1st Berlin International Film Festival 1st Berlin International Film Festival The 1st annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 6 to 17 June 1951. The opening film was Alfred Hitchcock's "Rebecca". At this very first Berlin Festival, the Golden Bear award was introduced, and it was awarded to the best film in each of five categories: drama, comedy, crime or adventure, music film, and documentary. This system disappeared already the following year, partly because films that year were voted on by the audience. The following people were announced as being on the jury for the festival: The following films were in competition for the
Berlin International Film Festival and several Silver Bears. Since 2001 the director of the festival has been Dieter Kosslick. The European Film Market (EFM), a film trade fair held simultaneously to the Berlinale, is a major industry meeting for the international film circuit. The trade fair serves distributors, film buyers, producers, financiers and co-production agents. The Berlinale Talents, a week-long series of lectures and workshops, is a gathering of young filmmakers held in partnership with the festival. The film festival, EFM, and other satellite events are attended by around 20,000 professionals from over 130 countries. More than 4200 journalists produce media coverage in over