Playtime: ca. 120 Min. from 12 years
Venue: Kinoptikum Time: 8:00 PM Date: Thursday, 03/12
Venue: Kinopolis Cinema 9 Time: 3:00 PM Date: Saturday, 03/14

G-S-A Competition 6

In the minutes preceding a radio news broadcast, in countless entries within anonymous online echo chambers, or at the after-party following a play’s premiere – the true dramas often unfold on the periphery. Whether as claustrophobic chamber play of vanity or the lull before the storm on the stage of global politics: 47 films from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland take their stand beside Schiller’s “boards that mean the world,” offering a glimpse behind the scenes.

“That was the critic from the Süddeutsche Zeitung.” Just moments ago, the play’s director, chest swollen with arrogance, was arguing with the unknown woman. Then his actress utters that single sentence – and a wave of furious panic washes over him. At her own premiere party, she has led him straight into the lion’s mouth. But for FINE, the actress, it no longer matters. Conversations with colleagues and admirers feel hollow; behind high-flown words yawns an ignorant superficiality. She sets out in search of a genuine conversation, a tangible moment of human truth.

“We will likely be the first to broadcast this.” With these simple but momentous words, the editor hands a sheet of paper to the newsreader in the radio station. Just then, the telephone rings; the Minister of Defence is on the other end. Naturally, there is no intention to infringe upon the freedom of the press, but perhaps the wording of the report could be slightly “modulated”? DEAD AIR – that dreaded, unintentional silence during a radio broadcast. What is heard, what is said, and what lurks in the depths of that heavy silence?

Code rattles across the screen. Much like in The Matrix, it acts as a cryptic, technical medium shaping a new image in our real world: an internet FORUM – a virtual space where one does not physically exist and, paradoxically, is able to be oneself all the more freely for it. One becomes almost “more human,” yet no longer sees one’s counterparts. People who can be dehumanised in the pursuit of finding oneself. This can serve as a simple release for everyday frustrations, or it can provide a stage for illegal and inhumane acts.

G-S-A Competition 6

At Home I Feel Like Leaving

A young woman returns to her remote home village after her childlike father went missing in the woods, torn between responsibility and a longing for connection and ease.

TO THE MOVIE

Just You and Me

Driven by memories of Julia and an act from which there is no turning back, Tarik travels through the suburbs and confides in Nick, a shady perfume salesman.

TO THE MOVIE

Canapé Complet

After an escalated night in Berlin, Hamdi and Jorgo must find a way out of a growing disaster.

TO THE MOVIE

Eyes won't see

When allegations of abuse emerge against her gay colleague, social worker Luca is caught between opposing sides while trying to save their youth club.

TO THE MOVIE

The Baronesse

A young baroness finds herself trapped in a gothic fairy tale. While two eager brothers compete for her affection by completing mystical tasks, she attempts to break free

TO THE MOVIE