The Circuit

by Vicci Ho
It is hard for me to describe the excitement I felt when I received an invitation to be a member of the 22nd Teddy Jury at a festival as big as the Berlinale. It is even harder for me to sum up just how nervous I was as the Berlinale edged closer. Not only is this the first time I am doing jury duty at a festival, it is also my first time at the Berlinale...not to mention, the first time in the German capital.

I arrived a day before the festival kicked off so I can have some time to navigate through the area that will be my second home for the next week: Potsdamer Platz. Within ten minutes of walking around in circles trying to find the office, even with a map in my hand, I began to wonder whether my brain was lost in transit. It took me about an afternoon to feel calmer, and I had an early night to ensure I will be fit for the grueling week to come.

The first screening I attended at 10am quickly brought me up to speed with a few 'quirks' of the viewing culture at the Berlinale. The audience members do not usually line-up outside the cinema, but they encircle the entrance. We had to push through the crowds to get to our assigned seats, but by the time we made it inside the 'jury seats' were hijacked. A day later I would find myself sitting on the stairs for a screening after failing to secure a seat by getting to the cinema in the nick of time.

As the Teddy Award ceremony is pushed forward one day to Thursday night, we are left with six days to watch all our films. Day 2 screening began at 9.30am and ended at 9.30pm, where we saw six shorts, two features and three documentaries throughout the day. When there is a break of over an hour, I would need to try and slot in the EFM market screenings to scout other films. Even though it has only been a few days, I am beginning to feel that I have spent my life living in the Cinemaxx and the Cinestar.

Thankfully, compulsory attendance at parties help to snap me out of it. Last night we attended the Teddy Jury reception, which took us out of the Potsdamer Platz, made sure we had a proper dinner (or something as close as it can be during festival time) and much needed alcohol with friends. I also got a taste of the Berlinale party scene described by friends who are veterans at the fest: small, hot, stuffy, overcrowded and smokey spaces where people hang around until the wee hours of the night.

I am still doing my best to pace myself: there are still many days and nights of screenings, parties, receptions and hangovers to come in the next week. I am proud to say that while I am not getting more than four hours of sleep every night, I have yet to be hungover.