The Berlin Film Festival's outgoing director Moritz de Hadeln has announced the competition line-up for the event's 51st edition, which as expected features a heavy European and Asian presence (ScreenDaily, Jan 15).

Asia, which has always been well served by Berlin in the past, will be represented this year by two features from Japan - Go Riju's Chloe and Masato Harada's Inugami - along with two productions from a partnership between France's Flach Pyramide and Taiwan-based Arc Light Films - The Bicycle, directed by China's Wang Xiao Shai, and Betelnut Beauty from Taiwan's Lin Chen Sheng. South Korea's Joint Security Area (JSA) by Park Chan-Wook will also compete.

Four titles have been selected from the UK and Ireland - Lasse Hallstrom's Chocolat, Michael Winterbottom's The Claim, The Tailor Of Panama, from John Boorman, and Mike Nichols' Wit. France is represented by three titles - Catherine Breillat's A Ma Soeur, Felix Et Lola by Patrice Leconte and Patrice Chereau's Intimacy - and Italy by Ferzan Ozpetek's Le Fate Ignoranti and Giuseppe Tornatore's Malena. In addition, there is one film each invited from Denmark (Lone Scherfig's Italian For Beginners), Poland (Wojciech Marczewski's Weiser) and Spain (Jose Luis Garci's You're The One).

The host country will be represented by the "out of competition" screening on the opening night of Jean-Jacques Annaud's Enemy At The Gates and by Filippos Tsitos' low-budget film My Sweet Home.

Four US titles made De Hadeln's final Berlin competition line-up - Spike Lee's Bamboozled, Gus van Sant's Finding Forrester, Sean Penn's The Pledge and Steven Soderbergh's Traffic - while Ridley Scott's Hannibal and Philip Kaufman's Quills will screen "out of competition".

South America and Africa are both present with only one title each: La Cienaga by Lucrecia Martel (Argentina) and Little Senegal from Rachid Bouchareb (Algeria/Senegal).

FULL COMPETITION LINE-UP:

OPENING NIGHT FILM (OUT OF COMPETITION):
ENEMY AT THE GATES
Dir: Jean-Jacques Annaud

BEIJING BICYCLES
Dir: Wang Xiao-shuai (China)

BETELNUT BEAUTY
Dir: Ling Chin-sen (Taiwan, China)

CHLOE
Dir: Go Riju (Japan)

INUGAMI
Dir: Masato Harada (Japan)

JOINT SECURITY AREA (JSA)
Dir: Park Chan-Wook (South Korea)

LA CIENAGA
Dir: Lucrecia Martel (Argentina)

LITTLE SENEGAL
Dir: Rachid Bouchareb (Algeria/Senegal)

A MA SOEUR
Dir: Catherine Breillat (France)

FELIX ET LOLA
Dir: Patrice Leconte (France)

INTIMACY
Dir: Patrice Chereau (France)

LE FATE IGNORANTI
Dir: Ferzan Ozpetek (Italy)

MALENA
Dir: Giuseppe Tornatore (Italy)

CHOCOLAT
Dir: Lasse Hallstrom (UK)

THE CLAIM
Dir: Michael Winterbottom (UK)

THE TAILOR OF PANAMA
Dir: John Boorman (Ireland)

WIT
Dir: Mike Nichols (UK)

ITALIAN FOR BEGINNERS
Dir: Lone Scherfig (Denmark)

YOU'RE THE ONE (UNA HISTORIA DE ENTONCES)
Dir: Jose Luis Garci (Spain)

WEISER
Dir: Wojciech Marczewski (Poland)

MY SWEET HOME
Dir: Filippos Tsitos (Germany-Greece)

BAMBOOZLED
Dir: Spike Lee (US)

FINDING FORRESTER
Dir: Gus Van Sant (US)

THE PLEDGE
Dir: Sean Penn (US)

TRAFFIC
Dir: Steven Soderbergh (US)

OUT OF COMPETITION:

HANNIBAL
Dir: Ridley Scott (US)

QUILLS
Dir: Philip Kaufman (US)

STANLEY KUBRICK - A LIFE IN PICTURES
Dir: Jan Harlan
A three part documentary made by Kubrick's brother in law and his long time executive producer, screened in Berlin in video, and including never before seen footage of Kubrick's family life and work with a commentary by Tom Cruise.

SUPER 8 STORIES
Dir: Emir Kusturica
A semi-documentary on his renowned music band.

PATHS OF GLORY
Dir: Stanley Kubrick (1957)
As a tribute to Kirk Douglas, with Kirk Douglas, Ralph Meker, Adolphe Menjou and George MacReady.

METROPOLIS
Dir: Fritz Lang (1927)
The screening will be accompanied by a new music score composed by Bernd Schultheis and played by the Berlin Radio-Symphonic orchestra conducted by Frank Strobel.

CLOSING NIGHT FILM:
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY
Dir: Stanley Kubrick (1968)
The 70mm restored print

The festival takes place February 7-18.