Kudos to Ulrich and Erika Gregor

The 72-year history of the Berlin Film Festival has been shaped by many people, but arguably none have left a greater mark than Erika and Ulrich Gregor, the founders of the Arsenal Cinema and creators the festival’s influential Forum section. And it’s not just a matter of the sheer amount of time the couple was around (the Forum was created in the 1960s, became an official part of the Berlinale in 1971, and the Gregors retired thirty years later in 2001). Their daring choice of films molded the festival as a whole, forging its identity during the years of the Cold War and the Berlin wall as a key rendezvous point for Eastern European films in the West.

When Ulrich and Erika, still students, rang the bell of the Polish military mission in East Berlin and said they’d like to show some Polish films in West Berlin, it was a controversial act, given the political climate. But the films came through and audiences had an opportunity to appreciate the work of Andrzej Wajda and Andrzej Munk, who were soon followed by leading directors from the USSR and all over Eastern Europe. They introduced audiences to cutting edge world cinema not only at the festival but year round at the Kino Arsenal. It was the first non-commercial cinema in Germany when Erika and Ulrich co-founded it in 1970 as an arthouse venue screening experimental video art, classics of film history and undubbed films from around the world.

Celebrating their achievements this year is a new documentary by Alice Agneskirchner, Come With Me to the Cinema – The Gregors, which will be shown as a Forum Special. A vodka toast to both of them!