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New films from Germany, Austria & Switzerland 17th Annual SEP 27-OCT 4, 2012 The Castro Theatre San Francisco Official Program Guide

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Schedule / Index

THE CASTRO THEATRE – Main Venue

GOETHE-INSTITUT AUDITORIUM

429 Castro Street (near Market) San Francisco, CA 94114

530 Bush Street (ground floor entry) San Francisco, CA 94108

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 27

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

7:00 pm 9:15 pm

Opening Night Film: BARBARA Opening Night Party

p. 9 p. 9

2:00 pm

Animation Workshop with Tomer Eshed

p. 27

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 30 FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 28 1:30 pm 4:00 pm 6:15 pm 9:00 pm

HOME FOR THE WEEKEND SHIP OF THE DEAD THE RHINO AND THE DRAGONFLY with Lifetime Achievement Award for celebrated actor Mario Adorf FAUST

p. 23 p. 12 p. 13

LESSONS OF A DREAM AUDRE LORDE: THE BERLIN YEARS 1984 to 1992 THE FOSTER BOY Centerpiece Film: BAIKONUR THE TIN DRUM — DIRECTOR’S CUT West Coast Premiere of the new restoration

TOM SAWYER COLOR OF THE OCEAN THE WALL 4 DAYS IN MAY THE DOOR

6:30 pm 8:30 pm

WESTWIND SHORTS PROGRAM CRACKS IN THE SHELL COMBAT GIRLS SUMMER WINDOW

LESSONS OF A DREAM BATTLE OF THE QUEENS WUNDERKINDER Closing Night Film: THIS AIN’T CALIFORNIA Closing Night Party

THE SUBSTANCE: ALBERT HOFMANN’S LSD BREATHING

p. 29 p. 31

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2 p. 20 p. 28 p. 15 p. 11

6:00 pm 8:30 pm

LOLA WHORES’ GLORY

p. 12 p. 33

INDEX p. 25 p. 21 p. 31 p. 20 p. 22

p. 26 p. 33 p. 22 p. 21 p. 23

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4 11:30 am 2:30 pm 5:00 pm 7:30 pm 9:30pm

p. 27

p. 25

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 3 11:00 am 1:30 pm 4:00 pm 6:30 pm 9:00 pm

p. 15

MONDAY, OCTOBER 1

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 30 11:00 am 1:30 pm 4:00 pm 6:30 pm 8:45 pm

Masterclass with Veit Helmer Animation in the German Classroom / Launch of “Kurz + Gut macht Schule II” (by invitation only)

p. 16

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 10:30 am 1:00 pm 4:00 pm 6:15 pm 8:45 pm

10.30 am 2:00pm

p. 25 p. 29 p. 26 p. 17 p. 17

3 5 6 7 9 10 15 16 17 19 20 25 27 28 31 36 40 40

Festival Schedule Welcome to the Festival Our Sponsors Guest Artists Opening Night Tribute to Mario Adorf Centerpiece Film Special Presentation Closing Night Membership Program German Panorama Young Generation Educational ProgramS Swiss Window Austrian Cinema Credits & Acknowledgments Tickets, Hours & Venues Contact Information

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Discover the German Language at the Goethe-Institut San Francisco!

© Goethe-Institut/Sonja Tobias

New Fall Intensive Courses start on November 5, 2012 We offer • Standard & Intensive Group Courses (all levels) • Individual Language Coaching • Customized Group Courses for Companies (on-site) • Youth Courses • Special Training for Opera Singers • Literature and Feature Film Based Courses • Intercultural Training, US-Germany • Conversation Classes, “German Matters”

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Goethe-Institut e. V. 530 Bush Street, Suite 204 San Francisco, CA 94108-3623 Tel: 415 263-8760 Fax: 415 391-8715 [email protected] www.goethe.de/sanfrancisco www.germansf.com

WELCOME — WILLKOMMEN Welcome to the 17th Berlin & Beyond Film Festival! Join us at the legendary Castro Theatre (September 27th-30th and October 3rd-4th) and at the Goethe-Institut (September 29th-October 2nd), and celebrate the best in German Cinema today. Presented by the Goethe-Institut San Francisco, Berlin & Beyond has been America’s premier annual celebration of recent productions from Germany, Austria and Switzerland since 1996. It has been serving as a gateway for the American public to experience the universal spirit and vision of filmmakers from this global region. This year’s line-up are led by three bold and exceptional German films that were shortlisted to represent the country in the Foreign Language Oscar race: Christian Petzold’s Barbara on Opening Night; David Wnendt’s Combat Girls; Marten Persiel’s This Ain’t California on Closing Night. Imaginative European filmmakers such as Hendrik Handloegten (Summer Windows), Veit Helmer (Baikonur), Julian Roman Pölsler (The Wall) and Anno Saul (The Door) are connecting fantasy, magic and unique human experiences with emotional deepness in their works. Achim von Borries’ 4 Days in May, Sebastian Grobler’s Lessons of a Dream and Markus Imboden’s The Foster Boy are cinematic stories crossing generations and traversing true history. Global issues are examined in Color of the Ocean (refugees) by Maggie Peren, Audre Lorde — The Berlin Years 1984 to 1992 (arts and activism) by Dagmar Schultz, The Substance: Albert Hofmann’s LSD (drugs) by Martin Witz, and Whores’ Glory (prostitution) by Michael Glawogger.

Sabine Erlenwein

Sophoan Sorn The expanded educational program features field trips to the movies for students and special workshops (animation workshop, masterclass, reading). The Book to Screen program connects film lovers and book lovers. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s “Faust” and Günter Grass’s “The Tin Drum” are lauded masterpieces in world literature. We are thrilled to present the West Coast premiere of the newly-restored Director’s Cut of Volker Schlöndorff’s The Tin Drum and the surreal reimagining of Faust by the legendary Russian director, Alexander Sukorov. And supplementing this impressive cinema-literature link is the German vision of the Mark Twain American classic Tom Sawyer, directed by Hermine Huntgeburth. We feel so honored to welcome to San Francisco one of German cinema’s most beloved actors, the legendary Mario Adorf, recipient of this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award. In addition to The Tin Drum, we will be hosting the international premiere of his latest work, The Rhino and the Dragonfly (by Lola Randl), along with the screenings of two of his favorites — Georg Tressler’s 1959 classic Ship of the Dead and Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s luminous Lola. The star-studded roster of visiting talents also includes this year’s Deutscher Filmpreis (German Film Awards) Best Actress honoree, Alina Levshin, whose groundbreaking role in Combat Girls will be remembered for years to come. We gratefully acknowledge the prodigious support of our sponsors and partners whose empowering generosity make this festival possible. Likewise, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to: our hardworking and dedicated staff, volunteers, board members and collaborators; the staff of the Goethe-Instituts of Munich and San Francisco; the filmmakers, producers and actors sharing their cinematic works with us. Lastly, we congratulate the historic Castro Theatre on its 90th anniversary! And now, we wish you an adventurous Festival experience and a wealth of cinematic memories to treasure. Respectfully,

Sabine Erlenwein, President

Sophoan Sorn, Festival Director BerlinBeyond.com 5

Presenting Sponsors

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Premier Sponsors

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Patron Sponsors

Educational Programs

Venue Partner

Creative Partners

Leader Sponsors

GRAND Sponsors

BBFF@PAIFF

Official Media Partners

Beverage and Food Sponsors

Wewarmlywelcomeour specialguestsofthe2012 Berlin&BeyondFilmFestival

MARIO ADORF

ALINA LEVSHIN

VEIT HELMER

TOMER ESHED

MARTEN PERSIEL

DAGMAR SCHULTZ

MARTIN WITZ

ANNO SAUL

We salute all the nine films in consideration for the German Oscar® entry, including:

COMBAT GIRLS Audience Award Winner at the 2011 Berlin & Beyond Film Festival

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© Hans Fromm

Opening Night Gala

Thur., Sept. 27, 7:00 pm Castro Theatre, SF US West Coast Premiere Germany (2012), 105min. (35mm film projection); in German with English subtitles Winner of Best Film (Silver) at the Swiss German Film Awards.

