The Goethe-Institut is proud to co-present the selection of four new outstanding German environmental films during the 20th Annual Planet in Focus Environmental Film Festival, including two Canadian-set films.
Dark Eden (Germany)
Directors: Jasmin Herhold and Michael Beamish
Fort McMurray is known to attract people from all over the world to participate in the labour force driven by Canada’s largest extractive project, the oil sands. Dark Eden paints a haunting and atmospheric portrait of the town, its people, and the industrial landscape sprawling through the heart of the boreal forest. While caught up themselves in Fort McMurray’s promises, the directors examine the personal motivation of residents living at the edge of an ecological disaster, lured by the call of economic prosperity. In Dark Eden, the characters are driven by survival and bettering their circumstances, but what is lost in the pursuit of a better life?
Big Sky Documentary Film Festival 2019, Missoula, Winner: Feature Artistic Vision Award
DocPoint Documentary Film Festival 2019, Helsinki
The Whale & The Raven (Germany/Canada)
Director: Mirjam Leuze
A remote island in the Pacific, populated by wolves, ravens and two whale researchers. A small town with the promise of a second industrial boom. A First Nation village, torn between the wish to protect its territory and the pressure to cope with big investors. How are the people in the Canadian Great Bear Rainforest handling the arrival of the liquefied natural gas industry? And what voice do whales have in the debate, when just the sound of tanker engines might be enough to drive them away? THE WHALE AND THE RAVEN is a story of humans and non-humans, united by a deep sea, separated by conflicting plans for its future.
DOK.fest Munich 2019
Internationales Filmfest Emden Norderney 2019
Earth (Austria/ Germany)
Director: Nikolaus Geyrhalter
A provoking ecological documentary, Earth examines locations where humans have drastically altered the natural landscape by excavating, altering and moving massive quantities of literal ‘earth’. Director Nikolaus Geyrhalter observes mine sites, quarries, large-scale construction sites, and the people who work in them. While the scale of the stunning visuals captures the colossal impact of mankind’s endeavours, it is the testimonies of the workers that provides the most thoughtful insight into our philosophical relationship with earth. While some grapple with their role, others have few qualms about altering the planet. Geyrhalter offers a critique of humankind’s influence over earth’s current state of being.
Berlinale Forum 2019, Winner: Prize of the Ecumenical Jury
Sheffield International Documentary Festival 2019, Winner: International Award
Los Reyes (Chile / Germany)
Directors: Bettina Perut, Iván Osnovikoff
Los Reyes is the oldest skatepark in the Chilean capital of Santiago. But in its literal sense, “the kings” in the title of this film can equally refer to Chola and Football, the two stray dogs that have made their home in this open space full of hurtling skateboards and rowdy teenagers. The energetic female Chola loves to play with the balls she finds lying around. She positions them at the edge of the bowls where the skaters show off their tricks, and tries to catch them just before they fall down. The older dog, Football, looks on impatiently and barks at Chola until she finally drops the ball.
The teenagers around them come from very different, sometimes troubled backgrounds. They each have their own story, which they recount to us in voice-over. But in this almost fairy-tale-like film, the phenomenal, dreamlike camerawork centers almost entirely on the subtle interaction between the two dogs, as they play with a ball, a stick, a stone and each other.
Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival 2018, Winner: Best Feature-Length Documentary
DocAviv Film Festival 2019, Tel Aviv, Nominee: Best International Film
Tickets can be purchased at
Planet in Focus.
Part of the Goethe-Institut's focus on German Film.
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