The AKE DIKHEA? International Roma Film Festival welcomes Berlin and international audiences for the 8th time in 2024! With a focus on democracy and the importance of plural, intersectional perspectives, the festival presents 22 films from 16 countries, three panel discussions, a circus show, two parties, industry events for filmmakers and much more.

Let's celebrate together! On the first day of the festival, we will come together from 10 pm in the Grüner Salon, where the festival centre offers a relaxed refugefor visitors every day and the bar provides refreshing drinks before, between and after the film projections. Our good friends DJ TRU:L and DJ Bogdan provide the best music for our opening party: they are Romanian-born, Berlin-based DJs and promoters who organise events with the intention of uniting people through nightlife music with a feel-good and soul vibe at its core. They flavour their selection with unexpected gems of all kinds, so get ready for a sonic journey around the world!

Acting may be part of many children's professional dreams, but in realityit is often a tough job: actors have to stand up to a lot of competition, always give their best and also make a lot of compromises.

What experiences do Roma actors have in this industry? What challenges do they have to overcome? What roles are they offered? What room for manoeuvre do they have in the acting process and how open is the film industry to their self-determined perspectives?

The discussion also ties in with the topic of representation on screen: Who gets to play whom? Do Roma characters always have to be played by Roma? And when will Roma actors finally be allowed to play non-Roma characters?

With:
Kristóf Horváth, actor, writer, director and drama teacher
Simonida Selimović, actress, director and rapper
Alina Șerban,director, screenwriter and actress
Bajram Severdjan, actor

Moderation:
Themba Bhebhe, independent industry programmer, founding member of the Programmers of Colour Collective (POC2), co-founder of “Engage”, former director of Diversity & Inclusion of the European Film Market (Berlinale)

Throughout Europe, we have been witnessing a political and social shift to the right for years. Hate speech and hate crime against people of colour, Sinti and Roma, Jews, Muslims, LGBTIQ+ and other oppressed groups are gaining new strength, an honest but critical debate with opposing positions is often no longer possible, many people want simple answers to complex questions.

Together with our partners from the so-called Visegrad countries -Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary -we ask ourselves, using the example of the Sinti and Roma, how can diverse, authentic and ‘different’ narratives contribute to strengthening democracy? How can filmmakers and artists contribute to more diverse and racism-critical opinion-forming processes? And are there examples of films or works of art that have had a lasting impact on social or political discourse?

Representatives of the following partners will
take part in the discussion:

Independent Theatre Hungary (Hungary)
Jaw Dikh (Poland)
Media Voice (Slovakia)
romea.cz (Czech Republic)
TUKE.TV (Czech Republic)

Thanks to the support of the International Visegrad Fund, the 8th International Festival of Romani Film can offer a unique opportunity to meet over a refreshing drink. The cocktail party brings together filmmakers, artists and cultural institutes from the so-called Visegrad countries –Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary –the guests of the AKE DIKHEA? Festival and Berlin's urban society creates a relaxed and inspiring atmosphere for dialogue on a wide range of topics: From the festival films and events to current political developments in Europe.

The use of archival materials plays a crucial role in shaping historical narratives and representing diverse experiences. Archival justice becomes especially pertinent within this context, as it seeks to address the need for ethical and equitable use of historical documentation while amplifying the voices of marginalized communities. A particularly striking example is the question of how to deal with the film and photographic documentation of Riefenstahl's filming of Tiefland, for which Sinti and Roma from the Nazi concentration camps were misused as extras.

This panel discussion aims to delve into the intersection of archival justice and filmmaking, focusing on the empowerment of marginalized communities in reclaiming and reinterpreting their narratives inorder to inspire actionable steps towards decolonizing the gaze within archival practices in the cinematic context.

With:
Nadja Smith, producer of “La Singla”

Virginia Maza Castán, scriptwriter of “My Holocaust, Philomena Franz”

Ibou Diop, Literary scientist and curator

Moderation:
Hamze Bytyçi, Artistic Director of AKE DIKHEA?