OPENING NIGHT PARTY Castro Theatre’s Mezzanine, SF 9:15 pm, following the film Celebrate the 17th annual festival! Mingle with old and new friends, meet guest stars, and savor culinary delights and signature drinks from San Francisco and beyond! ($45.00 film & party package)

Opening Night

Set in 1980 East Germany, Christian Petzold’s latest follows physician Barbara (Nina Hoss) when transferred to a small-town clinic. The film hints at her recent imprisonment, apparently due to her determination to flee west. There, however, she falls for André (her supervising doctor), even though she regards him as complicit with the Stasi that subjects her to humiliating house and strip searches. She does evade Stasi surveillance in meeting a West-German boyfriend, bearing consumer goods, cash, and a plan to escape west. Despite her antipathy to East Germany, she hesitates about leaving her work and André, apparently in that order. —J. F. Contributing writer Jaimey Fisher is a professor at UC Davis and the author of the forthcoming The Cinema of Christian Petzold: A Ghostly Archeology (University of Illinois).

© Hans Fromm

Barbara

Director Christian Petzold Germany’s most acclaimed director and key figure of the “Berlin School,” Christian Petzold won Germany’s top film prize for The State I Am In (2000). Since then, works include Ghosts (2005); Yella (2007), widely considered the German masterpiece about post-unification economics/work; and Jerichow (2008), a film noir classic set in eastern Germany. —J.F. Director & Screenwriter: Christian Petzold Cast: Nina Hoss, Ronald Zehrfeld, Rainer Bock US Distributor: Adopt Films Community Copresenter: San Francisco Film Society

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© NIK KONIETZNY

Tribute to Mario Adorf

Mario Adorf

Award for Lifetime Achievement in Acting

We are honored to welcome to San Francisco the legendary Mario Adorf — and to present him with the Award for Lifetime Achievement in Acting and a four-film tribute that shines with: the West Coast premiere of the newly-restored Director’s Cut of Volker Schlöndorff’s The Tin Drum; Fassbinder’s classic Lola; a rare projection of Georg Tressler’s Ship of the Dead; the International Premiere of his most recent film, The Rhino and the Dragonfly, directed by Lola Randl. With more than 200 roles for cinema and TV, Mario Adorf is one of Germany’s most loved actors. Born in Zürich on September 8th, 1930 to a mother from Alsace-Lorraine and a father from Calabria, he grew up in the small catholic town of Mayen in the German Eifel. He was still a student at Munich’s Falckenberg Drama School when discovered for a role in the soldier trilogy 08/15. Shortly after he played the serial killer Bruno Lüdke in The Devil Strikes at Night, directed by Robert Siodmak in 1957. This role was awarded with the Bundesfilmpreis, the first of innumerable prizes that accompanied Adorf’s career. The number of directors Adorf has worked with reads like a hit list of world cinema: Sam Peckinpah, Franco Rossi, Wolfgang Staudte, Edgar Reitz, Billy Wilder, Helmut Dietl, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Claude 10 Berlin & Beyond Film Festival 2012

Chabrol, Sergio Corbucci and Volker Schlöndorff. The term New German Cinema is unthinkable without Adorf. In addition to The Tin Drum and Lola, there was Roland Klick’s Deadlock (1970); Volker Schlöndorff and Margarethe von Trotta’s The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum (1975); Reinhard Hauff’s The Main Character (1977); the omnibus movie Germany in Autumn (1978). His ability to speak four languages fluently allowed him to shoot all over Europe over the years. On stage he demonstrated his multiple talents. From Jimmy in Richard Nash’s “Rainmaker,” Stanley in Tennessee Williams’ drama “A Streetcar Named Desire” up to Shakespeare’s “Othello.” He returned to the stage in 2004 at Berlin’s Renaissance Theatre with the production of “Enigma” from Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt, under the direction of Volker Schlöndorff. The show sold out for weeks. His TV role choices have been of top productions, including a German adaptation of Mr Puntila and his Man Matti (Bertolt Brecht) in 1966. As a chansonnier and entertainer in 1995 and 2001 he convinced his audiences as well as the critics with his tours “Al Dente” and “Ciao!”, sold-out all over Germany. It was rather by chance that he discovered his love for writing. After five successful books, in 2005 he published his most

personal book “Mit einer Nadel bloß”, memories of his mother who died in 1998. His latest work is “Ein Mann spielt um sein Leben.” More than 600,000 copies of his books have been sold in Germany since his first work “Der Mäusetöter” in 1992. In 2010, he received an Honorary Doctorate from the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, his alma mater. For his lifetime achievements, he received the Carl Zuckmayer Medal in 1996, the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in 2001, the German Film Award in 2005, and the Golden Camera on February 4th, 2012. This October, he will begin shooting Der letzte Mensch by the French filmmaker Pierre Henry Salfati. The ceremony for the Award for Lifetime Achievement in Acting and tribute program will take place before the screening of The Rhino and the Dragonfly on Friday, September 28th at 6:15pm at the Castro Theatre. Details about this film are on page 13. Previous Recipients: Wim Wenders, 2009 (directing); Ulrich Mühe, 2008 (acting, posthumous); Michael Verhoeven, 2006 (directing); Bruno Ganz, 2005 (acting).

Courtesy of Janus Films


THE TIN DRUM – DIRECTOR’S CUT

MARIO ADORF TRIBUTE

DIE BLECHTROMMEL

Castro Theatre, SF In Person: Actor Mario Adorf US West Coast Premiere of the NewlyRestored Version Germany (1979), 164 min. (digital projection); in German with English subtitles Director: Volker Schlöndorff Screenwriters: Jean-Claude Carrière, Franz Seitz, Volker Schlöndorff Cast: David Bennent, Mario Adorf, Angela Winkler, Daniel Olbrychski, Katharina Thalbach US Distributor: Janus Films Community Copresenters: Berkeley Art Museum / Pacific Film Archive San Francisco Film Society

Danzig, Germany, 1924. Oskar Matzerath is born with an intellect beyond his infancy. As he witnesses the hypocrisy of adulthood and the irresponsibility of society, Oskar rejects both, and, at his third birthday, refuses to grow older. Caught in a baffling state of perpetual childhood, Oskar lashes out at all he surveys with piercing screams and frantic poundings on his tin drum, while the unheeding, chaotic world marches onward to the madness and folly of World War II. Honored with the Palme d’Or at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival and the 1979 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film, Volker Schlöndorff’s The Tin Drum (Die Blechtrommel) is a truly visionary adaptation of Nobel laureate Günter Grass’s acclaimed novel, an unforgettable fantasia of surreal imagery, striking eroticism, and unflinching satire. —Criterion Collection

This Director’s Cut of The Tin Drum premiered in 2010 at the Cannes Film Festival to acclaim, and includes 22 minutes of previously-cut footage, including stirring extended scenes featuring Lifetime Achievement Award honoree, Mario Adorf.

© J. Radkete

Sat., Sept. 29, 8:45 pm

Director Volker Schlöndorff was born in Wiesbaden in 1939. He trained in France under the apprenticeship of Alain Resnais, JeanPierre Melville and Louis Malle. His 1996 debut, Young Törless, launched the New German Cinema movement and garnered the 1966 Cannes Film Festival International Critics’ Prize. His well-known works include The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum (codirected with Margarethe von Trotta); Coup de grace; and The Tin Drum.

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© Janus Films

© Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung


Ship of the Dead

Lola

Fri., Sept. 28, 4:00 pm

Tues., Oct. 2, 6:00 pm

Castro Theatre, SF

Goethe-Institut, SF (limited seating)

Special Screening — Mario Adorf Tribute West Germany, Mexico (1959), 97min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

Special Screening — Mario Adorf Tribute West Germany (1981), 113min. (digital projection) In German with English subtitles

Based on the 1926 novel by B. Traven: After a line of mischief Philip Gale (Horst Buchholz), an American sailor, is lured into hiring on the “Yorikke”, a tramp cargo, by Lawski (Mario Adorf), a stoker from Poland. Still, the two become friends within the motley crew of losers from all nations. Gale and his new companion soon are more than disillusioned: the “Yorikke” is far from seaworthy and more of a coffin than a ship, work is close to slavery, and treatment by the officers and their subalterns is harsh and cynical. One day they make an alarming discovery in a tin of plum butter they have procured from the ship’s cargo.

