Films by Martin Heisler

Germany 2022, 94 min
by Uli Decker

Little Uli wants to become a pirate or the pope, but in no way does she want to fit into the role stereotypes of her Bavarian village. After her father dies, her mother hands her his "secret" box as an inheritance. The contents suddenly change her view of her father, herself, her family and the society in which she grew up.A true story about family secrets, gender roles and a childhood in the Bavarian province - told as a tragic-comic rollercoaster ride through animated and documentary images.Wi

Germany 2022, 84 min
by Joya Thome

Whitney is a rising star of the US gymnastics scene, who has a sizeable following on YouTube. Among them is Yara, who lives in Germany and is one of her biggest fans. Two teenage girls live in different continents but are connected by their screens. Whitney Bjerken has a million YouTube subscribers; she creates challenges and posts updates on her training. Yara idolizes Whitney and follows her every move. As time progresses, Whitney starts looking for other sources of content outside gymnastics.

2021, 93 min
by Marten Persiel

In a dystopian 2054, three young rebels go on a journey to find traces of the long lost beauty of nature, hoping to discover what happened to their planet. The answer lies in the past and when they find the key to a decade – the 2020s – when a colourful future was still possible, everything changes. In this unusual road movie, lighthearted fiction meets scientific fact to explore the most pressing question of our time: Extinction.

Germany 2020, 91 min
by Julia Lemke, Anna Koch

GLITTER AND DUST is a documentary film about girls who do manly things in the male dominated world of rodeo and who try to find their own path in the process.Maysun does everything she can to gain her father's recognition, to meet his expectations - as a girl.Tatyanna (17) is competing as a bullrider for the Navajo team. Not only is she one of a few girls riding bulls, she is doing so without a helmet or protection. Although they move about in the powerful imagery of the American prairie and the

Germany 2020, 110 min
by Janna Ji Wonders

In her documentary family saga WALCHENSEE FOREVER, director Janna Ji Wonders embarks on a deeply personal voyage of discovery spanning a century: She takes us from the family café at the Bavarian Walchensee to San Francisco to the infamous "Summer of Love“ and discovers the secrets of her family to track down their role in the generation chain. Surrounded by mountains, lake Walchensee rests in its endless dynamic and is the dramaturgical center of their life and this film. WALCHENSEE FOREVER is

Germany 2019, 89 min
by Christoph Röhl

DEFENDER OF THE FAITH tells the story of a man who has dedicated his life to preserving the Church but instead led it into its greatest crisis: Joseph Ratzinger, the German Pope Benedict XVI. During his 30 years working within the Vatican he was the key figure in restoring fundamental Catholic doctrine after a brief period of modernization in the 1960s. The interview partners, who have all worked within the clerical system, describe how Ratzinger's policies contributed to the dramatic loss of mo

Germany 2018, 87 min
by David Dietl 

BERLIN BOUNCER tells the story of Berlin, from a parted city to the party metropolis of today, through the eyes of its most legendary Doormen. Frank came in the 1980's to study in Berlin while Smiley Baldwin was still guarding the wall as an American GI. Behind the wall lived Sven, a young punk and photographer. When the Wall came down, nightlife took control over their lives. Until today they play a decisive role in the reunited city's never ending nights as the most famous bouncers of Berlin's

Germany 2017, 95 min
by David Sieveking

David Sieveking’s autobiographical feature doc FAMILY SHOTS tells the story of a loving couple and the challenges they face when their first baby is born. Confronted with the extensive vaccination schedule for newborns they realize they do not agree on this issue. To solve their conflict and insecurity David sets out on a research trip to unearth the facts and dispel the myths surrounding vaccinations. Constantly torn between his family duties at home and his investigations David travels through

2016, 96 min
by Till Harms

687 candidates, 10 places, 9 instructors in 10 days. Year for year, the entrance exam at the National Acting School in Hanover is a special challenge for the candidates, but it is also an extraordinary endurance test for the staff. In the battle for the best talent, the examiners are just as passionately involved as the candidates themselves in filling the few coveted admissions. Up close and personal with the instructors and professors, the film focuses on an unknown side of the process, that o

Germany 2013, 93 min
by Sandra Kaudelka

In I WILL NOT LOSE director Sandra Kaudelka, having been a talented athlete herself in her youth, portrays four former top athletes of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), who used to go to their mental and physical limits for their carrers – and even beyond. Sandra Kaudelka made her very own experiences with the sports system of the GDR, in which she was trained in her childhood. Still coping with these experiences today, she examines how her own life would have been, if the Fall of the Wall h