Location Germany 2014

SHOWCASING GERMANY’S PRODUCTION INDUSTRY - NO1 - 2014

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WELCOME TO THE FAMILY

MEN P I U Q E L RENTA

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ICES LOCATION SERVICES V R E S T E DIGITAL DAILIES E AR-S N / T E S LAB/PROCESSING ON

/3 POSTPRODUCTION (2D

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DISTRIBUTION DIGITAL CINEMA PACKAGE QUALITY CONTROL VIDEO ON DEMAND

EMEN G A N A M T E ASS

AR

MEDIA TION RESTORATION A R O T S E R ARRISCAN FILM SCANNER CHIVE &

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PRESERVATION

COMMERCIALS PRODUCTION & WORLDSALES CO-PRODUCTION

CAMERA LIGHTING GRIP

GRADING OFFLINE EDITING VISUAL EFFECTS SOUND MASTERING

CLOUD SERVICES WEBGATE DIGITAL STOCK WORKFLOW MANAGEMENT FILM STORAGE

EXHIBITION GRAPHICS 3D ANIMATION PRODUCING

DISTRIBUTION OF RIGHTS WORLDSALES

The ARRI media service companies are a close-knit group, working together to provide complete, tailor-made packages for film, TV, commercial and multi-media productions. We believe in team effort and a family atmosphere.

It’s a family you and your production can be a part of.

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MMC STUDIOS COLOGNE

Studio Lot

MR. MORGAN’S LAST LOVE at MMC Studios © MMC Studios

Main Entrance

ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE on MMC’s stage 35 © MMC Studios

THE PHYSICIAN on MMC’s stage 53 © MMC Studios

39.5 acre secure site 19 stages with a total of 221,000 sq ft of stage space Stages from 1,900 to 27,600 sq ft The tallest sound stages in Europe: Stages 52 and 53 are 85 ft high each Stages feature built-in production offices, dressing rooms, makeup & hair facilities, wardrobe areas, green rooms, and spaces dedicated to costume storage More than 300,000 sq ft of office space 130,000 sq ft of storage space for sets and props Experienced art department with workshops on the premises Generous funding options by the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF) and the strongest regional funding institution in Germany, the Filmstiftung NRW Films produced at MMC Studios include The Physician, Only Lovers Left Alive, Mr. Morgan’s Last Love, A Dangerous Method, The Door, Chéri, The Reader, Amélie and many more.

filmoffice@mmc.de, Tel: +49 (0) 221 250 1193, Am Coloneum 1, 50829 Cologne, Germany

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INTRODUCTION - MASTHEAD

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SHOWCASING GERMANY’S PRODUCTION INDUSTRY - NO1 - 2014

LOCATION GERMANY IS THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE GERMAN FILM COMMISSIONS AND IS PUBLISHED BY BOUTIQUE EDITIONS LTD. ADDITIONAL COPIES ARE AVAILABLE ON REQUEST - EMAIL INFO@LOCATIONGERMANY.DE - WWW.LOCATIONGERMANY.DE

EDITOR JULIAN NEWBY MANAGING EDITOR DEBBIE LINCOLN CONTRIBUTORS STUART BRAUN, CLIVE BULL, SARAH COOPER, ANDY FRY, JULIANA KORANTENG PUBLISHER RICHARD WOOLLEY ART DIRECTOR CHRISTIAN ZIVOJINOVIC - WWW.ANOIR.FR PUBLISHED BY BOUTIQUE EDITIONS LTD - 117 WATERLOO ROAD - LONDON SE1 8UL - UNITED KINGDOM - T: +44 20 7902 1942 - F: +44 20 3006 8796 - WWW. BOUTIQUEEDITIONS.COM ADVERTISING SALES JERRY ODLIN INTERNATIONAL SALES DIRECTOR - JODLIN@BOUTIQUEEDITIONS.COM LISA RAY INTERNATIONAL SALES MANAGER - LRAY@BOUTIQUEEDITIONS.COM THE PAPER USED BY BOUTIQUE EDITIONS IS A NATURAL, RECYCLABLE PRODUCT MADE FROM WOOD GROWN IN SUSTAINABLE FORESTS. THE MANUFACTURING PROCESS CONFORMS TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS OF THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN. INFORMATION IN THIS PUBLICATION IS EDITED FROM SUBMISSIONS PROVIDED BY THE INDIVIDUAL COMMISSIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS. ALTHOUGH A REASONABLE EFFORT HAS BEEN MADE IN COMPILING THIS INFORMATION, BOUTIQUE EDITIONS LTD ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ACCURACY. THE PUBLISHER ASSUMES NO LIABILITY FOR UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS AND ARTWORK. COPYRIGHT ©2014 BOUTIQUE EDITIONS LTD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART OF ANY TEXT, PHOTOGRAPH OR ILLUSTRATION WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION OF BOUTIQUE EDITIONS LTD IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED

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Robert & Horst, Munich

Green Studio

95 per cent pro climate. We use geothermal heating and electricity based on hydropower. This enabled us to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases by more than 95 per cent over the past two years.

