It’s not uncommon for a major festival to provide accredited individuals with some form of disability the necessary services to participate in the event in the best possible way. But if memory serves me right, when filling out the accreditation application for the Berlinale on behalf of Ombre e Luci, I saw for the first time that any needs could be indicated before, rather than after, accreditation. It didn’t surprise me, because the Berlinale, held in the capital of Germany every February for 74 editions, is an event very attentive to social issues: for example, since seating at screenings is open (getting there early is crucial to get a good seat), priority access is guaranteed to those with disabilities, specifying – something I had never noticed on similar occasions before – that the possibility also applies to those with non-visible disabilities.
It must be said that accessibility, a topic very dear to those who organize large events with international press coverage, will be the least of the problems for a festival that, precisely because of its attention to the themes of inclusion and dialogue, often risks being overwhelmed by political controversies. Two controversies have already erupted this year: the invitation (later revoked) to some far-right politicians for the opening ceremony on February 15, because the values that the Berlinale wants to communicate are incompatible with the racism and verbal violence of the known ideas of their party; the absence of some directors protesting against the Berlinale’s equidistant position on the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in this case because the general and publicly expressed desire for dialogue between the parties, also through specific debate moments, is considered too biased in favor of Israel due to the historical reasons for the relationship between Germany and the Jews.
Amidst all these possible controversies, the hope is that cinema will be an opportunity for encounter and inclusion, rather than division. So while we eagerly await to see the films scheduled, it may be worth going back a year, to Berlinale 73, because the film that won the Golden Bear, Sur l’Adamant by Nicolas Philibert, will finally be released in Italian cinemas from March 11th to 13th, distributed by I Wonder Pictures. It’s a documentary, and it’s rare for this genre to win a major festival; but the jury, despite other deserving films (let’s mention at least Tótem by Lila Avilés, which manages to show a child’s perspective on the father’s serious illness with touching delicacy and never morbidity), saw in Philibert’s work the magic of a cinema capable of giving voice, face, and soul to a part of society that often remains hidden (and seeing the film, it’s not understood why this happens). The Adamant is a floating building anchored on the Seine, in Paris: it’s a day center that manages patients with mental disabilities, where doctors have that humanity that often, for the patients, makes the difference between feeling like real human beings or just objects unworthy of attention and affection.
It’s clear that Philibert has the innate ability to observe and listen to those who want to be observed and listened to – his films on children also demonstrate this – and in fact, he manages to portray, of those patients who grant him their time even with interviews of several minutes, the all-round humanity that makes them interesting to listen to, to the point of making it believable that they are people capable of caring for others (perhaps even us viewers) and not just in need of being cared for. The world of the Adamant is very close to the life of the center of Paris, yet ignored by the majority of Parisians: that’s why the works of directors capable of reaching where we usually don’t look are so precious (and occasionally win important festivals like the Berlinale).
Leggi l’articolo originale in italiano: Dalla Berlinale presente e passata
