MUNICH – Beta Cinema has boarded the three competition entries 3 DAYS IN QUIBERON by Emily Atef, Thomas Stuber’s IN THE AISLES, the Berlinale closing film ÁGA by Milko Lazarov (out of competition) and Panorama Special opener STYX.
The impressive line-up is rounded up by Rupert Everett/Colin Firth/Emily Watson-starrer THE HAPPY PRINCE (Berlinale Special Gala, following its world premiere in Sundance) and Nanouk Leopold’s COBAIN, which runs in the Generation 14plus section.
In a spa hotel in the Western corner of Europe, Romy Schneider, the biggest star on the continent of her time, gives her last interview, widely known because of the famous photographs by Robert Lebeck. During these 3 DAYS IN QUIBERON, she lays bare her soul, revealing a romantic but fragile woman driven by a mixture of professional ambition and the desire to live. Emily Atef (“The Stranger in Me”, “Molly’s War”) stages her star Marie Bäumer (“The Counterfeiters”), who looks strikingly similar to the famous actress, with great sensitivity, capturing all details of the inner conflict. 3 DAYS IN QUIBERON is produced by Rohfilm Factory in co-production with Dor Film and Sophie Dulac Productions, Tita B. Productions, Departures Film, NDR/Arte and ORF.
Franz Rogowski (“Victoria”, “Happy End”) and Sandra Hüller (“Toni Erdmann”) are working IN THE AISLES of a wholesale market, where introverted Christian discovers love, friendship and a whole new and mysterious world. Thomas Stuber (TIFF entry “A Heavy Heart”) uses night shifts, secret cigarette breaks and meetings at the coffee machine to show that a sense of community, warmth and a little bit of happiness are only possible in the artificial but protected environment of this uncommon working place. Jochen Laube and Fabian Maulbach (Sommerhaus) co-produced the feature with MDR, ARTE, SWR, HR, Departures Film and Rotor Film.
Bulgarian director Milko Lazarov (“Alienation”) follows the tracks of Nanook and Sedna, who live in a yurt on the snow-covered fields of the North according to the traditions of their ancestors. But climate change and progress start to erode their way of living, slowly but inevitably. When Sedna’s health starts to deteriorate like the environment around them, Nanook decides to fulfil her wish. He embarks on a journey in order to find Ága, the daughter who has left them a long time ago. The closing film of this year’s Berlinale is produced by Red Carpet in co-production with 42film, Arizona Productions, ZDF/Arte and Bulgarian National Television.
What happens, if a solo sailor finds herself next to a stricken fishing boat in the middle of the ocean and around a hundred people are about to drown? STYX follows Rike (Susanne Wolff, “Return to Montauk”) on her way from Gibraltar to an island close to St. Helena, depicting the transformation of a strong woman torn from her contented world. Inspired by true events, STYX illustrates how economic interests compete with humanitarian principles and how individual visions of paradise are being confronted with central questions of identity. STYX is produced by Schiwago Film GmbH in co-production with Amour Fou Vienna GmbH.
