On July 30, 2014, German film director, screenwriter and media artist Harun Farocki died at the age of 70. Harun Farocki was one of the world’s most important representatives of documentary film and media art. The vast majority of his cinematic works are documentaries and experimental films that reflect on the exploration of social and political realities.
Over the years six of his films have been presented in the programme of the Forum of the Berlin International Film Festival. Other productions have screened in the Berlinale Special and Retrospective. Among these were: Etwas wird sichtbar (Before Your Eyes, 1982), Bilder der Welt und Inschrift des Krieges (Images of the World and the Inscription of War, 1988), Zur Bauweise des Films bei Griffith (On Construction of Griffith’s Films, 2006) and Zum Vergleich (In Comparison, 2009). Most recently Harun Farocki was a mentor and dramaturgical advisor for the Made in Germany – Perspektive Fellowship at the Berlinale 2013.
“Harun Farocki was one of Germany’s most versatile and productive filmmakers. His range of expression in the medium of film knew no bounds. We have lost a great artist and thinker,” states Berlinale-Director Dieter Kosslick.