BERLIN (AP) — The Berlin International Film Festival will take place next month despite rising virus numbers in the country, especially in the German capital, organizers said Wednesday.
“We are aware of the challenges posed by the unpredictable course of the pandemic,” the festival management said in a statement, adding that strict pandemic measures would be applied to the 72nd edition of one of the world’s most famous film festivals.
Only people who have already been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or have recently recovered from an infection will have access to the festival’s grounds. In addition, a daily rapid test and masks will be required for everyone attending. Movie theater attendance will be reduced to 50% capacity and all parties and receptions – usually an essential highlight of the film festival – will be canceled.
The opening is still scheduled for Feb. 10 and the awards will be given out a little earlier than initially planned, on Feb. 16, the German news agency dpa reported.
The festival’s opening film will be “Peter von Kant” by French film director and screenwriter Francois Ozon. The movie is a free interpretation of Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s film “The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant.”
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