Germany in the autumn of 1957: Lola, a seductive cabaret singerprostitute (Barbara Sukowa) exults in her power as a temptress of men, but she wants out—she wants money, property, and love. Pitting a corrupt building contractor (Mario Adorf) against the new straight-arrow building commissioner (Armin Mueller-Stahl), Lola launches an outrageous plan to elevate herself in a world where everything, and everyone, is for sale. Shot in childlike candy colors, Fassbinder’s homage to Josef von Sternberg’s classic The Blue Angel stands as a satiric tribute to capitalism. —The Criterion Collection

Director: Georg Tressler Screenwriters: Hans Jacoby, Werner Jörg Lüddecke Cast: Horst Buchholz, Mario Adorf, Helmut Schmid Print Courtesy of: Goethe-Institut, Munich

Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder Screenwriters: Peter Märthesheimer, Pea Fröhlich Cast: Barbara Sukowa, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Mario Adorf US Distributor: Janus Films

Director Georg Tressler was born in Vienna in 1917. Also a film actor, he directed nearly 80 films, including the memorable classic Teenage Wolfpack. His 1966 film Der Weibsteufel competed for the Golden Bear at the 16th Berlinale. He died on January 6, 2007 in Saxony, three weeks before his 90th birthday.

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© Bavaria Film

Das Totenschiff

Director Rainer Werner Fassbinder was a leader in the New German Cinema movement. He made an astonishing 44 films in a mere 16-year career, ending with his unexpected death in 1982. His memorable works include the epic period series Berlin Alexanderplatz and the sci-fi World on a Wire.

© NFP/COIN FILM


The Rhino and the Dragonfly

MARIO ADORF TRIBUTE

Fri., Sept. 28, 6:15 pm Castro Theatre, SF In Person: Actor Mario Adorf International and North American Premiere Germany (2012), 81min. (digital projection) In German with English subtitles This premiere event begins with a special tribute program to the legendary actor Mario Adorf, honoree of the Berlin & Beyond Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award in Acting. Director & Screenwriter: Lola Randl Cast: Mario Adorf, Fritzi Haberlandt Production: Coin Film, Cologne, Germany

Ada (Fritzi Haberlandt), a young writer, and Nino (Mario Adorf), an aging screen star are stranded in a luxurious hotel for the night. Killing time at the hotel bar, they begin to engage each other in amusing and sometimes bizarre role-playing games. Their views on life could not be more different, but these contradictions are exactly what makes them more and more interested in each other. Ada intentionally asks him provocative questions about old age and Nino senses that he will not experience many more evenings like this in his lifetime. It is an extraordinary night for both of them, full of questions they would never have posed under different circumstances. A rare intimacy develops during their chance meeting and when morning breaks they part, safe in the knowledge that the night has enriched them both. —Munich International Film Festival

© Christoph Terhechte

DIE LIBELLE UND DAS NASHORN

Director Lola Randl was born in 1980 in Munich. She studied in Cologne at the Academy of Media Arts (KHM) from 2001-2006. She participated in the Munich Screenwriting Workshop in 2007. Her first feature Days in Between (2008) premiered at major festivals around the world, and also at Berlin & Beyond.

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© Veit Helmer Filmproduktion

Centerpiece Film

Sat., Sept. 29, 6:15 pm Castro Theatre, SF In Person: Director Veit Helmer Northern California Premiere Germany, Russia, Kazakhstan (2011), 95min. (35mm film projection); in Russian, English & French with English subtitles Director: Veit Helmer Screenwriters: Sergej Ashkenazy, Veit Helmer Cast: Alexander Asochakov, Marie de Villepin, Sitora Farmonova World Sales: m-appeal

VEIT HELMER MASTERCLASS Sun., Sept. 30, 10:30 am Goethe-Institut SF Veit Helmer will show some hilarious behind-the-scene footage from his film Baikonur, and discuss the difficulties of raising an international coproduction and shooting with a multilingual crew in remote territories. ($8-$10 admission)

CENTERPIECE FILM

Veit Helmer’s charming return to the eastern pastoral of his lauded comedy Absurdistan is as delightful as its predecessor with twice as many stars in its eyes. Citing a local proverb that goes: “Whatever falls from heaven, you may keep,” the villagers of a tiny Kazakh village make their living selling space debris from rockets launched from the nearby Baikonur Cosmodrome. Iskander, (Alexander Asochakov) who his village has dubbed “Gargarin” for his homemade ham radio and uncanny ability to predict the debris’ next landing point, is an integral part of their salvage scheme until he rescues Julie (French model and actress Marie de Villepin), a beautiful “space tourist” who has fallen to Earth after a shuttle malfunction and conveniently lost her memory. She lies in a coma until he kisses her awake and finds out that maybe life isn’t a fairy tale after all... —Jackson Scarlett

Courtesy of Veit Helmer

Baikonur

Director Veit Helmer pushes arthouse cinema to its boundaries. His short film Surprise! (1995) was shown at more than 150 festivals. His silent feature Tuvalu (1999) won 32 awards. Absurdistan (2008) premiered in competition at Sundance. He lives in Berlin. Preceded by Flamingo Pride by Tomer Eshed. Details on this short film on page 33. In cooperation with the 2nd Palo Alto International Film Festival, Baikonur comes to South Bay for a special presentation on Fri., Sept. 28, 10:15pm at the Aquarius Theatre. Details and tickets at PAIFF.net. Please note: There are no discounts for Berlin & Beyond members at this special screening.

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Courtesy of Films Boutique

Special Presentation

Faust

Castro Theatre, SF Special Screening Russia, Iceland (2011), 135 min. (digital projection); in German with English subtitles Director: Alexander Sokurov Screenplay: Alexander Sokurov, Marina Koreneva Cast: Johannes Zeiler, Anton Adasinskiy, Isolda Dychauk, Georg Friedrich, Hanna Schygulla World Sales: Films Boutique


Winner of the prestigious Golden Lion at the 2011 Venice Film Festival in Italy. A modern depiction of the classic tale, Alexander Sokurov’s version of Faust puts an eerie and surreal spin on the story of the skeptical doctor who sold his soul to the devil for knowledge. Taking a step away from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s popular telling, Sokurov explores through his own perspective humanity’s struggle with concepts of power and love. The film opens with Heinrich Faust (Austrian actor Johannes Zeiler) hard at work as a well-respected but disenchanted man of medicine. Without hope, faith, or even bread, his hunger leads him to a mysterious moneylender (Anton Adasinsky) who offers him an alternative to suffering and longing by showing him a world of meaning. The two travel the town as Faust views life with a renewed sense of wonder, an enthusiasm which eventually leads him into a fatal love for a town girl, Margarete (Russian-German actress Isolda Dychauk). Faust seamlessly weaves together themes of timeless importance in a new and unique fashion,

exploring visually what has previously been left up to imagination. Ambitious and passionate as Faust himself, this film will leave you with more questions than answers... —Rickey Lee Bauman

Courtesy of Films Boutique

Fri., Sept. 28, 9:00 pm

Late Show

Director Alexander Sokurov was born in 1951 in Russia in the village of Podorvikha. In 1995, the European Film Academy listed Sokurov as being among the best 100 directors of world cinema. His films have been nominated for Cannes’ Palm d’Or four times. Among his acclaimed works is the first “unedited” film in cinema history — Russian Ark (2002) — which was a continuous shot lasting around 90 minutes.

© Harald Schmitt

Closing Night Gala

Thur., Oct. 4, 7:30 pm Castro Theatre, SF In Person: Director Marten Persiel and Producer Ronald Vietz California Premiere Germany (2012), 90 min. (digital projection); in German with English subtitles Director: Marten Persiel Writers: Marten Persiel, Ira Wedel Production: Wildfremd Production

CLOSING NIGHT PARTY Castro Theatre’s Mezzanine, SF 9:30 pm, following the film Celebrate another captivating and vibrant festival with film friends — while meeting guest stars and enjoying a selection of wines and a multifarious sampling of local cuisine. ($45.00 film & party package)

CLOSING NIGHT

Commercial filmmaker and lifelong skater Marten Persiel’s documentary is a highintensity bacchanal of Super 8 flashbacks, ultra-short jeans shorts, grainy TV advertisements, naked girls and political upheaval. Colonizing the then-empty concrete expanse of the Alexanderplatz with board in hand, East German skaters were an immediate threat to the rigid GDR regime, which responded to the sport’s populist support by unsuccessfully tried to institutionalize it, creating “skating schools” and an international competitive team. Crosscutting amazing footage of the halcyon days of “roller boarding” with timely news footage to blistering 1980s German punk, This Ain’t California detonates the explosive story of one of the first skateboard crews behind the Berlin Wall. —Jackson Scarlett

Courtesy of Wildfremd production GmbH

THIS AIN’T CALIFORNIA

About Marten Persiel Filmmaker, author and commercial director Marten Persiel is a nomad and somewhat of an oddball. After a 12 year long odyssey through England, Spain, Brazil and the Philippines, he returned to his birthplace Berlin in 2008, bringing home four documentaries, countless award-winning commercials and an excellent network of filmmakers and producers all around the world. Persiel’s trademarks are his close bonds with his protagonists and his very own, off-key aesthetics. He always searches for unusual, less restrictive narrative formats to tell his stories. This Ain’t California, a project particularly dear to Persiel, will mark a climax in this quest thus far. —Wildfremd Production

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Registration: Pick up a brochure at the Festival or at the Goethe-Institut San Francisco (530 Bush); or download a PDF form via BerlinBeyond.com under the “Get Involved” section. **Events at the Goethe-Institut S.F. are organized by its year-round Cultural Department. ***Adopt A Film benefits include 4 complimentary tickets to adopted film’s screening, pre-film onstage acknowledgement and meet-and-greet with film’s talent (if available). 2012 Membership Validity Policies: • If you register before or by September 30th, 2012, your membership and its benefits will automatically expire before the start of next year’s festival in 2013. • If you register on or after October 1st, 2012, your membership and its benefits will be valid for 12 months from your registration date, including the next festival.

