Co-presented with Goethe Institut-Los Angeles
In collaboration with Filmstiftung NRW
With the support of E.L.M.A. (European Languages and Movies in America)

German cinema has contributed an array of cinematic icons to film history - from the Weimar-era post-Caligari, pre-Hitler gallery of Lang, Murnau and Dietrich, to the early ’70s of the New German Cinema driven by Werner Herzog, Wim Wenders, Rainer Werner Fassbinder and others. After the fall of the Berlin Wall 20 years ago, German producers generated individual hits that betrayed a lighter touch in their direction and performances. If the films of the New German Cinema were marked by introversion and alienation, recent German films are extroverted and kinetic. Recently, American audiences applauded Sebastian Koch playing cat-and-mouse with voyeuristic Stasi agent Ulrich Mühe in THE LIVES OF OTHERS and Uli Edel’s Oscar-nominated THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX, a discovery of last year’s series now playing in U.S. cinemas. Join us for 10 Los Angeles Premieres, including the riveting mountain adventure NORTHFACE, period dramas CLARA and BUDDENBROOKS, the moving documentary NOBODY'S PERFECT, comedy SHORT CUT TO HOLLYWOOD, fantasy KRABAT, political drama STORM, the rave scene-set BERLIN CALLING and more.

Wednesday, September 30 - 7:30 PM GERMAN CURRENTS
Los Angeles Premiere! NORTH FACE, 2008, Musicbox Films, 126 min. Dir. Philipp Stolzl. With the 1936 Berlin Olympics looming, the Nazi party needs some hometown heroes. Benno Furman and Florian Lukas play the Germans who attempt to become the first to scale the near-vertical Eiger's North Face in the Alps, trying to beat a pair of Austrian climbers in this grippingly staged account that boasts plenty of white-knuckle thrills. "The climbing scenes have real grit, plus a chill factor that reaches deep into the viewer's bones..." -- Derek Elley, Variety. Discussion following with producer Boris Schönfelder and actor Benno Fürmann. Trailer | Clip

Thursday, October 1 - 7:30 PM GERMAN CURRENTS
Double Feature: Los Angeles Premiere! STORM, 2009, Film Movement, 110 min. Dir. Hans-Christian Schmid. Kerry Fox stars as a prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal in the Hague who must persuade a Bosnian witness (Anamaria Marinca of "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days") to give evidence against a suspected Serbian war criminal. Shot mostly in English, co-starring Stephen Dillane, Sweden's Rolf Lassgard and Germany's Alexander Fehling. "...a different kind of political thriller ... a reality check for a genre in which the good guys somehow always come out on top." -- Kirk Honeycutt, The Hollywood Reporter. Trailer | Official Website

Los Angeles Premiere! NOBODY'S PERFECT, 2008, 84 min. Director Niko von Glasow sets out to find 11 people who, like him, were born disabled due to the effects of the drug Thalidomide, to photograph them nude for a calendar. Winner of the 2009 Lola (German Film Award) for best documentary. Discussion in between films with director Hans-Christian Schmid (STORM), producer Britta Knöller (STORM) and director Niko von Glasow (NOBODY’S PERFECT). Trailer | Official Website

Friday, October 2 - 7:30 PM
Double Feature: Los Angeles Premiere! KRABAT, 2008, 120 min. Dir. Marco Kreuzpaintner. Based on Otfried Preussler's 1971 children's book, "Krabat," is set in plague-ravaged 18th-century Europe. Krabat (David Kross of "The Reader") is a 14-year-old orphan who finds sanctuary at a mill run by a mysterious figure called the Master, but soon discovers his teacher is linked with dark forces. "...(A) riveting Faustian tale of teenage boys seduced by the lure of black magic that goes darker than even Harry Potter dares." -- Mike Goodridge, Screen.com Trailer | Interview with Director

Saturday, October 3 - 4:00 PM GERMAN CURRENTS
Family Matinee: Los Angeles Premiere! CROCODILES, 2009, 98 min. Dir. Christian Ditter. Ten-year-old Hannes wants to join the Vorstadtkrokodile (Suburban Crocodiles), the coolest gang in town, but the initiation goes awry and his life is saved by the wheelchair-bound Kai, who is also desperate to join. Kai suddenly becomes of great interest to the gang when he is the only witness to a break-in. Based on a beloved German young-adult novel, the film won the top prize at the Munich International Film Festival's children's awards. Discussion following with director Christian Ditter. Official Site | Trailer

Saturday, October 3 - 7:30 PM GERMAN CURRENTS
Double Feature: Los Angeles Premiere! BERLIN CALLING, 2008, 100 min. Dir. Hannes Stohr. Globe-trotting DJ and electronic music composer Martin, aka DJ Ickarus (real-life musician Paul Kalkbrenner), returns to the hot-house rave scene in Berlin to record his highly anticipated new album -- but internal and external pressures take their toll. Shot on location in Berlin's hottest dance clubs. "Kalkbrenner has the appropriate energy, and obvious familiarity with the scene, to carry the story..." -- Jay Weissberg, Variety. Trailer | IMDB

Los Angeles Premiere! SHORT CUT TO HOLLYWOOD, 2009, 94 min. Dirs. Marcus Mittermeier, Jan Henrik Stahlberg. Three German friends dreaming of fortune and fame start their own boy band and hop on a plane to America to pursue their goal. "Co-directors Marcus Mittermeier and Jan Henrik Stahlberg gleefully send up the voyeuristic world of live TV and its ability to turn ordinary, no-talent folks into superstars, gloriously subverting conventions of the road movie and music video while they're at it." – Variety. Discussion in between films with director Jan Henrik Stahlberg (SHORT CUT) and director Hannes Stöhr (BERLIN CALLING). Trailer | IMDB

Sunday, October 4 - 3:00 PM
Los Angeles Premiere! CLARA (GELIEBTE CLARA), 2008, 107 min. Dir. Helma Sanders-Brahm. This true story depicts Clara Schumann (Martina Gedeck from The Baader Meinhof Complex'), a gifted pianist and composer, and her relationships with her husband, Robert Schumann (Pascal Greggory), and the much younger Johannes Brahms (Malik Zidi), who moves in with the Schumann family. "Gedeck (‘The Lives of Others,’) gives Clara a grounded quality that serves the role well, and she's especially convincing in her piano-playing scenes … while Zidi expectedly steals the show as Brahms." – Variety. Discussion following with director-producer Helma Sanders-Brahms. Trailer | More Info

Sunday, October 4 - 7:30 PM GERMAN CURRENTS