Berlin Film Festival names Tricia Tuttle as new director

Tricia Tuttle has been appointed as the new director of the Berlin Film Festival. The official announcement was made on December 12 at a press conference chaired by Germany's Federal Commissioner for Culture and the Media, Claudia Roth.

Tuttle, who previously served as the head of festivals at the British Film Institute (BFI), will officially assume the directorship on April 1, 2024.

Tuttle was recommended by a selection committee made up of Oscar winner Edward Berger, actress Sara Fazilat, managing director of the German Film Academy Anne Leppin, producer Roman Paul, as well as Florian Graf, head of the Berlin senate chancellery, and Claudia Roth.

She led the BFI's London Film Festival for five editions up until 2022, and currently serves as head of directing fiction at the UK's National Film and TV School.

"Tricia Tuttle brings 25 years of film and film festival experience with her. Under her leadership, the BFI London Film Festival has not only seen an increase in audience numbers, but has also gained in international profile and significance," said Claudia Roth at the press conference. "She has developed creative strategies to meet the challenges of digitalization and made the festival more colorful, diverse and accessible."

A longtime fan of the Berlinale

The newly appointed director also expressed her enthusiasm for the film festival held every year in the German capital: "I have attended the Berlinale for many years as a professional and have really come to appreciate it very much. The Berlinale is a leader amongst A-list film festivals — welcoming and inclusive, and brimming with a breath-taking diversity of films," said Tuttle. 

"It's a festival that shows cinema as a most vibrant, often magical artform, one which can transform how we see the world and how we understand each other. What an immense thrill and privilege it is to have this opportunity to lead this important festival. I look forward to a very successful Berlinale in 2024, and to joining the team afterwards."

Roth added that Tuttle had above all convinced the selection committee "with her clear ideas on the artistic perspectives of the Berlinale, a modern, team-orientated festival management, sustainable support for young talent and contemporary sponsorship models."

"I am extremely pleased that we were able to win Tricia Tuttle for the directorship of the Berlinale. She is the right choice to lead it into a successful future."

A North Carolina guitarist turned top business leader

Tuttle, who comes from North Carolina in the south of the United States, began her career playing music as a guitarist for the band June, signed to Beggars Banquet Records. She completed her bachelor studies at the University of North Carolina, and later obtained a Masters in Film Studies from the British Film Institute.  

She became deputy head of festivals and then festivals director at the British Film Institute, leading both the BFI London Film Festival and BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival.

The press release of the German Ministry of State for Culture and the Media further notes that Tuttle expanded the BFI London Film Festival's reach by over 50%, notably by introducing screenings around the UK, increasing digital access to the events and establishing the "LFF For Free" program, which features free screenings and events.

She was included in Variety's annual International Women's Impact Report in 2019 as well as in the Variety500 ranking in 2022, an index of influential business leaders shaping the global media industry.

A short-lived dual management structure

Tuttle takes over from the Berlinale's current leading duo, executive director Mariette Rissenbeek and artistic director Carlo Chatrian, who are both due to leave their position after the 2024 edition.

Rissenbeek and Chatrian had been at the helm of the festival since 2019.

While Rissenbeek had announced her departure as executive director last March, Chatrian had initially expressed his intention to stay on. He later confirmed his departure after Roth and the Media Supervisory Board of Federal Cultural Events in Berlin had announced that a single director would be taking over, replacing the previous joint management structure.

The "conditions for me to continue as artistic director no longer exist," said Chatrian when he resigned.

The dual management structure had only been established with their appointment, which followed the retirement of longtime director Dieter Kosslick, who led the festival from 2001 to 2019.

Since then, the Berlinale had to deal with pandemic-related restrictions and the closure of many film venues in the area around Potsdamer Platz, which serves as the headquarters of the festival.

The way the changes were handled sparked some controversy. More than 300 film professionals had signed an open letter protesting the "unprofessional" treatment of Chatrian.

A streamlined program for 2023

Along with changes in leadership, the Berlinale is undergoing other structural adjustments for the 2024 edition. The festival has announced that its program will feature approximately 200 films, down from 287 in 2023.

An entire section, called Perspektive Deutsches Kino, has been removed from the program. It showcased new German filmmakers, but their works will rather be integrated into existing sections.

Another independent sidebar, the Berlinale Series, will be included in the Berlinale Special Gala screenings.

The 74th Berlin International Film Festival takes place from February 15-25, 2024. 

Edited by: Brenda Haas