Tilsiter Lichtspiele

Tilsiter Lichtspiele is an arthouse cinema (Programmkino) and pub located in the Friedrichshain district of Berlin, Germany. It was founded in 1908 and is one of the oldest cinemas in the city. The cinema takes its name from the former Tilsiter Straße, the street on which it stands, which was renamed Richard-Sorge-Straße in 1969. The venue operates two small screening rooms with 66 and 26 seats respectively, and includes an attached pub that serves as a gastronomic venue alongside regular cinema operations. The operators also maintain their own microbrewery, Brauerei Zukunft, located at the Zukunft am Ostkreuz venue, whose beer is served at the cinema's pub on Richard-Sorge-Straße. The cinema's programme focuses on current arthouse films and documentaries from Europe, America and Asia, as well as film classics from every era, often presented in curated series. German and documentary films are a particular emphasis. Non-German-language films are generally shown in their original versions. The cinema also hosts retrospectives, special events, preview premieres, and film concerts where films are accompanied by live music. Since 2008, it has hosted an experimental film and music series called "film in sounds," usually held once a month. The Tilsiter Lichtspiele has been a venue for the Berlin International Film Festival's "Berlinale goes Kiez" programme in 2013 and 2018, and since 2014 has been a regular venue for the Achtung berlin – new berlin film award festival. In addition to film screenings, the cinema regularly hosts author readings, concerts and other cultural events, with a particular focus on East German culture. Daily screenings begin at 4 p.m. on weekdays and 12 p.m. on weekends, with an average of eight to twelve different films shown, and the last screening around midnight, making it one of the few cinemas in Berlin still showing films at midnight. The programme is published monthly both online and in print. The cinema was founded in 1908 (some sources say 1910) by P. Liersch as a Kinematographentheater in a tenement building constructed around the turn of the century. It was closed shortly before the opening of the nearby Kosmos cinema in 1961 and remained closed for 33 years, during which it served as a film studio for three years. In 1994, five years after the political turnaround, three filmmakers reopened the cinema after extensive renovation. In 2008 the cinema celebrated its centenary. In September 2008 it became publicly known that increased rent demands threatened its continued operation, though no further news on the matter was subsequently reported. On 1 March 2015 the operators opened a second screening room with 26 seats, with regular operations beginning on 5 March 2015. Since May 2017, the second screening room has been used as a DokFilmKino exclusively showing documentary films. For its 2008 annual programme, the operators' collective received awards at the Berlin-Brandenburg cinema programme prize (June 2009) and the cinema programme prize of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM) (September 2009).