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Your support makes it possible for us to bring the best of new German cinema to San Francisco Bay Area audiences.

© Agi Dawaachu

© Dagmar Schultz

German Panorama

4 Days in May 4 Tage im Mai

Audre Lorde: THE BERLIN YEARS 1984 TO 1992

Sun., Sept. 30, 6:30 pm

Sat., Sept. 29, 1:00 pm (Reading and Film)

Castro Theatre, SF

Castro Theatre, SF

California Premiere Germany, Russia, Ukraine (2011), 97 min. (35mm film projection) In Russian, German & English with English subtitles

Special Screening — In Person: Director Dagmar Schultz Germany (2012), 81 min. (digital projection) In German & English with English subtitles

A Soviet Captain and his patrol have occupied an orphanage by the sea. A German army unit is camped on the beach. A secret love affair blooms against all odds. It is four days before the end of the Second World War in Germany and the world is holding its breath. Everyone is weary of fighting except for a 13-year-old orphan, Peter, who wants to prove his heroism. He tries with all his cunning to instigate trouble between the opposing troops, until he learns that the real opponent is elsewhere and in his supposed enemy he discovers a fatherly friend. In time he discovers the war’s boundary lines don’t run between man and man, they only run between good and evil. —The Match Factory

Film will begin at 2:00 pm. Preceded at 1:00 pm by a special reading of “Invisible Woman: Growing Up Black in Germany” by Ika Hügel-Marshall.

Director & Screenwriter: Achim von Borries Cast: Pavel Wenzel, Aleksey Guskov, Ivan Shvedoff World Sales: The Match Factory

Director & Writer: Dagmar Schultz US Distributor: Third World Newsreel

Documentary: Audre Lorde, the highly influential, award winning African-American lesbian poet, came to live in West-Berlin in the 1980s. During her stay as a visiting professor, she was the mentor and catalyst who ignited the Afro-German movement. Lorde also had a decisive impact on white women, challenging them to acknowledge the significance of their white privilege and learning to deal with difference in constructive ways. —Dr. Dagmar Schultz

Director Achim von Borries was born in Munich and studied at the Free University of Berlin. His screen feature debut England! (2000) won 15 awards around the world, and his second film Love in Thoughts (2004) premiered at Sundance.


© Dagmar Schultz

© Gorden Timpen

Community Copresenter: Frameline Director Dagmar Schultz was born in Berlin, Germany. She first studied at the Free University of Berlin and then studied and worked in the United States and in Puerto Rico from 1963–1972. Dagmar Schultz is a passionate photographer.

© Pere Pueyo

© Jonas Schmager

German Panorama

Combat Girls

KRIEGERIN

Sun., Sept. 30, 1:30 pm

Wed., Oct. 3, 6:30 pm

Castro Theatre, SF

Castro Theatre, SF

US West Coast Premiere Germany, Spain (2011), 97 min. (35mm film projection) In German, Spanish & French with English subtitles

US West Coast Premiere — In Person: Actress Alina Levshin Germany (2011), 103 min. (35mm film projection) In German, English & Arabic with English subtitles

A German tourist on the Cayman Islands discovers a group of African refugees held in detention by the local police. Her concern with their plight leads to her helping one of the refugees and his young son. Will her supposedly humanitarian act have a positive outcome? The film’s provocative story explores the notion of cultural exclusion, acceptance of refugees, tolerance, and social policies on immigration. Using German, Spanish and English to reflect the various cultures portrayed, it is sure to spark impassioned discussion in audiences. —Audi Festival of German Films, Australia

2012 German Film Awards: Best Film (Bronze), Best Screenplay, Best Actress. Marisa, a 20-year-old German woman, hates foreigners, Jews, cops, and everyone she deems guilty for the decline of her country. She provokes, drinks and fights. The only place she feels at home is with the Neo-Nazi gang she belongs to, where hate, violence, and hefty parties are the order of the day. Marisa’s convictions slowly evolve when she meets a young Afghan refugee. Confronted with him, she will learn that the black and white principles of her gang are not the only way. But will Marisa be able to escape her dangerous friends? —David Wnendt

Director & Screenwriter: Maggie Peren Cast: Alex Gonzalez, Sabine Timoteo, Hubert Koundé World Sales: Global Screen

Director & Screenwriter: David Wnendt Cast: Alina Levshin, Jella Haase, Sayed Ahmad US Distributor: Artsploitation Films

Community Copresenter: Cine+Mas / San Francisco Latino Film Festival

Community Copresenter: San Francisco Jewish Film Festival

Director Maggie Peren was born in 1974 in Heidelberg. She studied Literature in Munich. Her acclaimed screenplays include Hands off Mississippi (2007) directed by Detlev Buck, and her feature debut, Stellungswechsel (2007).

© Jonas Schmager

© Karin Kohlberg

Color of the Ocean

DIE FARBE DES OZEANS

Actress Alina Levshin was born in 1984 in Odessa, Ukraine. She studied acting at the Academy for Film and TV Konrad Wolf in Potsdam. Her lead role in Combat Girls garnered Best Actress awards at the German Film Awards and the São Paulo International Film Festival. She lives in Berlin.

BerlinBeyond.com 21

© Wüste Film/Senator Film

© teamWorx Television & Film GmbH

German Panorama

The Door

DIE TÜR

Wed., Oct. 3, 4:00 pm

Sun., Sept. 30, 8:45 pm

Castro Theatre, SF

Castro Theatre, SF

Northern California Premiere Germany (2011), 113 min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

North American Premiere Germany (2009), 103 min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

Set in the world of theater, this psychological drama revolves around a novice actress named Fine who, despite the general consensus that she lacks talent, is cast by renowned director Kaspar Friedmann for the main role of his student staging of Camille. The director claims to see in her the wounded and complicated personality of the eponymous character. The sometimes cruel theater environment forces her to descend into the dark recesses of her very core where she is to find the requisite intensity to perform. As she takes on a new identity to accomplish the task, Fine becomes a participant in a dangerous game. —Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

Starring the acclaimed Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen (Casino Royale, Valhalla Rising) and German standout Jessica Schwarz (Perfume: The Story of a Murderer), and based on the novel by Turkish-German author Akif Pirinçci: This mystery thriller’s action centers on the formerly successful painter, David, who has lost control over his life after causing the death of his seven-year-old daughter Leonie. One day, five years later, he discovers a door which gives him the opportunity to start all over again. What initially appears to be a wonderful chance for a new beginning turns out into a horrifying scenario as not everything in the “past” is quite as it seems.

Director: Christian Schwochow Screenwriters: Heide Schwochow, Christian Schwochow Cast: Stine Fischer Christensen, Ulrich Noethen, Dagmar Manzel, Anna Maria Mühe World Sales: Global Screen

Director: Anno Saul Screenwriter: Jan Berger Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Jessica Schwarz, Heike Makatsch, Valeria Eisenbart World Sales: Global Screen

Director Christian Schwochow was born in 1978 in Bergen auf Rügen. He studied at the Baden-Württemberg Film Academy. His first feature Novemberkind (2008) was highly-acclaimed. He is currently directing the adaptation of Uwe Tellkamp’s famous novel Der Turm.


Courtesy of Anno Saul

© Frank Lamm

Cracks in the Shell

DIE UNSICHTBARE

Director Anno Saul was born in 1963 in Bonn. He studied in Munich at both the Jesuit College for Philosophy and at the University of Television & Film (1985-1990). His films include: Green Desert (1999), Kebab Connection (2004) and Where is Fred? (2006).

