The Berlin International Film Festival (more commonly called Berlinale) is held every year in February. It is one of the worlds most prestigious film events and caters to a wide range of film making styles. In Berlin it is a popular 10 day event with many locals trying to get tickets to the film showings in which the queues for tickets from the few participating sellers are hours long.
This year we went to see the red carpet arrival of the stars of the film premiere of 'The Monuments Men' - Directed by George Clooney, and starring himself, Bill Murray, Matt Damon, John Goodman and Cate Blanchet. The film was shot in Berlin in March of 2013.
The red carpet event was from 5 to 6:30pm and we arrived around 5:30pm. Much of the area was restricted to 'invited guests' but we got a reasonable standing position amongst the crowd. In front of us was the arrival area where the actors got out of their chauffeured transport, and to our right was a big screen showing what was going on. A large official media pack was also in front of us to our right on a small grandstand which blocked a lot of the view for the people on our side.
I had jokingly said that I would bring a ladder with me, and while I didn't (on this occasion), some people did!
'Stars' were already arriving by the time we got there, but we didn't know who they were!
Soon though we could tell from the crowd reaction that someone important had arrived. It was George Clooney. Always a hit with the ladies, the young girls next to me 'shouted out' to themselves: 'George, you might be 30 years older than me, but I'll still f*&k you!' Classy.
This year we went to see the red carpet arrival of the stars of the film premiere of 'The Monuments Men' - Directed by George Clooney, and starring himself, Bill Murray, Matt Damon, John Goodman and Cate Blanchet. The film was shot in Berlin in March of 2013.
The red carpet event was from 5 to 6:30pm and we arrived around 5:30pm. Much of the area was restricted to 'invited guests' but we got a reasonable standing position amongst the crowd. In front of us was the arrival area where the actors got out of their chauffeured transport, and to our right was a big screen showing what was going on. A large official media pack was also in front of us to our right on a small grandstand which blocked a lot of the view for the people on our side.
'Stars' were already arriving by the time we got there, but we didn't know who they were!
Soon though we could tell from the crowd reaction that someone important had arrived. It was George Clooney. Always a hit with the ladies, the young girls next to me 'shouted out' to themselves: 'George, you might be 30 years older than me, but I'll still f*&k you!' Classy.
Straight after George arrive, Matt Damon appeared...
Followed by John Goodman...
And Bill Murray...
They all walked around, talking to the fans and the press, spending a lot of time walking along the fences for the 'normal people' and also chatting with the media and posing for photos in the grandstanded area.
The crowd was very excited while this was happening, and every time a star walked into view everyone's cameras shot up - trying to capture the moment.
After quite a long time of spending time with the fans and the media, the main stars of the film gathered around the grandstanded area for the official photos. Unfortunately this view was completely blocked off for us but we could see what was happening on the big screen.
And at 6:30pm they all went inside for the start of the film, leaving the chumps without tickets (like us) to go home! Quite an interesting experience and not any hassle at all to get a glimpse at some major movie stars without having to line up for hours or worm your way into some industry event.
Bill F***ing Murray!
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