On 1 December, the distinguished film scholar Dr Bettina Henzler took over the professorship for film studies at the ifs Internationale Filmschule Köln.

Bettina Henzler studied Comparative Literature, English and German Studies at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn and the Université libre de Bruxelles. She then worked as a freelancer in the fields of festivals, film culture and education, including as the long-standing director of the French children's and youth film festival »Cinéfête« (2003 to 2011).
From 2006, she completed her doctorate as a research assistant at the Institute for Art Studies - Film Studies - Art Education at the University of Bremen. In her dissertation »Film aesthetics and mediation«, she focussed on the history, theory and practice of Alain Bergala's aesthetic approach to film mediation. This was followed by various third-party funded projects in teaching development and research.
In 2023, Bettina Henzler completed her habilitation with the previously published book »Filmische Kindheitsfiguren. Movement - Strangeness - Play«, which also focussed on filming with children. She is currently researching and evaluating film-aesthetic education processes together with colleagues at the Université Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris as part of the Erasmus+-funded international film education project »Exploring cinéma, cent ans de jeunesse«.

Bettina Henzler has extensive teaching experience, including at the University of Bremen, the Film University Konrad Wolf, the Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg and the Free University of Berlin. In addition to her university career, she works as a speaker, author and expert in (school) film education, has been responsible for numerous teacher training courses and has edited several relevant publications on film education (including »Filme sehen, Kino verstehen«, 2009; »Vom Kino lernen«, 2010). In this context, she regularly cooperates with film culture institutions such as the Deutsche Kinemathek Berlin or the DFF - Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum e.V. in Frankfurt. She has also published extensively internationally and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Film Education Journal.

Bettina Henzler characterises her work as a film scholar and lecturer at the ifs as follows: "In my work at the ifs, I want to build bridges between academia, film practice and education. The educational potential of cinematic aesthetics and cinematic creative processes in particular is still largely unexplored: How do films shape the way we perceive and remember, how we relate to others and to the world, how cultures and societies develop? I am very much looking forward to exploring these connections together with the students at the ifs."

Nadja Radojevic, Managing Director of the ifs: "With the appointment of Dr Bettina Henzler as Professor of Film Studies, we have been able to gain an extremely versatile film scholar with a strong awareness of synergies for the ifs, who also includes film production in her research and recognises the research and innovative potential in film practice. Our students will now benefit from this comprehensive view and her profound teaching experience and teaching activities. I would like to welcome Bettina Henzler to the ifs!"

Founded in 2000, the ifs Internationale Filmschule Köln is one of the leading training and further education institutions for audiovisual media in Germany. Its aim is to offer film and media professionals a high-quality, future-orientated education that closely combines theory and practice. Its location in the film and media centre of Cologne particularly characterises its claim to be close to the industry. The ifs is a subsidiary of the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW. The degree programmes are offered in cooperation with the TH Köln, and the professors are appointed by the TH Köln.

Created on 05.12.2023