Around 1,200 film lovers turn out for Luxembourg’s first UFA Film Night.

Sold-out ciné-concert featuring a digitally restored version of Ernst Lubitsch’s “Carmen” (1918), with live musical accompaniment by the Luxembourg Philharmonic conducted by Nacho de Paz.

Thomas Rabe: “The UFA Film Night brings a very special cultural experience to audiences here in Luxembourg.”

Thomas Rabe, Karin Schlautmann, Nacho de Paz, Helen Müller y Stephan Gehmacher (f.l.) © Bertelsmann / Fotógrafo: Yann Wirthor

The UFA Film Nights made their first stop in Luxembourg last Friday. Around 1,200 film enthusiasts attended the sold-out screening of Ernst Lubitsch’s iconic silent film “Carmen” (1918) in a digitally restored version sponsored by Bertelsmann, presented in cooperation with the Philharmonie Luxembourg and accompanied by live music. The Luxembourg premiere builds on the success of the UFA Film Nights in Berlin and expands the event’s international presence.

The Luxembourg Philharmonic, the orchestra of the Philharmonie Luxembourg, performed the film score – composed by Tobias Schwencke especially for the film’s premiere at the 2021 UFA Film Nights in Berlin – live under the baton of Nacho de Paz.

Bertelsmann Chairman & CEO Thomas Rabe said: “Bertelsmann has had close ties with Luxembourg for more than four decades. Beyond our business activities through RTL Group and the recently opened Riverty Bank, we have also actively supported Luxembourg’s cultural scene for many years. The UFA Film Night brings a very special cultural experience to audiences here in Luxembourg.”

Bertelsmann launched the UFA Film Nights in Berlin in 2012 and has since brought the event to Brussels, Madrid, Paris, and New York. The company has also supported major film restoration projects by the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Foundation since 2014. These activities are part of Culture@Bertelsmann, an initiative through which Bertelsmann promotes culture in a variety of ways, with a particular focus on preserving important cultural treasures and making them accessible to a broad audience through digitization, exhibitions, and concerts. Bertelsmann also owns the Archivio Storico Ricordi in Milan, home to a unique collection spanning more than 200 years of Italian opera history. The company is indexing the archive’s holdings in accordance with the latest standards and making thousands of documents, stage and costume designs, librettos, and business correspondence freely available online. And for over 20 years now, Bertelsmann’s literary format “The Blue Sofa” has given authors a prominent platform to present their latest works.

About Bertelsmann
Bertelsmann is a media, services, and education company with more than 75,000 employees that operates in some 50 countries around the world. It includes the entertainment group RTL Group, the trade book publisher Penguin Random House, the music company BMG, the service provider Arvato Group, Bertelsmann Marketing Services, the Bertelsmann Education Group, and Bertelsmann Investments. The company generated revenues of €19 billion in the 2025 financial year. Bertelsmann stands for creativity and entrepreneurship. This combination promotes first-class media content and innovative service solutions that inspire customers around the world.