Clever cats and cunning detectives

In the animated filmThe Amazing Maurice (750,000 euros, Ulysses Filmproduktion, Hamburg) by Toby Genkel, a smart cat, a flute-playing boy and a couple of talking rats travel together from town to town. The team fake a rat infestation and collect a lot of money for the removal - until everything in Bad Blintz no longer goes according to plan. Terry Rossio, who was already responsible for the script for the Shrek successes, also wrote the script here. The novel was written by the late British fantasy author Terry Pratchett.

Hamburg's little detectives are back: withThe Peppercorns and the Secret of the Deep Sea (450,000 euros, Letterbox Filmproduktion, Hamburg), the sleuths return to the big screen for the second time. Directors is once again Christian Theede and the script is once again by Dirk Ahner. The film has nine shooting days in the region.

Directors Ali Samadi Ahadi's animated children's filmThe Mucklas... and how they came to Pettersson and Findus (360,000 euros, Little Dream Entertainment, Hamburg) explores this very question and sends the three heroes Svunja, Tjorben and Smartö on a great adventure. The script was written by Thomas Springer.

A total of ten projects will receive production funding totalling 2.67 million euros. Of this, 200,000 euros will go to a project directed by a woman: InClose-up shot is directed by up-and-coming talent Franziska Stünkel - two of the leading roles are played by actors Lars Eidinger and Rosalie Thomass. The drama is being produced by the Hamburg-based production company C-Films (Germany). Further project funding will go to the youth filmBreak the Ballet (220,000 euros, Lieblingsfilm, Munich) from the Special Children's Film Initiative by Directors Stefan Westerwelle and Script Writer Hannah Schweier, the tragicomedyApollo by Directors and Script Writers Arab and Tarzan Nasser (220,000 euros, Riva Filmproduktion, Hamburg) and the comedyBloodsuckers by Julian Radlmaier (200,000 euros, faktura film, Berlin). In addition, the dramaThe Postman Directors Siddiq Barmak and Script Writer Hussain Asad (100,000 euros, Rohfilm Factory, Leipzig), the international co-productionThe Grave Digger by Khadar Ahmed (100,000 euros, Twenty Twenty Vision Filmproduktion, Berlin) and the Documentary Tanja by Marcel Mettelsiefen (70,000 euros, Dreamer Joint Venture, Berlin) received production funding.

Six projects were awarded the Project Development programme:Hamburg DZ/ÜF Directors Markus Sehr and "Happy Burnout" Script Writer Gernot Gricksch (50,000 euros, Riva Filmproduktion, Hamburg) is included as well asFear by "Tehran Taboo" Director Ali Soozandeh (50,000 euros, brave new work, Hamburg) and Script Writers Armin Hofmann, Frank Geiger and Rolf Giesen. Further Fundings are available for the films Lilea Rosa Directors Christian Klandt and Script Writer Sophie Narr (30,000 euros, Tamtam Film, Hamburg) andDesire of the prey by Director and HFBK graduate Carly Borgstrom (25,000 euros, Junafilm, Hamburg). Two series will also receive project funding:We call BS by Viviane Blumenschein (43,400 euros, B/14 FILM, Hamburg), who is responsible for the script together with Arne Birkenstock, and the children's seriesVoyager (20,000 euros, Gebrüder Beetz Filmproduktion, Hamburg) by Script Writers Christian Kaaps and Trond Morten Venaasen.

Screenplay funding goes to the three projectsDud by Kerstin Polte (13,000 euros, Tamtam Film, Hamburg),Petrol Boy by Benjamin Teske (23,000 euros, Oma Inge Film, Hamburg) and the seriesFight for your Right - Everyone can be blackmailed by Oke Stielow (25,000 euros, Wüste Medien, Hamburg). Nine projects will receive distribution funding totalling 400,000 euros, including the partly animated DocumentaryLittle Teutons by Frank Geiger and Mohammad Farokhmanesh (30,000 euros, Little Dream Pictures, Hamburg), the thrillerContempt by Christoffer Boe (60,000 euros, NFP marketing & distribution, Berlin) and the children's filmRocca changes the world by Katja Benrath (70,000 euros, Warner Bros. Entertainment, Hamburg).

A detailed overview of all funded projects is available here.

The funding decisions were made on Wednesday, 20 March 2019, Steen Bille, Christian Granderath, Sophie Molitoris, Peter Preisser, Caroline von Senden and, for the last time, FFHSH CEO Maria Köpf.