AUSTRIAN FILM COMMISSION

DEMOCRACY LTD by Robert Schabus at CPH DOX

Robert Schabus examines the question why populist politicians meet with such strong resonance in European democracies. His new film DEMOCRACY LTD celebrates its world premiere as a contender in the F:ACT Award competition and as opening film of the focus on Europe. Also screening in Copenhagen: THE BORDER FENCE by Nikolaus Geyrhalter, SEA OF SHADOWS by Richard Ladkani.

Grand Prix Cinéma du réel to MOVEMENTS OF A NEARBY MOUNTAIN

Sebastian Brameshuber's new essay is the portrait of a man and a place, observing a determined loner as he goes about his work inside and outside time. The Grand Prix of Cinéma du Réel has been unanimously attributed to MOVEMENTS OF A NEARBY MOUNTAIN, "...Thanks to the elegance of his mise en scène and inventive use of the off-screen dimension...

Austrian films at international festivals

Participations January - April 2019

Is his documentary film DEMOCRACY LTD Robert Schabus investigates the crisis in European democracy, focussing especially on the failure of the political elite to listen to the needs of the people. The filmmaker explored the situation in the run-up to the 2017 elections in France and Germany, analysed the aftermath of the referendums in Great Britain and Greece and looked closely at Austria, now with a right wing government, in an attempt to understand why populism has met with such powerful resonance in these democracies.

INTERVIEW

«The first issue that struck me was that of invisibility.»

Nathalie Borgers

For her documentary film THE REMAINS – AFTER THE ODYSSEY, Nathalie Borgers proceeds from the statistics on refugees attempting to reach Europe and adds an individual, human dimension to the sober facts and figures. In her film, shot on Lesbos and in Vienna, she investigates the visible and invisible traces left by attempts to make the dangerous Mediterranean crossing – on the coastlines, in the survivors and in those who provide what humanitarian help they can in exceptional circumstances.

INTERVIEW

«Create a space where the present and the past overlap.»

Sebastian Brameshuber

Cliff’s garage, where he prepares used cars and second-hand parts for sale and export, is a very special place. And the Nigerian metal dealer, who has built up a business in Austria over the years all by himself, is an extremely distinctive character. In his essay MOVEMENTS OF A NEARBY MOUNTAIN Sebastian Brameshuber creates a portrait of a man and a place, observing a determined loner as he goes about his work inside and outside time, thus bringing history and the present to life in the setting of the Erzberg iron ore mining region in Styria.

Retrospectives RUTH BECKERMANN in Paris, Sarajevo, Bukarest ...

The Musee d’art et d’histoire du Judaisme in Paris is hosting a Ruth Beckermann Retrospektive from April 4 to 7, opening with the most successful Austrian film at international festivals in 2018 THE WALDHEIM WALTZ. Just recently, Ruth Beckermann was also the focus of retrospectives at the Sarajevo Winter Festival and the One World Romania festival in Bukarest.

A GERMAN LIFE on stage in London

A GERMAN LIFE, Brunhilde Pomsel’s compelling testimony about her youth and time as Joseph Goebbels’ secretary in the core of the Nazi power apparatus has been adapted for the stage by Christopher Hampton. The LONDON Bridge Theatre will be presenting the piece starring MAGGIE SMITH from April 6 to May 11, 2019.

WELCOME TO SODOM wins Objectif d’or

The documentary by Florian Weigensamer and Christian Krönes awarded Best documentary with the Objectif d'or at the Millennium Festival in BRUSSELS: "For us the most complete film, that is nearly telling the idealistic story about life and death, survival, about ethic … dramatic circumstances happening in one amazing and extraordinary microcosm."

Guadalajara: Premio Maguey to Valerie Pachner

The Guadalajara Festival Internacional de Cine has awarded Valerie Pachner for her mesmerizing performance in THE GROUND BENEATH MY FEET with the Premio Maguey: "Pachner's performance startled and seared like no other in the Premio Maguey this year.", stated the jury.

«A gripping, intelligent psychodrama»

Marie Kreutzer’s Golden Bear competition entry THE GROUND BENEATH MY FEET seen by the press:

Variety highlights „a gripping, intelligent psychodrama“, The Hollywood Reporter points out the „depth of insight that is rare in the cinematic treatment of this most misunderstood of diseases“. read more

Berlinale 2019: Prize of the ecumenical jury to EARTH ...

... by Nikolaus Geyrhalter and two more distinctions to German-Austrian co-productions: BORN IN EVIN by Maryam Zaree wins the Compass Perspective Prize, Thomas Heise’s Forum entry HEIMAT IS A SPACE IN TIME the Caligari Prize. The jury statements ...

