Documentary by Daniel Abma
GER 2024, 91 min
Almost like family, but always temporary: Amidst parental love, bureaucracy and youth welfare services, three youth workers do everything they can to create a home for children. A film about the superpower of raising a child and family in all its forms.
In a house beside an idyllic lake, deep in the forest, three youth workers step in as parents at a children’s residential home, shift after shift. The children call them Mr. Wagner, Mrs. Wagner, and Mr. Gerecke. Cooking, washing, shopping, as well as shuttling the kids to school and activities are all part of their daily workday, along with listening, comforting, cuddling on the sofa, movie nights and reading bedtime stories. The caregivers aren’t trying to replace mum and dad, but they show what a family-like atmosphere can feel like.
The five children who live here all have one thing in common: the wish one day to go back home. To this end, the youth workers commit themselves tirelessly: they speak to guardians, parents and youth services; they document, organise, set common goals and set up appointments – and are often disappointed when these aren’t kept to. Over the course of a year, THE FAMILY APPROACH offers an insight into the daily business of youth and child services and shines a spotlight on those in the background who work day after day to give the children what they need the most: safety, and someone who’s on their side.
Writer & Director: Daniel Abma I Director of Photography: Johannes Praus I Sound Supervisor: Alexandra Praet I Editor: Jana Dugnus I Music: Henning Fuchs I Sound Design: Alexandra Praet, Roman Pogorzelski, Sound Mixing: Christoph Walter I Colorist: Ana Izquierdo I Title Design and Poster Artwork: Inês Gomes Ferreira I Photography: Jonas Ludwig Walter I Post Production Supervisor: Arno Scholwin I Impact Producer: Lisa Nawrocki I Commissioning Editors: Dagmar Mielke (rbb/ARTE), Rolf Bergmann (rbb) I Producers: Britta Strampe, Laura Klippel
© Bandenfilm in co-production with Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg in association with ARTE
Funded by Die Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien, Deutscher Filmförderfonds, Filmförderungsanstalt, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg I Distribution Germany: Camino Filmverleih
Awards:
ver.di-Award for Solidarity, Humanity and Fairness & Gedanken-Aufschluss Award & film.land.sachsen-Award for Film Culture in Rural Aresas at DOK Leipzig 2024, Nonfiktionale-Award of the city of Bad Aiblingen 2025 (Main Prize), Nominee for the German Cinematography Award / Deutscher Kamerapreis 2025 (Johannes Praus I Documentary), Nominee for the Perception Change Award in partnership with United Nations I Visions du Réel 2025
Festivals:
DOK Leipzig 2024 (German Competition), FilmFestival Cottbus 2024 (Specials), FILMZ – Festival of German Cinema 2024 (Documentary Competition), One World International Human Rights Film Festival (Prague) 2025, Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival 2025 (Open Horizons), nonfiktionale – Festival of Documentary Film 2025, Crossing Europe Linz 2025 (Working Worlds), Visions du Réel, Nyon 2025 (Wide Angle Competition), Achtung Berlin Film Festival 2025 (Documentary Competition), Dokka Karlsruhe 2025 (Opening Film)
Fiction feature by Sophie Linnenbaum
GER 2022, 120 min
Have you ever felt like a Supporting Character in your own life? What if you really are one… ?
In a repressive three class-society, Paula, a simple Supporting Character, is about to face the most important test of her life: she has to prove she deserves to be a Lead. She is at the top of her class at the Main Character School – but so far has failed in generating great emotional music. In search of a solution, she finds herself in the abyss of the cinematic world, on the fringes of the storyline and lost amongst the Outtakes.
Cast: Fine Sendel, Jule Böwe, Henning Peker, Sira Faal, Noah Tinwa, Denise M’Baye, Pasquale Aleardi u.v.m.
