A row over whether films produced for streaming platform Netflix should be shown at the Berlin Film Festival has overshadowed the premiere of “Elisa & Marcela,” Isabel Coixet’s tale of two Spanish lesbians.
Independent art house cinema operators in Germany wrote to German Culture Minister Monika Gruetters and Berlinale director Dieter Kosslick on Monday demanding that the film be withdrawn from the competition.
“The Berlinale stands for the big screen, Netflix for the small screen. We want it to remain that way in future and we don’t want the world’s biggest festival in terms of audience - with more than 300,000 moviegoers - to become a television festival,” they said.
But a spokeswoman for the Berlinale said the film was eligible for competition because it is due to be shown in Spanish cinemas.
Netflix has stirred unease in the traditional movie industry by encouraging people to watch films at home rather than go to the cinema. Major theatre chains refuse to show Netflix films, and some top directors have balked at making films that will be seen primarily on the small screen.
Coixet said she was a “struggling filmmaker” and had tried for 10 years to find financing for the film but no one was interested before Netflix.
She said it was not fair to demand the film be withdrawn from the competition “in the name of culture”, adding: “I’m sorry, that’s not culture - the culture has to be about respecting the author. And I think saying the film doesn’t deserve to be here is not respecting the author.”
Last year Netflix Inc pulled out of the Cannes Film Festival after organizers banned its films from competition over its refusal to release them in cinemas.