Berlinale | Kino International in Berlin  A Cinema Landmark Gets a Makeover

Eye-catcher and architectural jewel: Berlin's “Kino International”. After 60 years of cinema operation, renovations are due. Valérie Catil on the past and future of a cultural icon.

On the main avenue of East Berlin, Karl-Marx-Allee, stands a marvellous concrete block. The imposing window front almost seems to float in the air. Inside there is an entrance area with dozens and dozens of ceiling lights. Upstairs is the panorama bar, furnished with chic mid-century furniture and panelled entirely in warm, dark brown wood. It leads into a sloping hall with room for almost 550 guests. In GDR times, even the former Chairman of the GDR State Council, Erich Honecker, sat there. Today it is closed. 

Renovate Instead of Improvise

The Berlinale opens its doors for the 75th time this year. However, for the first time since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, it will be without this building in the Friedrichshain district: the “Kino International” designed by architect Josef Kaiser. Berlin's most beautiful cinema, as it can be called, is in the middle of renovation work. The cinema has been open continuously for more than 60 years. Now, for the first time in its history, it is closed for an extended period.
 
To date, the building has never been thoroughly refurbished. “This was now urgently needed,” says Thore Horch, the contact person for the refurbishment work. He works for the Yorck cinema group, which bought the building in the mid-1990s. “The building has always worked, but only with a lot of improvisation.” The roof was leaking, the parquet flooring was in need of restoration and the wiring was no longer up to standard: “When someone didn't start the dishwasher properly, the chandeliers in the panorama bar suddenly failed during a premiere.” Nevertheless, as far as the electrics were concerned, there was never any danger.

During the renovation work, the cinema is working with restorers, “people who are keen to ensure that it looks the same afterwards as it did before,” says Horch. So there's no need to worry that the cinema won't be recognisable after the renovation. “It may not have no scratches afterwards, but it will have fewer,” he adds. In other words, it will shine more, but retain its original aesthetic. 

Absolutely Worth Preserving

This one is unique: with its monumental exterior architecture, the building is more reminiscent of a UFO than a cinema. Apart from the large glass front, the building has three windowless walls. The sides are almost 50 metres long and completely covered in enormous artistic reliefs. Large concrete slabs, designed by the sculptors Waldemar Grzimek, Hubert Schiefelbein and Karl-Heinz Schamal, can be seen on them. They depict people in everyday scenes, but also at work or playing sport. The reliefs are entitled From the lives of people today. 
 
Not changing these external features during the renovation is a must. This is because the building has been a listed building since 1990, the year in which the Kino International first hosted the Berlinale. In GDR times, it served as a premiere cinema. Premiere cinemas are characterised by the fact that they are prestigious, i.e. look beautiful, and that there is only one auditorium in which the film was premiered in front of a large audience. Just one auditorium? That's unusual for cinemas. Although there are still some single-screen cinemas in Berlin today, they are often theatres or dance halls that were later converted into cinemas. The Kino International is also a rarity in Berlin in this respect.  

Looking Forward to 2027

For example, Solo Sunny by Konrad Wolf, a film by DEFA (Deutsche Film AG) based in Potsdam-Babelsberg, celebrated its premiere at Kino International. At the 1980 Berlinale, the leading actress Renate Krößner received the Silver Bear for Best Actress for her role as the titular Sunny. This year, a restored version of Solo Sunny can be seen in the “Berlinale Classics” section. 
 
The fact that the film history section “Retrospective” is dedicated to German genre films in 2025 of all years also seems like a missed opportunity, as we would have loved to see the films of the 1970s flickering across the screen at the Kino International. Although the cinema is unable to welcome guests at this year's Berlinale, it is certain that it will not miss out in the future. “We will be back in 2027,” promises Thore Horch from the Yorck Group. “We don't yet know in what form.”

February 2025