The Berlin Film Festival will move to late February in 2020, landing after the BAFTA and Oscar ceremonies. The dates for Berlin’s 70th anniversary edition were announced Monday with the festival moving to a later Feb. 20-March 1 slot.
Traditionally the BAFTA Film Awards have landed on the middle Sunday during Berlin with the Oscars taking place after Berlin has ended. However a shortened awards window in 2020, brought about by the Oscars announcement in August last year that the 2020 ceremony would take place Feb. 9 – two weeks earlier than normal, created a chance of a clash with Berlin.
The Oscars move had already caused other bodies to react. The BAFTAs also moved up their date to remain ahead of the Oscars, choosing to go one week earlier on Feb. 2; The SAG Awards will take place a week before that on Jan. 26; and the Producers Guild Awards on Jan. 18.
The 70th edition of the festival will mark the first under new artistic director Carlo Chatrian, who takes over the reins from longtime chief Dieter Kosslick. Variety revealed Sunday, that Chatrian will bring the core of his Locarno festival programming team with him.