Highlights of the 2020 Berlin Film Festival

Carlo Chatrian is the Berlin Film Festival's new artistic director, while Mariette Rissenbeek is responsible for its management. Chatrian is an acknowledged film history expert and previously headed the Locarno Festival. Rissenbeek worked for German Films, the national organization for the international promotion of German cinema. Both follow in the footsteps of longtime director Dieter Kosslick.

The new management brings a breath of fresh air to Germany's oldest film festival, with a new look for the festival posters, new venues, new sections in the program and a new focus. The program has also been streamlined; while it previously used to include about 400 works, 340 films will be screened during the festival this year.

The international competition this year has 18 films all hoping to win a Golden or Silver Bear award. Three films actually take place in the German capital, including "Berlin Alexanderplatz" (photo) by German-Afghan director Burhan Qurbani.

Unlike in past years, where at least one Hollywood film was in the running, this year's US contributions are films produced independently of the big studios, without the usual Hollywood stars. A few big-name actors star in a British production, Sally Potter's "The Roads Not Taken": Javier Bardem, Elle Fanning (photo), Salma Hayek and Laura Linney.

Russian director Ilya Khrzhanovsky spent years working on "DAU," a set of 13 feature films, series and documentaries created from 700 hours of material. The feature film "DAU. Natasha" is in the main competition at the Berlinale. The documentary "DAU. Degeneration" (photo), looks at the story of Soviet physicist Lev Davidovich Landau, and is part of a special series at the festival.

Jeremy Irons is jury president this year. The British actor with Hollywood experience heads an international jury of six actors, directors and a producer from Germany.

Chatrian decided not to open the Berlinale with a film that is in the running for the top prize, the Golden Bear. He hopes for a relaxed atmosphere when the film festival kicks off with "My Salinger Year," a story about the world of literature, the author of the cult novel "Catcher in the Rye" and an agent played by Sigourney Weaver.

Carlo Chatrian and his new team naturally also want to put their own stamp on the Berlinale. The new director launched a second competition, the "Encounters" series that also promises awards. Fifteen films are competing, including Portuguese director Catarina Vasconcelos' debut film, "The Metamorphosis of Birds," pictured above.

This year, the "International Forum of New Cinema" section, created to add new cinematic forms, experiments and newcomers to the competition, celebrates its 50th anniversary. Christina Nord is the Forum's new director. Thirty-five films will be shown, including "Victoria," a documentary exploring a Los Angeles desert (photo).

"Panorama" is another major Berlinale section that features world premieres. "Sexy, edgy, daring" is how the section describes itself. It is by its own accounts "explicitly queer, explicitly feminist, explicitly political" and focuses on "what is new, daring, unconventional and wild in today’s cinema." "No Hard Feelings" (photo) is about refugees in a small town in Germany.

The "Generation" section has been around for a long time, and is aimed at younger audiences. This year, 59 new films will be shown for children and young adults. The Dutch film "Paradise Drifters" (photo) tells the story of three teenage drifters in search of security and a place to stay.

A four-hour documentary series may turn out to be one of the festival's big hits — in particular because its "leading actress" is expected to be in Berlin for the European premiere. It is about the life and career of former Secretary of State and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. "Hillary" will be broadcast worldwide by streaming provider Hulu beginning in March.

The Berlinale is also a showcase for cinematic history. The screening of the restored version of the silent film classic "The Wax Museum" is bound to be a highlight. A major film history retrospective is dedicated to Hollywood director King Vidor. He directed in the silent movie era and later created epic historical movies like the 1959 romance "Solomon and Sheba" (photo).

These days, a major film festival can hardly afford not to show series. The Berlinale presents series premieres from Australia, Denmark, Germany, France, Canada, Austria, the US and the UK. That includes new formats: For instance, the six episodes of the Danish series "Sex" have a total running time of only 77 minutes.

Cinema lovers will find out who won the 2020 Golden Bear on February 29. The recipients of two other prizes have already been determined: The Berlinale Camera 2020 goes to German director Ulrike Oettinger, the Golden Honorary Bear to Helen Mirren (photo). The actress who starred in "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover" and "The Queen" is also being honored with an homage.