Introduced by Robert Beavers

I met Renate Sami when the filmmaker Ute Aurand invited me to show films at FilmSamstag in Berlin in the late 1990s, but it was only later that I experienced the calm directness of her own film and video work, and became acquainted with the emotion at its source. When I moved to Berlin, I learned more: how she came to film and what directions her filmmaking took

The program Spring Portraits groups together filmmakers who at times deal loosely with the theme of portraits - either of people, places, atmospheres, and who mostly also have, in some way, a connection to the city of Berlin. Some are long established names, others are making their first film - what is important is that they share some sensibility - and a belief in films power as a medium to transcend mere representation whilst simultaneously capturing something of life's fleeting moments.

*all films will be shown on film