Tricia Tuttle will remain director of the Berlin International Film Festival, but she must accept new measures, German media reported after a crisis meeting of the festival’s supervisory board, Kulturveranstaltungen des Bundes in Berlin (KBB). Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer said the board will establish a consultative forum and develop a code of conduct for cultural events funded by the German state.
The dispute began after pro-Palestinian remarks during the Berlinale awards ceremony on February 21. Syrian-Palestinian filmmaker Abdallah Alkhatib, accepting the prize for best feature debut for Chronicles From a Siege, accused Germany of becoming “partners of the genocide in Gaza by Israel.” Tabloid reports then said Weimer might dismiss Tuttle for not intervening; they also highlighted a photo of Tuttle with Alkhatib’s film team, some of whom displayed Palestinian flags or wore keffiyehs, suggesting the festival’s neutrality had been compromised.
The KBB convened an extraordinary session on February 26 to “discuss the future direction of the Berlinale” but made no decision at that time. Following further consultations, the board opted to retain Tuttle, attaching conditions including the planned forum and a formal conduct framework.
News that Tuttle could be dismissed prompted widespread industry support for her and for artistic freedom. An open letter signed by nearly 2,500 filmmakers — including Tilda Swinton, Todd Haynes, Nadav Lapid, Ilker Catak, Maren Ade and Tom Tykwer — argued that guests should be free to express identity or political views without those expressions being taken as the festival’s endorsement. The letter framed an international film festival as a democratic cultural space that should host diverse perspectives, and warned that personnel penalties tied to individual remarks would signal cultural institutions are vulnerable to political pressure.
More than 30 festival directors worldwide, among them Cannes director Thierry Frémaux and Sundance director Eugene Hernandez, published a statement on March 2 defending the need for safe spaces where cinema and ideas can be exchanged — including protection for unpopular or difficult views.
Inside the Berlinale organization, over 500 employees signed a letter praising Tuttle’s “clarity, integrity and artistic vision,” saying the supervisory board could hardly have chosen a more intelligent, ethical and responsive leader dedicated to the festival’s core principles.
Ahead of the board’s second extraordinary meeting, Tuttle told the German press agency dpa she intended to remain in her role and continue the work begun with institutional independence intact. She acknowledged that a mutual-agreement resignation had been discussed with the minister of state for culture but said the show of support from the film community emphasized the broader principle that cultural institutions must be trusted to operate within democratic and legal frameworks. She added the episode had clarified her position after difficult weeks.
The Berlinale also faced criticism from pro-Palestinian activists for not taking an official stance on the Israel–Gaza conflict, and from other quarters with accusations of antisemitism. The combination of reactions made the festival’s handling of free expression and institutional neutrality a central topic in the national debate.
This article was edited by Sarah Hucal.