Sweet Popcorn & Subtitles: Going to the Movies in Berlin

[1:22] Yes. Hi.

Manuel:
[1:23] Am I saying your name right?

Ricardo:
[1:24] That's good. Yeah.

Jae:
[1:25] Ricardo.

Ricardo:
[1:27] But actually, side fact, when I was growing up, I couldn't roll the Rs.

Manuel:
[1:32] Really? You were in Mexico and couldn't roll the R's?

Ricardo:
[1:34] Yeah. Tough, growing up. So I have like a weird connection with my name. Like for me, it's perfectly fine if someone like says like Ricardo or "Rrricarrdo" or whatever, like, yeah. But at some point I eventually learned to do it. And yeah, some version.

Jae:
[1:48] How do you do it?

Ricardo:
[1:49] Ricardo. The hard ... I think like a way, like think to have like a letter P before it, and that motion that you did and try to not pronounce the P, so: Rrrrr. And that that puts you in the position to do it. So like this is a podcast about like how to speak! No?

Manuel:
[2:10] We're two minutes into this episode, already digressed. Let me get us back on track. First of all, who are you? And why are you in Berlin?

Ricardo

[2:21] What made you move to Berlin?

Ricardo:
[2:23] I came to work for a year, six years ago, and just stayed here. And I'm working in the IT field, mostly data topics. Back in Mexico ... so relevant, I used to run a cinema. So that's why watching movies has always been a thing, and I really enjoy it. And Berlin is probably the best city I can think of for a movie lover person ... We high fived!

Jae:
[2:54] I'm high fiving him right now! Yes. Movies are really big in my life as well. I went to film school. Film is like ... film is life.

Ricardo:
[3:03] Yeah, it's great. And I think it's also ... for me, it's not just watching movies, but watching movies in specific places. So through the movie watching experience, like, yes, of course, the movie itself tells you something, but also the cinema experience tells you a lot, no? And it's something completely distinct to watching a movie in Berlin as it is watching a movie in Mexico or in Japan, no? Like ...

Manuel:
[3:26] True. So you're skeptical of the whole "streaming is going to replace everything."

Ricardo:
[3:33] It will replace, and has replaced a big part of it, but I think there is, of course, the communal part of like being somewhere and especially in Germany, everyone turns off their phones and pays attention, and it's there.

Manuel:
[3:48] Okay, okay, let's get there. So you amazingly created an outline of this episode, because we're not just going to talk about this randomly. We have information to share with you, Dear Listener who is planning to move to Berlin or has already moved here.

Germans at the Cinema (Navigating the Cinema Experience)

[4:04] And, as with many things, the Germans do it a little bit in a special way. Like this is the first point on your outline: Germans at the Cinema.

Ricardo:
[4:18] Yes.

Manuel:
[4:19] Navigating the Cinema Experience.

Ricardo:
[4:20] Correct.

Manuel:
[4:21] Tell us about it.

Ricardo:
[4:23] I think, especially in parts of life that feel like so much natural to people, like the idea of needing to set instructions doesn't come up to anybody. Like you go to the the cinema and you grow up going to the cinema, and you never wonder like: Yeah, maybe someone doesn't know what OmU. means. Like: Sure, we're just going to put it in a tiny thing and everyone is going to get it! And that goes along also with all the particularities of every country, every place of how it goes, you know. Like I always remember I was living in Singapore and traveling around, and to me it was very funny, even like within countries that are very close by, this completely different approach, no? Like the national anthem plays before movies in Thailand and you stand up, and like before the movie, and just things like that. But in Germany in particular, as might be expected, everything is structured, organized, people are very disciplined. Yes, people take hobbies seriously here. And that's great. I love it. I think it's fantastic.

Jae:
[5:29] I like your point of like the whole you growing up, you don't think about these things. I mean, even as a foreigner coming to Germany and going to the cinemas, like one topic to talk about is the whole dubbing and all the acronyms. That's something I would never think about, that like: Oh, I'm going to a new country, the movies aren't going to be standard English. You know?

Manuel:
[5:49] Which is something that has always bothered me, that in most of Germany you can't even catch a movie in the original language, because like the movie theater in the town where I grew up, maybe they would have one showing per week where you could see like the biggest movie in the original language, usually English, not always, but in Berlin you do have the privilege of being able to go to the theater and see the movie in the original language. But in most cities, that isn't even possible. Tell us about the acronyms. Like if you want to see a specific version, what do you need to know?

Ricardo:
[6:29] As a guiding point, if nothing is specified, assume that it is in German. Like if there's no letters attached to the title of the movie, it's very likely going to be in German, so dubbed. There are, I think, four very common acronyms there. So OmU, like original with subtitles.

Manuel:
[6:49] Original mit Untertiteln.

Ricardo:
[6:50] There you go. OmeU.

Manuel:
[6:55] Original mit englischen Untertiteln. So it's the English subtitles.

Ricardo:
[6:59] Exactly. Yeah, so if you go watch the latest Korean movie, it will be with English subtitles if it has that. Then it is OV.

Manuel:
[7:06] Original Fassung ... ? No, Version: Original Version. That's the original. That's what you want.

Ricardo:
[7:12] I mean you can also go OmeU and it's going to be the original with English subtitles. OV is the original without subtitles. I'd actually rather have subtitles, it's like just to ... I'm not looking at them all the time, but if it's something I just glance, but it's also there. And the last one is DF.

Manuel:
[7:33] Deutsche Fassung? So that's basically what normally doesn't even have an abbreviation, it's just the German version.

Ricardo:
[7:39] Exactly. That is the one that you likely want to avoid unless you want to have also a cultural experience.

Manuel:
[7:43] Or you're learning German and you feel like you really want to expose yourself to as much German as you can.

Ricardo:
[7:49] I mean, we can have a conversation. Like maybe it's not the best way to do it, but yeah, sure, go and watch a dubbed movie.

Manuel:
[7:55] I mean, I would say if you have like a favorite movie, watching the dubbed version might be good practice because you already know the content and now you're just getting it in German. But that's not usually something that you would go to the movies for. You would do that on Netflix, I think, or ...

Ricardo:
[8:09] Exactly. Yeah.

Manuel:
[8:10] All right.

Ricardo:
[8:12] Acronyms. And in general, like I said, it's very likely outside of Berlin going to be in German. And in here, the advantage is that there are a lot of movies that are in with either original version or with English subtitles.

Manuel:
[8:27] There was one movie theater ... Do we have movie ... ? Okay, we're going to talk about movie theaters later. Continue talking about the experience of going to the movies!

Ricardo:
[8:38] Exactly. Jae, how do you take popcorn usually?

Jae:
[8:46] This is like, yeah, this was a thing. Typically, I mean, you only have really one option of popcorn.

Ricardo:
[8:52] You don't even think about it.

Jae:
[8:54] You don't think about it. You have caramel popcorn, and on a special day caramel, but standard popcorn is buttered popcorn or unbuttered. That's all your options. And then you come here and what do we have?

Ricardo:
[9:08] What did you take usually as popcorn?

Manuel:
[9:10] Sweet, or I have a mix it sweet and salty. When I went to the States as an exchange student, I was like: What do you mean not every movie theater even has sweet popcorn? And what do you mean it's called kettle corn?

