Matthijs Wouter Knol Rules Out Berlinale Top Job As Appointment Deadline Looms
deadline.comEuropean Film Academy CEO Matthijs Wouter Knol has denied he is a candidate to become the next director of the Berlin Film Festival.
Rumors were rife ahead of the Academy’s European Film Awards ceremony in Berlin this weekend that he was in pole position for the role.
The search is currently on for a new Berlinale director to replace Executive Director Mariette Rissenbeek and Artistic Director Carlo Chatrian who are due to step down after the 2024 edition, with an announcement expected at press conference on Tuesday.
In an interview with Deadline ahead of the ceremony in Berlin, Wouter Knol categorically ruled out that he was in the frame, chiefly because he felt had a lot more to do at the European Film Academy. “I’m not a candidate to go to a festival because I wouldn’t be able to do the same at a festival that I can do here,” he said. “There’s a lot of people who can run the festival brilliantly, but I don’t think there’s a lot of people who can do what I’m doing here.” Other candidates rumored to be in the frame include Zurich Film Festival Artistic Director Christian Jungen, who would potentially bring stronger connections with the U.S.
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