We are proud to offer a climate neutral standard of production conditions in the Bavaria Film Studios since the beginning of 2013.

Bavaria Film GmbH, Bavariafilmplatz 7, D-82031 M端nchen /Geiselgasteig, www.bavaria-film.de

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INTRODUCTION - LETTER

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SHOWCASING GERMANY’S PRODUCTION INDUSTRY - NO1 - 2014

Dear Filmmaker,

W

hat do George Clooney, Quentin Tarantino, Wes Andersen, Roman Polanski, Tom Hanks, Andy and Lana Wachowski, Roland Emmerich, Tom Tykwer, Kate Winslet, Matt Damon, Tom Cruise, Stephen Daldry, Liam Neeson and many others have in common? They have all filmed in Germany and would do so again.

Germany has nearly every picturesque landscape and backdrop you could ever imagine: islands, sea, mountains and valleys, rivers and lakes, medieval ruins, castles, industrial centres, contemporary architecture and much more.

Germany is also a place which offers a film production what it most needs: a country with an impressive cinema history; the highest standards in film technology; modern studios with professionally trained, English-speaking crews; and creative minds in all fields and trades. Also, our producers and service-providers are highly skilled in their crafts and provide first-class service.

German federal and state policy backs the film and media industry with a strong support system and through it creates real incentives for national and international productions. The Monuments Men, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Physician, A Most Wanted Man and Night Train To Lisbon are some of the latest examples of outstanding film productions coming out of Germany, and serve to prove the quality of our creativity.

Enjoy this magazine and we invite you to come and experience Germany for yourself and make contact with us, our filmmakers and service-providers, so that we can make many great films together — films that intrigue, move and inspire.

See you in Germany

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24/01/14 13:10

Your reliable production partner for shooting in Europe www.studiobabelsberg.com

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CO N TEN TS INTRODUCTION - CONTENTS

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52 08

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SHOWCASING GERMANY’S PRODUCTION INDUSTRY - NO1 - 2014

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08 THE MONUMENTS MEN

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NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON

MAKING HISTORY

George Clooney’s film about rescuing treasures from the ravages of World War 2

A complex co-production involving a number of European countries

14 MADE IN GERMANY Germany is proving irresistable to a growing number of international filmmakers

22 THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL A period comedy drama played out in the context of a radically changing Europe

25 ONE FOR ALL Germany can stand in for almost all the locations your film needs

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IN PICTURES A collection of images of stunning locations around Germany — some well known, some yet to be discovered by filmmakers

52 WHERE DREAMS COME TRUE

Germany is playing an increasingly important role in the world of VFX

62 THE PHYSICIAN

German talent brings Noah Gordon’s novel to the big screen

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Few countries can compete with the diversity of Germany’s historical locations

74 TURNING GREEN

Germany is playing a key role in the move towards eco-friendly filmmaking

77 A MOST WANTED MAN

John le Carre’s novel, adapted for the screen by Anton Corbijn and filmed in Germany

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GERMAN FILM COMMISSIONS

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FUNDING INSTITUTIONS

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ADVERTISERS INDEX

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PANORAMIC VIEW OF BERLIN BERLIN is well-known throughout the world as a vibrant capital city in the heart of Europe. It is also renowned for its rich contrasts and impressive variety of architectural and urban settings. The German capital has countless buildings of historical, political, economic and cultural importance that provide fascinating backdrops and continue to exert a pull on national and international film, TV and advertising productions. Berlin-Brandenburg is one of the most sought-after film locations in the world.

Recent projects shot in the region include:The Monuments Men (2013),The Book Thief (2013) and The Grand Budapest Hotel (2013).

