Arrivals and Connections
350 Talents arrive at the Campus: a story of random encounters and high hopes - with dogs.
Meet and greet at HAU 2
What is the connection between Guatemala, the Japanese language and snow? Or between Denmark, music and Russia? Or surrealism, carpet-making and Afghanistan? Or even a dog and its tail?
350 Talents from all over the world have come to meet each other at the first day of the 8th Berlinale Talent Campus, one of the highlights of the 60th edition of the Berlin International Film Festival. A versatile space with a colourful swirling flow of personal stories.
These unique stories that Talents tell at a place with no boundaries form the links between the diverse nations. Like a huge box of surprises, you never know who you’re going to meet next. However, the wonders of these encounters unfold when Talents you’re talking to turn out to be from far away places.
A dog chasing its tail is indeed the beginning of a beautiful friendship – at least in the short animation of Milen Vitanov, a Bulgarian director who has been living in Germany for 9 years and who is experimenting with the blending of 2D and 3D animation techniques.
The master of animation, Hayao Miyazaki, is one of the favourite directors of Danish classical music composer Nicklas Schmidt. He studied at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, living in Russia for five years. He was amazed by the contradictory attitude of Russian people: very cold at informal encounters, but warm at personal contacts.
Daneri Gudiel from Guatemala made an instant connection with the other Campus Talents starting to sing in the metro on the way to HAU 2. He even taught me some Japanese words that he learnt at his karate lessons. Radiating with energy, this autodidactic actor and stand-up comedian saw snow today for the very first time in his life.
From farther lands came Hasib, Samiullah Nabizada writer, director and producer from Afghanistan who can tell you all about the change that occurred in his country in the year 2000. Before that, there was one single TV channel, and now there are 19. He worked as a carpet-maker from the age of 6 and now makes mostly fiction films, his interest leaning towards a surrealist style.
Nations, cultures and identities blend together so beautifully even in flashing and fast encounters that for a moment you might believe you’ve met the entire world in all its colours and flavours. Then you realise, you’ve only just smelled it, tasted it and you want more, because it is amazing. These young Talents are linked together not only by this event, their fully-packed Campus bags or their feeling of confusion due to the variety of programmes at the Campus and the festival, but mostly also by their openness and their willingness to learn and make new connections.
301 Moved Permanently