Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein was a passionate cinemagoer. He loved musicals and westerns in particular; Fred Astaire and Carmen Miranda were his idols. He always sat in the front row and saw the visits to the cinema that followed his lectures as a sort of relaxing "shower". Numerous filmmakers such as Derek Jarman, Péter Forgács, Stan Brakhage and Michael Snow have explored Wittgenstein and his work in an explicit manner. To coincide with the "Ludwig Wittgenstein. Verortungen eines Genies" exhibition on show at the Schwules Museum until June 13, clips will be shown from films that Wittgenstein particularly rated as well as from works that were inspired by him. Wolfgang Müller (Die Tödliche Doris), who provided the soundtrack for Wittgenstein's trip to Iceland with his friend David Pinsent, will be providing a musical accompaniment. (Kristina Jaspers) (June 7)
In Memory of Rolf Liebmann
Rolf Liebmann (1939–2003) studied dramatic composition at the film school in Babelsberg from 1962 to 66 and went onto work as an editor and critic. When Jürgen Böttcher asked him to collaborate on his film DER SEKRETÄR (The Secretary, 1967), it was the start of Rolf Liebmann's comprehensive career in documentary film. With his inspiring attitude, original ideas and often-provocative approach, he stood for a completely new theory of authenticity in documentary work, which made him a sought-after member of staff for a range of different colleagues and projects. This did, however, require an ability to withstand his working methods, as he was a radical thinker and often a strident critic, thus making him a natural opponent for traditionalists and studio heads. Several of the projects he was most committed to ended up being axed for political reasons. In two film programs attended by several directors, we will be showing a number of films which Liebmann worked on.
BEHAUPTUNG DES RAUMS - Wege unabhängiger Ausstellungskultur in der DDR
By the expatriation of Wolf Biermann in Autumn 1976 at the latest, East Germany had increasingly developed a culture which consciously sought to set itself apart from the official apparatus of artistic production and distribution and create its own structures in their place. This sub-cultural approach encompassed painting and photography as well as literature, music and film. Both activist magazines and galleries played a part in raising public awareness for the artistic emancipation movement. Within this context, the EIGEN+ART gallery can be seen as a model for civil courage in East Germany’s last decade. It was here that an efficient refuge for intellectual autonomy was established, where young artists were able to create a self-determined space for artistic exchange. The freedom established here was, however, only able to be maintained within the framework of a process that many other activists and dissident had already paved the way for in previous years. There were a whole series of different individual initiatives stretching back into the 70s which each contributed to a gradual erosion of state control. These initiatives thus represent different sides of a social trend which culminated in the peaceful revolution of autumn 1989. The film creates a dialogue between current observations and documentary footage to tell the story of the “other East German culture”, referring to background information and contradictions whilst seeking to discover how this culture came into being.
Beeswax
Jeannie and Lauren are twin sisters and share a house. Jeannie runs a secondhand store. She is afraid that her associate Amanda wants to sue her so she turns to her ex-boyfriend Merrill for advice, as he is just finishing his law degree. Lauren is on the look-out – for a job and for a steady boyfriend. She is about ready to go abroad as an English teacher.
"Aufnahme" ("Emergency Room")
In his multi-layered debut, the director – a former doctor himself – turns his attention to a Berlin hospital. Medical terms such as ward visits, doctor’s rounds, anamnesis, clinical patterns can also be applied to the film’s structure, which makes the institution appear like an organism being given a check up and prodded in various ways.
The DEFA Foundation presents
The DEFA Foundation's July screening program is dedicated both to actor Dieter Mann in honor of his 70th birthday as well as the big sporting event of the summer – the Women's Football World Cup that will be held in Germany this year. The film program begins with Hermann Zschoche's drama GLÜCK IM HINTERHAUS (Backhouse Bliss, GDR 1979). Dieter Mann plays librarian Karl Erp, who breaks out of his well-regulated family life to start an affair with a younger colleague. In the second part of the evening, it's all about the beautiful game: the documentary short FRAUEN AM BALL (Woman on the Ball, GDR 1987) creates a portrait of successful women's football team BSG Turbine Potsdam. In the musical comedy NICHT SCHUMMELN, LIEBLING! (No Cheating, Darling!, GDR 1972), the boys' and girls' football teams in the small town of Sonnenthal, which are led by the mayor and the school headmistress respectively, face-off in a bitterly fought contest. (June 6).
Alec Soth in "Somewhere to Disappear"
To coincide with the opening of the "Broken Manual" exhibition at the Loock Galerie (Halle am Wasser, Invalidenstraße 50/51, loock-galerie.de), which comprises photographs by Alec Soth, we will be screening SOMEWHERE TO DISAPPEAR (F 2010), a film which shows the American photographer at work. Filmmakers Laure Flammarion and Arnaud Uyttenhove follow him on a journey of over 30,000 kilometers right across the USA. For his "Broken Manual" project, he went looking for people who have decided to turn their back on society and live in solitude, whether in wooden huts in the mountains, in caves or even in the desert. Alec Soth uses a large-format camera to take photographic portraits of them. A film about men, America, Alex Soth and the dream of just disappearing. (June 10)
Special Guest: DAAD Fellow Alina Rudnizkaja
Alina Rudnizkaja (born 1976) works for the renowned St. Petersburg Documentary Film Studios and is currently a guest of the DAAD Berlin Artists-In-Residence program. Her multi-award winning documentaries are dedicated to exploring everyday life in the "new" Russia and show a society in upheaval. COMMUNAL RESIDENCE (2002) provides insight into the Soviet concept of shared housing. AMAZONS (2003) is concerned with a group of urban Amazons, who keep horses in the middle of St. Petersburg and do not tolerate any man amongst their ranks. With a subtle feel for humor, CIVIL STATUS (2005) collects scenes from a registry office, where papers for married couples, the recently divorced and the bereaved are all issued with the same stoic expression. In VIXEN ACADEMY (2008), a group of young women attend a course in order to learn how to seduce, marry and control men. Behind their often absurd efforts, the personal and social motives for their actions shine through. (June 9)
Once Upon a Time in the West The History of the Western Genre
For a long period, the Western was unquestionably one of the most important Hollywood genres, with Westerns making up one quarter of all films produced in Hollywood between 1910 and 1960. Film history and the history of the Western are thus linked in a unique way. "The Western is situated at a point of intersection where historiography and mythologization, actual occurrences and mass media interpretations, meet and flow into one another." (Alexandra Seitz)
Filmdokument
Before live television reporting became the standard, the short sport reports in the newsreels were the only opportunity for large audiences to take part in sporting highlights. It’s therefore no surprise that the newsreels themselves were responsible for producing feature-length films about outstanding sporting events. HINEIN! DEUTSCHE FUSSBALL-MEISTERSCHAFT 1950 (Go For It! The 1950 German Football Championships, Walter Rohde, West Germany 1950) documents the championship final between VFB Stuttgart and Kickers Offenbach held at the Berlin Olympic Stadium on June 25 1950. The film is more than just a football report, however, as it creates a portrait of the players, all of whom worked in other professionals at the time. It also observes the construction workers at the Olympic Stadium and takes the viewer in a stroll down Kurfürstendamm. A document from a time when football was not yet completely commercialized. (Jeanpaul Goergen).
Funded by:
Arsenal on Location is funded by the Capital Cultural Fund
The international programs of Arsenal on Location are a cooperation with the Goethe-Institut
