Berlinale staff and contractors have issued a statement on the festival’s official instagram page expressing their support for “extraordinary” artistic director Tricia Tuttle amid uncertainty over her future at the helm.
The social post came just before reports emerged in German press this morning that no decision was taken regarding Tuttle’s future at a meeting with government officials.
The Berlinale staff instagram statement reads: “The Berlinale Team looks back on a successful festival 2026, realised collectively and met with a positive response from filmmakers, industry representatives, as well as tens of thousands of audience members. In light of the ongoing debates and deeply worrying developments around our Festival Director, Tricia Tuttle, more than 500 Berlinale employees have now jointly shared this message with policymakers:
“We, the staff, contract employees and freelancers of the Berlinale and associated institutions, representing a plurality of perspectives, speak with one voice in unanimous support of the extraordinary Tricia Tuttle as the Director of the Berlinale.
“We have all worked closely with Tricia during her tenure and witnessed firsthand the clarity, integrity, and artistic vision that she has brought to the Berlinale. She has made the many hundreds of Berlinale colleagues feel individually respected and collectively, extremely proud of our achievements over the course of two difficult years.
“We do not exaggerate when we say, as one, that it is unlikely the KBB Supervisory Board could have appointed a more intelligent, ethical and responsive leader for the Berlinale, nor one more dedicated to the core principles that make this festival a vital platform for cinema in Germany and internationally.
“We hope this message will go some way to communicating the extent of the admiration and loyalty Tricia has inspired in all who are invested in the future of the Berlinale, and the future of cinema.”
The statement comes following an open letter signed by hundreds of industry professionals in support of Tuttle and another show of support from multiple European film bodies.
The reactions come following criticism from multiple politicians about Pro-Palestinian speeches at the festival’s closing ceremony and a report in German tabloid Bild that Tuttle would lose her position.
This year’s edition of the Berlinale was another one dominated by political discourse and saw the festival defending itself and its jury against what it described as a “media storm”.
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