Jae:
[9:22] It's called kettle corn.

Manuel:
[9:23] So yeah, Germany, like I don't know, I think both are popular, but if there is only one option, it's going to be the sweet one, not the salty one.

Jae:
[9:33] But it's so ... That's another culture shock.

Ricardo:
[9:36] It's the default. The default is that it's going to be sweet popcorn, no?

Jae:
[9:40] Nooo ...

Ricardo:
[9:42] Okay, so hot take here, I don't know if I put it in the outline, I mentioned that I used to have a cinema for ...

Manuel:
[9:48] Yeah, what was your position?

Ricardo:
[9:50] Also, side note: like maybe a good person to talk about movies is not the best business person, because for two years I did not sell popcorn at my cinema because I didn't like popcorn. I still don't like popcorn.

Manuel:
[10:00] So nobody should have it!

Ricardo:
[10:02] Exactly. And until for the 200th time a friend was like, "Don't you ... like wouldn't you like to make money?"

Manuel:
[10:09] "Do you like money?"

Ricardo:
[10:11] "Would you like the business to not go down?" It's like: "Okay, yeah, sure, whatever."

Jae:
[10:14] I have a bigger question. Were people are at least able to bring in their own like snacks?

Manuel:
[10:20] Like smuggling in popcorn in their pants!

Ricardo:
[10:22] It's ... I mean, not popcorn itself, but there's a cinema that I really like, Arsenal Kino, and they also don't have popcorn. That's not why I like them, but they don't sell popcorn. Popcorn not available. And people bring their snacks, like as proper Germans, they have everything. There's people who come with a Tupperware, like cut elements and everything. And there's the ones who just like buy like pretzel sticks and stuff so that they have them.

Jae:
[10:46] I do that in America. You're not allowed to, but what I would do is go to the Dollar Store with my mom. We would just get a whole bunch of cheap snacks!

Ricardo:
[10:57] Part of the experience!

Jae:
[10:58] Sit at the back, and just eat ... !

Manuel:
[11:00] So what do people need to know? They need to specify what kind of popcorn they want.

Ricardo:
[11:04] Exactly. Yeah. And also, I mean, then we go to maybe the ... at least for me in Mexico, if you want something to drink, you get soda or water. But here you can get beer, wine, like you can go watch the latest, most dramatic movie and there's going to be like a couple of people with the proper wine glasses, you know, not like ... Stem and everything, just like sitting inside the movie theater drinking wine. And I think that's fantastic. That's how movie watching should be.

Jae:
[11:32] You can not only watch a movie, but you can get drunk watching a movie.

Ricardo:
[11:35] Yeah, and it's like the saddest movie, and I think that's also connected, no? Like it's part of letting the emotions go. And I've been watching some movies recently that have people completely sobbing in a sad movie. And I didn't experience that that much, to that extent. And I really think that they're a bit tipsy.

Manuel:
[11:53] If you need alcohol for that? I can sob without having alcohol!

Ricardo:
[11:57] Yeah. I mean, there's very few things better than a good movie cry.

Jae:
[12:01] Exactly.

Manuel:
[12:04] Licorice. You wrote down: Licorice. I love it. I'm a huge fan of licorice.

Ricardo:
[12:07] Also salt and sweet.

Manuel:
[12:09] Oh, that's true! Yeah, yeah.

Jae:
[12:10] Wait, what?

Manuel:
[12:11] Do you know what licorice is?

Jae:
[12:13] Yes, I know what licorice is. But salt?

Manuel:
[12:15] Yeah, you don't really know what licorice is because the licorice in the United States is like candy. It's just candy. But true licorice ...

Jae:
[12:21] Ari gave me like one licorice thing. I didn't really like it!

Manuel:
[12:25] Real licorice is actually good, and it can be sweet or salty or you can get a mix. And movie theaters often, especially like the smaller ones, sell like this high quality Scandinavian licorice.

Ricardo:
[12:36] Lakritz.

Manuel:
[12:37] And it's a good snack for the movie theater.

Ricardo:
[12:42] I never take popcorn, but I do take sometimes licorice.

Manuel:
[12:46] Yeah. Me too. Me too.

Jae:
[12:47] Okay. We have like two against one!

Ricardo:
[12:48] I mean, also like I'm very particular and I don't like when people are making a lot of noise in the cinema. And with licorice, it just doesn't make noise. It gets annoying that it's stuck in your teeth, but you're not like, "crunch, crunch, crunch!"

Manuel:
[13:01] Exactly. I mean, unless it's in a plastic bag and you're constantly taking it out of the plastic bag, But it's true ...

Jae:
[13:08] I can see how you guys are both friends.

Ricardo:
[13:10] I mean, you, you people, you person listening to the podcast, you don't can know this now ...

Manuel:

[13:13] "You people! You people!"

Ricardo:
[13:14] ... but I am eating licorice at the moment and it's so soft and quiet that ...

Jae:
[13:20] You are? How come?

Ricardo:
[13:22] Yeah. ASMR. Part of the magic.

Manuel:
[13:26] Yeah, but it's true. I also hate people making noises. And I think in general, people are ... Like it's rude to be loud in the movie theater in Germany, right? Like you try to be quiet.

Ricardo:
[13:40] Yeah. Is it?

Jae:
[13:41] Yes. Like even in America, if you're … I mean, you can't stop everybody, but like I'm a person who, if my friends want to ask me a question, I'm like: After the movie's done, please. Or if I see other people, then it's like a thing. But actually, you know what? I feel like in Germany, if there's a loud person, people ... like Germans won't say anything.

Ricardo:
[14:02] Oh, I don't think so. They don't … They don't ...

Manuel:
[14:03] Nooo! "Shhh!"

Jae:
[14:05] I have been in movie theaters twice and there's been a lot of people and no one has said anything to these people.

Ricardo:
[14:02] We don't say anything, we just, "Shhh!"

Jae:
[14:13] Well see, yes, but ...

Manuel:
[14:14] And if someone's kicking my seat behind me, I will just turn around and stare at them, like give them the stinky eye.

Jae:
[14:22] There's this passiveness. Like in America, we would vocally say, "Be quiet!"

Manuel:
[14:26] "Shut up!"

Ricardo:
[14:28] Yeah. Good to see. But I think that's where ... how some country functions, in a way, like I get the impression that movie watching in Mexico, it was much more common to have people around that were talking and, yes, you could tell them to be quiet in whatever passive or aggressive or both way. But here it's quite rare. And I've been in cases that is even the trailers and someone starts ... is talking and a person from behind like stands up and goes next to them and they're like, "Yeah, when the movie starts, you're going to be quiet, right?" And then they go back and you're like: All right, perfect! I don't need to be the one saying this! I just have that I just like sit down, enjoy, and that's it. And it's great.

Jae:
[15:08] I have another question about the audience interaction. When there is like a big movie, let's say like a Marvel movie or something like that, and like at least back in California or Texas or whatnot the audience is fully immersed in the experience, you have people yelling, laughing, cheering on, and like in that type of sense. Is that common in Germany as well? Or in that sort of movie will people still be very quiet?

