Producers of the film 'Berlin, I Love You' have cited Chinese influence as the reason they cut Ai Weiwei's segment. The artist told DW that the Berlin International Film Festival suggested his section be removed.
Image: DW/Sebastian Gabsch
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Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei's segment in the film "Berlin, I Love You" was cut from the final version due to concerns the artist had become a political liability, the artist and film producers said.
"The reason we were given for the episode's removal was that my political status had made it difficult for the production team to secure further funding," Ai told DW reporter Melissa Chan.
Ai said he was not aware his contribution was being deleted until after the film was released.
The Berlin film is the latest installment in the "Cities in Love" film series, which has already seen films set in New York and Paris. One of the film's executive producers is also making a Shanghai installment of the series, Ai said.
Ai told DW that the Berlin International Film Festival had suggested his participation in the film had made it difficult for the producers to submit it as an entry to the event, a claim the festival has denied.
"[The producers] told me they submitted this film to the Berlin Film Festival and the festival told them, if Ai Weiwei's in there, the film can never be accepted," Ai said.
Ai Weiwei is an outspoken critic of China's government and spent four years under house arrest in China until he was finally allowed to leave the country in July 2015. He then moved to Berlin.
Berlin Film Festival censored?
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Producers back Ai's story
Claus Clausen, one of the film's producers, confirmed Ai Weiwei's story to DW, including the accusation against the film festival.
He said he had no choice but to delete Ai's segment and that it had nothing to do with creative differences, adding that he loved Ai's contribution.
"We had to decide. We wanted to [include Ai's segment]. We were desperate to do it but we couldn't," Clausen said.
Ai's segment was the first to be filmed. He directed it via video calling app FaceTime while still under house arrest in China in 2015, and his participation helped to build momentum and get other directors on board.
Berlinale denies claims
The Berlin Film Festival told DW they do not comment on films that had not been selected, but added: "We can confirm that the involvement of Ai Weiwei would never be a criteria for choosing or not choosing a film."
"Berlin, I Love You" is not the only film to have succumbed to apparent influence from China. Earlier, top Chinese director Zhang Yimou withdrew his film "One Second" — set during the Cultural Revolution — from consideration for the Berlinale's prized Golden Bear in what is widely believed to be censorship and control by Chinese officials.
Ai Weiwei's art in pictures
Artist Ai Weiwei's fall 2017 show in New York City focuses on one of the Chinese artist's central themes: what it means to be a refugee. But he's always been tackling sensitive issues. Here are some of his works.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Rain
'Good Fences Make Good Neighbors'
Ai Weiwei knows what it means to be a refugee. He was persecuted in his homeland China. His fall 2017 show in New York deals with the global refugee crisis through artwork distributed over the city's five boroughs. One of the largest of his installations, entitled "Gilded Cage," is located on the edge of Central Park (above). It invites viewers to enter and exit it by passing through turnstiles.
Image: picture-alliance/newscom/J. Angelillo
Focusing on refugees
His largest work to date, "Law of the Journey," is a 70-meter-long inflatable boat with 258 faceless refugee figures that was shown in Prague. Ever since he moved to Berlin in 2015, Ai Weiwei has worked on numerous projects related to the plight of refugees, often meeting them personally. His documentary "Human Flow" was up for the Golden Lion Best Film award at the 2017 Venice Film Festival.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/R.Vondrous
Art or self-representation?
In late 2015 the image of 3-year-old Syrian refugee Alan Kurdi washed up lifeless on a beach made headlines around the world. In January 2016, Indian news magazine India Today published the above image of Ai Weiwei on the Greek island of Lesbos. While some praised the image as artistic activism, not everyone found the visual protest against European refugee politics ethically acceptable.
The exhibition "Luther and the avant-garde" features contemporary art. According to the 16th century religious reformer himself, images are neither good nor bad; they can inspire belief and prompt contemplation of God. Martin Luther's perspective on artistic freedom paved the way for modern art. Above, Ai Weiwei displays his take on individuality, religion and resistance in the exhibition.
Image: Daniel Biskup
Political art with Legos
In 2015, Lego refused to deliver Ai Weiwei a bulk order of the toys on political grounds. Supporters around the world sent millions of pieces in protest. Ai had already used Legos for a work of art on freedom of expression, shown in the abandoned prison of Alcatraz. It featured over 175 portraits of political activists and prisoners of conscience, such as Edward Snowden and Nelson Mandela.
Image: Getty Images/J. Sullivan
'Berlin, I Love You'
During the 2015 Berlinale film festival, Ai Weiwei directed a movie which depicts his long-distance relationship with his six-year-old son, Ai Lao, who lives with his mother in Berlin. He delivered his instructions for the short film using satellites and via Skype, a logistical tour de force.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/L. Schulze
First-ever solo exhibition in China
Ai Weiwei was allowed to hold a solo exhibition in Beijing in June 2015: This was seen as a sign that the government was easing on his case. Although he avoided direct political works in the show, the authorities pushed back its opening date by a week, as they did not want it to be accessible to the public before June 4 — the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Ng Han Guan
Sunflower seeds
This is part of another famous work which counts millions of pieces. These sunflower seeds are deceptively realistic, yet they were all handcrafted in porcelain by hundreds of artisans. The installation comments on the current "Made in China" economy and also refers to Mao Zedong’s brutal Cultural Revolution (1966—76), where sunflowers were typically used in propaganda images.
Image: L. Gene/AFP/Getty Images
Sign of the zodiac
There are different versions of this installation, "Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads," which features 12 animal heads reproducing the traditional Chinese zodiac once part of a fountain clock at the Old Summer Palace in Beijing. The sculptures were looted after French and British troops destroyed the imperial retreat in 1850. In June 2015, a bronze version of the work was sold for 3.4 million pounds.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Arrizabalaga
Preserving tradition
In 2014, Ai Weiwei held a huge solo exhibition in Berlin, which he also managed without leaving China. These 6,000 wooden stools filling the atrium of the Martin-Gropius Bau museum, collected throughout the countryside of his Homeland, did make the trip. Wooden stools have been used for centuries in households, and the artist sees them as a symbol of the disappearing traditions of rural China.
Image: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images
From two wheels to four
Private car ownership is growing exponentially in China, while the bike fleet is declining. Cyclists are being blamed for causing accidents and congestion. This work is made of 150 bicycles and also commemorates Yang Jia, a Beijing resident arrested for riding an unlicensed bicycle. During his detention he was assaulted and accused of murdering six police officers, leading him to a death sentence.
Image: Getty Images
Artist with gas mask
Ai Weiwei constantly posts pictures of himself on the Internet, such as this one. Air pollution is a major source of protest in China. Social media has become an integral part of the artist's work, allowing him to reach a very wide audience and establish his reputation as a dissident — inspiring many others. He was the recipient of Amnesty International's 2015 Ambassador of Conscience Award.
