interfilm initiated a children's film workshop, this year with the environmental motto “Don't just throw me away!”. Children between the ages of nine and twelve participating in the workshop wrote a script and produced their own film, which will celebrate its screen premier at the interfilm Festival. Kindly supported by Zapf Umzüge and the magazine “Naturschutzblätter.”

QuickFlick , a worldwide monthly digital video festival in which young filmmakers create individual films on a provided theme, presents productions from the imaginative capitals of the world.
In addition, especially driven filmmakers can accept the challenge to make a short film on a specific theme during the festival, which will then be presented to the festival audience.



Parties

Opening Night
Tue Nov. 7, 8pm
Volksbühne on Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz
Party at Roter Salon, 1am

Festival Lounge
Festival visitors can stop by the Festival Lounge in the Volksbühne Roter Salon (“Red Room”) from Nov. 8 – 12 (except Saturday) to see a mix of clip screenings, veejaying, deejaying and live entertainment. The “Eject” party will also take place here on Friday Nov. 10 , parallel to the film program.

Festival Party
Sat Nov. 11, 11pm
The central festival party will take place at Club 103, Falckensteinstr. 47, in Kreuzberg, with numerous superior international live acts and deejays, a spectacular video installation and local deejays. Free shuttle service from Kino babylon berlin:mitte to Club 103 provided!

Awards Ceremony
Sun Nov. 12, 8pm
Babylon Berlin: Mitte
Party at Volksbühne Roter Salon, 10pm



Film Market
During the festival, journalists and guests visiting in an occupational capacity are welcome to visit the Film Market, where all films submitted to the festival may be viewed.

The Festival Office and Film Market are located at Kino Babylon Berlin:Mitte.



Event Locations
Babylon Berlin :Mitte
Hackesche Höfe Filmtheater
Volksbühne on Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz
Roter Salon in the Volksbühne
Club 103 in Berlin-Kreuzberg