Ridley Scott's cult film Blade Runner, based on a novel by Philip K. Dick and released in 1982, is one of the most influential science fiction films ever made. Its depiction of Los Angeles in the year 2019 is oppressively prophetic: climate catastrophe, increasing public surveillance, powerful monopolistic corporations, highly evolved artificial intelligence; a fantastic vision of the future world that has become a frightening reality.
A look at the world of US writer Paul Auster, on the occasion of the publication of his new novel, an exploration of human identity and the soul of New York, the city that Auster has portrayed as no one else has ever done.
Bette Davis is the most disturbing film diva Hollywood has ever seen. Her life and her roles reflect the fractures in the American image of women. She was dominant, intelligent, sometimes heartless and yet above all she wanted to be loved. This did not work out in her private life. She was too strong for the men. But the public always loved her!
Relationships between mothers and daughters are often very complex. Love and protective instincts, recognition and pride play just as important a role as patronization and envy, dependency and jealousy. This documentary allows prominent mother-daughter pairs to have their say, being surprisingly open about birth and puberty, growing up, sexuality and old age.
Acquired in July 1909 by art collector Wilhelm von Bode (1845-1929), director general of the Prussian Art Collections and founding director of the Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum, now the Bode-Museum, the Bust of Flora, Roman goddess of flowers, has been the subject of controversy for more than a century.
Legendary British actor Michael Caine, who began his brilliant career on stage during the 1950s, talks about his private life, his work in film and the books he has written.
A personal essay about the United States, viewed through the life and work of a movie actor. Henry Fonda and the roles he played merge into a dazzling and conflicted figure. A very private man who thought he had “no good answers to anything” becomes the unlikely motor of a parallel history. His voice, recorded during his last interview in 1981, and his onscreen avatars guide us through America’s past and present – on a road trip from the village of Fonda, NY, across the Midwest to the Pacific; from 1651 to the 1980s and the presidency of another movie actor. It takes many places and times and characters to imagine an invisible republic – the United States of Fonda.
An intimate portrait of the superb actress Gena Rowlands, icon of independent cinema. Together with her husband, legendary director John Cassavetes (1929-89), she lived an unusual life beyond the dream factory, a life in which reality and fiction were so perfectly intertwined that it made possible films that still today seem incredibly real.
Veli Tanyeli, who died after a heart attack, is brought to the ghusl room before his burial, all the conflicts that have been hidden amongst the family came into light. Nermin, who has been imprisoned in an unhappy marriage for years, decides to settle the years after the death of her husband Veli in the ghusl room. Nermin's confrontation with Veli is actually a confrontation with herself.
She is the grande dame of German and international cinema, always a bit of a rocker chick, freedom-loving, adventurous and willing to take risks. This portrait unfolds Iris Berben's career, which has spanned more than five decades - between the art of film and television, between rock 'n' roll and political commitment.
Documentary is a look back at the varied life of the Olympic competitor, inventor and actor Bud Spencer, who became particularly famous in Germany for his "Hau drauf" comedies with film partner Terrence Hill. Through numerous interviews with family members, fans and connoisseurs, the film also provides a very private insight into the life of the man who, by his own admission, actually has nothing in common with the fictional character "Bud Spencer", and attempts to fathom the cult that still surrounds him today.
The Renaissance master Botticelli spent over a decade painting and drawing hell as the poet Dante described it. The film takes us on a journey through hell with fascinating and exciting insights into Botticelli's art and its hidden story.
Rome, the "Eternal City", has captivated people for centuries. In 1532, Dutch artist Maarten van Heemskerck visited the city to sketch ancient ruins and sculptures. Nearly 500 years later, the Urban Sketchers, a global movement of illustrators, are drawn to his work. The film explores Heemskerck's journey, the sketchers following in his footsteps, and the "Fascination Rome" exhibition at Berlin's Kulturforum (April 28 - August 4, 2024).
A journey through the Spain of the Baroque, the glorious 17th century, an unfortunate era of endless wars and political tribulations; but also of great painters and sculptors who created astonishing pieces of art: el Siglo de Oro.
Renaissance artist Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510) is both a cultural icon and a lasting source of artistic inspiration. His famous female figures, like Venus and Primavera, have become part of our shared visual memory and influence artists worldwide. Berlin director and art historian Grit Lederer explores Botticelli’s life and work, focusing on the Gemäldegalerie’s impressive collection. The film examines how his iconic paintings continue to inspire art and advertising today. Experts reveal what makes his style unique and why his work was forgotten for centuries after his death. Contemporary artists such as French artist Orlan and American Michael Joaquin Grey present works inspired by Botticelli. The documentary traces Botticelli’s enduring impact from Florence through Paris and New York to Berlin.
The rough, unkempt facades in Prenzlauer Berg – as if the skin had been peeled off the houses, says photographer Tina Bara. Having grown up in a prefabricated building, the young woman was drawn to East Berlin. She quickly got in conflict with the state, just like the artists Cornelia Schleime and Gabriele Stötzer, whom director Pamela Meyer-Arndt questions in her film about memories, traumas and creative genesis.
Asta Nielsen: pioneer of cinema and first European film star, tragedienne and comedienne, writer and artist. As a working-class child and single parent, she works her way up from the bottom - and consciously stages herself as the first role model for independent women and queers. We retell the story of this singular phenomenon with her own words and film clips.
Death and the devil, nudity and eroticism, horror in blazing colours, Gothic art cast a spell over people 500 years ago. In these image-poor times, art deliberately and skilfully played with the emotions of the viewer, triggering fear, devotion, but also rapture. Art documentary on German gothic art of the late-middle ages.
