Goethe-Kino: Skin Deep by Alex Schaad

The futuristic possibility of body-swapping is at the centre of this atmospheric exploration of how our bodies shape our identity, set on a remote island at the end of summer.

It’s summer. Tristan and Leyla are on their way to a remote island, having been invited by Leyla’s old friend, Stella. From the moment they arrive, things feel kind of strange. Soon, they find themselves among several other couples, all drawn to the island by the prospect of a mysterious and unusual experience: At a festive dinner under the open sky, a lottery determines which couples will swap bodies. A simple ritual is all it takes—and Tristan and Leyla find themselves inhabiting the bodies of Mo and Fabienne. But will they enjoy their new physical forms? And more importantly, will they still love each other while trapped in the bodies of strangers?
Unlike most body-swap films, the characters in this story willingly exchange bodies. There’s no accidental generational leap or involuntary switch between genders. The focus isn’t merely on seeing the world through someone else’s eyes; it’s a deeper exploration of how our bodies shape our identities, and how mind and body influence one another.

For the cast—primarily actors from the theatre—this presented a unique challenge. They had to portray both their original characters and their swapped counterparts, developing a consistent set of movements and expressions that would make each character recognizable, regardless of the body they inhabited.
Director Alex Schaad co-wrote the script with his brother, Dimitrij Schaad, who plays Mo (and Tristan-in-Mo). The brothers were surprised when their reflective, intimate film won the Queer Lion at the 2022 Venice Film Festival during Critics’ Week, and even more so when it was reviewed in queer publications. This recognition may be a clue that the film’s portrayal of relationships goes beyond traditional heterosexual dynamics.

Germany 2022. Colour, 104 mins. With English subtitles.
Directed and written by Alex Schaad. Co-written by Dimitrij Schaad. With Jonas Dassler, Mala Emde, Maryam Zaree, Dimitrij Schaad, Edgar Selge, Adam Bousdoukos, Sema Poyraz, Thomas Wodianka.
 
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About Alexey Alexandrowitsch Schaad

Aleksej Aleksandrovič Šaad was born on August 30, 1990 in Kaskelen, Kazakhstan (then: Kazakh SSR, Soviet Union). When he was three years old, the family moved to Germany as ethnic German immigrants and settled in Mengen. Schaad made his directorial debut while still in high school in 2009, with a contribution to the project '361 Degrees of Tolerance', a video competition for students on the topic of "Courage against right-wing violence". After graduating from high school, he gained further practical film experience through various jobs in the fields of film, television and theater. He also realized several short films in which his brother Dimitrij Schaad participated as an actor.
In 2013 Alex Schaad began studying directing at the Munich University of Television and Film (HFF). There he realized several short and medium-length films. In January 2016, his 30-minute feature film Invention of Trust (2015), premiered at the Max Ophüls Prize Film Festival in Saarbrücken, Germany. The story of a teacher (Dimitrij Schaad) who is blackmailed into publicly releasing his private Internet data received the award for Best Medium-Length Film, with the jury especially praising the screenplay (written by both brothers), the acting and the camera work. In summer 2016, Schaad also won the Student Acadamy Award in gold for "Invention of Trust."
Schaad's "Endling," again 30 minutes long, also premiered at the 2018 Max Ophüls Prize Film Festival. The drama about a miner who wants to give his life meaning once again in the face of illness and the closure of his coal mine won the Audience Award for Best Medium-Length Film. Together with Dirk Schäfer, Schaad then realized the episodic documentary Forever Flüchtling (2018).
After graduating from the HFF, Schaad realized Part Of The World for the episodic film The Love Europe Project, which included contributions from ten directors from nine countries. At the Grimme Award ceremony, The Love Europe Project won in the fiction category. Several works for television followed, including two episodes of the crime series SOKO Hamburg (2021).
In 2021, Alex Schaad made his first feature-length film: the drama Aus meiner Haut (Skin Deep), which premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in September 2022. There it was awarded the Queer Lion. At the Filmfest Hamburg, it received the Producer's Award in the category German Cinema Productions. The film's regular theatrical release was in February 2023.  (source: filmportal.de, slightly edited)