© Zentropa Entertainment Berlin GmbH

© 23/5 Filmproduktion GmbH/Gerald von Foris

German Panorama

Home for the Weekend

Summer Window

Was Bleibt

FENSTER ZUM SOMMER

Fri., Sept. 28, 1:30 pm

Wed., Oct. 3, 9:00 pm

Castro Theatre, SF

Castro Theatre, SF

US Premiere Germany (2012), 88min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

US Premiere Germany, Finland (2011), 96 min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

Marko (Lars Eidinger, Everyone Else), a thirty-something author in Berlin, leaves the city with his son Zowie to visit his parents in their countryside home. Upon arrival, he finds his small family filled with announcements — the biggest being that his mother, Gitte (Corrina Harfouch, Downfall) has ceased her long-followed course of medication for manic depression. Soon buried truths surface and Gitte takes a dramatic action that tests the alreadystrained relations among the family. With uncommon restraint, director Hans-Christian Schmid reveals the complex currents that wend beneath the feet of a family dealing with mental illness. Soundtrack by The Notwist. —Jackson Scarlett

A captivating drama based on the novel “Das Fenster zum Sommer” by Hannelore Valencak and starring Nina Hoss (Barbara, Yella). Juliane’s happiness seems perfect. She is head over heels in love and has just begun a new life with August. One morning, however, she wakes up to find that she has been mysteriously thrown back into her past — to the time before she met her new love. Is what seems at first glance as a cruel setback actually a second chance...? Director & Screenwriter: Hendrik Handloegten Cast: Nina Hoss, Mark Waschke, Fritzi Haberlandt, Lars Eidinger World Sales: TrustNordisk, Denmark

Director Hans-Christian Schmid was born in Altötting in 1965. Following his film studies in Munich, he graduated in scriptwriting from USC in Los Angeles. Among his celebrated works are Requiem (2006) and Storm (2009). In 2004, he founded the production company 23/5.

© Zentropa Entertainment Berlin GmbH

© Director Hans-Christian Schmid

Director: Hans-Christian Schmid Screenwriter: Bernd Lange Cast: Lars Eidinger, Corinna Harfouch, Ernst Stötzner World Sales: The Match Factory

Director Hendrik Handloegten was born in 1968. He attended Berlin Film School. He co-wrote the scripts of the wellknown films Love in Thoughts (2004) and Goodbye Lenin! (2003). He also directed Paul is Dead (2000) and Learning to Lie (2003).

BerlinBeyond.com 23

Education for Global Thinking Preparing Students for the 21st Century through the International Baccalaureate Program Preschool to Grade 8 German/English IB Program

•• Small, Small, nurturing nurturing class class sizes with individual attention • German Immersion Preschool & Kindergarten • Bilingual education in Primary Years Program Grades 1-4 • IB Middle Years Program with multiple language options in Grades 5-8 • International Middle School Program suitable for English-only students • Rigorous Math, Science & Technology Curriculum • Inquiry-based learning fosters intellectual awareness • Swiss Classes as part of the After School Enrichment Program

Open Classrooms:

German-American International School The International Middle School at GAIS 275 Elliott Drive, Menlo Park, CA 94025 650.324.8617 www.gais.org

Mon, Nov. 12, 8:20 am - 3Day: pm Open Classroom Nov 12 Info Evenings: Information Mon, Nov. 12, 6:30Evenings: - 8:30 pm Tues, Jan. 8, 6:30 Nov 12 and 8:30 Janpm8 Please RSVP www.gais.org Please RSVPon on www.gais.org

© Maria Krumwiede

© Majestic Filmverleih/Bernd Spauke

Young Generation

Lessons of a Dream

Tom Sawyer

Sat., Sept. 29, 10:30 am | Thur., Oct. 4, 11:30 am

Sun., Sept. 30, 11:00 am

Castro Theatre, SF

Castro Theatre, SF

US West Coast Premiere Germany (2011), 113 min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

North American Premiere Germany (2011), 105 min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

Young teacher Konrad Koch (German film star Daniel Brühl) is hired to teach English at a strictly-run German school for boys in 1874. In his very first class, he notices that everything that the boys know about England is common prejudice handed down for generations. In order to stir up some enthusiasm for the foreign language, Oxford graduate Koch resorts to unusual means, introducing his students to a curious sport that comes from Britain: football. Unfortunately, Koch’s unconventional ways soon make him many enemies: influential parents; local dignitaries; and above all his colleagues, who only believe in Prussian drills and discipline. They all want to get rid of Koch at any price until his students take matters into their own hands.

A German vision of the American classic by Mark Twain. Tom Sawyer has nothing but pranks and mischief on his mind—much to the distress of his Aunt Polly, with whom he and his stepbrother Sid live in the little town of St. Petersburg on the Mississippi. Although he’s a tough nut to crack, Polly has taken it upon herself to raise Tom to be a responsible, decent person. Luckily for Tom, he has a friend who loves adventures as much as he does, an orphan named Huck Finn. Only one very exceptional girl manages to take Tom’s mind off of his gallivanting around with Huck: Becky Thatcher, the daughter of the new judge of St. Petersburg, who has just moved into town. Tom does everything possible to impress her with his “heroic deeds.”

Director: Sebastian Grobler Screenwriters: Philipp Roth, Johanna Stuttmann Cast: Daniel Brühl, Burghart Klaußner, Justus von Dohnanyi, Jürgen Tonkel World Sales: Beta Cinema

Director: Hermine Huntgeburth Screenwriter: Sascha Arango Cast: Louis Hofmann, Leon Seidel, Heike Makatsch, Benno Fürmann World Sales: Beta Cinema

Director Sebastian Grobler won the Studio Hamburg Young Talent Award in 2003 for Morgen früh ist die Nacht rum, his graduation film from the Baden-Württemberg Film Academy. His cinema debut, Lessons of a Dream, was nominated for Best Film at the 2011 German Film Awards.

© Beta Cinema

Courtesy of Beta Cinema

DER GANZ GROSSE TRAUM

Director Hermine Huntgeburth was honored with the German Film Award for Best Newcomer Director in 1991 for her first feature Im Kreise der Lieben. A popular director for TV films, her celebrated screen works include The White Masai (2005) and Effi Briest (2009).

BerlinBeyond.com 25

© CCC Filmkunst

Courtesy of Beta Cinema

Young Generation

Westwind

Wunderkinder

Wed., Oct. 3, 11:00 am

Thur., Oct. 4, 5:00 pm

Castro Theatre, SF

Castro Theatre, SF

Special Screening Germany (2011), 90 min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

Northern California Premiere Germany (2011), 100 min. (35mm film projection) In German with English subtitles

Doreen and Isa are 17-year-old twins from a village in East Germany. In the summer of 1988 the two future club rowers are allowed to go on a trip to a foreign socialist country. During their vacation at Lake Balaton in Hungary they meet a group of young men from the West-German city of Hamburg and Doreen falls in love with the persistent charmer, Arne. On the verge of the most pivotal moment of their young lives, the twins learn that they can’t share everything and some decisions must be made alone.

A tale of three talented children who develop a deep and genuine friendship, extending beyond their different religions and nationalities. The two Jewish children Larissa and Abrascha are both virtuosos — one on the piano and the other on the violin. Hanna, a young German girl, is also extremely gifted. Living in Poltava/Ukraine in 1941, they all share one great love: music. Their world is one of curiosity, joy and talent. But when the Nazis invade the Soviet Union, their world is turned upside down, and they are suddenly forbidden to be friends.

Director Robert Thalheim was born in Berlin in 1974. He studied at the Free University Berlin and the “Konrad Wolf” University of Film & Television. Also a theater writer and director, his films include Netto (2004) and And Along Come Tourists (2007).


Director: Marcus O. Rosenmüller Screenwriters: Marcus O. Rosenmüller, Stephen Glantz, Rolf Schübel, Kris Karathomas Cast: Gedeon Burkhard, Natalia Avelon, Rolf Kanies World Sales: Global Screen

© CCC Filmkunst

© Ali Ghandtschi

Director: Robert Thalheim Screenwriters: Ilja Haller, Susann Schimk Cast: Friederike Becht, Luise Heyer, Franz Dinda, Volker Bruch World Sales: Beta Cinema

Director Marcus O. Rosenmüller was born in 1963 in Duisburg and studied Communications in Munich. In 1983 he co-founded König & Rosenmüller Filmproduktion. A popular director for television productions and music videos (some 120 works), Wunderkinder is his first cinema feature.


