Manouche Jazzzzzzz

When I was a bit younger I thought a great deal about feelings and melting pots … how it would feel to be living in a bubble in a right time like for example in New York in 1987. In Tel Aviv in 2009. In Paris in 1932. Now it’s 2013, now it’s Berlin, now I get this strange damn right feeling .. I live just by chance … here … and the mighty god of coolness and hipness says: Yeah! Right here! Manouche, French undercover restaurant, Kreuzberg, my intimate neighborhood … live band … no name … one guy from Africa, one from Israel, playing the best jazz music I’ve heard in years. Upright base and sax. Gorgeous. Awesome. What’s your name, guys? I loved you!!

Directors Identity

Directors Lounge: the cool annual festivity alongside The Berlin International Filmfest (Berlinale).
Every evening another fresh short film program. Very international. In a cool place called „Naherholung Sternchen“ which I try to translate .. and find it almost impossible … Sternchen is little star, Naherholung is local recreation, and together … does it make any sense? Not even in German! It’s got quite neat GDRish charme though!

Today’s program: a bunch of short films from around the world, funny: all dealing a whole lot with personal identity. A young Arab school girl craving for a Barbie bag. A lonesome rider on a Texan highway – pittoresque but somehow morbid photos … a French Canadian explaining 16 reasons why he hates himself – that one was quite hilarious and beautifully trashlike shot in black&white, someone trying to make his parrot talk how beautiful life is while in the background his wife packed her things and left *yaaaawn*, a young Russian/Israeli/Netherland lady on her research of her life thread: I loved the way she combined thousands of portraits of herself always keeping her eyes in the very center!
Even I had a film in that program … even I looked for my reason of existence and found an easy answer (with the help of my flying nephew and an apparently Indian guru in my dreams): bring joy 😉 … promoting myself >>> ¡Viva la combinación!

Rainbow Cinema

Recently there was a very rare beautiful evening at the Regenbogenkino / Rainbow Cinema in Berlin-Kreuzberg … a 4 evening special event, films mostly by Gaëlle Rouard, some very experimental 16 mm films. I had a special show of 6 films inside the program. Shown in super 8 original. One accompanied by me @ ukulele. Lalalaaaaatrallalla!!
It was fun and very familiar, like gathering around a bonfire. Rattling super 8 projector. Rare. Thank you Manfred for being there and for the bucket full of Kodachromes!!! Chris and Anne for the spirit and the organisation. And the wine. Regenbogenkino is cult. Survived. Yeah!!!

Dresden Beer Coffee Wine Soup

I had a workshop in Dresden at the 14th Schmalfilm Small Format Film Festival … so nice, so cold, so snowy … we experimented with coffee and Radeberger Beer and red wine that one of the participants brought: his wedding wine! Holy wine did divine things: the processing was awesome and the film came out married and beautiful 😉

watch a best of here >>>> xxxx