Karen Arikian

The first foreign language film I ever saw was AGUIRRE THE WRATH OF GOD. I was living in London, attending the Television Training School for a year, and a college friend who was German took me to this tiny little run-down cinema to see the film. From that point on, my eyes were opened!

I was born in Brooklyn, but my parents quickly headed for the suburbs of Long Island. I grew up there in a bit of a cultural wasteland (but with great beaches), until I fell in love with theater while in high school. That love carried over to my four years at a small college in West Virginia where I studied psychology but hung out with the theater crowd. (Can you believe that at a college in the remote Appalachian Mountains, one of my friends in the theater department was Frances McDormand!). While there, I took a semester in London and that’s when Werner Herzog entered my life.

After graduating, I had a once in a lifetime opportunity to study for one year, on a full scholarship, anywhere in the world. Although I had no formal background in film, my love for it had grown and I easily chose Germany, a place of great cinematic heritage, to study documentary film at the Academy of Film and Television (HFF). Everyone there was very kind to me with my sloppy German, and it was a wonderful year - I even painted homes in Starnberger See to earn a few bucks. While there, and a bit homesick, I read that the festival was holding roundtables on American Indies with the Independent Feature Project (IFP) from NYC. I was drawn in and with Ulla Rapp as my guide, started my trek with US indies at rich and rewarding time for these auteur filmmakers.

After returning to New York, I worked for filmmaker/photographer Bruce Weber, where my eyes were opened once again to the beauty of images and sound at late night edit sessions. I volunteered at the IFP, and eventually ran the organization. That brought me into contact with both European Film Promotion and the Berlinale, where I have worked as a consultant for many years. I also started programming in earnest, as Artistic Director at Hamptons Doc Fest in New York and Programme Director at Green Visions Potsdam, launching in 2024.

I am thrilled to be back to my roots with the FILMFEST MÜNCHEN, which was so seminal in my career and personal growth. Another reason why I am in Germany - yes, I fell in love and married and live part-time in Hamburg, part-time in New York.