© Beta Cinema


LESSONS OF A DREAM

FESTIVAL FIELD TRIPS

WORKSHOPS

BOOK TO SCREEN

Festival Field Trips bring students from across the Bay Area and Northern California with an interest in German film and culture. These two programs are freeof-charge to registered local students. Teaching materials correlating to these films can be found via BerlinBeyond.com.

ANIMATION WORKSHOP — LET ANIMALS TALK Berlin-based animator Tomer Eshed will conduct an interactive workshop, highlighting his work and demonstrating the various aspects of bringing stories to life.

Berlin & Beyond Film Festival celebrates the art of storytelling, the joy of reading and the importance of literacy through Book to Screen, showcasing books that have been adapted into films presented at this year’s festival.

Sat., Sept. 29, 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm Goethe-Institut, SF ($10 students & members, $15 seniors, $20 general)

Barbara: Inspired by the novella “Barbara” by Hermann Broch (1889-1951)

Westwind Wed., Oct. 3, 11:00 am Castro Theatre, SF Film details on page 26.

Ship of the Dead: Based on the novel “Das Totenschiff” by B. Traven (1926) The Door: Based on the novel “Die Damalstür” by Akif Pirinçci (2003)

Lessons of a Dream Thur., Oct. 4, 11:30 am Castro Theatre, SF Film details on page 25.

Faust: Based on the tragedy “Faust. Der Tragödie erster Teil” by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1808)

READING

Summer Window: Based on the novel “Das Fenster zum Sommer” by Hannelore Valencak (1977)

2012 marks the 20-year anniversary of Audre Lorde’s passing. In honor of her legacy, Audre Lorde — The Berlin Years 1984 to 1992 will be screening. Preceding the film, Ika Hügel-Marshall will read from her autobiography “Invisible Woman: Growing Up Black in Germany.”

ANIMATION IN THE CLASSROOM Launch of “Kurz + Gut macht Schule II” DVD This workshop shares ideas on how to integrate exciting German animation short films and animation-inspired activities into the curriculum. In cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Boston.

Sat., Sept. 29, 1:00 pm (reading, 2:00pm film) Castro Theatre, SF More details on page 20. ($10-$12 admission)

Sun., Sept. 30, 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm Goethe-Institut, SF (by invitation only)

Tom Sawyer: Based on the novel “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” by Mark Twain (1876)

Register with Jeannette Neustadt: [email protected]

The Wall: Based on the novel “Die Wand” by Marlen Haushofer (1963)

The Tin Drum: Based on the novel “Die Blechtrommel” by Günter Grass (1959)

BerlinBeyond.com 27

Courtesy of Global Screen

Swiss Window

The Foster Boy

Showcase

Sat., Sept. 29, 4:00 pm Castro Theatre, SF US Premiere Switzerland, Germany (2011), 108 min. (digital projection); in Swiss German with English subtitles Director: Markus Imboden Screenwriters: Plinio Bachmann, Jasmine Hoch Cast: Max Hubacher, Katja Riemann, Stefan Kurt, Maximilian Simonischek World Sales: Global Screen Swiss Window is proudly supported by the Consulates General of Switzerland in San Francisco and Los Angeles Additional support provided by


Led by Max Hubacher, Switzerland’s 2012 Shooting Star award winner, this uncompromising portrait of the appalling practice of taking poor children from their parents and sending them as “contract children” to live with new families who often abused them, was common in Switzerland until the 1950s. One of these “contract children” is the orphan Max, who dreams of being part of a real family, but instead is treated by the poor Bösiger family as little more than an animal. His only refuge is his accordion, which he plays remarkably. The arrival of Berteli, another foster child, triggers a new dynamic of humiliation and suffering between Max and the Bösiger’s son, Jakob. Abused by Jakob, Berteli seeks comfort with Max, who tells her about a fantastic land of meat and accordions described by their kind-hearted teacher: Argentina! But despite the teacher’s efforts to protect the “foster children,” tragedy strikes at the Bösiger farm — and Max flees to the land of his dreams.

© el-local

DER VERDINGBUB

Director Markus Imboden was born in 1955 in Interlaken, Switzerland. He studied literature and history at the University of Zurich. He has been an independent film director and screenwriter since 1986, and lectures at the ZHdK (Zurich University of the Arts). His film Katzendiebe (1996) is one of the most successful Swiss films of all times. He is a member of both the German Film Academy and the Swiss Film Academy. With over 235,000 tickets sold, The Foster Boy, has become the most successful Swiss film production in the last five years.

Courtesy of Icarus Films

© Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg

Swiss Window

KAMPF DER KÖNIGINNEN

BATTLE OF THE QUEENS

THE SUBSTANCE: ALBERT HOFMANN’S LSD

Thur., Oct. 4, 2:30 pm

Mon., Oct. 1, 6:30 pm

Castro Theatre, SF


Special Screening Germany, Switzerland (2011), 70 min. (digital projection) In Swiss German with English subtitles

Special Screening — In Person: Director Martin Witz Switzerland, Germany (2011), 90 min. (digital projection) In German & English with English subtitles

Documentary: A film from and about rural Europe, capturing a timeless cultural event: a series of head-to-head fights of cows, not bulls, set in a valley in sunny Southern Switzerland. The fights are sudden snorting seesaws, explosions of mass and muscle, archaic and wild. We follow three concurrent story lines: an anxious farmer with his beloved contender; a neurotic unemployed reporter from Zurich come to find a story; and a gang of adolescent boys on mopeds trying to catch a pretty girl’s eye. —Swiss Films

Documentary: In 1943, the year in which the first A-bomb was built, Albert Hofmann discovered LSD, a substance that was to become an A-bomb of the mind. Fractions of a milligram are enough to turn our framework of time and space upside down. This is the story of a drug — its discovery in the Basel chemistry lab, the first experiments by Albert Hofmann on himself, the 1950s experiments by psychiatrists, the military, the heroes of the counter culture, the consciousness researchers today. –Martin Witz

Director & Writer: Nicolas Steiner Subject: Herzog Andreas Production: Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg Community Copresenter: SF DocFest

Director & Writer: Martin Witz Subjects: Albert Hofmann, Stanislav Grof, Carolyn Garcia, Nick Sand, Martin A. Lee US Distributor: Icarus Films Community Copresenter: SF DocFest

Director Nicolas Steiner was born in 1984 in Sitten, Switzerland. He has studied at the Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg and San Francisco Art Institute. Ich bin‘s Helmut (BBFF 2010) is one of the most successful Swiss short films. Battle of the Queens is his feature debut.

Courtesy of Icarus Films

Courtesy of Nicolas Steiner

Preceded by “Of Dogs and Horses” by Thomas Stuber. Details on this short film on page 33.

Director Martin Witz was born in 1956 in Zurich, Switzerland. He studied German and Ethnology at the University of Zurich. Since 1995, he has worked as a screenwriter, film editor and independent director of documentary films.

BerlinBeyond.com 29

City National PROUDLY SUPPORTS

Berlin & Beyond Film Festival

Member FDIC cnb.com

Courtesy of Kino Lorber

Courtesy of Music Box Films

Austrian Cinema

Breathing

The Wall

Atmen

Die Wand

Mon., Oct. 1, 8:30 pm

Sun., Sept. 30, 4:00 pm


Castro Theatre, SF

Northern California Premiere Austria (2011), 93 min. (digital projection) In German with English subtitles

North American Premiere Austria, Germany (2012), 108 min. (digital projection) In German with English subtitles

Austria’s official entry to the 2012 Academy Awards, and the directorial debut from veteran Austrian actor Karl Markovics (The Counterfeiters): Nineteen-year-old Roman Kogler has a chance to be released early from his young offenders’ institution. The odds are against him, however: he is an uncommunicative and solitary character without a family and doesn’t seem to be fit for resocialization. As a day-release prisoner he has a job at a funeral home. Of all things, it is dealing with death that shows him the path back to life. —Austrian Film Commission

“I believe each one of us has a soul friend, a soul tree, and a soul book. My soul book is The Wall.” —Julian Roman Pölsler Based on the eponymous best-selling novel “Die Wand” by Marlen Haushofer, a contemporary female Robinson Crusoe story starring the celebrated German actress Martina Gedeck (The Lives of Others, Mostly Martha): A woman wakes up one morning in a cabin in the mountains and finds herself surrounded by an invisible and impenetrable wall, behind which there is apparently no more life. With a dog, a cow and a cat she meets the new challenges of her new world. —Austrian Film Commission

Director Karl Markovics was born in 1963 in Vienna. He starred as Salomon Sorowitsch in Stefan Ruzowitzky’s Foreign Language Oscar winner The Counterfeiters (2007). Breathing is his first feature as a writer and director. He is also a respected stage actor.

