Audi is considerably expanding its partnership with the Berlin International Film Festival. The central element of the strengthened commitment to the Berlinale is the Audi Short Film Award, which will be presented in the Berlinale Shorts section. The winner of the award will take home EUR 20,000, which will make the Audi Short Film Award one of the world’s most generously endowed prizes for short films. In addition to the award, several more collaborative projects are planned for 2015.
The short film as an art form has a long tradition at the Berlinale and is assigned a high priority by the festival. The Berlinale Shorts section presents all facets and genres in the world of short films. The nominees for the Audi Short Film Award are all directors competing to have their films chosen as the best short film entered in the Berlinale Shorts section. A three-person, international jury assembled by the Berlinale decides who will be the award-winner. The prize for the best short film, worth EUR 20,000, will be presented to the winner on February 14, 2015, at the Berlinale awards ceremony.
“The Audi Short Film Award is yet another step in our cooperation with the Berlinale. As a progressive brand, we want to enable people to fully experience the connection between Audi and filmmaking in the future, and in many different ways. And to us that also includes an award that shines the spotlight on the creative talents of short film directors. The short film is a form that is becoming increasingly popular, especially among young directors. We would like to reach these creatives in particular,” said Wayne Griffiths, Head of Sales Germany at AUDI AG.
Dieter Kosslick, Director of the Berlin International Film Festival added: “The short film has traditionally been an important element of the Berlinale’s profile as an arts event. A Golden Bear and a Silver Bear have been awarded since 1955. And the award sponsored by Audi ideally complements the commitment to the short film and underscores its importance. We are delighted that Audi is taking this initiative to lend even more resources to promoting directing talent.”
Film has played an important role at Audi for many years. The Audi ArtExperience cultural program, for example, offers a broad spectrum of outstanding filmmaker’s art with its promotion of the International Short Film Festival 20min|max and the Audi Forum Ingolstadt and its award-winning Audi independent cinema. With the Audi Urban Cinema at Berlin’s famous Alexanderplatz public square, this year Audi once again brought the drive-in movie back to life, a memorable experience for many people.
And at Audi City Berlin today, to symbolically mark the start of Audi’s partnership with the 2015 Berlin International Film Festival, sales head Wayne Griffiths presented an Audi A8 L hybrid to festival director Dieter Kosslick for his use during the Berlinale. As a full hybrid, the Audi A8 L’s pure electric drive technology enables it to reach a driving speed of 100 kilometers per hour (62.1 mph).
The Berlinale is a truly superb film festival. In 2014 over 490,000 visitors attended a total of 945 screenings to enjoy 413 different films – most of them world premieres or European premieres. Tickets to the festival are in very high demand. To make access to tickets easier and help as many people as possible to attend the Berlinale, Audi City Berlin on the city’s Kurfürstendamm boulevard will be serving as an official advance ticket sales outlet in February 2015.
During next year’s 65th Berlinale, visitors and guests will once again be able to enjoy a relaxing break from the movie marathon – in the Audi Berlinale Lounge. The two-story building with a view of the red carpet will be the site of talks and panel discussions featured on the film festival’s program. As it did this year, Audi will produce the Berlinale bag and provide a fleet of about 300 cars for the festival’s use, including chauffering the stars of the world of international cinema to the festival’s red carpet.
*Fuel consumption of the models named above:
Audi A8 L 2.0 TFSI hybrid 155 kW:
Combined fuel consumption in l/100 km: 6,3
Combined CO2 emissions in g/km: 146