Films by Volker Schaner

2022, 103 min
by Thomas von Steinaecker

“Nothing is typical for Werner, only the atypical is typical for him.” This is just one of many attempts to characterize Werner Herzog. Documentary filmmaker Thomas von Steinaecker spoke to actors, directors, directors of photography and producers who have worked with Herzog over his long career—including directors Chloé Zhao, Joshua Oppenheimer and Wim Wenders, singer Patti Smith and actors Nicole Kidman, Christian Bale and Robert Pattinson.We also hear from Herzog himself, with extraordinary anecdotes about film locations and shoots, his admiration for Lotte Eisner, and his eternal search for beauty. Herzog’s wife Lena, his brother and his ex-wife provide the inside stories. The interviews are carefully punctuated by archive footage of Herzog never seen before, iconic excerpts from his feature films and documentaries, and his cameos in cartoon series such as The Simpsons. Together they create a kaleidoscopic image of a radical visionary and dreamer, and of his very own “Werner World.” [35 IDFA]

Germany 2020, 52 min
by Thomas von Steinaecker

In the first half of the 20th century Arturo Toscanini and Wilhelm Furtwängler were revered like todays popstars. When in 1931 both of them conducted at the Bayreuth Festival it was a magical moment, the stuff of legends. But soon the polite rivalry turned into bitter enmity. Both men were forced to take a stance on fascism in their respective countries – and chose radically different paths.The documentary not only opens up the different musical worlds of the two great conductors by re-tracing their careers in Milan, Bayreuth and New York – it also poses a question which today is more relevant than ever: What does art have to do with morality?