Director & Screenwriter: Julian Roman Pölsler Cast: Martina Gedeck, Karl Heinz Hackl, Ulrike Beimpold US Distributor: Music Box Films

© coop99 filmproduktion

© Karl Markovics

Director & Screenwriter: Karl Markovics Cast: Thomas Schubert, Karin Lischka, Stefan Matousch, Georg Friedrich US Distributor: Kino Lorber

Director Julian Roman Pölsler was born on the Kreuzberg mountain in Styria, Austria. He studied at the Vienna Film Academy. Since 1990 he has been making TV movies and directing for the opera. He teaches in Vienna at the Konservatorium and the University of Technology.

BerlinBeyond.com 31

THE BEST OF TWO WORLDS LEARNING IN GERMAN AND ENGLISH

Call for School Tours!

MOUNTAIN VIEW, BERKELEY & SAN FRANCISCO

• Established dual-immersion language programs (German & English) from preschool to high school • High-standard bilingual educational concept that fosters holistic and individual development • Safe and nurturing learning environments at three locations in the San Francisco Bay Area Phone: 650 254 0748 | Web: www.gissv.org | Email: [email protected]

Shorts Program 2012

© Talking Animals Animation Studio

© Filmladen Filmverleih/G.M.B. Akash

Austrian Cinema

Whores’ Glory

SHORTS PROGRAM 2012

Tue., Oct. 2, 8:30 pm

Wed., Oct. 3, 1:30 pm


Castro Theatre, SF

Special Screening Austria (2011), 110 min. (digital projection) In various languages with English subtitles

FALLEN (Gefallen) Upon returning home to Germany after their duty in Afghanistan, three friends attempt to adjust back to civilian life after losing their buddy on the battlefield. Director: Christoph Schuler (Germany, 2012) — 18 min.

Documentary: This is a cinematic triptych on prostitution: three countries, three languages, three religions. In Thailand, women wait for clients behind glass panes, staring at reflections of themselves. In Bangladesh, men go to a ghetto of love to satisfy their unfulfilled desires on indentured girls. In Mexico, women pray to a female death to avoid facing their own reality. In worlds where the most intimate act has become a commodity, these women have physically and emotionally experienced everything that can happen between a man and a woman. For this they have always been well paid, but the payment has not made their lives any richer. Director & Writer: Michael Glawogger Cinematographer: Wolfgang Thaler US Distributor: Kino Lorber Community Copresenter: United Nations Association Film Festival Explicit contents. No one under the age of 18 allowed at the screening of this film.

Courtesy of Celluloid Dreams

Flamingo Pride

Director Michael Glawogger, also a writer and cinematographer, displays a broad spectrum of cinematic forms and genres in each of his work — ranging from the literary adaptation Kill Daddy Good Night (2009) to essayist documentaries Megacities (2009) and Workingman’s Death (2005).

FLAMINGO PRIDE A straight flamingo in a gay flock falls in love with a lady stork and makes a bold move to prove his intentions. Director: Tomer Eshed (Germany, 2011) — 6 min. FIVE WAYS TO KILL A MAN Every morning, Sam wakes up with new and interesting people in his apartment. Over the course of the day, everyone that he has relied on in the global economy begins to depend on him. Director: Christopher Bisset (Germany, 2012) — 12 min. OF DOGS AND HORSES (Von Hunden und Pferden) Silver Medal, Foreign Film, 2012 Student Academy Awards: At a racecourse for horses, Rolf bets the last of his money for a surgery for his beloved dog Piet. Director: Thomas Stuber (Germany, 2011) — 30 min. STEFFI LIKES THIS (Steffi gefällt das) Paul is a Social Media junkie. But on a lucky day he’d be better off leaving it at home... Director: Philipp Scholz (Germany, 2012) — 5 min. YOU AND I (Du&Ich) Best Short Film, 2012 Swiss Film Awards: 15-year-old Linda and Sevilay have a problem with their parents. If only they could run away. At Linda’s birthday party everything escalates. Director: Esen Isik (Switzerland, 2011) — 23 min. 94 minutes total. All foreign-language films are presented with English subtitles.

BerlinBeyond.com 33

“A heroine adrift…is jolted into the here and now. CONTROLLED AND ABSORBING, WITHOUT A SINGLE WASTED SHOT OR GESTURE.” - Dennis Lim, THE NEW YORK TIMES

nina hoss ronald zehrfeld rainer bock

a film by

christian petzold

O P E N S I N T H E AT R E S D E C E M B E R 2 1 S T

Credits and Acknowledgements

BERLIN & BEYOND FILM FESTIVAL

Publications Distributor Juan Ramirez and Team

General Manager Keith Arnold

Board of Directors Sabine Erlenwein, President Dennis M. Sullivan, Secretary Monika B. Levinson, Treasurer Michael Ahrens Stefanie Bastian

Trailer: Umlaut Ivan Miller, Designer Anshu Wolf, Music

Theatre Managers Mark Ganter Gary Olive

Pre-Screening Committee Sabine Erlenwein, Chair Sophoan Sorn, Chair Michael Ahrens Stefanie Bastian Julia Koch Emma Mascall Jeannette Neustadt Martin Schwartz Peter Stein Jale Yoldas

Event / Office Manager Brian Collette

Festival Director Sophoan Sorn Executive Coordinators Jale Yoldas Jeannette Neustadt Executive Interns Lena Marg Max Ulrich VIP and Hospitality Emma Mascall, VIP Manager Anja Fulle Volunteer Coordinator Rickey Lee Bauman Website Madeleine Cornu Catero, Editor Horst Weber Dirtje Gradtke

GOETHE-INSTITUT SAN FRANCISCO Director of the Institute Sabine Erlenwein Cultural Program Jale Yoldas Jeannette Neustadt

Publicist Jackson Scarlett

Language Department Julia Koch Annette Liebergesell Doris Meier Katja Ramsey Peter Zygowski

Official Photographer Barak Shrama

Administration Astrid Kraft Alonzo

Official Videographer Luis Calero

IT/Media Technician Werner Buchart

Visual Identity: MetaDesign Stan Zienka, Creative Director Neha Hattangdi, Designer Sa Nguyen, Designer Karen Sivak Sarah Cho Jeff Allison Beth Schuenemann

Secretary of the Institute Director Madeleine Cornu Catero

Catalog Layout Editor Mike Benda

Interns Lena Marg Sakine Yildiz

CASTRO THEATRE Executive Director Don Nasser


OFFICIAL SPONSORS Presenting Sponsors Lufthansa Unitrans International Logistics MetaDesign Premier Sponsors San Francisco Grants for the Arts Nissan Infiniti San Francisco Consulate General of Germany in San Francisco Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco Major Sponsor German American International School (GAIS) Patron Sponsors Adopt Films German Films and Marketing Creative Partners Barak Shrama Photography LuisCalero.com Multimedia & Video Production Umlaut / Ivan Miller Leader Sponsors United Swiss Societies of Northern California DISH Network Siemens Medical Group City National Bank Montage Services Grand Sponsors Swiss Consulate, LA Excelsior German Center at the Altenheim Palo Alto International Film Festival Austrian Consulate, LA

Official Media Partners San Francisco Bay Guardian German World Beverage Sponsors Chrissa Imports Folio Fine Wine Partners Pure Swiss Water Dee Vine Wines Food Sponsors Hayes & Kebab Fond O’ Foods, Inc. Gaumenkitzel The Sausage Factory Schroeder’s Café Judy’s Breadsticks/Lovesticks Hot Cookie Walzwerk Schubert’s Bakery

SPECIAL THANKS (In alphabetical order) Agentur Lentz — Peter Reinholz Anja Padge, Wüste Film Coin Film: Cara Donnellan Leonie Minor Consulate General of Austria, L.A.: Consul Andreas Lins Consulate General of Germany, S.F.: Consul General Peter Rothen Consul Bernhard Abels Consul Michael Ahrens Consul Antje-Susan Metz Consulate General of Switzerland, L.A.: Consul Christophe Vauthey Consulate General of Switzerland, S.F.: Consul General Julius Anderegg Cultural Coordinator Martin Schwartz Delphine Eon Dulcinea Gonzalez, Guardian Eva Steegmayer Excelsior German Center at the Altenheim: Marie Hoffmann Petra Specht