THE WALDHEIM WALTZ awarded in Atlanta

The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival awards Ruth Beckermann’s THE WALDHEIM WALTZ with the
Documentary Jury Prize. The Building Bridges Jury Prize went to Austrian-Czech-Slovak co-production THE INTERPRETER by Martin Šulik.

Berlinale 2019: DIE KINDER DER TOTEN wins FIPRESCI prize

Performance artists Kelly Copper & Pavol Liska (The Nature Theater of Oklahoma) impressed the Berlinale film critics who awared the FIPRESCI Prize to their first cinematic work DIE KINDER DER TOTEN, a silent and gruesome march of the undead, inspired by the overwhelming novel of Nobel Prize winner Elfriede Jelinek.

INTERVIEW

«We all function in a performance-oriented society.»

Marie Kreutzer

Lola does everything she can to disown her sister, while Conny does everything she can to compel attention from her sister. Marie Kreutzer’s THE GROUND BENEATH MY FEET follows two women, at first sight such complete opposites, as they struggle with family links and the merciless professional world in their attempt to save themselves.

The Guardian: «Geyrhalter proves again that he is a unique figure in world cinema.»

„You’ve heard of climate change but this latest documentary-spectacle from Austrian filmmaker Nikolaus Geyrhalter is about landscape change. Read more of the GUARDIAN-review on EARTH by Peter Bradshaw.

3 nominees for the Glashütte Original-Documentary Award

The Berlinale has announced the entries for the Glashütte Original-Documentary Award 2019.
EARTH by Nikolaus Geyrhalter as well as the German-Austrian co-productions BORN IN EVIN by Maryam Zaree and HEIMAT IS A SPACE IN TIME by Thomas Heise are among the 17 contenders for the Berlinale Best Documentary Award. Last year this distinction endowed with € 50, 000 went to Ruth Beckermann’s THE WALDHEIM WALTZ.

INTERVIEW

«The Earth's crust – its skin – is its most delicate organ.»

Nikolaus Geyrhalter

The concept of the Anthropocene Age, suggesting that humankind has become a greater influence on the planet than nature, is what prompted Nikolaus Geyrhalter to take a closer look in EARTH at the Earth's crust and the internal and external wounds which our drive for progress relentlessly requires.

INTERVIEW

«Film is a medium of transmission – not only of story, but of spirit. »

Kelly Copper, Pavol Liška – Nature Theater of Oklahoma

Elfriede Jelinek’s powerfully eloquent novel provided the literary basis for the film project DIE KINDER DER TOTEN , where the American performance artists Kelly Copper & Pavol Liska stage a gruesomely eccentric march of the undead in silent film format.

INTERVIEW

«Es wurde für uns zur Prämisse, dass dieser Film unser Leben retten muss.»

Für ihr Vorhaben, in der Obersteiermark gemeinsam mit der lokalen Bevölkerung im Genre des Heimatfilms zu experimentieren, wagten sich Kelly Copper & Pavol Liska an Elfriede Jelineks Textmassiv Die Kinder der Toten, ohne die deutschen Sprache zu beherrschen. Claus Philipp, künstlerischer Mitarbeiter und Dramaturg, legte durch seine vermittelnde Lektüre den Zugang ins sprachliche Dickicht des 666 Seiten umfassenden Opus magnum und war von Anfang an in der Aufbereitung des Terrains für ein einzigartiges Film-, Performance- und Publikumsprojekt eingebunden.

Berlinale 2019: Austrian films in Competition and Forum

On top of Marie Kreutzer's Golden Bear contender THE GROUND BENEATH MY FEET the Berlinale Forum hosts the world premiere of Nikolaus Geyrhalter's new film EARTH as well as the first feature film of performance artists Kelly Copper and Pavol Liska with their haunting and witty Super-8-approach to Elfriede Jelinek's major novel DIE KINDER DER TOTEN.

INTERVIEW

«Online encounters have a lot to do with the person's own projections.»

In Gregor Schmidinger’s debut feature film NEVRLAND two young men become lost in a labyrinth between childhood and growing up, between the virtual world and reality, until he sends his protagonists Jakob and Kristjan, both members of Generation Y, plunging into the terrifying depths of their own psyche.

Young Austrian cinema sweeps 7 awards at MOP Saarbrücken

Each of the three Austrian contenders in the main Max Ophüls Prize competition took at least one major award: JOY by Sudabeh Mortezai the MOPs for the socially relevant film and best young actress Joy Alphonsus, NEVRLAND by Gregor Schmidinger the MOPs of the Youth Jury and for best young actor Simon Frühwirth, KAVIAR by Elena Tikhonova the MOP Audience Award.

