Austrian Documentary Films in LA (November 29-December 13, 06)
Goethe-Institut Los Angeles and Austrian Consulate General present:
Documentaries Made in Austria
November 29 through December 13
Austrian filmmaking shared its fair share of headlines in 2005. Austria was the choice in this year’s Cannes Filmfestival inaugurating the new Tous les Cinemas du Monde section and Austrian films, both documentaries and features, played excellently in the international festival circuit, prompting this comment in the Hollywood Reporter: “Despite boasting only 8 million inhabitants, this German speaking nation has long punched above its weight in international cinema circles.
We are delighted to round out the year presenting three outstanding documentaries MADE IN AUSTRIA, and thank the Austrian Consulate General for their support.
DON’T WATCH THIS FILM, IF YOU THINK, MOZART WAS A GOD !!
Wednesday, November 29 @ 7:00 p.m.
DER WADENMESSER oder das wilde Leben des Wolfgang Mozart
(Dir. Kurt Palm, 2005, 85 min, German with English subtitles, DVD)
Beyond the well-worn paths of reception, Kurt Palm sets off on a search for the now-hazy trail of the genius Mozart. He finds a master of scatological humor, an obsessive gambler and anarchist who liked to be called “Count of Pigdick.”
Not for the faint of heart.
Wednesday, December 6 @ 7:00 p.m.
DARWIN’S NIGHTMARE
(Dir. Hubert Sauper, 2004 France, Austria Belgium, 107 min English, DVD)
In the 1950s or 1960s, the voracious Nile perch was introduced into Lake Victoria/ Tanzania, eliminating the other species of fish and turning the lake into an ecological wasteland. Ex-Soviet cargo planes come in daily taking away the daily catch, and bringing in Kalashnikovs and ammunitions for the uncounted wars on the African continent. This booming industry has created an ungodly alliance of local fishermen, World Bank agents, homeless children, African ministers, Tanzanian prostitutes and Russian pilots. Darwin’s Nightmare is the winner of prestigious international film awards and was nominated for the 2006 Oscar®.
Wednesday, December 13 @ 7:00 p.m.
Our Daily Bread (Unser täglich Brot)
(Dir. Nikolaus Geyrhalter, 2005, 92 min, German with English subtitles, DVD)
Like Baraka or Triumph of the Will, Nikolaus Geyrhalter’s sparse, near-silent documentary about food-manufacturing factories knows its ghostly images are stunning enough to stand alone without narration. Splicing between unnamed men in space suits spraying peppers to surrealist landscapes where soft yellow chicks shoot out of slides by the hundreds and orchards of apples bob in a titanic swimming pool, this restrained yet riveting film underscores the fascinating polarity that such a messy business as eating starts in these robotic dreamscapes. (Los Angeles Filmfestival, 2006).
Location:
Goethe-Institut Los Angeles, 5750 Wilshire Blvd. Suite, 100, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Tickets are $5.00
For information call: 323.525.3388