Credits and Acknowledgements

German American International School: Dominic Liechti Sabine Dillon German Films: Nicole Kaufmann Angela Hawkins Gisela Wiltschek, Global Screen Goethe-Institut Zentrale, Munich: President Klaus-Dieter Lehmann Andreas Ströhl Christian Lüffe Maren Niemeyer Robert Distelrath Horst Weber Dirtje Gradtke Gabriele Stiller-Kern Viola Noll Dominik Baur Gabriele Landwehr Goethe-Institut Boston: Detlef Gericke-Schoenhagen Karin Oehlenschläger Jaimey Fisher Janus Films: Brian Belovarac Sarah Finklea Livia Bloom, Icarus Films Lufthansa: Peter Ulmer Sydney Jones Nicole Perez-Haemmerle Luis Calero Madeleine Cornu Catero Maria Köpf Mario and Monique Adorf m-appeal, Berlin: Anne Wiedlack Katja Lenarcic MEDIA Desk Germany: Britta Erich MetaDesign, San Francisco: Alexander Haldemann Karen Sivak Stan Zienka Mohammed Smaiely, DISH Network Montage Services, Inc.: Aaron Hunter Scott Wentz Nissan Infiniti San Francisco: Keith Rey Renate Zylla

San Francisco Grants for the Arts: Kary Schulman Khan Wong Brett Conner Sean Casamento Tisha Duke-Rosenbaum Tony Moraga Unitrans International Logistics: Chris Amberg Tom Weber United Swiss Societies of Northern California: Severin Ott Cultural Committee Anna Ralston Wildfremd Production, Berlin: Michael Schöbel Ronald Vietz Franky Lemke

THANK YOU Alexander Fries Alf Seccombe, PAIFF Alison Wiliams, UNAFF Andreas Hildebrandt Andrew Carlin, Music Box Films Angelika Villagrana Anja Voth Arndt Peltner Bawer Tekin Birgit and Kurt Huffman Bobby and Tito Patri Castro Theatre Staff Christiane Schmidt Dan Glazer Daniela Zentner Denise Gunter Desiree Buford, Frameline Eric Moore, Artsploitation Florian Gregor German Embassy, D.C. Giovanni Galati Gladys Rocha, Cine+Mas SF German American Chamber of Commerce: Rene van den Hoevel Kai Ulrich Goethe-Institut Los Angeles: Fareed Majari Daniel Chaffey Goethe-Institut New York: Christoph Bartmann Ulrich Lindner

Jeff Lipsky, Adopt Films Joachim Sartorius, Curator Joseph Sedillo Joshua Moore, SFJFF Kate Johnson, BAM/PFA Karin Dix, EFP Shooting Stars KC Price, Frameline Lauren Nelson, Lodi News Lori Gilbert, The Record Lynda Najarian Mallory Jacobs, Kino Lorber Maurice Escartin Pat Carroll Peter and Lionelle Erlenwein Petra Schuermann, German World Petra Thieriot Rebecca Gordon San Francisco Film Society Rod Armstrong Jaime Galli Siemens Medical Solutions USA: Franz Wiehler Aimee West Sophat and Sovanna Sorn Stein Petersen Stephanie Heckner, Bayerischer Rundfunk Susan Oxtoby, BAM/PFA Valeska Neu, Films Boutique

BAY AREA COMMUNITY COPRESENTERS Berkeley Art Museum / Pacific Film Archive Cine+Mas SF / San Francisco Latino Film Festival Palo Alto International Film Festival San Francisco Film Society San Francisco Jewish Film Festival SF IndieFest / San Francisco Documentary Film Festival United Nations Association Film Festival

VOLUNTEERS OF 2011 FESTIVAL

Marit Brademann Gabriella Budimir Manuela Burrell Ron Butchko Karen Butterfield Mary Beth Curley Amy De Simone Jennifer Donnellan Michael Ewers Paul Festa Sara Garvey Jasmine Gee Michael Grant Stefanie Heinrich Jessica Hicks Kamila Hybl Simone Jobia Vicky Julian Osa Kaufmann William Langley James Li Anne MacKinney Tracy Mahon David McClymonds Joey Mendez Torsten Möller Esther Mugar Rebecca Mhyre Justin Oxsen Carole Patterson Maryia Pershay Ashley Peters Kathrin Pfeiffer Natasha Radzikhovskaya Juan-Tomas Rehbock Paola Rossaro Michael Ross Dominic Santos Alex Schatz Katja Schulz Taylor Semrau Laura Smith Ingrid Stephan Ariana Stephens Isabel Stephenson Rachel Stern Joe Sullivan Nihan Tiryaki Lisa Togler Michael Veremans Denise Won

Leonard Abel Grace Alcantar Philippe Arbeit Marek Booth Nick Boos BerlinBeyond.com 37

LIGHTS. CAMERA. ROLL!

1395 Van Ness Avenue (at Bush), San Francisco, CA 94109 nissaninfinitisf.com 855-252-3796

BerlinBeyond.com (415) 845-0232 — information only [email protected] twitter.com/berlinbeyond facebook.com/berlinbeyondfilmfestival

TICKET PRICES & PACKAGES

VENUES

CASTRO THEATRE MAIN SCREENINGS General Admission: $12.00 Seniors 65+, Students (26 & under) $11.00 Members: $10.00 GOETHE-INSTITUT SCREENINGS General Admission: $10.00 Seniors 65+, Students (26 & under) $9.00 Members: $8.00

CASTRO THEATRE 429 Castro Street (at Market), 94114 Parking can be difficult; please allow extra time if arriving by car. Public Transportation is highly-recommended: – MUNI Metro lines: K, L, M (exit at Castro station) – F Market streetcar – Bus lines: 33, 35, 37, 24 – BART transfers to MUNI Metro at these stations: Embarcadero, Montgomery, Powell, Civic Center Info: (415) 621-6120 / castrotheatre.com

OPENING NIGHT FILM (Barbara) General Admission: $18.00 Senior 65+, Students (26 & under) $16.00 Members: $15.00

GOETHE-INSTITUT AUDITORIUM 530 Bush Street (at Grant), 94108 (entrance at street level) Nearest BART/MUNI station is Montgomery Info: (415) 263-8760 / goethe.de/sanfrancisco

CLOSING NIGHT FILM (This Ain’t California) General Admission: $18.00 Senior 65+, Students (26 & under) $16.00 Members: $15.00

HOW TO BUY TICKETS

FILM + PARTY PACKAGES Opening Night Film & Party Closing Night Film & Party For members, each package is:

$45.00 $45.00 $40.00

CASTRO PASS One pass valid for all public screenings at the Castro Theatre, including Opening Night film, Closing Night film, Centerpiece film and the newly-restored Director’s Cut of “The Tin Drum.” Not valid for the parties nor for any Goethe-Institut programs. ($300 value) General Public: $190.00 Members: $170.00 Youth Special (24 & under, with ID) $40.00 PARTY TICKETS (PASSHOLDERS SPECIAL) Passholders can purchase an Opening Night Party or Closing Night Party ticket (limited to two tickets per passholder). Per ticket: $25.00

The Goethe-Institut is Germany’s official cultural center comprised of 136 institutes in 92 countries. The San Francisco branch has been promoting German culture and language since 1967. Its year-round cultural activities include up to five art exhibitions, weekly film screenings, annual events with local cultural institutions and periodic social gatherings.

ADVANCE TICKETS ONLINE Advance tickets for all shows are available via www. BerlinBeyond.com for Will Call pick-up on day of show. Online ticket sales end 10:00 pm prior to the day of show for each film. GOETHE-INSTITUT SALES Cash-only purchases can be made at the Goethe-Institut SF: Monday–Friday, September 4-26, 1:00 pm – 6:00pm; October 1, 5:30 pm – 9:00pm; October 2, 5:30pm – 9:00pm. DAY OF SHOW SALES AT CASTRO THEATRE During the festival, the theatre’s box office will sell tickets for all shows of that particular day, depending on availability. Cash only. Hours: Opens one hour prior to the first show of each day, and closes 15 minutes after the start of the last show of the day. ADVANCE TICKETS BOOTH The Advance Tickets Booth at the Castro Theatre will be opened during the dates below (limited hours). Only a select number of shows will be on sale at a time, depending on availability. Cash only. (See our website for further details). September 27: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm September 28: 3:00 pm – 7:00 pm September 29-30: 12:30 pm – 4:00 pm 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm October 3: 4:30 pm – 8:30 pm WILL CALL BOOTH AND POLICY Tickets held at Will Call can ONLY be picked up on the day of show/program. No exceptions. Will Call opens one hour prior to the first show of the day and closes 30 minutes after the start of the last show of the day.