Few cities have had such a dramatic and tumultuous history as Berlin since the turn of the 20th century—the period marked by the evolution of cinema as a medium and art form.
These days the city is perhaps most often associated, cinematically speaking, with the venerable Berlinale, which roars into life every February as the world’s preeminent showcase for independent, arthouse, avant garde cinema. This year’s 66th edition of the festival, running from February 11 to 21, draws to a close this weekend, with the Meryl Streep-led jury announcing this year’s Golden and Silver Bear winners tomorrow.
For moviemakers and movie-lovers who didn’t make it out to Berlin this February, however, a virtual exploration of the city’s sprawling neighborhoods might be consolation. To celebrate the opening of the Berlinale, German property rental platform Wimdu put together the following interactive map of Berlin, with geographic markers denoting the real-life locations where many of the city’s best-known onscreen scenes have played out. Auteurs like Billy Wilder (who lived in Berlin as a young journalist in the ’20s), Alfred Hitchcock and Roberto Rossellini all make an appearance, as well as classics like Cabaret (1972), Wings of Desire (1987), Run Lola Run (1998) and Inglourious Basterds (2009). The tour concludes with two very different 2015 titles: Sebastian Schipper’s one-take-wonder Victoria (read our interview with Schipper here), and David Wnendt’s adaptation of the Hitler comedy Look Who’s Back.
Click below to jump around in Berlin’s geography and cinematic history, or view the map on Wimdu’s blog for more information. MM
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