{"id":230381,"date":"2026-03-03T18:06:01","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T17:06:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iffr.com\/en\/?p=230381"},"modified":"2026-03-03T18:11:39","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T17:11:39","slug":"blog-joint-statement-in-support-of-tricia-tuttle-and-institutional-independence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iffr.com\/en\/blog-joint-statement-in-support-of-tricia-tuttle-and-institutional-independence","title":{"rendered":"IFFR signs joint statement in support of Berlinale Festival Director Tricia Tuttle and institutional independence"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As film festival directors and leaders, we stand in support of Tricia Tuttle\u2019s wish to continue as Berlinale Festival Director, in full trust and with institutional independence.<\/p>\n\n\n

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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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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 \u2018spirit\u2019 is made from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We must also navigate \u2013 with care \u2013 the fact that \u2018everyone\u2019 can include people with political and personal views that don\u2019t 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We need all our stakeholders \u2013 audiences, creators, festival teams, public and private partners, industry, media, fellow institutions \u2013 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Signatories<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Kristy Matheson, Artistic Director, BFI London Film Festival<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jung Hanseok, Festival Director, Busan International Film Festival<\/strong>\u00a0
Ellen Y. D. Kim, Director, Asian Contents & Film Market<\/strong>
Karen\u00a0Park, Program Director, Busan International Film Festival
<\/strong>
Thierry Fr\u00e9maux, General Delegate, Cannes Film Festival<\/strong>
Christian Jeune,\u00a0Director of Films Department \u2013 Deputy General Delegate, Cannes Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amr Mansi, Executive Director & Co-Founder, El Gouna Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ilda Santiago, Executive Director, Festival do Rio<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pia Lundberg, Artistic Director, G\u00f6teborg Film Festival\u00a0<\/strong>
Mirja Wester, VD\/CEO, G\u00f6teborg Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vanja Kaludjercic, Festival Director, International Film Festival Rotterdam<\/strong>
<\/strong>Clare Stewart, Managing Director, International Film Festival Rotterdam<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karel Och, Artistic Director, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival<\/strong>
Kry\u0161tof Mucha, Executive Director, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giona A. Nazzaro, Artistic Director, Locarno Film Festival<\/strong>

Damien Hodgkinson, CEO, Melbourne International Film Festival<\/strong>
Al Cossar, Artistic Director, Melbourne International Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Daniela Michel, Founding Director, Morelia Film Festival
<\/strong>
Roman Gutek, Head of New Horizons Association<\/strong>
Dorota Lech, Festival Director, New Horizons International Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jos\u00e9 Luis Rebordinos, Director, San Sebastian International Film Festival<\/strong>
Maialen Beloki, Luc\u00eda Olaciregui \u2013 Deputy Directors, San Sebastian International Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jovan Marjanovi\u0107, Festival Director, Sarajevo Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Renata de Almeida, Director, S\u00e3o Paulo International Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eugene Hernandez, Festival Director, Sundance Film Festival
<\/strong>Kim Yutani, Director of Programming, Sundance Film Festival

<\/strong>Nashen Moodley, Festival Director, Sydney Film Festival<\/strong>
Frances Wallace, CEO, Sydney Film Festival

<\/strong>Julie Huntsinger, Executive Director, Telluride Film Festival<\/strong>

Cameron Bailey, CEO, Toronto International Film Festival<\/strong>
Anita Lee, <\/strong>Chief Programming Officer, Toronto International Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shozo Ichiyama, Programming Director, Tokyo International Film Festival<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\t

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A list with articles<\/h2>\n\t\t\n\t\t
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