Politics and filmmaking with Hito Steyerl
A version of this post was originally written for the graduate Seminar “Framing Migration,” taught by Prof. Deniz Göktürk of the UC Berkeley Department of German. In this post, seminar participant Kumars Salehi relates his interaction with acclaimed German video artist Hito Steyerl at a workshop at Berkeley. The workshop, “Proxies and Placeholders,” took place on Feb. […]
Language and migration in Cinco Palmas
A version of this post was originally written for the graduate seminar “Framing Migration,” taught by Prof. Deniz Göktürk of the UC Berkeley Department of German. In this post, seminar participant Jon Cho-Polizzi comments on the role of speech, translation, and transcription in a performance of Cinco Palmas, a theatrical piece by writer-director Martha Herrera-Lasso […]
Film Review: Auf der anderen Seite (The Edge of Heaven)
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Kenneth Cromer The Edge of Heaven (2007), directed by German-Turkish director Fatih Akın, is an award-winning German-Turkish film that exemplifies the convergence of German and Turkish cultures in many regards, including heritage, language and lifestyle. Beyond the masterfully crafted intersecting storylines, an […]
Film Review: Auf der anderen Seite (The Edge of Heaven)
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Seri In The Edge of Heaven is a 2007 drama film written and directed by Turkish-German Fatih Akın. This film, set in Germany and Turkey, is in omnibus format in that it consists of three different episodes of ‘Yeter’s Death,’ ‘Lotte’s Death,’ and […]
Film Review: Am Rand der Städte (On the Outskirts)
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Angel (Jingwei) Li Am Rand der Städte (On the Outskirts) Film Production Studio: Harun Farocki Filmproduktion Running Time: 83 min DVD Release Year: 2007 Director: Aysun Bademsoy Writer: Aysun Bademsoy -Alone but not lonely. The documentary is a compilation of individual interviews […]
Film Review: The Swissmakers (Die Schweizermacher)
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Karla Palos The 1978 film Die Schweizermacher (The Swissmakers) is a good cop/bad cop comedy directed by Rolf Lyssy which dramatizes the bureaucratic exchanges between immigration officials and immigrants applying for Swiss citizenship. The film focuses on two officials: Walo Lüönd, who plays […]
Film Review: Fack ju Göhte (Suck Me Shakespeer)
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Jasmine Giang Fack ju Göhte (Suck Me Shakespeer) is a 2013 German screwball/romantic comedy, directed by Turkish-German director Bora Dağtekin. It proved to be one of the most commercially successful German films of the decade, placing second in gross income in the 2013 German […]
Film Review: Dirt for Dinner (Dreckfresser)
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Cara Bohmann Dreckfresser – Dirt for Dinner This documentary from 2000 by Branwen Okpako tells the story of Samuel Njankouo Meffire, son of a Cameroonian father and German mother, Samuel became a figurehead for diversity in the city of Dresden when his portrait […]
Book Review: Along a Dangerous Road
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Evelyn Roth Along a Dangerous Road – “Der Schlaf in der Ténéré hinterlässt eine unzerstörbare Spur im Körper. Eine Erinnerung für das ganze Leben“ (Sleeping in the Ténéré leaves its mark within one’s body. A memory that will last a life time)”[1]. The same thing can […]
Film Review: My name is not Ali – Ali im Paradies – Jannat Ali
Posted in conjunction with the course Multicultural Germany in fall semester 2015. Author: Tina Schlagenhaufer Film Review: Viola Shafik’s My name is not Ali – Ali im Paradies – Jannat Ali My Name Is Not Ali is a documentary by Viola Shafik[1] from the year 2011 about the actor El Hedi Ben Salem M’barek Mohammed Mustafa, who was […]