(Photo, courtesy BBFC / photo: David Marschalsky )

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MAKING A SCENE - THE MONUMENTS MEN

8 MAKING A SCENE THE MONUMENTS MEN IS THE NAME THAT WAS GIVEN TO A GROUP OF AROUND 350 MEN AND WOMEN ASSIGNED TO PROTECT MONUMENTS, WORKS OF ART AND OTHER CULTURAL TREASURES, FROM THE RAVAGES OF WORLD WAR 2. MUCH OF GEORGE CLOONEY’S FILM, WHICH TELLS THEIR STORY, SHOT IN GERMANY. JULIAN NEWBY REPORTS

THE ART OF WAR T

HE MONUMENTS Men is a comedy action-thriller based on the true story of a group of art historians, museum directors and curators who went on a US military mission behind enemy lines during World War 2 to rescue priceless works of art from the Nazis.

Co-written by George Clooney and Grant Heslov, the film is produced by their company Smokehouse Pictures and is based on the book of the same name by Robert M Edsel with Bret Witter. Clooney also directs and stars alongside Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban, Hugh Bonneville and Dimitri Leonidas.

The film tells the story of a special allied unit commissioned by US President Franklin D Roosevelt, during World War 2, to reclaim these treasures and return them to their rightful owners. It was an almost impossible mission: the works of art were behind enemy lines, and the German army had strict orders to destroy everything should the Third Reich fall. The seven museum directors, curators and art historians chosen to head this operation were experts in their field but they were not fighters. Yet they were willing to risk their lives and those of the 350 or so people they recruited to help them, to preserve these

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precious cultural artifacts for future generations.

“The story of The Monuments Men is one that really very few people know,” Clooney says. “Artists, art dealers, architects — these were men that were far beyond the age that they were going to be drafted into a war or volunteer. But they took on this adventure, because they had this belief that culture can be destroyed. If they’d failed, it could have meant the loss of six million pieces of art.

They weren’t going to let that happen — and the truth of the matter is, they pulled it off.”

And the subject is close to his heart.

Clooney recalls the first time he saw the Lincoln Memorial at the age of 11. “I remember walking up those stairs and looking at this carved piece of marble that had nothing to do with a carved piece of marble. That statue said something to me about us as a society,” he says. And in The Monuments Men, the question throughout is whether saving art is worth a life. “I would argue that the culture of a people represents life… and with the end of a country’s culture goes its identity. It’s a terrible loss, down to your bones.”

Also close to Clooney’s heart are the great movies depicting World War 2 and The Monuments Men was his opportunity to make his own. “There’s a certain romance around these movies — The Great Escape (1963),

GEORGE CLOONEY AS GEORGE STOUT LEADS THE MONUMENTS MEN IN THE HUNT FOR TREASURE TAKEN BY THE NAZIS

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MAKING A SCENE - THE MONUMENTS MEN

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The Dirty Dozen (1967), The Guns Of Navarone (1961), The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957),” he says. “In those movies, you fell in love with the characters and the actors as much as the story. And we thought The Monuments Men was a great chance to cast interesting contemporary actors together for our version of that kind of movie — it’s a fun and entertaining way to do it.”

It was Heslov who came across the story, having recently read Edsel’s book. He brought the subject matter to Clooney, who was also looking for an opportunity to make an optimistic film, less cynical than those for which he has become known.

“We’ve made some cynical films, but in general, we really aren’t cynical people,”

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GEORGE CLOONEY “ WE WANTED TO DO A MOVIE THAT WASN’T CYNICAL, A MOVIE THAT WAS STRAIGHTFORWARD, OLDFASHIONED, AND HAD A POSITIVE FORWARD MOVEMENT TO IT ”

Clooney says. “We wanted to do a movie that wasn’t cynical, a movie that was straightforward, old-fashioned, and had a positive forward movement to it.”

“I was living in Florence, walking across the Ponte Vecchio Bridge — the only bridge that wasn’t destroyed by the Nazis as they fled in 1944 — and I wondered, this was the greatest conflict in history… how were all of these cultural treasures saved, and who saved them?” Edsel says. “I wanted to find out the answer.”

The answer was the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives group, which went to the frontlines to save the treasures that could be saved. “Culture was at risk,” Clooney says.

“You see it time and time again. You saw it ///

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We have the original one

Shooting Location Bavaria Funding & Film Commission www.fff-bayern.de www.film-commission-bayern.de

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MAKING A SCENE - THE MONUMENTS MEN

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THE MONUMENTS MEN EMERGE FROM A MINE WITH THE BURIED TREASURE

in Iraq — the museums weren’t protected, and you saw how much of their culture was lost because of that.”

