Berlinale Special & Berlinale Series

A selection of previous Berlinale Special productions

The Look of Silence by Joshua Oppenheimer | Berlinale Special 2015
© Lars Skree

Ranveer Singh
Gully Boy by Zoya Akhtar | Berlinale Special 2019
© Excel Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Adams
American Hustle by David O. Russell | Berlinale Special 2014
© Francois Duhamel | Tobis Film

Robert Silvers
Untitled New York Review of Books Documentary by Martin Scorsese and David Tedeschi | Berlinale Special 2014

VE Day Celebrations London 1945
The Spirit of '45 by Ken Loach | Berlinale Special 2013
© IWM

Shah Rukh Khan
Don – The King Is Back by Farhan Akhtar | Berlinale Special 2012
© Rapid Eye Movies

Althawra ... Khabar | Reporting ... A Revolution | Bericht ... einer Revolution by Bassam Mortada | Berlinale Special 2012

Colin Firth
The King’s Speech by Tom Hooper | Berlinale Special 2011

Food, Inc. by Robert Kenner | Culinary Cinema 2009
© Participant Media/River Road Entertainment

Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Berlin Alexanderplatz: Remastered by Rainer Werner Fassbinder | Berlinale Special 2007

The Day After Tomorrow by Roland Emmerich | Berlinale Special 2005

Ed Sheeran
Songwriter by Murray Cummings | Berlinale Special 2018
© Murray Pictures Limited 2018

Michael Moore
Where To Invade Next by Michael Moore | Berlinale Special 2016
© Dog Eat Dog Films

John Berger, Tilda Swinton
The Seasons in Quincy: Four Portraits of John Berger by Colin MacCabe, Christopher Roth, Tilda Swinton and Bartek Dziadosz | Berlinale Special 2016
© Sandro Kopp
Berlinale Special
Glamour and popular films in the Gala Premieres, in-depth debates at the panel discussions, a spotlight on current topics, unusual formats and the honouring of extraordinary film personalities – Berlinale Special is one of the festival’s most versatile programmes.
Footloose and fancy-free, spontaneous and up-to-date – a diversity of forms shines in the Berlinale Special. Originating from the special screenings which became affiliated with the Competition in 1984, from 2004 the section has offered an abundant and colourful selection of films and events and it uncovers many treasures every year. Berlinale Special is flexible and also characterised by its unusual venues: even the Brandenburg Gate can be transformed into a cinema.
The Berlinale Special gala premieres bring glamour and excitement to the Friedrichstadt-Palast, giving audiences the chance to experience popular international films and their stars up close on the Red Carpet.
In the Haus der Berliner Festspiele, films requiring an intense level of engagement can be deliberated upon in post-screening panel discussions. Films capturing current world events to powerful effect are put into a wider context and discussed together with the filmmakers.
Over the years, Berlinale Special has also established itself as a space for reflection on film, its history and adjacent art forms. Many films in the programme explore the origins of particular film trends, focus on film history or portray directors and other artists. And, with the films in Berlinale Special, the Berlinale honours great film personalities whose work is particularly close to the festival’s heart.
The Berlinale Special is curated by the Artistic Director of the Berlinale, Carlo Chatrian, supported by a selection committee.
Films in the Berlinale Special can be nominated for the Berlinale Documentary Award, funded by rbb and endowed with € 40,000.

Series from recent editions

Natalie Dormer
Picnic at Hanging Rock by Larysa Kondracki | Berlinale Special 2018
© FremantleMedia Australia

Udo Kier
M – Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder | M – A City Hunts a Murderer von David Schalko | Berlinale Special 2019
© Pertramer/Pichler | Superfilm

Esmé Creed-Miles, Rhianne Barreto
Hanna by Sarah Adina Smith | Berlinale Special 2019
© Amazon Studios

Jeff Daniels, Tahar Rahim
The Looming Tower | Berlinale Special 2018
© Legendary Television

Emma Bones, Ane Dahl Tor
Heimebane | Home Ground by Arild Andresen | Berlinale Special 2018
© NRK

Albrecht Schuch, Mai Duong Kieu, Barry Atsma
Bad Banks by Christian Schwochow | Berlinale Special 2018
© Letterbox | Sammy Hart

Kida Khodr Ramadan, Frederick Lau, Veysel Gelin
4 Blocks by Marvin Kren | Berlinale Special 2017
© Turner Entertainment Networks, Inc. A Time Warner Company

Jonathan Banks, Bob Odenkirk
Better Call Saul – Season 2 by Thomas Schnauz | Berlinale Special 2016
© 2015 AMC Network Entertainment LLC and Sony Pictures Television Inc. | Ben Leuner

Kyle Chandler, Linda Cardellini
Bloodline by Johan Renck | Berlinale Special 2015
© 2014 Netflix, Inc. | Saeed Ayani
Berlinale Series
Berlinale Series offers an exclusive first look at outstanding new series productions from around the world. The programme presents works of creators who consistently use the creative freedom of serial storytelling and complement the variety of formats with relevant and contemporary narratives.
With the establishment of Berlinale Series in 2015, the Berlinale, as the first A-festival worldwide, did justice to changing viewing habits and the growing significance of serial storytelling acknowledging the many important aesthetic-artistical, dramaturgical and formal developments of audiovisual storytelling taking place in this field. Creative visions, budget and the talent involved are already on a par with film productions.
The home of Berlinale Series is the Zoo Palast in the heart of the city. Here, the Red Carpet is rolled out for world and international premieres to pay tribute to cast and crews. Over the course of three days, established names meet undiscovered talents who together present ambitious and innovative series of all genres to the festival audience.
Taking place alongside the festival premieres is the “Berlinale Series Market”, a conference platform and marketplace for industry professionals which goes hand in hand with Berlinale Series.