Films by Alma Barkey

Germany 2011, 90 min
by Alma Barkey

On the hills above the city, a white villa embellished with decorative turrets and gables sits amidst a park surrounded by palm trees - an image from a fairytale. The “Hotel Oloffson” is a place steeped in history and numerous personal stories. Prominent foreign guests who have stayed here include actors Humphrey Bogart and Marlon Brando as well as Graham Greene, Truman Capote, Mick Jagger and Bill Clinton. From one of the building’s many balconies you can see the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince,

Germany 2009
by Uli Aumüller (Alma Barkey)

At the center of our historical documentary stands the many-facetted personality of August Bier (1861-1949) director of the University Clinic for Surgery in Berlin, who was connected with important historical events during his long life. Bier was a man of many talents: an innovative surgeon, he discovered spinal anaesthesia in a self-experiment; he invented the steel helmet that protected innumerable soldiers from injury and death during World War I. He also pioneered in forestry, conducting “ec