Friday, October 4, 2024

German Currents Film Festival 2024, LA


How could a German film festival sound good to anyone but old Ashkenaz and Eurotrash hipsters? The highlight of the fest is a Turkish-German film about a woman going between the cultures, and that sounds fascinating. We should all be so elevated in culture. Tonight like last night at the Disney Music Hall in DTLA, Latin Gustavo Dudamel and Company perform the music of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (laphil.org).

GERMAN CURRENTS FILM FESTIVAL 2024
Germans get a bad rap due to history.
Film, unlike any other art form, has the power to connect us as human beings.

It allows us to empathize with others and step into their shoes, to travel across borders, and even travel through time. As the new director of the Goethe-Institut in Los Angeles, I [Luisa Rath-John] am proud to present some of the best new German cinema to the audiences of Southern California.
  • [NOTE: Goethe, a German surname, is not pronounced \go-eth\ as it would be in English but \gurr-tha\ of the \Gurr-tha Institoot\.]
The 18th annual festival takes place from October 11–14 with screenings at the American Cinematheque and the Goethe-Institut.
  • German Currents 2024 opens
  • Friday, October 11, 2024
  • The Egyptian Theatre, Hollywood
It begins with the exclusive red-carpet LA premiere of multi-award-winning writer-director Sonja Heiss’ German box office and festival favorite, WHEN WILL IT BE AGAIN LIKE IT NEVER WAS BEFORE, based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Joachim Meyerhoff and starring Devid Striesow (ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT, THE COUNTERFEITERS, AGE OF CANNIBALS). A gala reception at the Egyptian Theatre will follow the premiere.  

The festival weekend continues with the US premiere of the popular short film showcase NEXT GENERATION SHORT TIGER 2024. The US premiere of director Sarah Neumann’s feature-length film debut, BEYOND THE BLUE BORDER, depicts the absurdities of life under East German rule and stars Lena Urzendowsky [FRANKY FIVE STAR, Netflix’s DARK, and HOW TO SELL DRUGS ONLINE (FAST)].

Writer-director Fabian Stumm’s relationship drama, BONES AND NAMES, dives into the Berlin art scene and into the relationship between two creatives. Come and see them at the Goethe-Institut.

At the American Cinematheque’s Los Feliz 3 Theater, German Currents presents the LA premiere of multi-award-winning cinematographer-director Judith Kaufmann and director Georg Maas’ historical drama THE GLORY OF LIFE, capturing the final year and romance in the life of writer Franz Kafka, as well as US premiere of writer-director Aslı Özarslan’s ELBOW, based on the novel Ellbogen by Fatma Aydemir.

Completing the festival program, the annual German Currents children's matinee returns to the Goethe-Institut on Sunday, October 13. It will bring to the audience a free LA Premiere screening of Soleen Yusef’s winner of the German Film Award for best Youth and Children’s Film, WINNERS, that will also be presented as a special invite-only educational screening for LA area schools on Monday, October 14, at the Gardena Cinema.
  • A discussion with Soleen Yusef is planned following both events.
On behalf of German Currents' partners, supporters, and the GC Team, I look forward to welcoming you all to the festival and to the opportunity to meet and engage with our audience and share the transformative power of cinema.

Best, Luisa Rath-John and the German Currents Team
The German Currents Film Festival is produced by the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles and the American Cinematheque in kind cooperation with the German Consulate General, and with the support of The Friends of Goethe, Condor, ELMA, The Villa Aurora, and the German Film Office

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