Berlin's newest panda twins, Leni and Lotti, celebrate their 1st birthday

BERLIN (AP) — Berlin's newest panda twins have celebrated their first birthday with frozen vegetable treats and a candle made out of bamboo shoots.

The two female cubs were born at the Berlin Zoo on Aug. 22 last year, and each was given both a Chinese and a German name. Meng Hao and Meng Tian are better known as Leni and Lotti, tributes to Berlin native Marlene Dietrich and the German capital’s Charlottenburg district.

On Friday, the cubs played around and with a large red wooden figure 1. They were given what the zoo called “ice marbles” made of beetroot and carrot juice.

The young pandas, who weighed under 200 grams (7 ounces) at birth, now weigh in at about 21 kilos (46 pounds) each. Their keepers are already noticing character differences: the zoo says Lotti is the more daring of the duo, while Leni is often more laidback.

The cubs are the second pair of giant pandas born in Germany.

The first were their elder brothers Meng Xiang and Meng Yuan, who became far better known by the German names Pit and Paule. The cubs were born in August 2019 and were a star attraction in Berlin until they were flown to China in late 2023 — a trip that was contractually agreed from the start but delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

All are the offspring of mother Meng Meng and father Jiao Qing, who arrived in Berlin in 2017.

One of the giant panda cub twins Leni or Lotti plays at the Panda Garden during their first birthday party at the Zoo in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

The twin Panda cubs Leni and Lotti, left, play at the Panda Garden during their first birthday party at the Zoo in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

One of the giant panda cub twins Leni or Lotti plays at the Panda Garden during their first birthday party at the Zoo in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

One of the giant panda cub twins Leni or Lotti plays at the Panda Garden during their first birthday party at the Zoo in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

The twin Panda cubs Leni and Lotti play at the Panda Garden during their first birthday party at the Zoo in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

David Linde, the former chairman of Universal Pictures and CEO of Participant Media, has been named CEO of the Sundance Institute. The nonprofit organization said Thursday that Linde will assume the role on Feb. 17, after this year’s festival concludes.

“I am honored to join Sundance Institute as CEO to steward an organization that is essential to independent artists, the broader creative community, and culture at large,” Linde said in a statement.

His role will include overseeing the Sundance Film Festival’s transition to Boulder, Colorado, in 2027, as well as managing the year-round Sundance Institute programs, including artist labs, grants and fellowships.

A Hollywood veteran, Linde has worked across television and film for decades, cofounding Focus Features and overseeing numerous Oscar nominees and winners in his various roles. During Linde’s time at Participant, which shuttered in 2024, the company produced two best picture winners: “Spotlight” and “Green Book.” He also produced “Arrival.”

Sundance has been operating under an interim CEO, Amanda Kelso, since early 2024 when Joana Vicente stepped down. Vicente had replaced Keri Putnam in 2021. The Institute’s most high-profile event, the annual Sundance Film Festival, is gearing up for its last edition in Park City, Utah which will kick off next week.

Ebs Burnough, board chair of the Sundance Institute, said in a statement that, “David brings a rare combination of industry fluency, social cause management, and deep commitment to artists, positioning the organization to build on our legacy while advancing our mission for the future.”

FILE - David Linde appears at the American Cinematheque Awards in Los Angeles on Nov. 18, 2021. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)