Written by Precious Ringor
Starting on November 29, Berlin Sci-fi Filmfest will be celebrating its fourth year with an Exclusive Virtual Cinema that will run the whole weekend of December 6. Over the last three years, the organization has shown over 300 films from 38 different countries. This year, the film fest will feature over 110 films from 28 countries with genres ranging from drama, documentaries, and animation.
In the past, the event was usually hosted at the renowned cinema Babylon in Berlin. With new lockdown restrictions, however, the cinema had to temporarily shut down and probably won’t reopen until the New Year.
Besides film screenings, the festival will be holding interactive screening rooms which allows for audiences to communicate with filmmakers. Among previous guests include Sebastian Khayat (VFX coordinator for Shazam & Hellboy), Alex LeMay (producer for Universal Studios and YouTube Red), and Robert Fitzhugh (Director of Dublin Smartphone Film Festival) to name a few. A virtual lounge will also be available as a space for filmmakers to network and exchange ideas with one another.
There will be 20 sessions showcasing a variety of shorts and feature length films. All entrants to this year’s submissions will receive a 20% discount on Hasraf ‘HaZ’ Dulull’s Sci-fi Filmmaking masterclass series, a copy of Anthony Straeger’s ‘Creating Success with your Submissions’ booklet, as well as sponsored cash prizes amounting up to $4,000.
The festival is first of its kind to present a genre specific Sci-fi film festival in Germany. Boasting of its love for all things ‘Science Fiction,’ BSFF 2020 brings a wide array of films from narratives to fan-made movies. As their bio states, “we support filmmakers and all who seek out new life and new civilizations, boldly going where no one has gone before.”
Be sure to check out these films among others in the festival:
Skywatch
10:00min, Action, USA
Director: Colin Levy
Synopsis: When two outcast teens hack into a ubiquitous drone delivery system to pull a prank on their neighbor, they accidentally crash-land a dangerous prototype – and find themselves entangled in a life-and-death conspiracy.
Peperit8
20:52min, Cloning Action, Germany
Director: Aaron J. J. Schmidt
Synopsis: In an experiment for human cloning, Carmina’s DNA is stolen to create a new generation of security clones that are supposed to rule the dystopian world.
Oxygen
10:32min, Survival Animation, Belgium
Director: Rocky Grispen and Violette Belzer
Synopsis: On a far away planet, home to Bobtors, an astronaut-doctor suffers from a lack of oxygen. To survive she has to pay the highest price as a human and as a doctor…
Employee 515
6:00min, Drama, Canada
Director: Zikang Chen
Synopsis: Employee 515 lives and works at his office adhering to the same routine every day.
Raze of the Cyborg (German Premiere)
25:00min, Sex Slavery Action, Taiwan
Director: Young Lee
Synopsis: In the violent underworld of a future Asian city, a group of cyborg criminals abduct women to sell into sex slavery.
Hawk and Rev: Vampire Slayers (German Premiere)
84 mins, Horror, USA
Director: Ryan Barton-Grimley
Synopsis: Philip “HAWK” Hawkins doesn’t just dream about killing vampires… He eats, sleeps, drinks and freakin’ breaths it! After getting kicked out the Army for staking a fellow soldier with a blunt two by four, Hawk almost dies of boredom working as a night security guard at a deserted office park in his hometown of Santa Muerte, California… USA. Just when it looks like all Hawk’s options in life have expired… Filthy-ass blood-sucking vampires appear!
Three Pills
2:33min, Drama, Finland
Director: Christian Wenger
Synopsis: In the year 2050, the system provides three pills to every elderly person, to be taken on their 70th birthday.
Zealandia (German premiere)
15:01min, Pandemic Drama, New Zealand
Director: Bruno du Bois
Synopsis: In 2032, Zealandia has become the only virus free country left on earth but at a high cost to its population due to intrusive medical regulations. But, could the bag carried by a fearless woman be the downfall of this oppressive state?
Overview
2:59min, Space Drama, Germany
Director: Alexander Rottmann
Synopsis: An astronaut is sent into space for the first time, changing her perspective on our blue planet forever.
BeeMe
37:00min, Social Documentary, USA
Director: Niccolo Pescetelli, Michael Perryman
Synopsis: BeeMe was a global social experiment that took place on Halloween night 2018. Thousands of online participants remotely controlled a human person freely moving on the MIT campus. This film documents the creation and aftermath of this unique event.
Spin Cycle (European Premiere)
5:30min, Comedy, Mexico
Director: Diego Garibay Wendler
Synopsis: An obsessive guy faces one of the most mysterious enigmas in life: where do missing socks go? The answer is more complex than he imagined.
To purchase festival passes, visit https://xerb.tv/channel/berlinscififilmfest/virtual-events
For more information about festival programming, check out their website or follow them on Facebook: @berlinscifi | Instagram: @berlin.scifi.filmfest | Twitter: @BScifi
#BSFF
Berlin Sci-Fi attendees in cosplay.