At a ceremony held at the French Embassy during the Berlin Film Festival, Unifrance’s managing director Daniela Elstner was elevated to the rank of Officer of the Legion of Honor for her decades-long commitment to championing French cinema worldwide.
The celebration, hosted by French ambassador François Delattre, was part of a dedicated “Soirée Française Du Cinéma’ which gathered over a hundred of industry figures from around the world, including Berlinale chief Tricia Tuttle, Venice Film Festival boss Alberto Barbera, some U.S. distributors such as Michael Barker and Dylan Leiner from Sony Pictures Classics, as well as Marcus Hu from Strand Releasing and Unifrance president Gilles Pélisson. Delattre praised both Elstner’s professional achievements and her devotion to the people behind the industry.
“You are highly praised for your work, for your passion for the world of cinema, but also for the women and men who build its great adventure every day,” Delattre said. “You have contributed in an exceptional way to the international influence of French cinema — in Germany, of course, but also in Europe and throughout the world,” he continued.
Taking the podium, Elstner, who was visibly moved, delivered a deeply personal speech reflecting on a 30-year journey between Germany and France. “Tonight, it is a little bit of my French heart that is being honored by this distinction,” she said, highlighting the symbolic meaning of receiving the award in Berlin — a city where she considers herself to have been professionally born three decades ago, at her first festival and market.
She recalled how she arrived as an Erasmus student and discovered a world far beyond what she had imagined when leaving her small hometown in Germany. She also paid tribute to her family, including her French husband (whom she met 30 years ago) and their two children who attended the ceremony.
Elstner also revisited the mentors and institutions that shaped her career, including the late Daniel Toscan du Plantier, who welcomed her to Unifrance, and her formative years at Les Films du Losange alongside Margaret Ménégoz. She then became managing director of Paris-based sales company Doc & Film International.
Over the years, she has championed filmmakers ranging from Eric Rohmer and Barbet Schroeder to Adina Pintilie, Gianfranco Rosi, Leyla Bouzid and Nicolas Philibert.
Her speech also struck a broader European note. “Thirty years ago, Europe felt secure to us — solid, unshakeable in its principles of peace and fraternity. Today, that shared ambition is threatened.”
“It is up to us not to give up, up to us to continue defending these values — notably freedom of creation, independence and critical thinking,” she said, before adding, “With this decoration, I also accept the responsibility to continue my commitment through culture, in the service of France and its Republic.”
English (US) ·