Films by Pascal Capitolin

Germany 2019, 52 min
by David Bernet

The inauguration of the Barenboim-Said academy in Berlin marked a new phase within the political and educational engagement of musician and pedagogue Daniel Barenboim. BEYOND THE MUSIC portrays this innovative academy whose mission it is to unite humanistic ideals, music and philosophy. Almost 20 years after the founding of the West-Eastern-Divan orchestra, another project of intercultural understanding is derived from the friendship between Barenboim and the Palestinian humanist Edward Said.

Germany 2018, 84 min
by Martin Baer, Claus Wischmann

Who owns the image(s) of the world? We take more photographs in a single day than we did in the entire twentieth century. Our world transforms itself into its own image. It would be illegal if we were to show you everything we see around us. Because every single image is owned by someone.Copyright-owners of objects, buildings, trademarks and even landscapes claim money for the depiction of their property. The real moneymaker is the wealth of pictures of us all. Who do the pictures of ourselves and of our world belong to?

Germany, Netherlands 2017, 90 min
by Karin Jurschick

Shortly after 9/11, the US Congress passed a law to protect US airlines from decades of civil law suits and created a fund for compensating victims of disasters who agreed not to sue. Lawyer and mediator Ken Feinberg had to decide how much money was to be received as compensation. He met family members personally doing thousands of interviews. He thought that the value of a life was an easy calculation: how high is the economic loss? How old was the person, but Feinberg discovered that facing those left behind was far less easy. This is Feinberg’s story of highly emotional dilemmas as told by himself, as he took the role of ‘Playing God.’ MORE ON FILMA film about a charismatic lawyer acting as an interface between capital and justice, about US politics and about people who have suddenly lost their loved ones, their health or their livelihood.Why is the life of a fire-fighter who died a hero in the Twin Towers on September 11 worth on average a million euros less than that of a stockbroker who lost his life in the same disaster? How much money should oil giant BP pay the countless fishermen on the Gulf of Mexico who are fighting for their livelihoods in the wake of the largest oil spill in history? How can hundreds of ailing Vietnam vets be compensated for their suffering, which stems from exposure to Agent Orange? These are questions that almost appear cynical, but not for America’s most famous compensation specialist: Ken Feinberg.After the attacks on 11 September 2001, the US Congress decided to pay compensation to all victims or their families who agreed not to go to court. ONE man was appointed to have sole responsibility for that money: lawyer and mediator Ken Feinberg.In 1984 the Agent Orange case made Feinberg a household name overnight: In the US 250,000 Vietnam veterans sued a number of chemical companies and demanded compensation for death, injury and disease. Feinberg successfully served as special master in the litigation.Hardly a national tragedy has befallen the USA without Feinberg being called upon to play his part. The film takes a close look at Ken Feinberg. Who is this man who is applauded as a modern-day King Solomon and criticised as a heartless Pay Czar? We accompany him on his current high-profile cases. We recall his most challenging cases. We speak with politicians who call in Feinberg when a new disaster strikes, and we interview friends and enemies. We also pay a visit to the victims’ families. Do they feel that they have been fairly treated by America’s “special master”?PLAYING GOD reveals what happens within our Western system of values when economic interests and people’s lives become intertwined by tragedy.

Germany 2016, 90 min
by Lutz Gregor

MALI BLUES tells the story of four female and male musicians from the West African country of Mali, who espouse with their music a tolerant Islam and a country at peace.The West African country of Mali is considered the birthplace of the blues and jazz, brought later by abducted slaves to America’s cotton fields. For centuries music has strengthened Mali’s cultural identity, musicians are holding strong positions in society. Following Fatoumata Diawara, shooting star of the global pop scene, MALI BLUES is a musical journey, discovering the country’s rich musical culture and it’s threat by radical Islamists. On our way we meet other committed musicians, who are fighting for unity and the freedom to express themselves through their music, like world famous Ngoni player and traditional Griot Bassekou Kouyaté, street rapper Master Soumy and Tuareg band leader Ahmed Ag Kaedi.A beautiful and soulful doc with mesmerizing sound and music.– Katie O’Connor, Toronto Film SceneA colourful, vivid look at Fatou’s complicated history with her home, Mali Blues is both a triumph for Fatou and for Mali’s music traditions.– Jesse Kinos-Goodin, CBC MusicBest Freedom Film - Luxor African Film Festival (LAFF) Norbert Daldrop Fund for art and culture - German Documentary Film Festival

Germany 2012, 106 min
by Philip Scheffner

On June 29th, 1992 a farmer discovers two bodies in a corn field in the North East of Germany. Police enqiries lead to the fact that the dead men are Romanian citizens. During the attempt to cross the EU border, they have been shot by hunters. The hunters claim that they had mistaken the people for wild boar. Four years later, the trial begins. It will never be proved, which of the hunters has fired the fatal bullet. The verdict: not guilty. German Press Agency dpa reports: 'From Romania, noone has arrived for the rendition of judgement.' The police files contain the names and adress of Grigore Velcu and Eudache Calderar. However, their families never even got to know, that a trial had been held. With REVISION, a legally terminated crime case becomes the subject of a cinematic revision. Places, individuals, and memories are being connected, and form a fragile pattern from different versions and perspectives of contemporary European history.

Germany 2010, 95 min
by Martin Baer, Claus Wischmann

"Kinshasa Symphony" shows how people living in one of the most chaotic cities and one of the poorest countries in the world have managed to forge one of the most complex systems of human cooperation ever invented: a symphony orchestra. It is a film about the Congo, about the people of Kinshasa and about music. In the fifteen years of its existence, the Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste has survived two violent coups d'état and an ongoing war that has claimed the lives of several million people. For the 200 musicians, interpreting the music of Beethoven and Handel partly on self-made instruments, is self-confirmation, artistic expression and a religious service all in one.

Germany 2010, 100 min
by Philip Scheffner

DAY OF THE SPARROW is a political wildlife documentary. It tells the story of a country where theborder between war and peace is disappearing. On November 14th , 2005 a sparrow is shot dead in Leeuwarden, and in Kabul a German soldier dies. These competing headlines are the starting point for director Philip Scheffner, to trace the war using the methods of an ornithologist. On his journey through Germany, the camera circuits a reality of the war – by capturing images of apparent peace.Dialogue fragments are wafting through deserted landscapes. Birds remain in the focus, becoming our guides to hidden places where the war is produced. And then, a sudden change of perspective: An arrest takes place on a Brandenburg country lane. The birdwatchers themselves become the targets of observation.