Employees of the Berlinale have issued a strong statement in support of festival director Tricia Tuttle.
More than 500 Berlinale employees jointly shared a message this morning on Instagram, saying they spoke in “one voice in unanimous support of the extraordinary Tricia Tuttle”.
The statement comes as the festival’s management company, Kulturveranstaltungen des Bundes in Berlin GmbH (KBB), meets this morning to discuss Tuttle’s future after the recent edition of the festival was overshadowed by politics and high emotion. The meeting was called by German minister of state for culture Wolfram Weimer.
“We have all worked closely with Tricia during her tenure and witnessed firsthand the clarity, integrity, and artistic vision that she has brought to the Berlinale. She has made the many hundreds of Berlinale colleagues feel individually respected and collectively extremely proud of our achievements over the course of two difficult years,” said the statement.
It continued: “We do not exaggerate when we say, as one, that it is unlikely the KBB Supervisory Board could have appointed a more intelligent, ethical and responsive leader for the Berlinale, nor one more dedicated to the core principles that make this festival a vital platform for cinema in Germany and internationally.”
The statement was posted by Berlinale staff, contract employees and freelancers, and associated institutions.
Since news of the KKB meeting emerged today, a huge number of filmmakers and institutions have come out in support of Tuttle.
The European Film Academy, European Film Promotion, and Europa International issued a joint statement yesterday in appreciation of Tuttle.
Leading Israeli filmmakers also strongly defended Tuttle in a letter addressed to German culture minister Wolfram Weimer.
And over 600 filmmakers and industry execs have signed a petition in support of Tuttle.
The Berlinale statement in full
The Berlinale Team looks back on a successful festival 2026, realised collectively and met with a positive response from filmmakers, industry representatives, as well as tens of thousands of audience members. In light of the ongoing debates and deeply worrying developments around our Festival Director, Tricia Tuttle, more than 500 Berlinale employees have now jointly shared this message with policymakers:
We, the staff, contract employees and freelancers of the Berlinale and associated institutions, representing a plurality of perspectives, speak with one voice in unanimous support of the extraordinary Tricia Tuttle as the Director of the Berlinale.
We have all worked closely with Tricia during her tenure and witnessed firsthand the clarity, integrity, and artistic vision that she has brought to the Berlinale. She has made the many hundreds of Berlinale colleagues feel individually respected and collectively extremely proud of our achievements over the course of two difficult years.
We do not exaggerate when we say, as one, that it is unlikely the KBB Supervisory Board could have appointed a more intelligent, ethical and responsive leader for the Berlinale, nor one more dedicated to the core principles that make this festival a vital platform for cinema in Germany and internationally.
We hope this message will go some way to communicating the extent of the admiration and loyalty Tricia has inspired in all who are invested in the future of the Berlinale, and the future of cinema.
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