BERLIN – Sex and the pornography industry takes center stage at next week’s Berlin Film Festival after the leading actress in last year’s Golden Bear winning film was publicly hounded over her earlier work as a German porn actress.
Berlinale director Dieter Kosslick said the focus on sex and porn was less a nod to the controversy that engulfed “Head-On” starring Sibel Kekilli than a tribute to sex research pioneer Alfred Kinsey as well as the commercial success of porn films.
“There are simply a lot of films about sex and pornography out there in the market,” said Kosslick, whose event is often ranked behind Cannes and alongside Venice as one of the world’s leading festivals.
“We thought it was time to take a look at the era we lived through 30 years ago,” he added. “It was time of sexual repression and yet a lot of money was earned with sex films.”
Kekilli had hidden her past making porn films and came under scrutiny by tabloids over her hard-core background. But the German public didn’t care; it cheered her performance in “Head-On.” She regularly berated tabloids in award speeches.
Kosslick told a news conference on Tuesday that the festival, which runs Feb 10-20, will be bigger than ever with 343 films from 52 nations — including 21 competing for the Golden and Silver Bear awards.
The competition entry “Kinsey” features Liam Neeson as the sex researcher who created a storm in the late 1940s with his groundbreaking study “Sexual Behavior in the Human Male.”
Festival-goers can also enjoy or inveigh against “Inside Deep Throat,” www.xxxdeepthroat.com, devoted to the 1972 film “Deep Throat” starring Linda Lovelace that shocked many and is estimated to have grossed $600 million after costing $25,000 to make.
Held during the frenzied run-up to Hollywood’s Academy Awards, the Berlinale is a welcome vehicle for studios to launch their films in Europe, add awards or simply pick up pre-Oscars buzz. Berlin will thus again be filled with celebrities.
Will Smith, Kristen Scott-Thomas, Keanu Reeves, Kevin Spacey, Daniel Day-Lewis, Dennis Quaid, Don Cheadle, Glenn Close, Joseph Fiennes, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gerard Depardieu and Catherine Deneuve are expected on Berlin’s red carpets.
This year’s jury is headed by director Roland Emmerich.
Despite its freezing temperatures that make professionals long for Cannes in the springtime or Venice in the late summer, Berlin throws open its doors with public screenings running parallel to the competition and its various sidebar events.
A total of 400,000 tickets to the 1,079 screenings will be sold, with fans often shivering in long lines for tickets.
A record 500 films will also be on display at the European Film Market, a leading international bourse for film buyers and sellers that traditionally runs alongside the Berlinale.