Manuel:
[15:38] No. Laughing, yes. If it's a comedy, people will laugh.

Jae:
[15:41] But like the loudness, the ...

Manuel:
[15:43] No, it'll be more like: It's so funny, I can't help myself but to actually laugh - that kind of laugh. But not like: Ha, ha, ha, I will just let myself go ...

Jae:
[15:52] Or cheering the audience?

Ricardo:
[15:54] No, never. I've never heard a cheer in Germany.

Jae:
[15:57] Oh my gosh! Like when I went to see Spider-Man No Way Home - and spoiler for anybody - but like when the two past Spider-Mans came out, the entire theater was like berserk, like crazy loudness! And I just can't imagine in Germany ...

Manuel:
[16:13] No, no, no.

Jae:
[16:14] Even the biggest Spider-Man fans here in Germany, I can't imagine them doing that.

Ricardo:
[16:18] I mean, sometimes all these preconceptions about how people are in a certain country are being done by exaggeration, and I think here is actually quite accurate. Like what you expect of how they're going to be, that's how people are here. And I love it. I think it's great. Perfect for movie watching.

Manuel:
[16:35] The next point you wrote down is one hundred percent me, and it's funny because people always argue with me about it. Like, why? Staying until the end of the credits.

Jae:
[16:46] Only for a Marvel movie.

Manuel:
[16:47] I do it with every movie. It's like I paid for the whole movie, I'm going to see the whole movie. And it's also kind of like a cool-down. Like I don't want to see the last frame and jump up and get on with my life. I want to be like: Okay, I watched this movie, not at home but in the theater, and now I'm going to sit here for five more minutes, or ten if it's some mega production, and cool down and think about it, and look at the [trailers] credits, and look at the names, and think about who these people might be, and what they're doing with their lives. And also, if I get lucky, there's like an Easter egg at the end of the credits.

Jae:
[17:29] Only for Marvel.

Ricardo:
[17:30] No, I ... Before it was like also a bit of a foreign idea for me to stay until the very end, like, yes, I didn't jump right away. But I think it's great, like with some friends that I was started going to movies with, and they would stay until the very, very, very end, and it's also ... it's something that it happens, no? It's also weird. Like if you're sitting down and everyone around you is still sitting down and you want to get up, you don't want to bother everybody because you're just rushing to get out. You just sit down and wait for two minutes, and then when everyone stands up, you leave.

Manuel:
[18:04] But not everybody does it. What do you think the ratio is of people getting up, and people staying until the end?

Ricardo:
[18:09] It really depends on the cinema that you go to. If it's a Programmkino, you know, I think it's like a good 60% is the majority of people who stay not until the very last frame but even ... I mean, just also by how the operation of the cinema is. Like in Mexico, and I think also in America, when the movie is over, the lights are dim when the visual part, when the credits start rolling. And in Germany, it's not the case. In Germany, they wait at least to a certain part of the credits, and they slowly start turning on the lights, in some cases all the way until the very end of the credits. Which is also, like if you have to leave and not fall down, you wait a bit because you like to see where you're going.

Jae:
[18:50] And are people supposed to be silent during the credits as well, or is it okay ... ?

Ricardo:
[18:55] No, I think that's okay, because that's also in the ... you're processing it.

Jae:
[19:01] Yeah, so it's like, "So what do you think about the movie?" Or what not, yeah.

Manuel:
[19:05] Yeah, you can start talking about it.

Jae:
[19:08] Now my other question is like interactions with other people in the cinema. Like I've been very ... like I thought I could do that in America, like there's a movie called ...

Ricardo:
[19:21] During the movie?

Jae:
[19:22] No, no, no. I mean, kind of, but like more like at the end. But like there's a movie called, Bones and All, that came and it was very, very crazy. And I really wanted to interact with the other people around me. I'm like: Oh my gosh! Like, I'm like ...

Ricardo:
[19:36] Did you do it?

Jae:
[19:37] Yeah. Or, but like, I feel like, I don't know, like are Germans still more like: I only come by myself or my group and I stay there? Or if everyone's happy or whatnot, you can just share the vibe with the others?

Ricardo:
[19:51] During the movie? I don't think so, but ...

Manuel:
[19:54] No, no. You're not really supposed to talk during the movie at all, with anyone.

Jae:
[20:00] Not even like the gestures or whatnot?

Manuel:
[20:03] Not really. Actually I feel like when someone tries to do that to me, I feel like ... I saw a movie with Janusz, my dad, a while ago, and he was trying to tell me things and I was just like, "Shhh!"

Jae:
[20:17] It's like ... No, no, that's different, that's like talking during the movie and I'm like: No. But like it was like a funny moment. Or I go back to the Spider-Man example, like when that movie came out and those moments happened, you were like ... I was sitting by people, we were like: Oh my God! Like together.

Manuel:
[20:37] We don't ... Like in Germany, we don't really interact with strangers that much.

Ricardo:
[20:44] But you can make strangers at the cinema slowly your friends, no? Like there are these,especially the cinemas that have like a very distinct, almost personality to how they're scheduling movies, you see the same faces over and over, you know, like this one that doesn't sell popcorn. Like there's these people that I don't know their names, but it's like ... I mean, it's the most that you're going to get with from some people here but like this gentle nod! It's like ...

Manuel:
[21:08] Another regular!

Ricardo:
[21:09] I feel like: Okay, I made it! It took me six years, but like ... !

Jae:
[21:15] But there was another movie I saw, it was called, Close, and it was a very sad movie. And I saw all these groups of people talking about it outside once everyone left, and I wanted to jump in on the conversation but I felt very nervous.

Ricardo:
[21:32] I think that's okay, like if you find a group of people, like you just ... In general, I would say, and that's also particular, I don't like talking about the plot of the movie in the lobby because I think like, yeah, I might be waiting to go into the movie and then someone literally like right before like ...

Jae:
[21:55] "Oh my gosh, could you see that from Darth Vader?"

Manuel:
[21:59] "That's the biggest surprise!"

Ticket Prices

[22:04] Yeah, so, prices. Tell us about prices. Is this an expensive hobby compared to the movies?

Ricardo:
[22:11] Compared to how the prices are in Mexico, I would think that is the case, and also other activities here. So if you just go the regular approach now, we're going to go into a bit of detail there, but like if you go to a mainstream cinema or some of the more specific ones, tickets are going to be around €10 or a bit more. Also, I don't know how it is in other countries, but in Mexico, it's like a standard price like maybe around the day of the week or something or for weekends. Here is like you need a full table to see how the prices are, like it's different on Mondays than on Thursdays, and also if the movie is under two hours, it's a certain cost, and if it's like then, it's an additional 50 cents or €1.

Manuel:
[22:54] Überlängenzuschlag. It's the overtime fee.

Ricardo:
[22:58] Yeah. I don't know. Is that a thing?

Jae:
[23:02] No, we have like a standard price.

Ricardo:
[23:04] Yeah, it's the price. The price is the price and that's it. And here it's not the case, like you can pay from €8 to €13 at the same cinema.

Jae:
[23:13] Interesting.

Manuel:
[23:14] And usually most most theaters have like a keynote talk one day of the week. That's like the lowest for them in terms of business, where it's cheaper.

