A portrait of producer Fred Burle

As a teenager, Fred Burle had one great ambition. There was no cinema in the small Brazilian town of Pirapora, where he lived, so he had to rely on the video rental store. “Every month, a count was taken to see who had rented out the most films, and I always wanted to see my name in the top 3.”

Now 41 years old, he can thank this ambition for the fact that he and his business partner Sol Bondy have emerged as one of world cinema’s leading independent production companies with their Berlin-based One Two Films. The company was represented at this year’s Berlinale by PETER HUJAR’S DAY and KOELN 75. The latter is also nominated in four categories at the German Film Awards, including in the section ‘Best Feature Film’. One Two Films enjoyed one of its greatest successes to date with the multi-award-winning HOLY SPIDER in 2022, which won lead actress Zar Amir Ebrahimi the Best Actress trophy in Cannes. Burle’s first acquisition, ARMAND by Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel, landed immediately in ‘Un Certain Regard 2024’ at Cannes, winning the Camera d’Or. This year, he will be able to present a film in the competition – Kleber Mendonça Filho’s THE SECRET AGENT. Cannes will also be special for Burle this year as he will be part of EFP‘s Producer‘s on the Move program.

The next two films are in post-production at present – Alex Camilleri’s ZEJTUNE and Maryam Touzani’s CALLE MALAGA. Fred Burle is fully aware that One Two Films is defying the current rather problematic trends in the independent market. One reason behind this – the company’s latest projects have paid off in terms of both prestige and finance: “This has enabled us to break new ground in regard to financing – a hybrid solution combining state funding and private money.” But what kind of films are they? Burle explains: “Overall, the story needs to be a mixture of zeitgeist, relevance, and entertainment. And the way it is told is hugely important. There are very few innovative stories, but there is innovative storytelling.”

This also applies to One Two Films’ upcoming projects – the debut film, set in Yemen, by Yemeni-Scottish Oscar-nominated director Sara Ishaq, and the first feature film by Brazilian-Japanese director André Hayato Saito, whose short film AMARELA was in the Cannes short film competition last year. The company, founded in 2010, is based in Berlin; however, it is not currently realising any projects by German directors. According to Burle, this is not a coincidence: “Of course, there are stories to tell in Germany, but they lack the edge necessary to produce them for an international market.

Maybe it’s because we still enjoy so many privi­leges here in Germany and are too well-behaved. As a result, there is a lack of hunger to tell stories.” He is aware that he might cause offence with this statement: “I like to provoke. Prove me wrong! Preferably, with me as your partner!” And he adds: “Joking aside, there is a lot of talent in Germany, but fewer domestic filmmakers approach us than international filmmakers because they perhaps think we are only interested in international material. But that’s not true.” As things stand, however, he finds his projects among filmmakers from countries “where there are major conflicts and social problems” because: “They urgently want to tell a story, as no one else is doing anything about a situation. These films pack a punch.“

As a result, Burle enjoyed no privileges during his education. He had moved to Brasilia to study, but was unable to study audiovisual media because the lectures took place during the daytime and he needed to work full-time. Instead, he studied archival science, which was offered in evening classes. He found a trick to combine this with ‘cinema’ – namely, the conservation and restoration of films. Ultimately, he managed to negotiate sufficient free time with an employer to complete his audiovisual studies. Then, he wished to specialise in production – but as there was no specific degree course for this in Brazil, he left life in his home country entirely and went to Berlin, where he got a place at the DFFB. It was there that he first met Sol Bondy in 2016, who hired him as a producers’ assistant. From this point onwards, the company landed more and more international successes – from THE HAPPIEST DAY IN THE LIFE OF OLLI MAKI, which won the top prize at ‘Un Certain Regard’ in 2016, to THE BOOKSHOP by Isabel Coixet. However, the One Two Films line-up does not include TV projects. And for good reason: “Cinema is our passion,” says Fred Burle. “I firmly believe in it. And if films are good, people will continue to go to the cinema.”

Rüdiger Sturm