German Documentaries at Toronto and Madrid Festival

Eleven German or German-international documentaries were invited to the Hot Docs Canadian International Festival (17 - 27 April) in Toronto. Hot Docs numbers along with IDFA among the most important international documentary film festivals. The films LETTER TO ANNA by Eric Bergkraut (CH/DE) and MEMORY BOOKS by Christa Graf (DE/CH) were invited to screen in the international competition (International Spectrum). 20 SECONDS OF JOY by Jens Hoffmann will be showing in the section entitled World Showcase. Other sections will also present the films JESUS LOVES YOU (JESUS LIEBT DICH) by Lilian Franck, Robert Cibis, Michaela Kirst and Matthias Luthardt, A CRIME AGAINST ART by Hila Peleg (ES/DE), WHO’S AFRAID OF KATHY ACKER by Barbara Caspar (DE/AT), FOOTBAL UNDER COVER by Ayat Najafi und David Assmann and RECYCLE by Mahmoud al Massad (JO/NL/DE). Moreover, there will be screenings of the shorts ALLES WIRD WIEDER GUT and TIME FLIES by Frédéric Moser and Philippe Schwinger as well as SAND QUARRY by Raphaël Grisey.

The international festival Documenta Madrid, which is being held from 2 - 11 May, also has eleven German productions in its programme: the films A WALK ON THE EDGE OF DEMOCRACY (SPAZIERGANG AM RAND DER DEMOKRATIE) by Joerg Hommer and THE LOVERS OF AXOS (DIE LIEBENDEN VON AXOS) (DE/GR) by Nicos Ligouris can be seen in the competition section entitled Original Documentary. BECAUSE A MAN IS HUMAN (WEIL DER MENSCH EIN MENSCH IST) by Frauke Finsterwalder und Stephan Hilpert, THE CHAMPAGNE SPY (DER CHAMPAGNERSPION) by Nadav Shirman (IL/DE) and NUR DOENER: THE JOURNEY OF A DOENER KEBAB IN BERLIN by Khaldoon Ahmed will screen in the competition for Documentary Reporting. The Short Film Competition will be presenting the films DER SCHNELLE BRUETER by Hannes Lang, HINDSIGHT (SPURENSUCHE) by Yvonne Ruechel-Aebersold, OSTEND by Fabian Walker (BE/DE), REQUIEM FOR MRS H. (REQUIEM FUER FRAU H.) by Philipp Hartmann, SILENT REMOVAL (STILLER ABTRAG) by Wolfram Huke and THROUGH ANITA'S EYES (MIT ANDEREN AUGEN) by Andreas Gruetzner.