Films by Torsten Körner

Germany 2021, 99 min
by Torsten Körner

FEMOCRACY tells the story of the women who, from reconstruction after Second World War until today, have unrelentingly fought for and improved women‘s rights in politics and in the country. They paved the way for Angela Merkel, the first female German Chancellor.The female pioneers literally had to fight for their place in democracy with success-obsessed and position-hungry men. Modern approaches to Aids education of a female minister lead to a conservative outcry in the country. Housewives realized that their vote counts and they started to stand up for themselves. Women in politics also brought new issues to parliament. Rape in marriage - which was not a punishable offence until the late 1990s - became officially chargeable. Abortion was subject to renegotiation as well. Still a criminal offence, it was no longer prosecuted. Thus women’s rights were strengthened more and more. Furthermore, topics like the NATO dual track decision were discussed by female politicians from a different perspective and therefore brought a deeper dimension into the debates of the German Bundestag.Undaunted, ambitious and with infinite patience, the female heros of FEMOCRACY followed their path and defied prejudice and sexual discrimination. Female politicians of the past get a chance to speak today. Their memories are bothfunny and bitter, absurd and sometimes frighteningly current. Interwoven with partly unseen archive excerpts, the documentary filmmaker and journalist Torsten Körner (Angela Merkel – The Unexpected) has succeeded in creating an emotionally moving chronicle of West German politics from the 1950s to the German reunification. The images he found unfold a force that allows the cinema to be rediscovered as a place of political self-assurance. An insightful contemporary document that makes an unmistakable contribution to the current debate.with: Herta Däubler-Gmelin, Marie Elisabeth Klee, Ursula Männle, Christa Nickels, Ingrid Matthäus-Maier, Renate Schmidt, Rita Süssmuth u.a.

Germany 2021, 102 min
by Torsten Körner

When the German national football team lines up, the national anthem plays and the cameras study the faces before kick-off, it goes without saying that the players today have very different biographies. They are united by their pride in playing for Germany and competing against the best in the world. Their heraldic animal is the black eagle they wear on their jerseys. The eagle, which today suggests unity, also had an exclusionary message for a long time, because the German football hero was white thought of, dreamed of and revered.The feature-length documentary SCHWARZE ADLER lets Black players of the German national football team tell their personal stories. What road did they take before they got to where we cheer for them? What hurdles did they have to overcome? What prejudices and hostility did they face - and what was it like in the past, what is it like today? Accompanied by rarely shown archive pictures, which are sometimes as unexpected as they are disturbing, director Torsten Körner lets different generations of players have their say in his film. From Erwin Kostedde, who in 1974 was the first black player to make his debut in the national team, to Jimmy Hartwig and Steffi Jones, from Gerald Asamoah to Patrick Owomoyela and Cacau to Jean-Manuel Mbom: their stories not only tell of what it means to be the target of racist hostility in front of thousands of people in the stadium and millions watching on TV. They also shed light on how spectators, the media and German society deal with the issue of racism - and how slowly, seen from today's perspective, something has changed about this way of dealing in recent decades.With; Erwin Kostedde, Rigobert Gruber, Jimmy Hartwig, Steffi Jones, Gerald Asamoah, Patrick Owomoyela, Cacau (Claudemir Jerônimo Barreto), Jordan Torunarigha, Jean-Manuel Mbom, Shary Reeves, Anthony Baffoe, Otto Addo, Guy Acolatse, Beverly Ranger,

Germany 2016, 90 min
by Torsten Körner, Matthias Schmidt

The film tells the story of Chancellor Merkel’s unexpected rise to power – from an East German physicist to the most powerful woman in the world. We look at her biography from when she entered the political stage in 1989 to the present. A second focus is put on the refugee crisis and establishes the connection between Merkel’s actions and her biography. Political and personal companions who have witnessed the chancellor throughout the years comment on her childhood in East Germany, her first political steps, her rise to the top, her eventful chancellorship, and the current political situation.Angela Merkel herself reflects in an exclusive interview on her life, her unexpected and unprecedented career, the refugee crisis, and finally on herself as a politician, a motivator, or a listener.90 mins or 52 mins / German, English or French versionTrailer: https://youtu.be/db5ySbWZLsk