Script: Sophie Linnenbaum, Michael Fetter Nathansky I Director: Sophie Linnenbaum I Producer: Laura Klippel, Britta Strampe I Director of Photography: Valentin Selmke I Production Design: Josefine Lindner, Max-Josef Schönborn I Costume Design: Sophie Peters I Make-up Design: Elena Ziegler I Music Composer: Fabian Zeidler I Sound Supervisor: Nicolas Voß I Editing: Kai Eiermann I Visual Effects Supervisor: Johannes Blech I Post Production Supervisor: Arno Scholwin I Commissioning Editor: Jörg Schneider
© Bandenfilm in co-production with ZDF Kleines Fernsehspiel and Film University Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF
Funded by Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, Nordmedia Film- und Mediengesellschaft Niedersachsen/Bremen, Filmförderungsanstalt and Bundesbeauftragte für Kultur und Medien I Theatrical Distribution Germany: notsold GmbH in cooperation with Port au Prince Pictures I World Sales: The Match Factory
Awards:
Förderpreis Neues Deutsches Kino (Best Director, Best Production) Filmfest München, BUNTE New Faces Award Film, DEFA-Förderpreis at Filmkunstfest MV, Audience Award and Youth Jury Award by AG KIno (Filmkunstmesse Leipzig), First Steps Award 2022 Best Feature Film, Nomination for MFG-Star (Sophie Linnenbaum) & Rolf-Hans Müller Award (Fabian Zeidler), Goethe-Insittut’s Children’s and Youth Film Award at International Film Festival Schlingel, Best International Film by Audience of Golden Rooster Film Festival (China), KINEMA German-French Youth Award of BIFF, Heimspiel Award for Best Film with regional reference at BIFF (Denise M’Baye), MAINZER RAD for Best Feature Film at FILMZ, Best Feature Film MADE IN GERMANY at exground Filmfest, Best Fiction Feature at Ahrenshooper Filmnächte, Audience Award at REC de Tarragona, Audience Award at Seeyousound International Music Film Festival, Best Fiction Feature at Film Festival Turkey Germany, Nominee for German Film Award: Best Visual Effects and Best Prodution Design, Bavarian Film Award for Best Young Director, Golden Star for Best Film at Cinedays Festival of European Film, Blue Star for Best Screenplay at Cinedays Festival of European Film, Best Youth Film Award at Childrens and Youth Film Festival Final Cut, Best Youth Fiction Feature at Festival Internacional de Cine para Niños, Niñas y Jóvenes Valparaíso (Chile)
Festivals:
Filmfest München, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, Fünf Seen Filmfestival, Film ohne Grenzen – Bad Saarow, Filmkunstfest Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Internationales Filmfest Oldenburg, Zürich Film Festival, Film Festival Cologne, Internationales Filmfestival Schlingel, Nordische Filmtage Lübeck, Biberacher Filmfestspiele, LichtSpielLiebe Ludwigsburg, Thessaloniki Film Festival, Internationales Filmfestival Braunschweig, FILMZ – Festival des deutschen Kinos, PÖFF Tallinn Black Nights, Ahrenshooper Filmnächte, exground Filmfest, Televisionale Baden-Baden, 601 Berlin-Warschau, Kinofest Lünen, Film- und Medienforum Lüneburg, Europäisches Filmfestival Göttingen, Journées Cinématographiques de Carthage, Piccolo Grande Cinema, Golden Rooster Film Festival, QCinema International Film Festival, International Film Festival of India, Panorama of European Films, REC de Tarragona, Gezici Festival / Festival on Wheels, Around the World in 14 Films, Les Arcs Film Festival, Filmfestival Max Ophüls Preis, Würzburger Filmwochenende, Göteborg Film Festival, Seeyousound International Music Film Festival, KINO – Mostra de Cinema de Expressão Alemã, Dublin International Film Festival, South by Southwest (SXSW), German Film Days Reykjavik, Berlin & Beyond Film Festival San Francisco, Rom Festival German Films, Victoria Film Festival, Glasgow Film Festival, Minneapolis st. Paul IFF, Filmfestival Türkei Deutschland, Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, Grenzland-Filmtage Selb, Beijing International Film Festival China, Fantastic Film Festival Australia, TIFF Next Wave Film Festival Toronto, Lichter Filmfestival Frankfurt, Kristiansand International Children’s Film Festival, German Film Days Denmark, Achtung Film! Canada, Blue Mountain Film Festival, Kopfkino Paris, Cinedays Festival of European Film, Childrens and Youth Film Festival Final, German Film Week Mexico, Festival Internacional de Cine para Niños, Niñas y Jóvenes Valparaíso, Chile, Dea Open Air International Film Festival, Finále Plzeň Film Festival