Films by Detlef Schitto

Germany 2022, 87 min
by Volker Schlöndorff

THE FOREST MAKER is the portrait of a remarkable man whose life's work was honored with the so- called alternative Nobel, the Right Livelihood Award in 2018. Tony Rinaudo has found a way to grow trees in the most barren areas by activating the tree stumps and roots still alive as an “underground forest” for decades and thereby secures the livelihood of thousands of farmers in Africa. His method “Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration” (FMNR) restores not only soil but dignity and hope. The Chief of all Farmers, as he is affectionately known today in many villages, has had to fight an uphill battle to gain acceptance for his ideas. Having worked in the Sahel region for 30 years he witnessed despair and famine but also resilience, determination and change. In THE FOREST MAKER Volker Schlöndorff follows Tony Rinaudo to different African countries to witness the effect FMNR has had on fighting desertification and repeatedly encounters issues - migration, climate change, gender justice. To complement his view, he invited African filmmakers to collaborate with him and share their experience of rural life and local challenges.With integrated shorts by Idriss Diabaté, Alassane Diago, Nadia Beddiaf Tamisier and Laurene Manja Abdallah. Volker Schlöndorff´s hopeful documentary debut.

France, Germany 2020, 129 min
by Ulrike Ottinger

In the tradition of the flanérie she seeks places that were significant for her personally as well as for the 1960s. In Fritz Picard's Librairie Calligrammes, she meets German and French avant-gardists from literature and art. The Cinémathèque Française becomes a special attraction for her. Here she saw films by the Nouvelle Vague, Independents from the USA, from Asian countries, the Soviet republics, from Africa and the Magreb and also film history. The love for cinema had flared up.Paris was not only the meeting point of intellectuals and artists from all over the world, but also went through a difficult political phase of decolonization in the aftermath of the Algerian war. In addition, student protests against the Vietnam War and racial discrimination began in the mid-sixties. Ulrike Ottinger describes how she experienced this period of artistic, political and social awakening.