Thomas Heise, who is showing both Material at the Forum as well as an early short film as part of "Winter adé" series at this year's festival, will be taking part in a discussion on February 8th with other directors from "Winter adé" on the artistic and political opportunities offered by film in totalitarian situations.

Seven central podium discussions form part of this year's Forum expanded program. In addition to this, numerous artist talks and discussion events as part of the Talent Campus are planned.

The HomeBase Lounge is once again the meeting point for all film guests and fans of independent films in all sections of the Berlinale.

The website netloungeDV once again provides an overview of the films from the Forum and Panorama programs shot on DV, including articles, trailers, interviews and a blog.

Like every year, in-depth film discussions with the cinema audience will be held following the screenings of most Forum films. In addition to the director(s), the actors or central figures from the film will also often be present at the screenings to answer questions.

Tim Blue, filmmaker, musician and member of the artists' group CHEAP will be providing a personal and poetic look on a daily basis at the facts, the events, the films and all the festival gossip during the 4th Forum expanded at Blog.

The main opening for the 4th edition of Forum expanded will be taking place in the Atrium of the Filmhaus on February 6th from 9.30pm onwards following openings in seven other galleries. Michael Snow will be attending the opening as a special guest.

Ahead of the official opening on Friday, both the BodhiBerlin and Haunch of Venison galeries will be showing work as part of Forum expanded from today. Halle A/14 will be showing an individual exhibition of work by Ludwig Schönherr.

Photos, texts, catalogue pages and screening dates: with a click on program you'll find all information on the films of the Forum 2009.

At the Forum 2009, filmgoers won’t just have the chance to discover a wealth of new names and cinematic signatures. A whole range of filmmakers who have already shown one or more films at previous editions of the Forum will also be making a welcome return.