BEIJING, Feb. 4-- Sex and the pornography industry will take center stage at the Berlin Film Festival after the leading actress in last year¡¦s Golden Bear winning film was publicly hounded over her earlier work as a German porn actress.

Berlinale director Dieter Kosslick said the focus on sex and porn was less a nod to the controversy that engulfed Head-On starring Sibel Kekilli than a tribute to sex research pioneer Alfred Kinsey as well as the commercial success of porn films.

¡§There are simply a lot of films about sex and pornography out there in the market,¡¨ said Kosslick, whose event is often ranked behind Cannes and alongside Venice as one of the world¡¦s leading festivals.

¡§We thought it was time to take a look at the era we lived through 30 years ago,¡¨ he added.¡§It was time of sexual repression and yet a lot of money was earned with sex films.¡¨

Kekilli had hidden her past making porn films and came under scrutiny by tabloids over her hard-core background. But the German public didn¡¦t care; it cheered her performance in Head-On. She regularly berated tabloids in award speeches.

Kosslick said the festival, which runs Feb. 10-20, will be bigger than ever with 343 films from 52 nations¢w including 21 competing for the Golden and Silver Bear awards.

The competition entry Kinsey features Liam Neeson as the sex researcher who created a storm in the late 1940s with his groundbreaking study Sexual Behavior in the Human Male.

Festival-goers can also enjoy or inveigh against Inside Deep Throat, devoted to the 1972 film Deep Throat starring Linda Lovelace that shocked many and is estimated to have grossed US$600 million after costing US$25,000 to make.

Held during the frenzied run-up to Hollywood¡¦s Academy Awards, the Berlinale is a welcome vehicle for studios to launch their films in Europe, add awards or simply pick up pre-Oscar buzz. Berlin will thus again be filled with celebrities.

Will Smith, Kristin Scott Thomas, Keanu Reeves, Kevin Spacey, Daniel Day-Lewis, Dennis Quaid, Don Cheadle, Glenn Close, Joseph Fiennes, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gerard Depardieu and Catherine Deneuve are expected on Berlin¡¦s red carpets.

This year¡¦s jury is headed by director Roland Emmerich.

(Source: Shenzhen Daily/Agencies)