Ludwig Wüst in focus at Arsenal

One year after the world premiere of Ludwig Wüst’s latest film Departure at the Berlinale Forum 2018, the Berlin based ARSENAL Kino dedicates a retrospective to the film- and theater director LUDWIG WÜST and his intense and idiosyncratic cinematic language from Feb 1 to 3, 2019.

KAVIAR and NEVRLAND vying for Max Ophüls Prize

Young Austrian cinema is represented with two world premieres of two feature debuts in the main Max Ophüls Prize Competition: the culture clash comedy KAVIAR by Elena Tikhonova and NEVRLAND by Gregor Schmidinger, a terrifying coming-of-age journey of a young man into his own self.

Berlinale 2019: Marie Kreutzer’s new film in Golden Bear competition

THE GROUND BENEATH MY FEET, Marie Kreutzer’s fourth feature film about two unequal sisters, starring Valerie Pachner, Pia Hierzegger and Mavie Hörbiger has been unveiled as one of the contenders of the 69^th Berlinale competition.

INTERVIEW

«What does being grown-up really mean?»

For his debut feature film Gregor Schmidinger has created a Nevrland between being a child and being grown-up, between reality and fantasy, between the genuine and the staged self. He sends his protagonists Jakob and Kristjan, offspring of Generation Y, into this world on a terrifying journey from the surface to their individual depths. A conversation with Gregor Schmidinger (director) and Ulrich Gehmacher (producer).

JOY reaches for Golden Star at Marrakech

After Venice, London and Chicago Sudabeh Mortezai’s JOY takes again a major award: The 17^th Marrakech film festival honors her second feature film with its main prize, the Etoile d’or.

Sundance with thrilling voices from Austria

The 35^th SUNDANCE Festival (January 24 to February 3) has reveiled its program with 112 long feature films including thrilling voices from Austria: Veronika Franz & Severin Fiala present their first English language movie THE LODGE in the Midnight programm. Richard Ladkani’s SEA OF SHADOWS is part of the World Cinema Documentary Competition.

New Yorker puts THE WALDHEIM WALTZ on its Best Movies 2018-list

The New Yorker magazine has selected THE WALDHEIM WALTZ by Ruth Beckermann, Austria’s entry to compete for the Foreign Language Award, among the 40 best movies of the year.

Nikolaus Geyrhalter’s THE BORDER FENCE competes at IDFA

The Austrian film year ends with a film about frontiers – on the political agenda, in everyday life, in our minds ... Nikolaus Geyrhalter’s accurate observation THE BORDER FENCE is part of the 31^stIDFA main competition. Also screening in Amsterdam: THE WALDHEIM WALTZ by Ruth Beckermann in the Masters selection and Amsterdam Human Rights Award Nominee CHAOS by Sara Fattahi in Best of Fests and Main Focus Program.

INTERVIEW

«At the moment we are working in both worlds.»

Following the resounding success of their debut feature film Goodnight Mommy, Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala headed off across the Atlantic. Now, after the episode The Trud for The Field Guide to Evil (world premiere at the 2018 South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas) they are back with another full-length feature that aims to scare us out of our wits. THE LODGE was made in association with the British genre institution Hammer Films and will be shown in the Midnight section of the Sundance Festival. A conversation about projects here and there, and the forthcoming remake of Goodnight Mommy.

CHAOS wins at Mar del Plata

Sara Fattahi’s CHAOS wins the Altered States competition at the Mar del Plata Film Festival ex-aequo with the film Casanovagen by Luise Donschen.”The director left her native country but took the war with her.”, observes the jury in its particularly accurate statement.

Tribute to Tizza Covi & Rainer Frimmel at GIJON

The 56^th Festival Internacional de Cine in GIJÒN (November 16 to 24) dedicates a tribute to TIZZA COVI and RAINER FRIMMEL screening MISTER UNIVERSO, THE SHINE OF DAY, LA PIVELLINA, BABOOSKA and honored the filmmakers with the Premio de Honor del Festival at the opening ceremony.

Sevilla awards Joy for her "masterful interpretation"

Joy Anwulika Alphonsus wins the Best Actress Award at the Sevilla film festival: „ she carries the film through her captivating, open, honest, intelligent and authentic performance. A masterful interpretation of an indomitable drama." concludes the jury. It’s award n° 6 since the Venice premiere for Sudabeh Mortezai’s JOY shortly after winning the Vienna Film Prize 2018.