Festival director Tricia Tuttle visited the foundry as work continues for the 76th Berlin International Film Festival, which will be held from February 12th to 22nd.
The workshop has been creating the festival’s iconic bears since the early days of the Berlinale in the 1950s. Their design is based on a standing bear created in 1932 by sculptor René Sintennis, inspired by the coat of arms of Berlin.
Although small improvements have been made over the decades, the casting process itself has remained largely unchanged. Each completed bear is about 20 centimeters tall and weighs about 4 kilograms, a weight that is often noted when winners lift their trophies on stage.