The 62nd Berlin International Film Festival opened in true style with a grand red carpet and gala screening of Benoit Jaquot’s Farewell My Queen starring the Berlinale favourite Diane Kruger as Marie Antoinette.

The period film, based on Chantal Thomas’ novel, captures the developing events in Versailles Palace during a time frame of three days before the French Revolution - 14th July 1789 to 16th July 1789 - through the eyes of a maid, a Reader to the Queen. The storming of Bastille and the elimination of nobles are reported and discussed in the palace. Court machinations, desertions and fleeing to safer grounds take place at the back ground while Louis XVI, anxious to avoid bloodshed, willingly walks away for a settlement with the Revolutionaries. The obsessed queen chooses to sacrifice her Reader to save her lover Gabrielle. Léa SEYDOUX, as the beautiful Reader to the Queen is ravishing.

The International Jury- Anton Corbijn, Asghar Farhadi, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Jake Gyllenhaal, François Ozon, Boualem Sansal and Barbara Sukowa - signed their portraits at the end of the red carpet. German film industry was present in full strength including Doris Dörrie, Andreas Dresen, Matthias Glasner, Reinhard Hauff, Leander Nina Hoss, Helma Sanders-Brahms, Volker Schlöndorff, Hans-Christian Schmid, Tom Tykwer and Margarethe von Trotta.

Minister of State and Commissioner for Cultural and Media Affairs Bernd Neumann and Berlin’s Governing Mayor Klaus Wowereit opened the Festival together with Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick and Jury President Mike Leigh.

What sets apart Berlinale from other important film festivals, as the Jury President and eminent British filmmaker Mike Leigh articulated at the press conference, is it takes place in the middle of winter. The warmth of informality, the way it celebrates the Festival spirit and joi de vivre manages to keep the icy winds away from the festival participants. There are more than 18000 delegates and in addition thousands of Berliners who buy tickets to watch festival films - remember the Berlinale is the most successful in box office collections. The great filmmaker who is well known for his films about the simple, everyday lives of common folks added that the European Film Festivals have started celebrating World Cinema. “Hollywood influence is diminishing. The inevitable domination of Hollywood has started diminishing. The Festivals are becoming Hollywood-proof”, he added. He agreed that the Jury responsibility is heavy as the decisions may influence the future journey of a film.

We are all singing with Mike Leigh, “We are not anticipating anything. We have an open mind. We will enjoy, savour and consider all the films.”