A Love Letter to Filmkunstbar

'A Love Letter to...' is a series of blog posts in which I express my love for places that hold significance to me.

The basement of the bar is hidden so well that if the melodic sound of jazz notes climbing the stairwell were not so easily heard you would walk straight past its opening. When descending the staircase, a warm heat hits your skin and noise fills your ears. Through the door is a small space crammed full of a variety of individuals from different walks of life all joined together in the melody and movement of the collaborating instruments and artists at the front of the room. The walls are lined with old DVDs and the wooden beams hanging overhead are woven with purple and orange fairy lights. Bodies move as if hypnotised, German beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other. The shelves sway in time with the beat, the stools tap their legs, and the floor shakes with excitement. The room is as alive as the people inside.

Filmkunstbar Fitzcarraldo was one of the first bars I visited when I went to Berlin for my year abroad. A group of newfound friends told me to meet them there and upon my arrival I was hit with a sense of overwhelming joy. The atmosphere, decoration, and tone of the bar created the perfect backdrop for some of my best nights in the city.

On top of being one of the coolest bars ever, Filmkunstbar is also a video store that allows you to rent from a choice of 12,000 DVDS! Their dedication to keeping indie and arthouse audio-visual works alive gives the place a real sense of passion, and as a film buff it only made me love it more.

After feeling such happiness from just sitting in the bar and seeing the video store itself, you could image my joy when I discovered they also host weekly Jam sessions (consequently, Wednesday nights quickly became my favourite time of the week).

For a small entry fee you are permitted into the basement for hours of musical wonder as the Cassette Head Sessions gang provide you with a headline performance followed by an improv jam session where anyone (including you!) can step up to the mic and sing whatever you please. The energy from the crowd is immense; everyone is there for a good time and to share their love of music. It is pure escapism, and the environment soothed my mood on even the lowest of days. I still have such strong sense memory from standing in that room, sweet music filling my ears, dancing with friends, drinking beer, and feeling the warmth from the crowded bodies.

It will always always hold a special place in my heart. That basement will continue to occupy a comforting, joyous, and safe space for me in my memories and in all of my returns to the city.