... and three more co-productions add up to an outstanding Austrian presence at the Berlinale 2018: Forum with THE WALDHEIM WALTZ by Ruth Beckermann and DEPARTURE by Ludwig Wüst. Panorama Special with L’ANIMALE by Katharina Mückstein and as the opener of this program section STYX, a co-production by Austrian director Wolfgang Fischer. Culinary Cinema presents Werner Boote’s THE GREEN LIE. The German-French-Austrian co-production 3 DAYS IN QUIBERON by Emily Atef competes for the Golden Bear, INTERPRETER by Martin Šulík, co-produced by coop99 filmproduction is part of the Berlinale Special selection.
FORUM
THE WALDHEIM WALTZdirected by Ruth Beckermann
produced by Ruth Beckermann Filmproduktion (A)
International sales: Wide House
A film about truth and lies or “alternative facts”. Ruth Beckermann documents the process of uncovering former UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim’s wartime past. Created from international archive material and what Beckermann shot at the time, film analyses the collapse of the Austrian grand illusion: having been the first victim of the Nazis.
DEPARTURE
directed by Ludwig Wüst
produced by Film-pla.net (A)
A man leaves a woman, a woman leaves a man. Both meet for a short while. Great changes await them at the end of this journey.
PANORAMA SPECIAL
L’ANIMALEdirected by Katharina Mückstein
produced by NGF Geyrhalterfilm (A), La Banda Film (A)
International sales: Films Boutique
Riding on their tuned-up bikes, Mati and her posse of male friends intimidate their neighborhood and harass the girls. In their village, they rule. But when her closest pal Sebastian falls in love with Mati and her enemy Carla unexpectedly turns into a friend, Mati is in danger of losing her standing among her male friends. Meanwhile Mati’s parents have a decision to make: What’s more important, appearances or reality?
Opening film
STYX
directed by Wolfgang Fischer
co-produced by AMOUR FOU Vienna (A) with Schiwago Film (D)
International sales: Beta Cinema
Styx depicts the transformation of a strong woman torn from her contented world during a sailing trip. When she becomes the only person to come to the aid of a group of refugees shipwrecked on the high seas, she is shown the limits of her importance and of the empathy of her cultural milieu. Only chance can save her.
CULINARY CINEMA
THE GREEN LIEdirected by Werner Boote
produced by e&a film
International sales: Wide House
Eco-friendly electric cars, sustainably produced palm oil, fair trade goods: hooray! Trust the corporations that tell you we can save the world by buying the right things. This is a popular and dangerous lie, as Werner Boote and environmental journalist Kathrin Hartmann explain in this controversial documentary: Stop the green lies!
COMPETITION
3 DAYS IN QUIBERONdirected by Emily Atef
co-produced by Dor Film (A) with Rohfilm (D), Sophie Dulac (F)
International sales: Beta Film
In a spa hotel Romy Schneider, the biggest female star in Europe of her time, gives her last interview to two journalists. Three days, driven by romantic desire, professional ambition and the urge for living.
BERLINALE SPECIAL
INTERPRETERdirected by Martin Šulík
co-produced by coop filmproduktion (A) with Titanic (SK), IN Film (CZ)
International sales: Celluloid Dreams
When Ali Ungàr suddenly discovers surprising facts about the Nazi past, the 80-year-old man decides to travel to Vienna and confront the alleged murderer of his parents. But instead, he only finds his son, Georg Graubner. Although Georg never wanted to deal with his father's past, his interest is aroused by Ali and the two of them go on a roadtrip in Slovakia in search of answers.
