Premiere Mentoring-Programm Block 2

In the organizer's words:

Block 2

Saturday, July 12, 2025, 14:30-17:00, Filmhaus Cologne

The 4th year of the *Mentoring Program of the Filmhaus Köln presents its work! A total of nine medium-length and feature-length films have been created, which are now celebrating their premiere at the Filmhaus. They will be shown in 4 blocks on July 12 and 13.

The following films will be shown in block 2:

A Grave in the Homeland, 50 min, Seda Akin
Turkish with German subtitles
"A Grave in the Homeland" is a documentary-autobiographical film about migration, memory and belonging - told from the perspective of a daughter who follows in the footsteps of her family.
The central question is: what remains when our parents leave - and where do you belong when you live between two worlds?
The story spans generations: from the grandfathers as migrant workers to the parents in the conflicting areas of origin and arrival to the daughter, who today struggles to understand and say goodbye.
Visits to places of origin, intimate conversations and ritual mourning paint a picture of a silent longing for a place of arrival - in life and in death.
A grave at home becomes a symbol of loss and the need for roots - across borders and generations.

Two lives, 69 min., Hannah Esser
In "Two Lives", filmmaker Hannah portrays her grandmother Ute, with whom she has a rather cold relationship. The reason: Ute left Hannah's father Jan when he was still a minor. But now, at the age of 86, Ute suddenly opens up and gives Hannah access to her diaries. This gives Hannah an insight into the highs and lows of Ute's eventful life, uncovers dark family secrets and discovers parallels to her own life. The film is a feminist look at the life of a woman who frees herself from patriarchal structures and has to find herself in the process. It is an intense portrait of the complexity of family, self-determination and identity.

*This program particularly supports people aged 18 and over who have not yet had the opportunity to try their hand at filmmaking. At the beginning of the program, the participants were introduced to dramaturgy, directing, editing and other tools of documentary work in a series of workshops. To this end, the Filmhaus Köln organized six workshops with experts from the fields of idea development, camera, directing, sound and editing. During the creation of the films, the mentors continued to provide the participants with advice and support.