Film Festival Chiefs Rally to the Defense of Berlinale Supremo

Mar 3, 2026 9:00am PT Film Festival Chiefs Rally to the Defense of Berlinale Supremo Tricia Tuttle as Her Future Hangs in the Balance By Leo Barraclough Plus Icon Leo Barraclough International Features Editor LeoBarraclough Latest ‘We Have to Survive’ Boarded by Taskovski Films Ahead of Premiere at Thessaloniki Documentary Festival (EXCLUSIVE) 3 days ago Paramount’s Apparent Victory in Warner Bros. Bidding War Sparks Optimism and Concern From Global Players: ‘Fewer Global Decision-Makers Mean Fewer Buyers’ 4 days ago PBS Distribution Acquires U.S. Rights to ‘Trespasses’ and ‘I Fought the Law’ (EXCLUSIVE) 4 days ago See All Getty Images Film festival chiefs from around the world have signed a joint statement in support of Berlin Film Festival supremo Tricia Tuttle, whose future will be debated at a meeting of its governing body tomorrow in Berlin. Among the signatories are the heads of Cannes, Toronto, Sundance, Busan, Karlovy Vary, Locarno, San Sebastian and London. The statement underscores the importance of debate. It says: “We need to maintain spaces where discomfort is embraced, where debates can be expansive, where new ideas can propagate and where unexpected – and sometimes conflicting – perspectives are made visible.” Related Stories MGK Talks 'Unassuming' Tommy Hilfiger Partnership, His 'Lost Americana' Tour Wardrobe and Bringing Back Wired Headphones: 'I'll Take Credit For That' It also reminds stakeholders of their responsibilities, stating, “We need all our stakeholders – audiences, creators, festival teams, public and private partners, industry, media, fellow institutions – to show each other grace, respect and solidarity as communities and networks connected through the love of film, or we risk losing these spaces completely.” Popular on Variety During its 76th edition, running Feb. 12-22, the Berlin Film Festival was at first accused of censoring political talk when prominent attendees, including jury president Wim Wenders, declined to discuss politics. But the controversy blew up when on closing night, some prize-winners used their acceptance speeches to voice support for Palestine and Gaza. After a story in German tabloid Bild on Wednesday suggested that Tuttle was about to be sacked, film business insiders and Berlinale staffer rallied to her defense. A petition supporting her, signed by film professionals – including luminaries such as Sean Baker, Todd Haynes, Tilda Swinton and Kleber Mendonça Filho – gathered more than 3,000 names. Then, on Thursday morning, more than 500 staffers at the festival wrote an open letter to voice their support for Tuttle. Here is the statement in full: As film festival directors and leaders, we stand in support of Tricia Tuttle’s wish to continue as Berlinale Festival Director, in full trust and with institutional independence. In the debates that have surrounded the 2026 Berlinale and other cultural and artistic events in preceding months, we recognise the mounting pressures on film festivals everywhere to navigate volatile times while maintaining a safe space for the exchange of cinema, and of ideas. A core aspect of our role as cultural custodians is to create and protect the space for filmmakers, artists, professionals and audiences to come together. This includes people who bring with them not only a shared love of cinema, but also a huge variety of lived experiences and viewpoints. This is what gives our film festivals their vitality, relevance and value, and it is what festival ‘spirit’ is made from. We must also navigate – with care – the fact that ‘everyone’ can include people with political and personal views that don’t always align, with each other, or with socially accepted or politically mandated positions. And while film festivals that are long-lived, and well-attended, may appear to be indestructible meeting places, these spaces are often fragile, hard-won and complex to preserve. Film festivals as we know, and need them, are becoming increasingly challenging to sustain in a climate where the appreciation of nuance is collapsing. Supporting genuine freedom of expression, including the freedom to articulate imperfect or unpopular opinions, has never been more important. We need to maintain spaces where discomfort is embraced, where debates can be expansive, where new ideas can propagate and where unexpected – and sometimes conflicting – perspectives are made visible. We need all our stakeholders – audiences, creators, festival teams, public and private partners, industry, media, fellow institutions – to show each other grace, respect and solidarity as communities and networks connected through the love of film, or we risk losing these spaces completely. It is so much easier to destroy than it is to build. Kristy Matheson, Artistic Director, BFI London Film Festival Jung Hanseok, Festival Director, Busan International Film FestivalEllen Y. D. Kim, Director, Asian Contents & Film MarketKaren Park, Program Director, Busan International Film Festival Thierry Frémaux, General Delegate, Cannes Film FestivalChristian Jeune, Director of Films Department – Deputy General Delegate, Cannes Film Festival Amr Mansi, Executive Director & Co-Founder, El Gouna Film Festival Ilda Santiago, Executive Director, Festival do Rio Pia Lundberg, Artistic Director, Göteborg Film FestivalMirja Wester, VD/CEO, Göteborg Film Festival Vanja Kaludjercic, Festival Director, International Film Festival RotterdamClare Stewart, Managing Director, International Film Festival Rotterdam Karel Och, Artistic Director, Karlovy Vary International Film FestivalKryštof Mucha, Executive Director, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Giona A. Nazzaro, Artistic Director, Locarno Film Festival Damien Hodgkinson, CEO, Melbourne International Film FestivalAl Cossar, Artistic Director, Melbourne International Film Festival Daniela Michel, Founding Director, Morelia Film Festival Roman Gutek, Head of New Horizons AssociationDorota Lech, Festival Director, New Horizons International Film Festival José Luis Rebordinos, Director, San Sebastian International Film FestivalMaialen Beloki, Lucía Olaciregui – Deputy Directors, San Sebastian International Film Festival Jovan Marjanović, Festival Director, Sarajevo Film Festival Renata de Almeida, Director, São Paulo International Film Festival Eugene Hernandez, Festival Director, Sundance Film FestivalKim Yutani, Director of Programming, Sundance Film Festival Nashen Moodley, Festival Director, Sydney Film FestivalFrances Wallace, CEO, Sydney Film Festival Julie Huntsinger, Executive Director, Telluride Film Festival Cameron Bailey, CEO, Toronto International Film FestivalAnita Lee, Chief Programming Officer, Toronto International Film Festival Shozo Ichiyama, Programming Director, Tokyo International Film Festival Jump to Comments Inside Swedish Writer Karin Arrhenius’ Banijay Series ‘My Brother,’ a Psychological Mystery-Thriller of Elemental, Carnal Passions  Japanese Comedy Hit ‘You Laugh You Lose’ Gets Global Push as Banijay Entertainment Acquires Format Rights From ‘LOL’ Creator Yoshimoto Kogyo (EXCLUSIVE) Banijay and All3Media in Talks for Production Merger Drag Queen ‘Amateur’ Crime Caper ‘Queen Heist’ and ‘Liberating’ Romcom ‘The Good Widow’ Added to Banijay Finland’s Burgeoning Scripted Slate (EXCLUSIVE) JavaScript is required to load the comments. 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