A look into the past

Six days, 199 films, four cinemas and nine film awards: Welcome to the Nordic Film Days Lübeck. A packed festival programme of Nordic feature films, documentaries and short films awaits Schleswig-Holstein's cineastes, leaving hardly anything to be desired. The films will be shown in the nine sections Filmforum, Feature Films - Competition, Retrospective, Specials, Documentary Films, Short Films, Children's and Youth Films, Drama Series and 360 Grad Films. There are also numerous special events such as silent film concerts, exhibitions, installations, industry meetings and a master class. The Film Forum section will once again focus on films from Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein this year - and in the "Special" section you can also look forward to one or two films that were produced in or from the North. WhetherRevolt of the sailors,Another Day of Life or alsoIn Love and War: This year, many historical topics were presented in an exciting way, but there is also a lot more to discover: we have put together a few programme highlights for you:

After the festivals in Locarno and Toronto, the captivating emancipation story Sibel by Çağla Zencirci and Guillaume Giovanetti is now coming to Lübeck. 25-year-old Sibel lives in a small village in the mountains by the Black Sea and has been mute since childhood. However, Sibel is able to communicate using a whistling language, which makes her an outsider among the other villagers. One day, the young woman meets a deserter from the Turkish army who is hiding in the forest - and shows her a new perspective on things. The international film is co-produced by Riva Film, which has already made it onto the 2018 Oscar shortlist with the drama "The Wound".

When: 31 October, 7:15 pm, CineStar 7

In this feature film debut by HfbK graduate Marcus Richardt, Katja Riemann plays a woman desperately trying to connect with her 21-year-old son (Nils Rovira-Munoz), who hasn't left his room for two years and only lives in his online world. In addition to Bandits actress Katja Riemann, her former band colleague Jasmin Tabatabai will also be seen in a supporting role. The drama, produced by the Hamburg-based company Skalar Film, had several days of filming in Hamburg.

When: 1 November, 7.15 pm, CineStar 7

Jens Becker's docu-drama tells the story of the Kiel sailors' uprising at the end of the First World War. This was the initial spark for the revolutionary movement that gripped the German Reich in November 1918 and led to the fall of the monarchy and the end of the First World War. All the footage was shot entirely in Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg - the Executive Producer is Riva Film from Hamburg Ottensen.

When: 30 October, 7.15 pm, CineStar 7

In her documentary Of Bees and Flowers, filmmaker Lola Randl explores the question of whether country life is more fulfilling than a life in the city. The Berlin native turned her back on the capital a few years ago and found happiness in a small village in the Uckermark. The film is a portrait of city dwellers who set off into unknown territory and try to make themselves at home in the countryside. Executive Producer is the Hamburg-based company Detailfilm.

When: 2 November, 4.15 pm, CineStar 7

Since its foundation in 1990, numerous football fans in the northernmost German state have been passionate about the club Holstein Kiel. The documentary by Jess Hansen and Johanna Jannsen follows the Storks during the successful and turbulent 2017/1018 season.

When: 4 November, 7.15 pm, CineStar 7

With her debut film "Jola", Hille Norden was the youngest filmmaker to receive funding from Filmwerkstatt Kiel - at just 16 years old. In her new film Khello Brüder, she accompanies the two Syrian brothers Tarek (journalist) and Zakwan (artist), who fled their home in Aleppo to Germany and now talk to the Directors about their experiences.

When: 2 November, 10.15 a.m., CineStar 7

In Christoph Rüter's film, three people travel across Germany in a bus to get a picture of the philosopher Hans Blumenberg. They talk to people who knew him and discuss his thoughts. The starting point is Blumenberg's hometown of Lübeck, from where the three follow the long path of his life and thought. It takes them via Münster, Heidelberg, Marbach, Stuttgart and Munich to Zurich. In all these places, witnesses who still knew Blumenberg speak about his character and his incredible presence.

When: 31 October, 4.45 pm, CineStar 2

"The wonderful women Rasmus Gerlach met for his unusual portrait of St Pauli range from burlesque performer Eve Champagne to legendary pub landlady Ille from the Kiez Klause, her young counterpart Betty Kupsa, "Bar Woman of the Year 2016", and Franca Cuneo, CEO of the legendary Italian restaurant on Davidstraße, founded in 1905. They and many more are Reeperbahn locals with heart and soul and have a lovingly detached relationship with the colourful hustle and bustle around them. Just like the musicians of the Liverbirds, who came to Hamburg in the 1960s and never left.... although bassist Mary Dostal actually wanted to become a nun. Together with Bernadette La Hengst, she now provides the soundtrack for the film. And of course, a real nun is also part of the film."

When: 2 November, 23.00 hrs, CineStar 7

Chinese artist and calligrapher Ping Qiu and historian and handwriting expert Jürgen Bönig visit the former J.J. Augustin printing works in Glückstadt. From 1905, it was one of the most important foreign language printing works in Europe. Jürgen Bönig invited Ping Qiu to Glückstadt to inspect the stock of matrices. While rummaging through the abandoned rooms, they found boxes with matrices of Chinese characters, the existence of which was previously unknown. What is hidden behind them and how were they used? A filmic excursion into the world of Chinese radicals by the two filmmakers Maria Hemmleb and Artur Dieckhoff.

When: 1 November, 4.15 pm, CineStar 7

Almost nobody recognises the name Max Emden today - but his department stores in Hamburg do, such as the KaDeWe in Berlin or the Oberpollinger in Munich. Born in Hamburg in 1874 to a respected Jewish merchant family, he was more than just a department store king. He was one of the city's great patrons. He owned breathtaking originals by painters such as Van Gogh, Canaletto and Monet, which were confiscated by the National Socialists during the Second World War. Paintings that reappeared decades later in the rooms of the Federal President.

When: 30 October, 4:15 pm, CineStar 7

The portrait film Es ist Zeit - Der Maler Klaus Fußmann by Wilfried Hauke follows the artist in his studios in Gelting on the Baltic Sea and in Berlin - and tries to uncover the secret of this highly modern romantic.

When: 4 November, 1.15 pm, CineStar 7

Various short films will also be screened at the Filmforum, including the experimental filmStones by Jörn Staeger,Blue hour by HFBK graduate Pia Lamster,Gelato - The seven summers of ice cream love by Daniela Opp and the scary filmForester's lodge by Paul-Vincent Mayr. Also included is the film with probably the longest title of the festival:After the last shot is far from enough by Jess Hansen and Kay Gerdes. You can take a trip into the Tatort world withBorowski and the happiness of others make. But no matter where you go, we wish you a film-filled time!