GERMANY
AFIRE
103 MIN
2023
Synopsis
Leon and Felix’s plan was to spend the summer together in a holiday home on the Baltic coast. They wanted to be there as friends but also to work – one on his second book, the other assembling his art portfolio. But Nadja and Devid are also there, and they bring lots of positive vibes with them.
Four young people experimenting with love, even though this does not come easy to Leon. His unfinished manuscript haunts him wherever he goes, whether he is at the summerhouse or the beach. The others’ good mood often causes his to plummet. A visit from his publisher is imminent. But, as the latter arrives in his nifty small car, the forest begins to blaze. It rains ash, the sky turns red, and a relationship-drama that merges physical intensity and artistic sublimation takes a turn into a new dimension.
Awards
Silver Berlin Bear — Grand Jury Prize, Berlin IFF, 2023
Cast & Crew
Producer(s): Florian Koerner von Gustorf, Anton Kaiser, Michael Weber
Director: Christian Petzold
Script: Christian Petzold
Director of Photography: Hans Fromm
Production designer: Petra Ringleb
Sound: Andreas Mücke-Niesytka, Adrian Baumeister
Edit: Bettina Böhler
Cast: Thomas Schubert, Paula Beer, Enno Trebs, Langston Uibel, Matthias Brandt
Production: Schramm Film Koerner & Weber, ZDF/Arte, ZDF
Leon and Felix’s plan was to spend the summer together in a holiday home on the Baltic coast. They wanted to be there as friends but also to work – one on his second book, the other assembling his art portfolio. But Nadja and Devid are also there, and they bring lots of positive vibes with them.
Four young people experimenting with love, even though this does not come easy to Leon. His unfinished manuscript haunts him wherever he goes, whether he is at the summerhouse or the beach. The others’ good mood often causes his to plummet. A visit from his publisher is imminent. But, as the latter arrives in his nifty small car, the forest begins to blaze. It rains ash, the sky turns red, and a relationship-drama that merges physical intensity and artistic sublimation takes a turn into a new dimension.
Awards
Silver Berlin Bear — Grand Jury Prize, Berlin IFF, 2023
Cast & Crew
Producer(s): Florian Koerner von Gustorf, Anton Kaiser, Michael Weber
Director: Christian Petzold
Script: Christian Petzold
Director of Photography: Hans Fromm
Production designer: Petra Ringleb
Sound: Andreas Mücke-Niesytka, Adrian Baumeister
Edit: Bettina Böhler
Cast: Thomas Schubert, Paula Beer, Enno Trebs, Langston Uibel, Matthias Brandt
Production: Schramm Film Koerner & Weber, ZDF/Arte, ZDF
Christian Petzold
Born 1960, in Hilden, Germany. After studying German and drama at the Freie Universität Christian Petzold enrolled in Berlin's German Academy for Film and Television. There he studied movie direction while at the same time working as an assistant director to Harun Farocki and Hartmut Bitomsky.
After graduation, Christian Petzold made a series of interesting TV films. In 2000, his first theatrical feature, The State I Am in, about a couple of left-wing terrorists, was released and made a strong impression and earned its director both the German Film Award and the Hessischer Best Film Award. By 2012, this prolific creator had managed to make two more TV films and five additional features, among which Yella and Barbara, which is quite rightly awarded the Golden Bear.
Filmography
The State I Am in (2000), Totter Man/Something to Remind Me (2001), Wolfsburg (2003), Ghosts (2005), Yella (2007), Jerichow (2008), Barbara (2012), Phoenix (2014), Transit (2018), Undine (2020), Afire (2023)
Born 1960, in Hilden, Germany. After studying German and drama at the Freie Universität Christian Petzold enrolled in Berlin's German Academy for Film and Television. There he studied movie direction while at the same time working as an assistant director to Harun Farocki and Hartmut Bitomsky.
After graduation, Christian Petzold made a series of interesting TV films. In 2000, his first theatrical feature, The State I Am in, about a couple of left-wing terrorists, was released and made a strong impression and earned its director both the German Film Award and the Hessischer Best Film Award. By 2012, this prolific creator had managed to make two more TV films and five additional features, among which Yella and Barbara, which is quite rightly awarded the Golden Bear.
Filmography
The State I Am in (2000), Totter Man/Something to Remind Me (2001), Wolfsburg (2003), Ghosts (2005), Yella (2007), Jerichow (2008), Barbara (2012), Phoenix (2014), Transit (2018), Undine (2020), Afire (2023)
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