Nuremberg, September 12th - 16th 2001
The International Human Rights Film Festival in Nuremberg is the first festival in Germany which is specifically dedicated to the issue of human rights, thus filling an important gap - one which has long since been filled in other countries.
A film festival is a cultural event which reaches far beyond the city limits - after nine years, Nuremberg has once again joined the ranks of festival cities. The festival addresses not only the citizens of Nuremberg but also national and international guests. The linking of the film festival with the Human Rights conference and the Nuremberg International Human Rights Award has proved to be especially enriching, promoting lively discussions, benefiting from the presence of visitors to the city who are already actively involved with the issue of human rights. Through such a symbiosis, Nuremberg can become a centre of debate, where the thinking on changes required in society can be moved forward.
Aims and profile
A driving principle behind the film festival is the conviction that cultural developments affect social development. Film belongs to the most widespread and popular media in society and as such can exercise a significant cultural and social influence.
The aim of the International Human Rights Film Festival is to use this medium to open up the issue of human rights to a wide public. It is hoped that the festival will stimulate discussion and, through the dissemination of information, promote communication. An important contributor to this process will be the presence of film directors (or other representatives) and special guests.
The International Human Rights Film Festival will present ethically and socially committed productions from all parts of the world on the issue of human rights. The films will not only bear witness to abuses of human rights but also to positive examples of their defence. They should give us courage - they treat people seriously, not as commodities to be exploited for the market. These films will be entered into a competition for the Nuremberg Film Award for Human Rights and will be selected by a committee consisting of members of the festival team. An international jury, made up of experts from the worlds of cinema and human rights, will select the overall winner. The prize money donated by the festival is awarded on condition that it is used to enable or increase the distribution of such films in Germany - the film should not simply disappear after the festival, but remain a living and lasting presence in people's consciousness.
Organiser
The International Human Rights Film Festival is an independent festival. It has been designed and organised by the non-profit association Internationale Filmtage der Menschenrechte e.V.
Partners
The International Human Rights Film Festival up to now
The film festival took place for the first time in conjunction with the International Human Rights conference and the Nuremberg International Human Rights Award in 1999. The first festival was a great success, both in terms of the quality of the films shown as well as the acclaim they received from the public. Around 1700 visitors and experts attended the 40 films and took part in the ensuing discussions. 15 film producers and makers from nine different countries made their way to Nuremberg and contributed their expert knowledge to the festival. Among these guests were well-known directors such as Volker Schlöndorff and Claude Lanzmann.
"I believe that for such a festival it is the shared experience which is so important. It is simply quite different when millions of people sitting at home watch something on television alone. Here you can watch something with other people and afterwards you can talk about the experience- You have to address the issue pro-actively in this situation. Just watching TV causes constipation - lots goes in, but nothing comes out!" (Volker Schlöndorff.)
"While the fun society spins around itself, the issue of human rights in other parts of the world is a question deciding about life and death, a question deciding about participation in society or exclusion from it. And also here, in our country, the issue of human rights does not belong to the realm of the past - just think about the situation of refugees, of detention prior to deportation, of expulsion to an insecure future that might even bring death. All the greater is the merit of the organisers who had the courage to get the 1. International Human Rights Film Festival off the ground, to show films that are not blockbusters and never will be."
The Jury 1999: Wolfhard Gallhoff, Ullabritt Horn, Gabriele Müller, Bertoldt Kremmler und Klaus Wilden-hahn
Contact
Internationale Filmtage der Menschenrechte