Minutes of applause for Steven Spielberg: The cult director was honored at the Berlinale for his life's work. In his acceptance speech, the 76-year-old also spoke about his personal relationship with Germany.
Steven Spielberg was honored for his life's work at the Berlin Film Festival. The Hollywood director - whose films have made more money than the works of any other filmmaker worldwide - received a minute-long ovation from the audience on Tuesday evening when the Berlinale directors Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatria presented him with the Honorary Golden Bear.
"Germany has done a lot to deal with xenophobia, anti-Semitism and the Holocaust"
He owes a lot to German cinema, Spielberg explained in a speech afterwards. Directors such as Ernst Lubitsch, Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Werner Herzog had shaped him, which is why his work is "somehow at home in Germany". As a Jewish filmmaker, this is particularly important for him. "Germany has done a lot to deal with xenophobia, anti-Semitism and the Holocaust," said the 76-year-old. Many nations could learn from Germany's determination not to let its own past be forgotten. But according to Spielberg, it is also important in Germany to continue to uphold the memory: "No country should sit back and righteously."
With films like 'Indiana Jones' (1981), 'Jurassic Park' (1993) and 'Schindler's List' (1994), Spielberg brought countless great stories to the screen over the course of his career. Now he's telling his own, so to speak: "The Fabelmans" (theatrical release: March 9), a family portrait and at the same time a homage to the cinema, is strongly inspired by the youth of the Hollywood star, who was born in Ohio in 1946, and who directed and wrote the screenplay wrote down. He has a chance of winning an Oscar in both categories in the near future - the drama received a total of seven nominations.
