The Green Screen festival organisers (Michael van Bürk, Markus Behrens, Gerald Grote, Ulrike Lafrenz und Martin Krohn, from the left) announced a new record attendance yesterday: 27 500 spectators have seen the festival films.
This great resonance and the active sponsors lay the foundation for financing the 10th International Nature Film Festival next year – Green Screen lives on. Film makers and the audience were full of praise for the “outstandingly organised festival”.
Green Screen stays on the fast lane
Record attendance and active sponsors secure the International Nature Film Festival in its 10th year
A new record attendance and the continuing willingness of sponsors and supporters to support Green Screen financially removed the doubts about the financial safeguarding of the International Nature Film Festival.
This confirms: Green Screen will take place in 2016, the anniversary festival will happen. The good news for Eckernförde and the federal-state of Schleswig-Holstein was announced yesterday at the final press conference by the festival organisers, the executive board and the president of the supporter’s organisation. Due to the lack of annual support from the federal state the festival organisers were seriously worried if they would be able to organise the International Nature Film Festival, which gains in quality and quantity, in the coming years. The publicly made request for financial support angered the federal government with Prime Minister Torsten Albig and Environment Minister Robert Habeck at the top .
But this existential problem was not in the main focus yesterday. The message was: this year’s festival has set new standards from the point of view of filmmakers and festival attendants. It thrives on the professional support the internationally renowned film makers and the professional audience receive, the good performance of the office team around Markus Behrens and the commitment of the host of dedicated volunteers in green shirts, who also moderate the films and make them a special experience, i.e. if film makers are present.
This mixture and the again and again spontaneous contacts between film makers and the audience make Green Screen an extraordinary festival, with a charm hardly anyone can escape from.
When nature film makers receive standing ovations in a sold out theatre, excited children ask spontaneous questions and a boy interested in wolves is invited spontaneously to an excursion after asking the wolf expert a question– in such moments the festival demonstrates its special fascination.
And as there were many of those moments and the major events in the ‘Stadthalle’ – opening and award ceremony with a buffet and party – went like clockwork, the presidents of the friends associations around Ulrike Lafrenz and Martin Krohn still felt like “being on a green cloud” yesterday. Green Screen „never went this perfectly“, said Lafrenz.
Press spokesman Michael van Bürk agrees. He found a „super atmosphere“ among film makers, representatives of the production companies, nature film editorial offices and the audience which made Green Screen 2015 a „very big success“. For the film makers Green Screen gathers increasing importance. „Many film makers told us how important Eckernförde has become for the film world“, said the successor of the late president of the friends association Jochen Hillers who died last year. Green Screen has gained more professionality, explained festival leader Gerald Grote. A major contribution has been made by the 80 years old former camera man Peter Fera who is strongly supported by the jury members Heinz von Matthey and Udo Zimmermann.
The high quality is appreciated by the audience: 16 000 visitors streamed into the shows from Thursday until yesterday. Adding the visitor of the Schulkinowoche, the sh:z-filmtour, the full-dome of the Helmholtz-Center at the harbour, the excursion to the Alsion in Sonderburg this coming Friday and the school showing at the Metro-Cinema in Kiel, 27 500 visitors have seen the festival films – a new record attendance at Green Screen. Especially the direct sale of tickets on the weekend brought a boost. This makes the festival organisers happy „but the fantastic atmosphere is more important than the number of visitors“, emphasises Grote. He has no illusions about continuously rising numbers: „there will be a dip at some point“, but with this team we’ll manage.
2016 Green Screen will take place from 14. until 18. September – from Wednesday until Sunday. This will bring one more day for the school showings and will ease the organisation and the bus transfer.
„We are still confident that the value of our common creation Green Screen in Eckernförde will be recognised in Kiel and that they will look for possibilities to make a contribution to assure the sustainability of the festival. After the phenomenal success this year there are no doubts about the future of the festival.
Due to the surprisingly good attendance figures and the generous support from our sponsor and patrons the financing of the next festival is secured.“
Festival leader, executive director and board of Green Screen concerning the wish for financial support of the federal state