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Jan Zabeil

Director
Jan Zabeil is a German director and screenwriter known for his work in the film industry. He has directed films such as "Three Peaks" (2017) and "The River Used to Be a Man" (2011). Zabeil's work has received critical acclaim, and he has been recognized with several awards for his cinematic achievements.

Films

The River Used to Be a Man

The River Used to Be a Man

By Jan Zabeil

2012 | 60 min | Drama

A tour de force through the African Okavango swamp that blurs the lines between fiction and documentary.

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And Along Come Tourists

And Along Come Tourists

2007 | 85 min | Drama

AND ALONG COME TOURISTS by Robert Thalheim deals with the complex issues of coming to terms with the past and human interaction. The film follows the young German Sven, played by Alexander Fehling, who is doing community service at the Auschwitz memorial site, and is confronted with both his own history and the historical burden of the place. Sven's relationship with concentration camp survivor Stanisław Krzemiński, played by Ryszard Ronczewski, forms the emotional center of the film. Their initially ...

The Dust of Modern Life

The Dust of Modern Life

2021 | 81 min | Documentary

Liêm is a member of the Sedang, an ethnic minority group in Vietnam. Following tradition, he and other men go into the jungle for a spiritual cleansing, subsisting only on what the forest offers them. In the past, when he made the trip with his father, they fed on wild animals, such as monkeys, wild cats, or deer. Nowadays, deforestation has driven these animals away, and so Liêm is forced to catch rats and frogs, which the group (and film crew) consume. "The Vietnamese jungle is changing, and ...

Metamorphoses

Metamorphoses

2013 | 84 min | Documentary

As a result of several accidents at the Mayak nuclear facility, which has been operating for almost 60 years in isolation from the outside world, the surrounding regions and their inhabitants have been repeatedly contaminated with radiation. The people in the affected areas, live as if in a forgotten world. The film tells the stories of the people who live and survive in it. Originally, student director Sebastian Mez wanted to make a film about the reactor accident in Fukushima, but during his research ...

Galamsey - For a Fistful of Gold

Galamsey - For a Fistful of Gold

2017 | 29 min | Documentary

Johannes Preuss worked as a development worker in Ghana and returns several years later as a filmmaker. In the meantime, a bloody conflict between police and gold miners has flared up in the small town of Twifu Praso. Who are the profiteers and who are the victims in this destructive hunt for sparkling stones? On his journey Preuss discovers places that resemble devastated moonscapes and learns of a dangerous attraction between man and gold. "Investigative journalism meets tough guys, clanging beats, ...

Winter

Winter

2014 | 29 min | Documentary

Landscapes change and people change with them. This happens over centuries and decades, but sometimes also in the fleeting moment of transition from night to day. Then everything changes and nothing remains as it was. "The snow hid everything beneath itself, until people finally forgot." Director Martin Prinoth (DIE GESCHÖPFE DES VESUV), born in Bolzano, is a graduate of the Hochschule für bildende Künste Hamburg. He is a member of the German-Italian artist collective YOVO! YOVO! and co-founder ...

Life on the Horn

Life on the Horn

2020 | 25 min | Drama

In a narrative that explores the dire consequences of environmental neglect and exploitation at Somalia's coastline, a touching story unfolds about survival amidst adversity. Directed by Mo Harawe, this film delves into the life of a young man and his dying father, set against a backdrop of a community ravaged by the aftereffects of illegal toxic waste dumping by European intermediaries. With its stark black and white visuals, the film offers a powerful, minimalist portrayal of their daily struggles, ...

The Boat God of the Lakeside Sports Club

The Boat God of the Lakeside Sports Club

2006 | 82 min | Independent

As part of a job creation scheme, the central character Enki (played by Steffen Scheumann) works as a handyman at Wendisch-Rietz lakeside sports club. The voice over, however, insists that we grasp the most everyday activities (such as painting bricks, rowing competitions, standing around on the jetty) as mythical events and Herr Enkert as Enkidu. Which, due to the vastly diverging conceptions, is funny – as funny as Bramkamp’s films – although not always visible at first glance – fundamentally are. ...

Thinking like a mountain

Thinking like a mountain

2019 | 91 min | Documentary

They draw from this unique environment a preserved and singular spirituality. For the first time a director was invited to visit the heartland of the sacred mountain. Hick tells the story of resistance which is a voyage through space and time: from the shores of the Caribbean to the stars that light up the night on the glacier and from the encounter with the first colonizing whites to the return of the warriors following FARC's laying-down of arms.

Fukushima and the Bats

Fukushima and the Bats

2015 | 82 min | Documentary

This environmental documentary by young, Berlin based filmmaker Philipp von Becker looks at the various issues surrounding the so-called 'energy shift' to green power in Germany. Wind power is a preferred energy source. As a result, ever-increasing numbers of wind turbines are built across the country, casting an expanding mark on previously unspoilt landscapes. In the countryside, the construction of wind parks faces huge opposition - especially if the plants are built in forests. By examining ...

The Queen's Courtyard

The Queen's Courtyard

2006 | 80 min | Documentary

Eva Heldmann's documentary THE QUEENS COURTYARD centers around Princess Nnana, the great-granddaughter of King Bathoen I, who is considered one of Botswana's visionary founders of the 19th century. After the death of her brother Prince Seatla, a funeral ceremony offers intimate insights into their way of life. The villagers are busy with the preparations, cows are slaughtered, state ministers offer condolences and the president of the country flies in by helicopter. "An absorbing and fascinating ...