Ricardo:
[23:22] To make it more complex, yeah.

Jae:
[23:24] Do they have matinee prices as well, like the first showing of the day?

Ricardo:
[23:30] I think it's more the approach for just one day, but I mostly have no idea because, we're talking about it, I just buy this membership, there's a flat fee, and I think I've had it for maybe four or five years now. And I think it's great. So it's like this group of formerly independent Programmkinos that got together at Yorck ...

Jae:
[23:54] Kinos?

Manuel:
[23:55] So it's an association. It's like a group of independent cinemas that came together to say: Okay, we're kind of the independent movie theaters in Berlin, not all of them, but a lot of them, and we're going to like work to get ... No? Is that not how ... ?

Ricardo:
[24:09] I don't ... I don't think it's exactly like that, but maybe in another episode, the people running Yorck Cinema can come and ...

Manuel:
[24:16] But the point is, this is not like ... Yorck Kinogruppe, it's not like one company that made all these movie theaters and they're essentially all the same and they all look the same and they all act the same. They very much look and act like independent movie theaters, small independent movie theaters. Some are tiny, some are bigger, but they are all under this group. And this group sells a yearly membership that's essentially a flat rate to any of these movie theaters. And I had it many years ago and it was like one of my best years. I don't know if it was because of this or it was just that ... It was an amazing year.

Ricardo:
[24:53] Yeah. And it's also, so how it works that you, I mean, now it changed. Before it was ... actually got like a proper card that you needed to go to the cinema to get your ticket, and now you can just book them from the app or from the website. It's a bit under €20 now, like €19, €18, whatever, depending on how much you...

Manuel:
[25:13] €19.90 per month..

Ricardo:
[25:14] Yeah, and I think maybe if you paid all upfront, like the full year, it's a bit lower. In any case, so if you're thinking that like in average most movies are a bit over €10, if you only watch two movies per month, it's already lower than ...

Manuel:
[25:30] For an entire year, because it's at least one year, like you can't cancel. Like you can't get it for a month and then cancel.

Ricardo:
[25:35] Exactly.

Manuel:
[25:36] But yeah, the trick with this is you need to have a group of friends who are doing it with you. If you're doing it just with one other person or by yourself, it's never going to work. But the way it worked when I had it in like 2012, we got together and there were like twelve of us who all got this card. We just had a WhatsApp group. And so literally like every day someone would be like: Going to see this movie today, who wants to come? And there would always be two or three or four or five or six of us joining, and I saw one or two or three movies a week. And some people were like: Okay, the new Star Wars is out. I'm going to watch it like 16 times because why not? And it's kind of cool. I think it's great.

Jae:
[26:18] Yeah, you definitely get your money's worth!

Ricardo:
[26:23] But I actually watch movies on my own quite often, like almost every day.

Jae:
[26:28] I'm a solo movie watcher as well, too, like I don't mind going to movies by myself.

Ricardo:
[26:32] There's always this tense moment like when I'm going to watch a movie with someone for the first time, either a date or a friend that I've never with and wasn't at cinema with, and they're like ... and you're thinking ... and they're talking during the trailers, and I'm like: Are they going to talk during the movie? And I get a bit tense and then it's always this element of stress. And when you go on your own, you sit down and enjoy and let the other people shout at the ones who are talking.

Manuel:
[26:58] And many of the Yorck cinemas, not all of them, but many of them have regular showings in the original language. So that's the other reason why this is a good thing to get.

Ricardo:
[27:10] Actually for me, if you have this combination of that you're moving to Berlin and you like movies and you like to explore the city, to me, it was like a way that I got to know the neighborhoods, you know, because Yorck has, I think, 16 cinemas with different amounts of screens. And like you said, it's like a very like its own personality in a bit. Like Delphi Lux has different programming than Odeon and different ... and you start seeing ... But it's also like in different neighborhoods, no? And like my first one, two years in Berlin, I would just like see: And okay, what is happening in this cinema, in this neighborhood that I've never been in? And there's one in the southwest, like beyond the Ring, I'm blanking on the name now.

[27:57] Dahlem, Capitol Dahlem is the cinema. I would never be in Dahlem, I would never think of going there, but it was like it was for free to watch the movies. I went to one one Sunday to watch like a couple of documentaries. And it was only like ... Also you see the demographic is completely different, no?. Like everyone stayed to watch both of them because they were retired people, they didn't have anything else to do and it was a Sunday. So, and I just usually ... like if I go, and because it's free I often watch like two movies in in a row or something, and I'm often the only one doing that, no? Most rational people just watch one movie and you go. And then in this place with like 30 people that they didn't even stand up, they just like stayed there waiting for the movie. Like the ushers came in and they just like remained sitting.

Jae:
[28:44] They didn't even go to the bathroom because they were so dehydrated!

Ricardo:
[28:47] So I'm painting a great person of my ... great image of myself! Like I'm basically a retiree German! It's like that's my style! That's my vibe!

The Cinema Scene in Berlin

Manuel:
[28:55] So we're already kind of deep into the topic of the cinema scene in Berlin. So the Yorck Kinos are all these formerly independent movie theaters, and they do have the advantage that you can get like a flat rate to all of them. But then there's other movie theaters. How many movie theaters are there in Berlin? Do you know?

Jae:
[29:15] I have no idea. A lot.

Ricardo:
[29:16] Like in total? This is where we bring the facts!

Manuel:
[29:19] Probably fewer than there used to be. Do you know what and where the UFA movie theater in Berlin was and what happened to it?

Ricardo:
[29:27] No.

Manuel:
[29:28] It was on Kurfürstendamm and it's now the Apple store. Apple bought it and up on the second level where the actual screen was, it's just like an event space now. So you can love or hate it, but I used to work there. So that used to be a movie theater.

Ricardo:
[29:47] I mean, I don't know how unique from Berlin it is, or Germany in general, but this approach of Programm, you know, it's like maybe art house cinema would be like the equivalent in the US or somewhere else.

Manuel:
[30:00] But why is it Programm? It's just independent, right? It's just like, yeah, a big chain.

Ricardo:
[30:04] Yeah, that means ... but then they tend to develop a bit of like their style, like of how they're going.

Jae:
[30:10] That's why I love the Yorck. Like when I went to Rollberg, because it was like right across the street from me, I just loved the aesthetic of it all. And then I kind of saw that.

Manuel:
[30:20] It's like hidden in a mall. I used to go there all the time because I used to live there.

Jae:
[30:23] Yeah, I was very confused whenever I got there. And I'm like: Oh my gosh, it's so nice! And then my favorite one is also yours, The Kino International has that same type of like ... I don't know, Yorck is like very minimal, I would say a little bit hipster-like.

Manuel:
[30:36] You also have Neues Off right on the same street.

Jae:
[30:40] Say what?

Manuel:
[30:41] Neues Off. Have you been to that one? It just has one single screen. And it's on the same street, it's on the way down to Hermannplatz and it's very nice.

Ricardo:
[30:52] It's also from Yorck.

Manuel:
[30:53] Okay, I have to try that one.

