By Travis Johnson
36 films, including 31 features and five documentaries, comprise the 2016 German Film Fest Australia, which brings together the best German-language cinema from across Germany (naturally), as well as Austria and Switzerland. The festival screens at Palace Cinemas in Sydney from November 15 – 29, Melbourne from November 17 – 30, Brisbane from November 15 – 30, and Canberra from November 24 – 27.
This year’s opening night film is Goodbye Berlin from director Fatih Akin, a coming of age road movie set in modern Germany, while the 1925 silent classic, Veriete, closes out the season. Other highlights include:
4 Kings (2015), the award-winning feature debut from Theresa von Eltz, about four emotionally troubled teenagers from Hamburg, who live in a psychiatric emergency unit.
After Spring Comes Fall (2015), follows the life of a young Kurdish refugee woman in Germany who starts working as an informer for the Syrian opposition.
As We Were Dreaming (2015), is award-winning filmmaker Andreas Dresen’s (Grill Point, Cloud 9) adaptation of Clemens Meyer’s novel of the same name, about a group of East German friends after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Every Thing Will Be Fine (2015), Wim Wenders pulls in stars James Franco, Rachel McAdams and Charlotte Gainsbourg for a 3D epic about a writer who is tormented by the accidental death of a child.
The Most Beautiful Day (2016), starring Matthias Schweighoefer (Valkyrie) and Florian David Fitz (Vincent Wants to Sea) is this year’s biggest local box-office champion, about two terminally ill patients who decide go out with a bang with a road trip through Africa.
Hördur (2015), follows a young Muslim girl who is sentenced to community service, where she meets a wild Icelandic stallion which sets her on a path to self-discovery.
The Diary of Anne Frank (2016), by award-winning director Hans Steinbichler will be the first German version of The Diary of Anne Frank on the big screen.
Heidi (2015), is Alain Gsponer’s second adaption of Johanna Spyri’s classic novel of the same name, about orphan Heidi’s simple life in the Swiss Alps.
Hidden Reserves (2016), the dystopian science fiction by director Valentin Hitz, about a ruthless insurance salesman in the merciless system of Vienna, where the privileged are favoured and the masses are discarded.
For more information, head to the official site.
