German Film in 2017 is alive and highly visible from Film Festivals such as Berlinale to Cannes, Venice to Toronto, and all the way to the Academy Awards. The best new German, Austrian, and Swiss Cinema will once again be celebrated at the American Cinematheque, during the 11th Annual GERMAN CURRENTS FILM FESTIVAL from Friday, October 13th – Monday, Oct 16th, 2017 at the historic Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.

Over the past decade, German Currents has offered a unique insight into German speaking cinema, bringing diverse and thought-provoking narratives, and “must-watch” documentaries to Los Angeles. German Currents is excited to once again feature an impressive line-up of new German cinema during the 4-day festival, including US and LA premieres, documentaries and films for children and families.

The festivities will begin on Friday, October 13th, 2017, with the opening-night red-carpet gala West Coast premiere of Jakob Lass’ feature TIGER GIRL, followed by a discussion with the director and after party at the Egyptian Theatre.

The four-day festival continues with the US PREMIERE of BEUYS by Andres Veiel, the US PREMIERE of Ute Wieland’s TIGER MILK (nominated for German Screenwriter’s Award), followed by a discussion with the director and the US PREMIERE of Fatih Akin’s coming-of-age film GOODBYE BERLIN, which won numerous awards including the Bavarian Film Award 2017. The Austrian entry at the festival this year is Dieter Berner’s EGON SCHIELE: DEATH & THE MAIDEN. German Currents is excited to present the Swiss submission to the Academy Awards THE DIVINE ORDER written and directed by Petra Volpe, who will attend this LA Premiere of her film. The event will conclude on Monday, October 16th with the popular and free children’s matinee screening for LA schools THE PEPPERCORNS AND THE CURSE OF THE BLACK KING.

The popular Filmmaker Brunch will highlight two exciting German Filmmakers this year. After directors Roland Emmerich (INDEPENDENCE DAY) and Wolfgang Becker (GOOD BYE LENIN) German Currents and GABA Film Inititiative will welcome directors Jakob Lass (TIGER GIRL) and Ute Wieland (TIGER MILK) for their “Tribute Event” with a FOCUS: BERLIN panel this year. They will talk about their careers, their influences and TV and Film work in Germany. The Tribute event and Filmmaker Brunch is presented in cooperation with the GABA Film Initiative, and is sponsored by the German Consulate General in LA and the Millenium Biltmore Hotel, an historic landmark in Downtown Los Angeles.

This year, in cooperation with achtung berlin – new berlin film award, the GOETHE-INSTITUT and GERMAN CURRENTS will bring a selection of films from the achtung berlin film festival to Los Angeles with screenings at the GOETHE-INSTITUT every Wednesday throughout September, as part of the festivities “50-Year City Partnership Berlin – Los Angeles”. Focusing wholly on films created in Berlin or the state of Brandenburg, achtung berlin is Berlin’s second largest film festival.

A co-production of the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles and the American Cinematheque, German Currents Los Angeles continues its cooperation with German Films Service + Marketing GmbH, Deutsche Welle (DW) as well as the long-standing collaboration with the Friends of Goethe (FOG). GERMAN CURRENTS 2017 is also proud to continue the cooperation with our partner festival German Currents San Diego, as well as the German Consulate General in Los Angeles, the Austrian Consulate General in Los Angeles, and the Consulate General of Switzerland to present films from Germany’s German-speaking neighbors Austria and Switzerland.

TIGER GIRL

GERMAN CURRENTS OPENING FILM & GALA RECEPTION

All Ticketholders are invited to a reception following the film at the Egyptian Theatre.

Germany (2017), 90 min. DCP Projection
German and English with English Subtitles

Director: Jakob Lass
Screenplay: Jakob Lass, Ines Schiller, Hannah Schopf, Nico Woche, Eva-Maria Reimer
Cinematography: Timon Schäppi
Cast: Ella Rumpf, Maria Dragus, Enno Trebs, Swiss, Lana Cooper,Orce Feldschau
Producers: Ines Schiller, Golo Schultz
Executive Producers: Martin Moszkowicz, Oliver Berben, Jakob Lass
Production Company: FOGMA GmbH, in co-production with Constantin Film, rbb

Twenty-something push-over Maggie (Dragus) is desperate to fit in. After failing the Berlin Police entrance exams, she settles for training as a security guard; hoping to finally gain power and earn respect. However, her passivity constantly lands her in risky situations. Enter Tiger (Rumpf); a tough, assertive, street-smart young woman, who gets what she wants- even using violence when necessary. Taking Maggie under her wing, Tiger boosts Maggie’ self-confidence, and steers her life in a whole new direction.
Hitting the streets of Berlin in “borrowed” security uniforms, the unlikely duo seeks excitement, and to correct minor social injustices.
Once out of her shell, Maggie becomes more aggressive and violent, ultimately taking things a bit too far; even for Tiger, who learns that “when you sow the wind, you reap the whirlwind.”
Following his own FOGMA manifesto, Lass’ third feature skillfully blends mostly improvised dialogue with documentary-like camera work to bring the powerful, action-packed visuals and stylized fight scenes to life in this intelligently-edgy “Martial Arthouse” film.  In Person: Director Jakob Lass

GOODBYE BERLIN (TSCHICK)

DOUBLE FEATURE | U.S. PREMIERE

DOUBLE FEATURE: begins with TIGER MILK at 7:30 pm,
followed by GOODBYE BERLIN at approximately 9:30 pm.
Ticket price includes admission to both films.

Germany (2016), 93 min. DCP Projection.
German with English Subtitles

Director: Fatih Akin
Screenplay: Lars Hubrich, Hark Bohm, adapted from the novel by Wolfgang Herrndorf
Cinematography: Rainer Klausmann
Cast: Tristan Göbel, Anand Batbileg, Mercedes Müller, Anja Schneider, Uwe Bohm
Producers: Marco Mehlitz, Susa Kusche, Kalle Friz
Production Company: Lago Film GmbH in co-production with Studiocanal GmbH, ARD Degeto Film, RBB, BR, and NDR

8th grade classmates Maik (Göbel) and Tschick (Batbileg) are from completely different worlds. Maik, from a wealthy, albeit dysfunctional family, is virtually invisible to his peers, whereas Tschick, from a poor immigrant family, stands out at school with his loud Hawaiian shirt and rebellious attitude. The boys do have one thing in common: they’re both outsiders. With his mother in rehab and his father away on a “business trip,” Maik’s plans to spend the summer alone at home change when Tschick appears with a “borrowed” car and a plan: they’ll drive to Wallachia and visit Tschick’s Grandfather.
Without a map, or a clue where they are going, the unlikely friends leave Berlin and set out on a wild adventure through eastern Germany to experience the trip of a lifetime, learning about themselves and the power of friendship along the way. Akin’s long-awaited adaptation of the late Wolfgang Herrndorf’s best-selling cult novel, Tschick, delivers a fresh, youthful perspective on the traditional road movie genre.

Other films of the German Current are: BEUYS, THE DIVINE ORDER (DIE GÖTTLICHE ORDNUNG), EGON SCHIELE – DEATH AND THE MAIDEN, and THE PEPPERCORNS AND THE CURSE OF THE BLACK KING.