The Berlinale logo combines the silhouette of an upright bear with the festival’s handwritten name. The red bear appears in profile with its forepaws raised; the word Berlinale runs vertically alongside the figure. An uneven drawn outline and freely flowing lettering distinguish the mark from more formal typographic compositions. The bear connects the festival with Berlin and with its principal awards, the Golden Bear and Silver Bears. In its standalone form, the mark contains no dates, edition number or event year and represents the festival independently of a particular season. The bear and handwritten name retain fixed proportions and form a compact vertical composition.
Berlinale, the Berlin International Film Festival, was first held in 1951. It brings together competition screenings, special programmes, meetings with filmmakers and events for film industry professionals. An international jury evaluates the main competition; alongside it, the festival presents a variety of contemporary cinema and makes films accessible to the general public. The European Film Market is associated with the festival and provides a platform for professional meetings and work on film projects. The history of its awards adds another dimension to the event’s visual identity: sculptor Renée Sintenis created the bear statuette based on one of her earlier works. Her authorship concerns the award sculpture itself and does not mean that she designed the festival’s graphic logo.
