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“Foreign” (directed by Miriam Fassbender) depicts the forced departure of two young Africans to Europe. For two and a half years, they have been journeying to a world where they never wanted to live. The film explores the reasons for their flight and provides insight into the living conditions and exhausting daily life of migrants traveling from Sub-Saharan Africa to Europe, through Algeria and Morocco. It portrays their lives, marked by haste and hope, flight and stagnation. It addresses life as long-term travelers and survival in a foreign land.
Every two years, the small town of Beverungen, in the heart of Germany, celebrates its traditional shooting festival with particular vigor. The festivities focus on numerous parades with uniformed marchers and a shooting contest, where the winner is proclaimed “King.” In the Germanic regions, shooting guilds have been known since the 10th century. They protected cities and rural areas from disturbances, wars, and looting. In Beverungen, about a quarter of the active male population is involved in the local shooting association. In 2008, Beverungen had the honor of hosting the annual festival of the “Confederation of Historical German Shooting Brotherhoods,” with thousands of participants coming from all over western Germany. District Kings and Diocesan Majesties compete for the title of the new “Confederal King” of the year, who receives the royal insignia in front of the altar, after the blessing prayer…(directed by Jürgen Ellinghaus)
Güstrow, a town in former East Germany, is witnessing a development that affects its entire region: economic prospects are bleak, and residents are leaving to seek better opportunities elsewhere. By 6 p.m., the streets are deserted, and the town resembles a ghost town. However, it is through music that the film’s protagonists find both comfort and an outlet, as well as new ambitions and hope. The film depicts an unusual big band, where seven-year-olds play alongside 77-year-olds, led by an energetic conductor who introduces new methods of learning and playing music. Her dream is to take the band on a musical tour through Turkey, performing on market squares from Ankara to Istanbul.
The film follows this ambitious project and the tragicomic negotiations with political authorities. But above all, it is the varied life stories of the musicians, reflecting the disillusioned hopes after German reunification and showing escapes and departures into new worlds, through which Big Band Güstrow (directed by Phillip von Becker) creates an intimate and special portrait of contemporary German history.