Unique paradises

European water landscapes

A documentary series

Wherever water meets earth, nature unfolds its forces in dramatic ways. Spectacular landscapes and extraordinary habitats for plants and animals result, unleashing energies that humans cannot escape; especially when a force of nature like water is involved. But it’s often love at second sight. When it comes to travel destinations, inland waters have tended to take second place to seashores. This appears to be changing now. Young, climate-conscious people, who want to avoid travel by airplane, are increasingly interested in European destinations and in untouched landscapes. And once having discovered the magic of untouched nature, people tend to want more of it.

The series takes the viewer on a journey to lesser known, untouched landscapes in which water plays a central role: breathtaking gorges, lakes, rivers and landscape formations, whose captivating rich flora and fauna leave a lasting impression.

Ulrich Matthes

Ulrich Matthes, born in Berlin in 1959, is one of Germany’s best film and stage actors and is known far beyond Germany’s borders.

The actor celebrates his 65th birthday in 2024. A perfect occasion to explore how his life has influenced art and how art has influenced his life. A look back on a rich life.

DUNKING GIRLS

A documentary series

A documentary series about young female basketball players, their love for the sport, their team and the challenges of coming of age
Children and teenagers involved in team sports learn about team spirit early on – something that stays with them their entire lives. Club sports and competitive sports leave a lasting mark on the young players. The documentary series accompanies young female basketball players from Berlin for one season. What does the sport mean to them? And how do they deal with success and failure? The young athletes have their own dreams, worries and day to day challenges. Are they talented enough to play in a competitive team? Does the sport help them discover their own personality and develop their self-confidence? Or will basketball simply remain a nice hobby? The coaches, with their great and often voluntary commitment, their competence and their passion for basketball, are important companions, alongside the players’ parents, during this exciting phase of life between childhood and adulthood. We dive into the fascinating world of these young female athletes, experience their will to perform, friendships, emotions, doubts, success and a sport that requires not only speed, technique and endurance, but also intelligence and team spirit. Not every dream comes true, but the thrill of belonging to a team, giving it your all and sharing victory and defeat with teammates, makes for great experiences and interesting stories.

The Young American

The young cowboy Crowley has to decide whether he wants to follow in his parents’ footsteps and live a poor “redneck” existence in Colorado or forge his own path and see what the world has in store for him – a look at American society from the perspective of an iconic figure symbolizing freedom.

The longterm observation of Crowley during his formative years, becoming an adult, is dealing with the big questions of life.

And: Is it possible to escape one’s origins and break free from one’s social environment?

A college scholarship is his only chance for a different, a better life. Should he not make it, he most likely will stay in Olney Springs, follow into the footsteps of his father and grandfather and adopt their worldview and values. Should he make it however, a whole new world will open up to him.

Women painters, power and men

WOMEN OF GENIUS – FEMALE PAINTERS FROM THE RENAISSANCE TO CLASSICISM

“Make women artists visible! – Get their paintings out of the repositories at last, let us see for ourselves and discover sensuously how their work can compete with the celebrated stars of painting!” This outcry has electrified the art scene. Using the example of four exceptional talents, the film shows how women artists were able to make themselves “visible” and forge unusual careers in the face of a wide variety of social conditions. Ingenious in their work, fearless in their interactions with society! Confronting their world of thoughts and feelings, which is often surprisingly modern and radical, a lively discourse emerges with interesting impulses for the present.

They conquered the academies, became court painters and were held in high esteem. How did the women painters of this time period manage to succeed at the seemingly impossible: having international careers and earning a living through their art?

Following in the footsteps of Siberia’s explorers

The Great Northern Expedition

Almost 300 years ago, at the beginning of the 18th century, European scientists, commissioned by the newly founded Petersburg Academy of Sciences, started on a long and adventurous journey into the Russian Far East – Siberia, a large, unknown, cold land full of secrets. The results of this Great Northern Expedition continue to be of great importance today. The result will be a two part documentary series.

Breasts in art

For as long as art has existed, the female breast has been one of its most important motifs. Hardly any part of the human body receives more attention in the visual arts. The Virgin Mary, martyrs, Amazons – revolution, emancipation, gender discourse. The female breast is a symbol of fertility, maternal care and deep religiosity. It is also a symbol of desire and female vulnerability. Up until today, artists have been creating works that revolve around the emotional and highly socio-political subject of the female breast. How do artists see the female breast?

For centuries, it has been reimagined in ever new ways. A cinematic journey through art history.

Continuation of the series: UNESCO World Cultural Heritage

Treasures for Eternity

After 50 years of experience protecting the “best of” global cultural works, it is becoming increasingly evident how enormous this task is for humanity and the future. In its second season the series once again takes us to four World Heritage sites in Europe and, in the face of new challenges, asks how these places can be preserved so that they remain alive, valuable and inspiring for future generations.

The series looks at four locations, that everyone thinks they know: Florence, Bruges, Granada and Dubrovnik. The films will discover them anew, find surprising things and ask: what, in fact, is their universal value and how well are they actually protected.

When the UNESCO World Heritage Convention was adopted in 1972, the idea of world heritage belonging to all of humanity was revolutionary. And, as we can see today, with the experience of over 50 years, also very far-sighted. In addition to the classic dangers like decay, destruction and wars, from which the best-of global cultural works was to be protected, new threats have emerged: Climate change, natural disasters and tourism. In view of these current and foreseeable threats, it is even more important to explore how each site is handling these challenges in order to preserve the world’s most important treasures for future generations.

Lost in Time

The ancient civilization of Mesquito

What secrets are hidden in the jungles of Honduras? Archeologists want to prove the existence of an ancient civilization over 1000 years old. The lost city is located in an area where only very few people are living today. Starting from their base camp in the east of the country, a German-Swiss expedition led by the German Archeological Institute, the university of Zurich and the museum Rietberg (Zurich) will explore uncharted territory with the help of modern technology. They will turn the area upside down scientifically in order to reveal its archeological secrets. They already know that they will be entering an area that was densely populated in the past.

Black is beautiful

Power reflected through portrait paintings

For centuries, white artists have predominantly painted powerful white people. Michelle and Barack Obama set a new precedent, when they commissioned two African-American painters to paint their official presidential portraits. Using this break with tradition as a starting point, the film shows the diverse aspects of the international debate surrounding the representation of marginalized groups in art. It does so by looking at paintings by predominantly African-American artists, who are increasingly claiming their place in art history with their outstanding works of art.

Love during the Cold War

A film about the longing for freedom and self-determination, great courage and the power of love during the Cold War. True love stories, exciting like a thriller, emotionally gripping like “Romeo and Juliet” – and at the same time a touching part of history. Sometimes they end with a happy ending, but sometimes they end in death.
Wars are waged by governments and politicians, but they have profound effects on people’s everyday lives. This was also the case during the Cold War, when two different political systems faced each other for about 40 years. Germany was divided into two parts and GDR citizens were not allowed to have any contact with the “class enemy”.
But love doesn’t care about prohibitions, walls or borders, it goes its own way. Sometimes it leads to a happy ending – sometimes it leads to death.
The political situation during the Cold War pushed many people to their limits.
The film tells authentic, exciting and tragic love stories from this time. It dives into a world full of desires and emotions, mistrust, control and violence.

In production