The Tilsiter Lichtspiele were founded in 1908 as a Programmkino (arthouse cinema) in the Berlin district of Friedrichshain. According to the German Wikipedia, they were opened in 1910 by P. Liersch as a Kinematographentheater in a tenement building constructed around the turn of the century at what was then Tilsiter Straße 25a (renamed Richard-Sorge-Straße in 1969). The cinema's name derives from the former street name. A historic photograph from 1938, which also served as the template for the menu design in the cinema pub, shows the complete staff of the cinema posing in front of the building along with outdoor advertising for the films then showing: Schüsse in Kabine 7 (directed by Carl Boese, Germany 1938) and Großalarm (directed by Georg Jacoby, Germany 1938). One of the people in the photograph was the cashier at the time, who in the year of the 1994 reopening still lived in the building opposite. This photograph also served as the cover for the locally distributed Friedrichshain history calendar 2008 of the Friedrichshain history association Hans Kohlhase e.V. In 1961, shortly before the opening of the Kosmos cinema with over 1,000 seats on nearby Karl-Marx-Allee, the Tilsiter Lichtspiele were closed. According to the operators, the cinema machines were dismantled in the early 1960s and taken by a film- and cinema-enthusiastic Soviet officer upon his return to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, in order to build a cinema in the town of Sovetsk, the former Tilsit. In 1994, five years after the political turnaround, three filmmakers reopened the cinema after extensive renovation, following a 33-year pause. Prior to this, the building had served as a film studio for three years. In 2008 the cinema celebrated its centenary. In September 2008 it became publicly known that increased rent demands threatened the continued operation of the Tilsiter Lichtspiele, though no further news on the matter was subsequently reported. On 1 March 2015 the operators opened a second screening room with 26 seats, with regular cinema operations beginning on 5 March 2015. Since May 2017, the second screening room has been used as a DokFilmKino exclusively showing documentary films. The programme of the Tilsiter Lichtspiele, as is typical for an arthouse cinema, includes current arthouse films and documentaries from Europe, America and Asia as well as film classics from every era, partly in film series. The emphases are German and documentary films. Non-German-language films are preferably shown in original-language versions. The programme also includes retrospectives, for example in 2008 on the Berlin director Lothar Lambert, the Austrian underground filmmaker living in Berlin Carl Andersen, and the German film director Roland Klick. The cinema also regularly hosts special events and preview premieres, including film concerts in which films are accompanied by live music. Since 2008 there has been an in-house experimental film and music series, usually held once a month: film in sounds was initiated by the Swiss composer and musician Antoine Chessex, who collaborated with different musicians for each edition. At the end of 2010 he was followed by the Swedish trumpeter Christian Magnusson, who has since curated the series. During the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival in 2013, the Tilsiter Lichtspiele were a venue for the Berlinale for the first time. As part of the Berlinale goes Kiez film tour, the two German films Ödland – Damit keiner das so mitbemerkt by Anne Kodura and Halbschatten by Nicolas Wackerbarth were shown. Since 2014 the Tilsiter Lichtspiele have been a regular venue of the Berlin film festival Achtung berlin – new berlin film award, held annually in April. In 2018 the cinema was again a venue during the 68th Berlin International Film Festival as part of Berlinale Goes Kiez. Non-German-language films are mostly shown in their original versions. The operators found a historic snack vending machine at an auction, put it back into operation after overhauling it, named it Tilsomat 2000 to match the cinema, and offer guests small snacks from it. In addition to the film programme, the Tilsiter Lichtspiele regularly host author readings, concerts and other cultural events. East German culture forms a particular focus, for example with readings in honour of Wolfgang Hilbig or Thomas Brasch, with actors such as Jürgen Holtz and Inge Keller, and with artists such as Florian Havemann, Egon Günther, Thomas Günther or Herwig Kipping. Once a year a neighbourhood street festival takes place on Richard-Sorge-Straße, in which the Tilsiter Lichtspiele also participate as a venue. Daily screenings begin at 4 p.m. on weekdays and 12 p.m. on weekends; on average eight to twelve different films are shown. The last screening takes place around midnight, making the Tilsiter Lichtspiele one of the few cinemas in Berlin where films are still shown at midnight. The programme is designed monthly and published both on the internet and in a print edition. For the 2008 annual programme, the operators' collective of the Tilsiter Lichtspiele received awards at the Berlin-Brandenburg cinema programme prize (June 2009) and at the cinema programme prize of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM) (September 2009).

• 2018

  Again a Berlinale Goes Kiez venue during the 68th Berlin International Film Festival.

• 2017

  Second screening room began use as DokFilmKino exclusively showing documentaries (May).

• 2015

  Second screening room with 26 seats opened on 1 March; regular operations began 5 March.

• 2014

  Became a regular venue of the Achtung berlin – new berlin film award festival.

• 2013

  First time as a Berlinale venue during the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale goes Kiez).

• 2009

  Operators' collective received Berlin-Brandenburg cinema programme prize (June) and BKM cinema programme prize (September).

• 2008

  Cinema celebrated its centenary; rent increase threatened continued operation; film in sounds series launched.

• 1994

  Reopened by three filmmakers after extensive renovation, following a 33-year pause.

• 1969

  Tilsiter Straße renamed Richard-Sorge-Straße.

• 1961

  Cinema closed shortly before the opening of the Kosmos cinema on Karl-Marx-Allee.

• 1938

  Historic photograph taken showing the cinema staff and advertising for Schüsse in Kabine 7 and Großalarm.

• 1910

  Opened by P. Liersch as a Kinematographentheater at Tilsiter Straße 25a.

• 1908

  Tilsiter Lichtspiele founded as a Programmkino in Friedrichshain, Berlin.

A historic neighbourhood arthouse cinema and pub offering curated arthouse, documentary and classic films, with a focus on German and documentary cinema, original-language screenings, and East German cultural events.

• Arthouse film screenings

• Documentary film screenings (DokFilmKino)

• Film classics and retrospectives

• film in sounds experimental film and music series

• Film concerts with live music

• Author readings and cultural events

• Pub (Kneipe) services

• Brauerei Zukunft microbrewed beer

• Tilsomat 2000 historic snack vending machine

1. 1Tilsiter Lichtspiele - Programmkino & Kneipe | Kino Berlintilsiter-lichtspiele.de
2. 2Tilsiter Lichtspielewikidata.org
3. 3Tilsiter Lichtspielede.wikipedia.org