The 20th German Film Festival begins on Wednesday on the Parkinsel in Ludwigshafen. 64 current films will be shown over 19 days. Here are some highlights and important information.
The countdown has begun at the German Film Festival in Ludwigshafen. The red carpet has already been rolled out and, according to the organizers, advance ticket sales are going well. There are signs that the number of visitors could exceed the 108,000 visitors from last year.
The red carpet is currently being rolled out for the many stars of the German acting scene who will be visiting the festival for 19 days starting on Wednesday. SWR
Therefore, interested parties should quickly decide which films they want to see. You can book the tickets onlinea single ticket costs 12.80 euros.
On Wednesday the curtain rises for the German Film Festival. SWR
Highlight in Ludwigshafen: Opening with Merit Becker in demand
There is a huge demand for the opening film “Familie is nich” and the tickets are almost sold out, says Daniela Kötz, program director and managing director of the film festival. In addition to the lead actress Merit Becker, the director Nana Neul as well as producers Philipp Budweg and Julia Rappold will also be there – first on the red carpet and after the opening film for a film discussion in direct contact with the audience.
Festival director Michael Kötz also reveals that it is these film discussions in particular that make the German Film Festival so special: discussions with the filmmakers, which can sometimes last two hours, are not only a magnet for visitors. The interest in their work and the opportunity to blend in with the crowd are also reasons for the artists to come to Parkinsel.
More than 400 filmmakers at the festival in Ludwigshafen
The sheer number of films is a highlight. This year, visitors can look forward to 64 films that will be shown on four cinema screens every day.
More than 400 filmmakers have announced their participation in the anniversary, more than ever before, says festival director Michael Kötz. In addition to well-known German actors and directors, they also include young, up-and-coming talents as well as authors and producers, including many women.
The festival director couple Daniela and Michael Kötz surrounded by sponsors. SWR
Further highlights of the 20th German Film Festival
In addition, the “Award for Acting Art” will be awarded three times this year for the first time. Next Friday, Liv Lisa Fries (known from the series Babylon Berlin) will accept it. She can be seen in the film “In Love, Your Hilde”. On Friday, August 30, award winner Joachim Król will be a guest with the film “Endlich Witwer – Griechische Odyssey”.
For the first time, third prize winner Christoph Maria Herbst (“Sketchup”, “Ladykracher”, “Stromberg”) will visit the festival on Parkinsel on Saturday, August 31st with his current film “Preis der Freiheit”.
The seats on the banks of the Rhine on the Parkinsel are already waiting for the guests of the film festival in Ludwigshafen, along with a large screen. SWR
Celebrities and stars at the German Film Festival
According to Michael Kötz, new guests on the Parkinsel include Katharina Böhm and Annette Frier. Visitors can also meet well-known TV and cinema stars such as Andrea Sawatzki, Karoline Herfurth, Kostja Ullmann, Ulrich Tukur and Oliver Wnuk up close on the red carpet. And last but not least, Ulrike Folkerts and Lisa Bitter from Tatort-Ludwigshafen will be there again.
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The German Film Festival starts in just under two weeks on the Parkinsel in Ludwigshafen. Which actors and filmmakers are expected?
Fri.9.8.2024 6:00 a.m. SWR4 RP in the morning SWR4 Rhineland-Palatinate
Specials for the 20th festival anniversary
For fans of the festival, the organizers have written a thick book about the history of the film festival. It is called “The Film Island – 20th Anniversary Book” and will be available from Wednesday on the Park Island and in bookstores.
Kötz and his colleagues have also made a film to mark the anniversary, a journey through time that can be seen free of charge at the festival every day at 12 noon. It shows the development of the festival from its small beginnings with 7,000 visitors to becoming the most popular film festival in Germany after the Berlinale.
When arriving by bus, please note construction sites
This year there will be the free electric festival bus (line 77) of the Rhein-Neckar-Verkehrsbetriebe (RNV). This runs every 15 minutes every day from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. Due to the numerous construction sites in Ludwigshafen, including at Berliner Platz, the stop there has been moved to Ludwigstrasse.
The bus also goes to the Walzmühle car park and the BASF car park. From 9 p.m. there is a shuttle (Line E) that goes to Rheinallee Süd.
Three cinema tents and more than 1,000 seats, here under trees, await festival visitors on Parkinsel. SWR
Festival management: Drivers please head for parking garages
There will be no parking spaces directly on the parking island this year either. Anyone who parks illegally can expect hefty tickets and fines. The nearest parking garages at BASF and Walzmühle are served directly by the RNV shuttle buses.
