Indian author Arundhati Roy has withdrawn from the Berlinale film festival in protest over comments made by festival jury president Wim Wenders regarding the role of politics in art, a move that has thrown a spotlight on the festival’s stance amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
The dispute began after Wenders, a prominent German filmmaker, responded to questions about the conflict and the potential for film to effect political change during the festival’s opening press conference on Thursday. According to reports, Wenders stated that while “movies can change the world,” they should not do so “in a political way,” arguing that filmmakers “have to stay out of politics” and instead serve as “the counterweight of politics.”
Roy, who was scheduled to attend a screening of her restored 1989 film, In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones, released a statement on Friday calling Wenders’ remarks “unconscionable.” She expressed concern that his comments had reached a global audience and represented a dangerous silencing of artistic expression in the face of what she described as a “crime against humanity.”
“To hear them say that art should not be political is jaw-dropping,” Roy stated. “It is a way of shutting down a conversation about a crime against humanity even as it unfolds before us in real time – when artists, writers and film-makers should be doing everything in their power to stop it.”
Roy further emphasized her belief that the situation in Gaza constitutes a “genocide of the Palestinian people by the state of Israel,” supported and funded by governments including the United States and Germany. She criticized what she perceived as a lack of willingness among prominent artists to condemn these actions, warning that “history will judge them.”
The Berlinale jury includes American director-producer Reinaldo Marcus Green, Japanese filmmaker Hikari, Nepalese director Min Bahadur Bham, South Korean actor Bae Doona, Indian director-producer Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, and Ewa Puszczyńska, the producer of the Oscar-winning film The Zone of Interest, which depicts the domestic life of an Auschwitz commandant. Puszczyńska, when questioned about the German government’s support for Israel, described the question as “complicated” and “a bit unfair,” noting the existence of other conflicts involving genocide that receive less attention.
Roy, who was recently longlisted for the Women’s prize for non-fiction for her memoir Mother Mary Comes to Me, acknowledged a history of receiving “political solidarity” from German audiences regarding her views on Palestine, despite her concerns about the German government’s position. She described her film, In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones, as a “whimsical” work from 38 years ago, but ultimately felt compelled to withdraw in light of the jury’s statements.
As of Friday afternoon, the Berlinale had not issued a formal response to Roy’s withdrawal or her criticisms of Wenders’ comments. The festival is scheduled to continue through February 25th.
