German culture minister Wolfram Weimer defended this year’s Berlinale Jury President Wim Wenders from criticism by “Palestinian activists”.
During the opening of the festival Wenders remarked that filmmakers act as a counterweight to politics and that artists should sometimes stay out of political debates. Gaza‑focused film activists then accused him of “institutional silence” over the Gaza war and of promoting an allegedly apolitical Berlinale.
“Weimer said the accusations were unfounded” he told the television outlet “Welt”. “Wim Wenders, together with Tricia Tuttle, the festival’s director, runs the Berlinale with great balance and sensitivity” he added. “The event is profoundly political, addressing all the delicate issues on which we can all agree, yet Wenders is being pressured by a particular circle of activists to say or do more. I want to protect him because, in my view, he has chosen exactly the right words”.
He went on to describe the Berlinale as “the place where opinions truly collide and where open discussion takes place; it is the most political festival of all”. Yet he emphasized that freedom of speech also means allowing some voices to remain silent, and that artists should not be politically constrained. “The Berlinale is not an NGO with cameras and crews; it is a space where independent filmmakers can flourish, discuss openly, and address all subjects. That is exactly what happens”.
