Film Screening This ain't California
Director: Martin Persiel, HD CAM SR, colour, 99 min., 2011/12
Berlin 2011: Old friends from the GDR reunite at the funeral of Denis Paraceck, a.k.a. “Panic”, and reminisce about the past: Skateboarding was their great passion; Denis would perform unbeatable daring feats on his skateboard (“roller board” was the official name in the GDR). In many small episodes, the eighties are summoned back to life, a time in which skateboarders were viewed as outsiders - cheerful, defiant and removed from the state and its economic plans. Alexanderplatz in East Berlin was the centre of it all. Here they were observed by amazed or even alienated viewers as they honed and demonstrated their skills. THIS AIN’T CALIFORNIA tells the story of an anarchistic subculture during socialism.
Marten Persiel: Born in Berlin in 1974. In 1995/1996, he worked as an assistant editor at HKF Film Production Hamburg. In 1997/1998, he studied “Mixed Media Art” at Portsmouth University; from 1998 – 2001, he studied directing at the University of Westminster in London. He works as a director and writer for commercials, music videos and documentaries. THIS AIN'T CALIFORNIA is his first feature-length documentary.