BEYOND THE FOREST

A documentary by Gerald Igor Hauzenberger
Documentary  |  78 min  |  AUT  |  2007

SYNOPSIS

A documentary about two of the last Saxons and Landlers. In his garden an old man has spread out an old patched sheet. He wants to die there and be eaten by the animals. Close-by a woman sits at her gravestone; she has already lived eight years past the date of death that is engraved on her stone. With the fall of Hitler, he has also fallen and she had to go into a work camp.
The film shows two very humorous, but broken people, who witnessed the disappearance of their own culture. Now both of them are old, alone, and they want to die. The best thing would be to simply ‚disappear’ from the world.

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AWARDS & NOMINATIONS

Transylvania International Film Festival 2007 
FIPRESCI-Prize


Saratov Film Festival Russland 2007
Best Film


Astra Film Festival Romania 2007
Special Commendation


Erasmus Euro Media Sponsorship Award 2007


28. Filmfestival Max Ophüls Preis 2007
Best Documentary Film

QUOTES

»The director creates this original with an exceptional amount of love and empathy. Nothing is fake. The warm pictures of an old man showing you his world. His marked face and voice stay with you and his philosophy of brutal materialism borders on absurd theatre. […] „Beyond the forest“ leaves a big impression full of melancholy, sadness and concern. Authentic personalities, people that seem like a challenge to the west, with ticking clocks in their homes. The young director Gerald Igor Hauzenberger is to be thanked for a deep and honest documentary, marked by humanity and understanding. An important exception to today’s ruthless media world. « – SIEBENBÜRGISCHE ZEITUNG

»Hauzenberger connects pictures of national pride and tradition, like embroidery or poems, into the melancholy everyday life portrayed in this very personal film. It reflects the tragedy of the protagonists: members of a minority defining themselves as part of a lost community. […] A dark tragicomedy and portrait of a disappearing world. « – DIE PRESSE

»The film shows humorous but broken people, who witnessed the downfall of their own culture. Just a few hundreds are left. Old, alone and willing to die. To disappear even. « – DER STANDARD

INFO

RUNNING TIME – 78 minutes
ORIG. LANGUAGES – German, Romanian
LOCATIONS – Transsylvania
SUBTITLES – German, English
SCREENING FORMAT – 35mm
SOUND FORMAT – Dolby Digital 5.1
ASPECT RATIO – 1:1,66
PICTURES/SEC – 24

CREW

WRITER & DIRECTOR
Gerald Igor Hauzenberger

CINEMATOGRAPHERS
Dominik Spritzendorfer, Marco F. Zimprich

SOUND RECORDISTS
Dominik Spritzendorfer, Martin Zinggl

EDITORS
Michael Palm , Gerald Igor Hauzenberger

PRODUCERS
Arash T. Riahi, Géza Horvát

FEATURING

Johann Schuff
Maria Huber

PARTNERS