Ricardo:
[30:55] There's like this bit of a triangle there in this area and it's like Trollberg, Passage, and Neues Off, all with Yorck. And sometimes, yes, I watch a movie in one, I take my bike and go to the other one to watch the next one, because of the best fit with the schedule, yeah. And yeah, I think that's ... So my recommendation in general, like if you're into watching movies, is yes, try to check out the best ones. Like we can talk about them now, but it's mostly: find the one that is more convenient to you, no? Like there's probably ... given just the number, I mean I wrote the names there, but we would just take like two minutes reading all the names of the smaller cinemas there. There's probably one that is five minutes or ten minutes by bike from wherever you are inside the Ringbahn in Berlin.

Manuel:
[31:43] Okay, so you wrote a list of independent theaters that aren't Yorck. I'm going to put those in the show notes, so people can just look at them and figure out if they have one that's close to them. You wrote: Hidden Gems. What does that mean?

Ricardo:
[31:58] I think even within people who are like actively watching movies, and they maybe have their Yorck Kino Abo and something, they might not know about them, and I put two there. The first one is Arsenal, Arsenal Kino, like it's an independent organization and it's currently in the basement of Sony Center, which is exactly where you expect to find one of the best cinemas in Berlin.

Manuel:
[32:23] No, not at all!

Ricardo:
[32:24] I know! It's like in the basement of Sony Center, there's these two screens that are part of this organization that is dedicated to like, yeah, older movies showing.

Manuel:
[32:37] It does make sense, because the Sony Center is such a weird place in Berlin. It's from the time when Sony was like "It," you know, but that's also where Berlinale happens, right? So it is, in a way ... And also it's where the big CineStar Original used to be, which was the only …

Ricardo:
[33:02] Where the IMAX used to be, there's now another IMAX.

Manuel:
[33:05] Yeah, the CineStar Original at Sony Center used to be the one really big mainstream movie theater that would only show movies in English or in the original language. So that was nice because sometimes there would be like, whatever, like the big movie that for some reason you really wanted to see on a gigantic screen, and you could go there and see it in English.

Ricardo:
[33:30] I mean, it made sense, the setup that they have now. So it's the offices of Berlinale, the festival, are there, and there used to be Cinestar there. Cinemaxx is also there, another chain. There's like a Berlinale Palast, where they host the premieres during Berlinale, and also, as part of Sony Center for the next, I think, one or two years, is still going to be there. The Deutsche Kinemathek is there, and both Deutsche Kinemathek and Arsenal are moving out like by, I think, 2025 or something, because if you walk around Sony Center, it's even weirder than it was before, like this around doing construction all the time. It's a weird space. There's probably another episode of this podcast, like what is happening in Potsdamer Platz.

Manuel:
[34:18] Yeah. Why did the CineStar Original close?

Ricardo:
[34:23] Yeah, so like they want to like fully change the approach, because now it's, of course, going to be cool, and you're going to have lifestyle options and everything and ...

Manuel:
[34:35] What are you talking about? I don't ...

Ricardo:
[34:36] That is what is happening in Sony Center. Like they're tearing down everything and changing, and it's now they want to make like "a cool place," whatever that means.

Manuel:
[34:44] Even Legoland? Are they going to close Legoland?

Ricardo:
[34:47] I don't know. I don't know if it's still open.

Manuel:
[34:49] Yeah, it's open, I was just there. It's awesome. It's also in the basement. Half an hour ago.

Ricardo:
[34:53] Yeah. I mean, so Arsenal is still there, and at least for the next, I think, one or two years, then they're moving to Wedding, near you, silent green Kulturquartier. And ... but I don't know, yeah, anyway, it's there.

Manuel:
[35:09] Okay, Potsdamer Platz, you know, that all used to be the death zone of the Berliner Mauer. You know, where Potsdamer Platz is, the area where we're talking about?

Ricardo:
[35:17] Yes. Yes.

Manuel:
[35:18] It used to be the death zone that was like all empty after the Wall fell, because that was where the Wall was and where people couldn't go anywhere near there, and so it was all empty land. And then they built the Sony Center.

Jae:
[35:33] Okay. No wonder it looks so new.

Manuel:
[35:35] Yeah, new, but now also kind of like, okay, it was new in the 90s, 90s-new. So, okay. So tell us, like if we're completely new in Berlin what are the top three cinemas that we need to check out?

Ricardo:
[35:51] Top three cinemas. First one, Arsenal, of course, to watch a movie without popcorn and see all the interesting characters there - say Hi when you see me! The other one, Kino International, that is Karl-Marx-Allee, right next to Alexander Platz is this fantastic ... It's also like, it's not just the cinema itself, like the building is protected heritage building, whatever. And it's just great. Like if you ...

Jae:
[36:15] It looks really nice, like on the outside.

Ricardo:
[36:17] It's fantastic.

Jae:
[36:18] It doesn't look like a movie theater.

Ricardo:
[36:19] It's just great. It's very imposing. And just a side track: I was just watching Tar, this American movie from from last year and I was watching it at Kino International, and it's the route that I go by bike to work, so I know this ... I mean, it's not ... I know the street quite well. So I saw there's a scene in the movie and the movie is partly set in Berlin, and I recognize the street from like four blocks away and I could see in which direction they're going. And I was like: Oh, they're going to go by like the literal building where I am right now watching the movie! And you could feel the excitement happening when people started connecting until they literally go directly in front of the building, and it's the closest I've heard to cheering! But it's great. And it's also has like on the upper level, it's not the lobby or whatever, it has a very nice cafe, a little bar thing, it's super nice. Like even if you don't want to watch a movie, like if you also as a tourist or bringing people over, you're from from Alexanderplatz, that is like the connection for whatever thing that you go, and you can just walk for five, ten minutes and get there, have a coffee there, it has a nice view over the area.

Jae:
[37:36] It's very nice. I was very, very impressed with it.

Ricardo:
[37:39] Yeah. And it's also ... watching a big movie there, it's also a great experience because you watch it with like 700, 800 people and that's ... or maybe I exaggerated, maybe 550, I don't know, but around there. It's a great place. So Kino International, Arsenal, and I think for me, programming-wise, you mentioned Rollberg, so from Yorck.

Jae:
[38:05] They are the coolest people.

Ricardo:
[38:06] They are the coolest people. And also the advantage if you have the Kino Abo is that they have, I think, five, six, seven screens. Same with Delphi Lux.

Jae:
[38:14] Yeah.

Ricardo:
[38:15] So if you ... More likely that they're going to have something that you want to watch. Kino International, I mean, it's great, but they've been showing Tar for the last three weeks or something.

Jae:
[38:24] Kino International is very limited on the films that they make, and generally they are more of the international. I go there sometimes. Well, I actually went there once on Monday, which is like a special they do called, Mongay, so they'll do like a queer international film. German subtitles though, so just letting you guys know, if you don't speak German, you won't understand. But at Rollberg they do a lot more of the more ... like I've seen a lot of American movies there as well, and they also offer the German ones too.

Manuel:
[39:00] And what about Sneak Peeks? Oh, tell us your third favorite, and then tell us ...

