Films by Jonas Niewianda

Germany 2017, 52 min
by Jonas Niewianda, André Schäfer

While the First World War and its battles on the Western Front are still very much anchored in our memory of history, the simultaneous battle in the East appears now to have been largely forgotten. During the course of this military action, a peculiar, state-like entity was created, a German colony in Eastern Europe, a military utopia: the Land of Ober Ost. The occupied region was to become a productive state, completely under military command; a state that was to serve not least as a deployment zone for the impending war.

2016, 208 min
by Markus Augé, Rieke Brendel, Andrew Davies, Jonas Niewianda, André Schäfer

THE GRAND LITERATOUR goes time-travelling with eight of the most enthralling authors in literary history.The series embarks on unique voyages intertwining both past and present: Heinrich Böll's Ireland, Hans Christian Andersen's Orient, the French Riviera with Erika and Klaus Mann, and Uwe Johnson’s New York – great authors on tour, grand literature tours. Travel literature is not just dusty descriptions of faraway places, it is intended for readers who are not only interested in visiting countries, but also experiencing the people, culture and mentality of the places. On no account do these travellers want to just be tourists.THE GRAND LITERATOUR rediscovers the travel journals of famous authors and the countries they visited anew. The series reveals how these countries have changed, whether what the travel writers once saw has now vanished or been forgotten, or how the places have grown and evolved over time.

Germany 2014, 52 min
by Viktor Apfelbacher

It is the end of a long journey. Nicaragua, 1984: Elisabeth Zilz originally from Germany decides to stay in Nicaragua to start a new life amidst the turmoil of the US-financed Contra War. The alphabetisation of the country, the dream of all Sandinistas, has become her personal goal. The retired librarian from Frankfurt on the Main turns an old East German Robur transporter into the rolling library she christens ‘Bertholt Brecht’. She tirelessly travels through Nicaragua’s poorest regions, supported by Ernesto Cardenal, the minister of education at the time, and by a like-minded and solidly united group of East and West Germans. With an unbroken will, she tries to instil a love for books in remote village schoolhouses and prisons. Today she is a folk hero. Filmed shortly before Elisabeth Zilz’ death the documentary tells the story of an unusual friendship through the eyes of Reybil Curasema, her trusty driver since 1984. Reybil follows her path through the country of a thousand volcanoes and takes a reminiscing look at the people they were on the road for for a quarter of a century. A documentary road movie far away from the tarred tracks of Nicaragua. A homage to a woman and her life’s work.At the age of 89 Elizabeth Zilz died in Frankfurt on the Main shortly after the shooting of this film.

Germany 2014, 180 min
by Sebastian Lemke, Jonas Niewianda, André Schäfer, Viktor Stauder

This series accompanies the geographer, photographer and explorer Michael Martin on five of his unique desert expeditions. Michael Martin's goal is to compare the world’s most spectacular hot and indeed cold deserts. Over the course of three years he has undertaken 40 expeditions to 24 locations and circled the globe four times. He not only documents the fantastic landscapes in his photographs but also the people who live under these most extreme circumstances. Of these 24 locations, we have chosen five destinations to be featured in the first season of MICHAEL MARTIN – A DESERT ADVENTURE. We accompany him on dog sleds, helicopters, ships and planes and – whenever possible – on his motorbike.