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Five days of program with opening gala, red carpet, International Heimatfilmpreis, top-class jury, 40 films awarded at festivals, 20 additional cultural events in six cities from four counties, ministers from all over Europe, discussions with actors, directors and cultural workers – these are just a few of the items on the program. which were planned for the “Biennale Bavaria International”. The extraordinary festival should start in April between Burghausen and Haag and between Altötting and Wasserburg. Corona now forced the association to postpone the festival.
Six municipalities from four districts have joined forces with the “International Festival of New Homeland Films” in order to organize more than just a film festival with a new structure. For five days Altötting, Burghausen, Haag, Mühldorf, Trostberg and Wasserburg offer a large joint event platform for this new cultural highlight of the Inn-Salzach region.
An art exhibition of the Munich Secession is on the program, as well as discussions with personalities such as Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn and Bavaria’s European Minister Melanie Huml, cabaret artists such as Hannes Ringlstetter and Michael Altinger or representatives of various religious communities such as Bishop Stefan Oster SDB and Gönül Yerli, Vice-Director of the Islamic Community in Penzberg. The topic? The international Neue Heimatfilm and everything to do with “Heimat”.
This topic was already clear when the idea for a cross-location and cross-media festival was born in 2016 (we reported), and in this time of “buy locally and support local culture” is more topical than ever.
In September 2020, a three-day event with international films and discussion guests such as Christian Springer and Pastor Rainer Maria Schiessler (Photo) instead of.
Back then Schießler was so impressed by the integrative festival idea that he spontaneously offered to be part of the Munich theater group and “Jedermann”, who should actually be called “Jedefrau” due to the female lead. He is also a member of the jury, because the festival is awarding the “International Heimatfilmpreis” in four categories for its very first edition.
The international component is important to the organizers because it is important to them to show and discuss different images and feelings of home, and thus to promote understanding and solidarity in spite of all the differences. In various stories, films show how much people from Europe, Asia and Africa resemble each other in their desires and needs – “Home” is universal, and yet something different for everyone. It will be the task of jury members such as director Christian Klandt, most recently winner of the Bavarian TV Prize, actress Johanna Bittenbinder and director and BR editor Fatima Abdollahyan to choose the winners from a wide range, albeit unfortunately not now in April.
The Bavaria International Biennale is only being postponed – this high-class festival for cinema and home fans can no longer be stopped. The new date will be decided in the coming weeks. More information on www.biennale-bavaria.de.
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