Ricardo:
[39:04] Delphi Lux, that's in also a weird location there, it's like in Zoologische Garten, like right in ... So there used to be, I mean, it's still there, Delphi, which is this very large, similar in style as Kino International, like a very large cinema, large one screen, very like even more old fashioned in the style. And around the block is an alleyway. It's a proper alleyway, like between the tracks of the S-Bahn and the building, you can just walk there and you enter Delphi Lux, which is like relatively new, I think from the last five years or something.

Jae:
[39:41] I biked past it twice, calling my friends saying, "I can't find the place!"

Ricardo:
[39:45] Yeah, it's just weird because they have ... Like the building, so the cinema reaches both streets, but the entrance is at the alleyway, which is ... I don't understand. But they have, I think, the best programming there, so also if you didn't get to watch one movie because they have so many screens, you can still watch it like five weeks later on a Sunday afternoon.

Manuel:
[40:10] Nice.

Open-Air Cinemas (Remember: It's Still Cold + It Starts a Bit Late (It Gets Dark Late in Summer))

[40:12] Actually before we talk about Sneak Peeks, you also wrote down: Open-Air Cinemas, and that is actually a big thing in Berlin. There's a website that I really like to use in summer called ... Freiluftkino Berlin? Let me find it - there's a website that basically just shows all the screenings - it's openair-kino.net, I got the URL very wrong! And it just shows all ... like for today and tomorrow, basically you can see all the open-air screenings of movies in Berlin. Because there's a ton of open-air cinemas in Berlin.

Jae:
[40:53] There's a lot in America.

Ricardo:
[40:55] I mean I come from Mexico and the average temperature is 35, 40 degrees, so like the idea of sitting outside watching movies, not like the best, it's just always like very, very warm, and mosquitoes, and so like the idea of open-air cinemas was quite new to me. And it's nice, it has a certain charm, and I think also for ... it's the occasion to invite your friends who usually would not go watch a movie. It feels more of an event, you know, like you go outside. And they have some very nice locations. So also with the Yorck Kino Abo, which we're not sponsored on this podcast, but you can also go to ...

Manuel:
[41:36] They really should like call us and give us money!

Ricardo:
[41:41] They should! You can use this pass to watch some movies. They have this very nice one that overlooks, of course, Potsdamer Platz, but it's a nice area, it's like where the Berliner Philharmonic is, like this nice ... and this main library and everything. It's just a very nice having that as a background when you're watching the movie.

Jae:
[42:03] And is the cinema culture the same with the open-air cinemas, or do you have a little bit more freedom?

Ricardo:
[42:07] No, I think you can ...

Manuel:
[42:10] Yeah, yeah, yeah, I think you are ... I think it's a little bit more like, okay, it's a little bit more like a picnic, you know. It's like you can ... yeah, because you're going to have some background noise anyway. Like the one that I always used to go to, is the one in Hasenheide, also in Neukölln, because I used to live around there. That's not a Yorck one, right?

Ricardo:
[42:25] I don't know.

Manuel:
[42:26] Even though it's close to all the other Yorck kinos.

Jae:
[42:29] There's an open-air in Hasenheide?

Manuel:
[42:31] Yeah, it's in a park, and so you're going to hear ...

Jae:
[42:34] Oh, I know what you're talking about.

Manuel:
[42:36] You're going to hear the birds and the foxes and ...

Jae:
[42:38] Yeah.

Ricardo:
[42:39] And that would be ... You're painting a very idyllic scenario, the birds and the foxes, but also like the people playing techno and the police cars! It's like ...

Manuel:
[42:50] Yeah, but it's part of it!

Jae:
[42:53] It's a very immersive experience!

Ricardo:
[42:55] I think it makes ... I mean, I wouldn't ... If you ... What I don't understand fully is how they ... I mean, of course, they put the most popular movies there now, but also in Berlin, like some of the most popular movies are not what you would expect - you, whoever is listening to - are the most popular ones, because they also tend toward like a more artsy factor. A movie that is very contemplative and slow and quiet might still be very popular, and they show it in an open air cinema, and it really doesn't fit, like it's quiet, and then you see ... But I think for like a more jovial movie, blockbuster, I think that is great. And I also showed some older movies. I watched Jaws, like the Steven Spielberg movie from, I think, almost 40 years ago, and it was great to watch it in a like ... yeah.

Manuel:
[43:43] Yeah. The problem now for me is that, by definition, the open air cinemas have to start the movie when it gets dark, because otherwise you're not going to see anything. And that also, by definition, is pretty late in the summer. And then when it ends, it's like even later. And that's like usually past my bedtime.

Ricardo:
[44:04] It's ... Same here.

Jae:
[44:05] If you are a partyer, then maybe you cinema first, club after.

Ricardo:
[44:10] I mean, I might go once or twice per year because it's the same, you know, like they're smart, they also adjust the start times according to the different sunset time. But it's really the case that in some movies, they begin, so the ... theoretically starts at 10 p.m. with like 15 minutes of ads and stuff, and then it's a movie that is a long one and yeah, you get out and it's like 1 a.m., and you're like, maybe Hasenheide is convenient, but you might be in another one that is quite far away, and it's like Tuesday and it's like: Yeah, sure, I think I'm skipping that. So yeah, but there's no other way, no?

Jae:
[44:51] Plan accordingly.

Ricardo:
[44:52] Plan accordingly. And also it's summer, it's open-air, and everything gets cold. Like: Get a jacket! Some people also take their blankets.

Manuel:
[45:00] Or a date. It's great for dates. I feel like open-air, because also like, I don't know if I really like the idea of going to a first date to like a movie theater. Like it feels too boxy, like ...

Ricardo:
[45:12] I think it's a terrible first date.

Manuel:
[45:14] Yeah, but an open-air, I feel like just because it's more relaxed, it's more open, it just feels like ... It feels like it can run away, worst case kind of thing! And also, it's like it gets cold even in summer, so ...

Ricardo:
[45:26] I like how considerate you are, like, yeah, you might run away ...

Jae:
[45:30] Run away politely!

Ricardo:

[45:32] Say: I'm going to the bathroom, I'll be right back!

Manuel:
[45:37] Yeah, I don't know. I feel like open air is good for that. And you might not mind that it kind of goes into the night. You might have planned for that anyway!

Ricardo:
[45:46] I'll take someone maybe second, third date. The first one, yeah, still the chance that you might want to run away, so you go for drinks, go for coffee. But yeah, it is, it is good.

Manuel:
[45:57] What the hell is Kinderwagenkino?

Kinderwagenkino

Ricardo:
[46:00] I have friends who have kids and I think ... I had never heard of it, and I think it's a great idea, so some cinemas, not all of them. Also keep that in mind if you're going to watch it and it says Kinderwagenkino or like Baby Cinema or something, it is made for parents of young kids, no?

Manuel:
[46:20] It's like on the Deutsche Bahn where they have the quiet parts, and then they have the ... they put like a cell phone as the icon, but what it really means is like: This is where the crying kids are going to be!

Ricardo:
[46:33] In a way, yeah. So like you ... But it's also ... So the extra part is that they don't put the sound as loud, and they also put a bit of ... they don't turn off the lights completely, because if you have a kid you might want to find something for it. And it's also like everyone there is making a tacit agreement that it's okay if people cry because you're going to baby cinema. So if you see a screening that says, Baby Cinema and you don't have a child and would rather not suffer, just skip it.

