FIRST OFF . . .

A European version of the Academy Awards will be launched at a major arts festival in West Berlin next year, organizers announced Thursday. “We see the Oscar ceremony on television each year, and we think it’s about time Europe had something of equal standing,” West Berlin senator Volker Hassemer told a news conference. “We need a stage to show off European talent and compete with other film cultures,” he said. The film awards will be part of a “feast of culture” sponsored by West Berlin, as part of its role as “Cultural City of Europe 1988.” The events are targeted at the young, and aim to bring together artists from both Eastern and Western Europe. A series of major exhibitions and artistic workshops involving painters, composers, conductors and theater directors will be among the highlights of the festival. Athens, Florence and Amsterdam were the sites for previous “Cultural City” festivals, and Paris and Glasgow are next in line to host the event.