Things to Take Home

Christiane Steiner works as a trainer in the field of job counselling and media-related training initiatives. She was head of press and communication at Berlinale Talents (2009-12) and coordinated the Short Film Station until 2019. With her company boxfish films, she conducted public relations for films such as "Head on" (Fatih Akin) and "Manderlay" (Lars von Trier). Before entering the film business, Christiane was engaged as an actor in various theatres.

After studying directing at FAMU in Prague and being selected for Berlinale Talents in 2009 (Script Station) and 2010 (Talent Project Market), Arne Kohlweyer started coordinating the Script Station in 2011. He is also an alumnus of the TorinoFilmLab and a member of the German Screenwriters’ Guild. In addition, he is an associate producer and Head of Development at 42film and works internationally as a freelance screenwriter, script consultant and seminar teacher.

Christine Tröstrum is a cultural manager, organisational developer, trainer and coach. She has been in charge of Berlinale Talents since 2004 and in 2014 was joined by Florian Weghorn, with whom she has been co-running it ever since. Christine has worked in the international film and media industry for more than two decades and, among many achievements, was responsible for pioneering digital projects in the film industry and the animation co-production market Cartoon Movie in Babelsberg. She has been supporting companies in the areas of strategy, leadership and change management for many years, and since 2021 is a Managing Partner in the academy and consultancy biniasz und partner.

Matthijs Wouter Knol is the CEO and director of the European Film Academy since 2021. Previously, he was an award-winning documentary producer. After a short stint at IDFA, he worked for the Berlinale as the Berlinale Talents programme manager (2008-2014) and director of the European Film Market (2014-2020). Among his key missions at the European Film Academy are supporting, connecting and uniting the best people and work in European cinema.

Kathi Bildhauer has been with the Berlinale since 2003. A founding member of the Co-Production Market, which she co-headed until 2019, she manages the Talent Project Market for Berlinale Talents. She also coordinated the Berlinale Residency and was part of the World Cinema Fund team. Before, she worked in film and TV production and on set in different capacities in Germany and the UK. She is a pitching trainer, moderator and guest lecturer at film schools and for international programmes, as well as the author of “Drehbuch Reloaded”, her PhD thesis on unconventional screenplays.

Sirkka Möller has worked for film festivals for over 25 years, with a focus on documentaries and short films. Her experience spans programming, world sales, editorial, moderation and writing, as well as project development. She has programmed for Sheffield Doc/Fest, FID Marseille and DocPoint Festival Helsinki and is on the Berlinale Panorama selection committee. She has given workshops on developing, pitching, editing, selling and screening films.