Jae:
[47:03] That's actually a great idea, because there's nothing worse than going to a normal cinema and there's a crying baby.

Ricardo:
[47:09] Exactly. You tell them: Please, like go to the other screening! [... inaudible] Try it out. I mean, I have friends who have have young kids and would rather still be doing cultural stuff. And it's nice, like you go on a Tuesday at whatever, 2 p.m., and you go watch a movie and ... yeah.

Manuel:
[47:32] What about ... Like now I was thinking, do they show movies that are like 16 and up, or 18 and up? Probably not, because that would kind of defeat the purpose.

Ricardo:
[47:42] No, but I think it's made for like proper like toddler age, no? So it's not like the ...

Manuel:
[47:49] Oh, so it's like you are watching a movie, but instead of getting a babysitter, you're bringing your child.

Ricardo:
[47:53] Exactly.

Manuel:
[47:54] Yeah. Okay.

FSK Age Ratings

[47:55] And about the ages, like we're all old enough that we don't have to show ID anymore, but what's the system in Germany in terms of like ... ?

Ricardo:
[48:05] It's the first time I'm thinking about it.

Jae:
[48:10] Also, what's the ratings like here?

Manuel:
[48:13] Yeah, that's what I mean. Basically, I mean as far as I remember, there's basically, that like nothing ... Like you say, the American equivalent, G, that's like everything?

Jae:
[48:19] Yeah, G is everyone. You have PG, parental guidance. You have PG 13, which means you have to be 13 or older. And then you have rated R.

Ricardo:
[48:33] But I think those American ratings are famously like super weird, but ...

Jae:
[48:37] There ... The more I get out of America, the more I understand that I'm so accustomed to that rating system, okay. But now I'm like, yeah.

Manuel:
[48:49] So FSK is the organization that deals with it. What does it stand for? Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle der Filmwirtschaft, voluntary self-regulation of the movie industry. And basically the ratings are FSK 0, which is, there's no ... it's G, right? There's no restrictions. Then there's FSK 6, which is six years and up. FSK ab 12, just similar to PG 13. And then then we have FSK ab 16, which would be like R, although isn't R, 18 and up?

Jae:
[49:23] Yeah.

Manuel:
[48:24] Okay, well, we have 16 and up, and then there's FSK ab 18/Keine Jugendfreigabe, but I think it's very rare, like it has to be seriously violent that a movie would get that rating. And I think if it's below that, you don't really have to worry. Like I don't think they check if you look 14. They don't really check your ID. Only if it's like FSK 18, then it's like: Okay, we're going to check people's ID.

Ricardo:
[49:50] Anecdotally, I've never seen someone being asked for their ID at a cinema in Berlin or anywhere else in the world, but yeah, maybe there's still people like showing some nudity.

Manuel:
[50:04] True.

Ricardo:
[50:05] Yes. I can breeze by the last point: so I forgot to mention one of my other hidden gems, Zeughaus Kino, is right on the edge of Museumsinsel, so you can watch very towards older programming. And it's a bit hit or miss, like they might be showing movies from Georgia from 1927 to 1929 for like three months, and then, yeah. I mean, you might go watch one for curiosity but unless you like really hardcore kind of things ... But they also sometimes show like really fantastic movies and they get probably good prints and they're showing them well. And the nice part is, I think it's part of the Deutsches Historisches Museum, whatever, and it's like right ... connected to it, so when the movie is done, they don't just not close the curtain of the screen, they also open the curtains from what you thought was the wall, and it's some windows that face towards Museumsinsel. And it's just so nice. Like it's late at night but it's still like super nice how it is lighted, and it's like it's this added element of entering the world in a nice part. And I think very few people know that there's even a cinema there and the entries are like €4 or €5 per ticket.

Manuel:
[51:23] Wow! You've really inspired me to go to the movies.

Jae:
[51:25] Yeah, like, I'm like, at this moment I am adding ... like I am creating a list of things to do this summer.

Sneak Peek

Manuel:
[51:34] So what about Sneak Peek? That's something I used to do in my youth, to like go see a movie and ...

Ricardo:
[51:38] "In my youth!" Good days!

Manuel:
[51:40] I wouldn't know what movies ... Is that still a thing?

Ricardo:
[51:43] Yeah. So Yorck organizes them with, I think ...

Jae:
[51:48] Can you explain what a Sneak Peek is?

Manuel:
[51:51] It's like you go see a movie, you don't know what it is, like you just buy the ticket and it's going to be a surprise, but it's a movie that hasn't been released yet. Like cinemas have these special contracts where they are allowed to show movies that aren't released yet, as long as it is a Sneak Peek, so people who buy the ticket don't know what they're going to see. The one that I used to go to, a person would come, and once everybody had sat down, kind of say: Okay, so today's movie is going to be this, and then talk about it for like five minutes before they show the movie. That's not really a thing anymore. They just show it.

Ricardo:
[52:31] I don't know, but it still exists, it is a thing. And I think in Rollberg, for example, it's weekly. So.

Jae:
[52:38] Oh, that's cool.

Manuel:
[52:40] It's very hit and miss, you know, you could get lucky and see like the next blockbuster early, or you could not get lucky and ...

Ricardo:
[52:47] Yeah I don't know what's also there, if there's even a filtering there. I think they just show whatever.

Jae:
[52:53] Really?

Ricardo:
[52:55] I don't know.

Manuel:
[52:56] I don't know how that works. Okay what else?

Silent Movies with Live Organ / Live Orchestra

[53:00] Silent movies. That's still a thing?

Ricardo:
[53:04] That's still a thing. In Babylon, which is towards Rosa-Luxembourg-Straße, Rosenhalleplatz, you can go watch movies at least once a week, and it's also very convenient. Like open-air cinema starting at 10 p.m. you can go watch a silent movie at midnight on a Saturday, also a great date idea. But it's also super nice, like you go watch it, like it's for something to do maybe once or twice. And there's other ... I mean, if it's something that you see and enjoy, it's also cool, like you go and there's someone playing organ live, or piano, and some even have like a full, small orchestra playing there. It adds a level of it, also making it an event.

Jae:
[53:57] It does. That's definitely an experience I would like to at least try just once.

Manuel:
[54:01] Where's this, so I can put it in the show notes?

Ricardo:
[54:06] Babylon.

Manuel:
[54:07] Babylon.

Jae:
[54:09] Ah, I see that when I'm on the U-Bahn. They always have like the ...

Ricardo:
[54:16] Yeah, so they make this like weekly. And I think actually, we can check it, but I think it's actually free, the weekly one, so the Saturday midnight one. And it's really like ...

Manuel:
[54:28] It's so bad that they have some free ... !

Ricardo:
[54:31] I was there. I had the friends visiting and I took them there, and they're like, "Why are you ...? Like we came to Berlin and you take us to ... !" I was like, "Yeah, I mean, we're going to go to a club late at night, I kind of just like ... it's part of it!"

Manuel:
[54:42] "First I put you to sleep!"

Ricardo:
[54:43] Exactly.

Manuel:
[54:44] "And then we're going to KitKatKlub!"

