Berlinale considers increasing ticket prices due to inflation

“We will have to make them a little more expensive, because at the moment we are facing an increase in costs,” he said.

“We are still weighing internally what we can or want to do. Because at the same time, of course, we don’t want to scare the public by raising prices too much,” he said, adding that, in any case, the increase would be less than five euros (US$ 5.30).

Rissenbeek stated that the increase in energy prices has increased the costs of many service providers, such as technology and assembly at the Berlinale Palast or even cinemas. These companies have higher personnel and technology costs, which in turn will be charged to the Berlinale, he said.

“Cinemas have higher energy costs, so theater rent is higher for us. For reasons I don’t quite understand, the buffet prices also doubled,” Rissenbeek said.

Another problem is staff shortages in the events industry, so workers may ask for higher wages, he said.

As for possible solutions, Rissenbeek said he will adjust his events and that the festival has two new main sponsors and other partners. “But we can’t finance the increased costs alone, even with the new sponsors.”

He also announced that the management is in talks with the Secretary of State for Culture.

Along with Cannes and Venice, the Berlinale is one of the main film festivals in the world. The next edition is scheduled for February 16th to 26th, 2023.