Berlinale Director Dieter Kosslick will open the Festival together with Minister of State and Commissioner for Cultural and Media Affairs Bernd Neumann, Governing Mayor of Berlin Klaus Wowereit and Jury President Costa-Gavras. The event will be broadcast live on television by ZDF/3sat. Television presenter Katrin Bauerfeind will host the evening. Music for the gala will be provided by the German pop-rock band "Wir sind Helden".
Other celebrities expected to attend the event include:
Mario Adorf, Fatih Akin, Natalia Avelon, Michael Ballhaus, Ben Becker, Meret Becker, Wolfgang Becker, Senta Berger, Moritz Bleibtreu, Daniel Brühl, Christopher Buchholz, Detlev Buck, Mareike Carrière, Brian De Palma, August Diehl, Angelica Domröse, Doris Dörrie, Hannelore Elsner, Luigi Falorni, Heino Ferch, Veronica Ferres, Martina Gedeck, Corinna Harfouch, Goldie Hawn, Hannah Herzsprung, Nina Hoss, Sandra Hüller, Julia Hummer, Hermine Huntgeburth, Julia Jentsch, Vanessa Jopp, Sibel Kekilli, Wolfgang Kohlhaase, Chris Kraus, Thomas Kretschmann, Marco Kreuzpaintner, Alexandra Maria Lara, Heike Makatsch, Jeanine Meerapfel, Barnaby Metschurat, Helke Misselwitz, Dieter Moor, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Anna Maria Mühe, Christian Petzold, Franka Potente, Oskar Roehler, Otto Sander, Katrin Saß, Maria Schrader, Jessica Schwarz, Esther Schweins, Steven Soderbergh, Jasmin Tabatabai, Margarethe von Trotta, Tom Tykwer, Nadja Uhl, Christian Ulmen, Idil Üner, Jürgen Vogel, Sönke Wortmann, Neil Young and Hanns Zischler.
A number of prominent German politicians have also announced they will attend. This includes Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs and Vice-Chancellor Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Bundestag Dr. Norbert Lammert, President of the Berlin House of Representatives Walter Momper and former Federal Minister of Defence Volker Rühe.