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Kirsten Niehuus, head of Medienboard – a significant film fund in the Berlin-Brandenburg area, bid farewell to guests at its annual cocktail event during the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday. However, it’s possible that the global film community won’t have seen the last of Niehuus, as she is known for supporting top-quality international films. As her tenure ends in late June, Niehuus is believed to be a strong contender for another high-profile position within Germany’s film industry.

Niehuus is in a strong position to take over as the next president of the German Federal Film Board (FFA) following Bernd Neumann’s departure later this year. The FFA holds significant influence within the German film industry. Last year, it dispersed approximately 20 million euros ($22.5 million) across 50 projects for production and script funding, supporting films like Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value” at Cannes, Christian Petzold’s “Miroirs No. 3”, potential box-office hits such as “School of Magical Animals 4”, and promising art house titles such as Ruben Östlund’s “The Entertainment System Is Down.”

Niehuus is poised to assume the presidency of the German Federal Film Board (FFA) upon Bernd Neumann’s exit later this year. The FFA plays a crucial role within the German film industry, having distributed around 20 million euros ($22.5 million) to support 50 projects last year, including “Sentimental Value” by Joachim Trier and “Miroirs No. 3” by Christian Petzold at Cannes, popular films like “School of Magical Animals 4”, and upcoming critically acclaimed arthouse titles such as Ruben Östlund’s “The Entertainment System Is Down.”

This is an energizing moment to step into leadership at the FFA, as Germany recently reorganized its film funding system towards the end of last year. Now, the FFA’s budgetary scope encompasses all federal film financing. Additionally, German movie producers can secure financial assistance equivalent to 30% of their local production expenses – a significant boost from the previous 20% for feature films and up to 25% for television productions.

However, Niehuus expressed to EbMaster, the media partner for the Medienboard event, that the legislative changes have fallen short of what’s needed. She suggested a more competitive automatic [production incentive] scheme, similar to Hungary’s, would be beneficial. “We’re observing an increasing number of productions choosing to film in Hungary instead of Germany,” she stated. “Furthermore, we’re not seeing as many American productions, and there’s the issue of tariffs. We’re not appealing enough to large-scale American productions, and this affects Germany as a whole, from Bavaria to Hamburg and Berlin.

Inquired about her confidence that the legislation offering a competitive advantage would pass this year, she replied, “Let’s keep our fingers crossed. I truly hope it does. Optimism, you know… after so many years in this field, we’ve witnessed miracles, both good and bad.”

(Note: The phrase “optimistic” is replaced with “confident”, “legislation that would deliver a competitive incentive” is rephrased to “legislation offering a competitive advantage”, and the sentence structure is adjusted for clarity.)

Medienboard boasts a greater financial clout compared to numerous European national organizations. Its movie financing division manages an annual budget of roughly 34 million euros ($38.3 million). It also supports numerous collaborative film productions on an international scale.

Eight films supported by a certain organization are featured in the Cannes lineup, four of which are competing for awards. The competitive films include “The Phoenician Scheme” directed by Wes Anderson, “Sentimental Value” by Joachim Trier, “The Secret Agent” by Kleber Mendonça Filho, and “Two Prosecutors” by Sergei Loznitsa.

At Cannes, the opening showcase presents Fatih Akin’s film “Amrum” and Kirill Serebrennikov’s “The Disappearance.” Meanwhile, the Directors’ Fortnight section will feature Petzold’s “Mirrors No. 3” and Nadav Lapid’s “Yes.” In simpler terms, these two prestigious sections of the Cannes Film Festival are showcasing Fatih Akin’s movie “Amrum,” Kirill Serebrennikov’s “The Disappearance,” Petzold’s “Mirrors No. 3,” and Nadav Lapid’s “Yes.

At Medienboard, there will be some significant adjustments. The film fund is planning to transition from a single decision-maker to a jury system, as stated by Niehuus. This transformation, understandably, requires careful preparation since it represents a substantial change. The tentative date for the initial submission and evaluation process under this new system is expected to be in October, with the first round of decisions set for January.

The modifications were partly brought about by an increase in duties for the CEO, yet they were also a reaction to the evolving nature of the business and a goal to enhance transparency and democracy.

The current situation is significantly different from what it once was, making it increasingly challenging for management to oversee everything while also reading through 120 scripts during each session. Mastering this task seems almost unattainable. Moreover, we sense that the approach to handling power has shifted. We aim to align ourselves with these changes to avoid giving off an impression of a monarchical decision-making process. Consequently, for the sake of transparency and distribution of responsibilities, it was deemed appropriate to implement these modifications.

The jointly-hosted Medienboard reception, which took place at the gardens of the Mondrian Hotel on a Saturday, was organized alongside the international promotional and distribution support group, German Films.

Also present at the gathering with Niehuus were Sarah Duve-Schmid, the current Deputy CEO of the FFA who is set to become the new CEO of Medienboard next month, as well as Simone Baumann, the head of German Films.

OR

At the event where Niehuus was present, there were two other notable attendees: Sarah Duve-Schmid, the Deputy CEO of FFA who is to take over as the new Medienboard CEO next month, and Simone Baumann, the head honcho at German Films.

OR

In addition to Niehuus, the gathering was joined by two other important figures: Sarah Duve-Schmid, who will soon become the CEO of Medienboard after serving as Deputy CEO at FFA, and Simone Baumann, the leader of German Films.

All three versions convey the same information in a natural and easy to read manner.

Speaking about the films supported by Medienboard at Cannes this year, Niehuus commented that they spanned from heartwarming “Homeland” films like “Amrum” to a variety of international collaborations led by established professionals and emerging talents. In his view, this encompasses exactly what we’ve always aimed to accomplish.

She commented: “As I survey the line of people queuing to enter our cocktail event, it’s clear this is a diverse, global gathering. I feel immensely proud that we’ve transcended being merely a German regional fund in Berlin, and that achievement is largely due to my team. We’ve successfully ventured into the international film scene, collaborating with top-tier filmmakers and offering them our support.

At the cinema event I attended, I rubbed shoulders with several esteemed industry figures. As a movie enthusiast, I had the pleasure of meeting Akin, the director behind “Amrum,” alongside its talented cast members Jasper Billerbeck, Matthias Schweighöfer, Laura Tonke, and Lars Jessen. Petzold, the mastermind behind “Mirrors No. 3,” was also present, along with his actors Enno Trebs, Barbara Auer, and Matthias Brandt. The director of “Two Prosecutors,” Loznitsa, graced us with his presence as well. Last but not least, Mascha Schilinski, the brilliant mind behind competition film “Sound of Falling,” was there too. It was an unforgettable night filled with cinematic greatness!

Additionally, present at the event were film producers Jonas Dornbach and Janine Jackowski from Komplinen Film in Berlin, who worked on “Sentimental Value,” as well as Fred Burle and Sol Bondy, producers from OneTwo Films Berlin, responsible for “The Secret Agent.

Additionally present were Benji and Jono Bergmann, directors of “Noga”; Jessica Hausner, Feo Aladag, and Katja von Garnier, directors; Martin Moszkowicz, producer, and Veronica Ferres, actor-producer; Lilly Krug, Ruby O. Fee, Maximilian Mundt, actors; Philipp Hochmair, an actor from “How to Sell Drugs Online Fast”; Marcus Loges of Studio Babelsberg; and Tanja Meissner of Berlinale Pro.

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2025-05-20 23:52