Ricardo:
[54:46] "It's a test! If you can manage this, then it's okay!" But yeah.

Manuel:
[54:52] Okay.

Festivals and Screenings with Cast & Crew

[54:54] We touched on Berlinale, which is the big festival that's in Berlin. Are you going to these festivals?

Ricardo:
[55:05] Yeah.

Manuel:
[55:07] Are there more? Is it just Berlinale? Or are there any other festivals that we should know about?

Ricardo:
[55:11] Berlinale is, of course, the largest one, not just in Berlin, but in Germany.

Jae:
[55:18] And what is Berlinale, for people who don't know?

Ricardo:
[55:21] It's the International Film Festival of Berlin, happens yearly in February. And I think it has very good programming, but of course, people here have a bit of inferiority complex comparing it to Cannes and Venice and stuff like that. Yes, it's not Cannes, it's not Venice, like big time movie stars are not ...

Manuel:
[55:47] It's Potsdamer Platz!

Jae:
[55:48] But I did hear that Tarantino was here for this most recent one.

Manuel:
[55:55] Really?

Jae:
[55:56] Yeah. I don't know how accurate that was.

Ricardo:
[55:58] Maybe hanging out or something. No, but I mean, I think two or three years ago they changed the directors of the festival and they're doing a ... they have a very clear idea of what they want.

Manuel:
[56:10] But here's the thing. I've never really understood how these festivals work. Like as a regular person who's not a cinema nerd, how does one go to Berlinale? Like how does that even work?

Ricardo:
[56:23] Yeah. I mean, it's ... There's a lot of demand for the tickets, so us normal people can just also go and attend. It's not only for press or for movie ...

Manuel:
[56:35] But going means you watch a movie while this is happening? Like how is that even a special thing? Like you're just going to go watch a movie, right?

Ricardo:
[56:46] In a way, yes, like you're just watching a movie, but in most cases, especially in Berlinale, at least one or more people who participate in the making of the movie are there, no? And if it's ... you checked it, you see, and there's like a small introduction and then a Q&A afterwards, and I think that adds a lot of the ... There's also this element of excitement when you're watching the movie together with the people who made them, like they're sitting right there. And then also having the chance to talk with them afterwards, I think is super cool.

Manuel:
[57:18] Or during the movie, talk to them. Ask them questions.

Jae:
[57:21] "Hey, by the way ... !"

Manuel:
[57:22] "About that scene! What do you think about Spider-Man?"

Jae:
[57:25] Another concept of just festivals in general is that they're an opportunity, one, for a lot of movies that maybe don't get displayed or screened anywhere else, to have this one place to get their screenings, 'cause there's ... And then it's also an opportunity for, on the business side of things, where film companies or the producers or whatnot will then meet with others to distribute there. So it becomes like a meeting ground to see: Okay, which distribution companies are going to now release our films out into the world, and also a place to showcase those films as well, too.

Ricardo:
[58:05] Yeah. I would recommend to, like if you like watching movies, just give it a shot. You need to, yeah, know when the tickets go on sale, but that's relatively easy to see once ... like it depends on the festival and the year, like they might adjust it, so you need to be aware of it. And watch one or two and see how it is, and attend one that will have cast and crew present and see how it is. And part of it, I personally, like I really enjoy it, and I go very much towards the ones that I know it's less likely that they will be released. Like if a big release is part of a festival, I skip it, and I rather watch it like two weeks later in a normal cinema.

Manuel:
[58:49] But aren't the ones that aren't going to be released, the bad ones? Because I actually did go to one movie at one Berlinale many years ago, and it was so bad that several people, including me, after a while got up and left.

Jae:
[59:05] It's kind of hit or miss. I mean, I've only been to the Cannes one, but there it's like …

Ricardo:
[59:09] "Only! I've only been to Cannes! Like I don't know, I only get the best, nothing else! I don't know, I don't know what to tell you!"

Jae:
[59:15] But like in those ways because it's just kind of a random pool of just a whole bunch of films, you know. Some of them haven't been, let's say, rated or whatnot, or that's where they do get rated, you know, that's where people do start ...

Ricardo:
[59:30] Yeah. There's a big element of chance at it. Like you are going to watch a movie that there's not even a trailer available, there's no ... you cannot read ...

Jae:
[59:39] Barely a logline!

Ricardo:
[59:40] Yeah, there's, there's not like the review of your favorite critic, if you have one, that's also not there, so ...

Manuel:
[59:44] Yeah Of course, I have a favorite critic, what are you talking about?!

Ricardo:
[59:46] For example, that one or the other! Yeah, you just go and see how it is.

Jae:
[59:52] So it's also good for experimental films as well. There was one film that, I think, released at the Cannes Film Festival, but I saw this one in Austin. It was literally, I kid you not, about a woman who had sex with a car and had a car baby.

Ricardo:
[1:00:09] Yes, Titane.

Manuel:
[1:00:11] Oh, my God! Surrounded by nerds!

Jae:
[1:00:13] Titane, such a great film, but it's such a film like where you would never ... like I've never seen it actually released anywhere, but it's such ... It harbors these experimental films that ... You probably would never actually see them in ...

Manuel:
[1:00:28] No. No thanks.

Ricardo:
[1:00:29] I mean, I watched it kind of knowing what was the idea behind it. I can't imagine watching it like [inaudible], suddenly the car comes out, and it's like: Wait, what?

Jae:
[1:00:40] I had no clue what this film was about.

Ricardo:
[1:00:42] It's just great, I love it.

Jae:
[1:00:43] I had a description and I went in, I buckled up, and she literally fucked the car.

Manuel:
[1:00:48] Great. Great. Great plot.

Ricardo:
[1:00:53] It's actually, it's a genuinely good movie. It's not like a trashy movie, it's like a properly good movie.

Jae:
[1:00:57] It is. Oh, it's also a murder film as well. She kills people.

Manuel:
[1:01:03] Any closing remarks in terms of movie theaters, the cinema experience in Berlin?

Closing Remarks

Ricardo:
[1:01:11] Yes. If you're moving here or are already here ...

Manuel:

[1:01:13] No pun intended!

Ricardo:
[1:01:16] Eh? I think really, like I said at the beginning, Berlin is one of the best cities in the world to watch movies at, and yeah, take advantage of not just being able to watch the movie, but getting to know how the culture of the city goes, how the city ... its structure and its layout, and also how close the movie industry feels, no? Like you might also go to a random cinema and some people are there and they have like a small introduction and a session of questions afterwards, and it just adds another layer of what you're doing. And give it a shot! Like also go by yourself! If you have never done it, it's perfectly fine, it's like no one judges you. Try some sweet popcorn, some licorice inside to keep it exciting. And yeah.

Jae:
[1:02:06] I'll also add to this idea of trying something new: as Berlin is such an international city, you have the opportunity to see films from different ... around the world here. So it's a really great city to take advantage of seeing films from literally everywhere, like places you've ...

Manuel:
[1:02:24] It's not just Hollywood.

Jae:
[1:02:25] Yeah, exactly. It's not just Hollywood. It's not also just German filmmaking too, you know. It's very, very, very much like an eye-opening experience.