The Monuments Men is a co-production with Fox 2000 Pictures and Germany’s Studio Babelsberg. The film was shot at the studios and on location principally in Germany’s Lower Saxony region. The film also shot in the coastal county of Sussex in the south of England.

Yet the story takes us to Austria, Belgium, France and the US. Important was to try to limit as much as possible the travel schedule of what was a huge cast and production team — and to stay within Germany to take

JIM BISSELL: “ GOTHIC CATHEDRALS HAVE A SCALE AND STYLE THAT SORT OF TRANSCENDS NATIONAL IDENTITIES ”

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advantage of the film funds available there.

“Initially they thought they could shoot 30-40% of the film in Germany and it ended up being 80%,” production executive Markus Bensch says. “That was very much down to the vision of production designer Jim Bissell, as well as good teamwork.”

“It was really challenging to make Germany work for France and Belgium, and to a certain extent, to make the UK work for Germany,” Bissell says. “Fortunately, Gothic cathedrals have a scale and style that sort of transcends national identities. So, we were able to be a bit more generic in the way we approached them.”

For example, Bissell redesigned the interior of the Cathedral of St Stephen and Sixtus in Halberstadt, the capital of the Harz district in Saxony-Anhalt. The cathedral was made to double as the Saint Bavo Cathedral in Ghent, Belgium, the rightful home for Van Eycks’ Adoration Of The Mystic Lamb, also known as the Ghent Altarpiece.

“I don’t think most people realise the extent to which a production designer contributes to the making of a film,” Heslov says. “They’re the first ones in, they find the locations, and they’re the ones that make the locations look right for the scene.” Clooney adds: “And then, invariably, you have to

THE MONUMENTS Men’s movement around Germany enabled it to tap into a number of local film funds, and the German Federal Film Fund the DFFF. The Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung covers the region of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt. The fund supports initiatives for training, workshops, industrywide meetings and the marketing of locations in the region and provided €500,000 of funds to The Monuments Men. The film also won funding of €400,000 from the Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, which is the central institution for film funding and media-related issues in Berlin and Brandenburg. The German Federal Film Fund (DFFF), established by the German Government, provided €8,491,431 of the budget for the film.

improvise — say, you get bad weather. You can’t waste the day, so you think, ‘Well, I could shoot this other scene…’ Jim says, ‘OK, give me an hour’ — and he makes it work.” He adds: “I wouldn’t make a movie without Jim Bissell.

But England had to be shot in England.

“After Saving Private Ryan everybody has a clear idea what D-Day and the beaches should look like,” Bensch says. “And it’s absolutely clear we don’t have those beaches here in ///

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THE STORY TAKES THE MONUMENTS MEN TO ITALY, REPRESENTED HERE IN A SET BUILT IN RUESDORF, JUST OUTSIDE BERLIN. GEORGE CLOONEY DIRECTS

Berlin, or anywhere in Germany. Obviously you can do some stuff with CGI but its just wrong to try it here, so we finally decided to shoot the beach scenes in England. But the action behind the dunes was shot here in Germany so that was a very good compromise.”

The starting point for the scouting of locations was the mines in which so much of the story is set. Initially the many thousands of cultural artifacts stolen from museums in occupied countries and from the private collections of Jews deported or killed by the Nazis, were stored in the Jeu de Paume museum in Paris, the Nazi Party headquarters in Munich and other official buildings.

But as the allies advanced the treasure had to be buried deeper and a number of mines in Germany and Austria were used to hide the stolen goods — for example the Merkers Salt Mine in the Wartburgkreis district of Thurungia, which were actually visited by Eisenhower in 1945.

“The first job was to find those mines, and they had to be mines which would be shootable. So we did that first, and then worked outwards from there, looking for places near the mines that could double for France and Belgium — which we did successfully,” Bensch says. “There is a town

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called Goslar in Germany that doubled for Belgium. And finding France wasn’t difficult — we shot some streets of Paris in Berlin and that worked well because in Berlin and Paris many streets are the same size with buildings from the same era.”

MATT DAMON “ WHEN YOU’RE DOING SOMETHING WITH A DIRECTOR THAT YOU HAVE COMPLETE FAITH IN… IT JUST DOESN’T FEEL LIKE WORKING ” The principal mine used in the film is dug deep into the Rammelsberg mountain on the northern edge of the Harz mountain range in the north German state of Lower Saxony, just south of Goslar and some 200km west of Berlin. The mine had been working for one thousand years until it closed in 1988. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site along

with the Old Town of Goslar, and houses The Rammelsberg Museum and Visitor Mine.

While not used by the Nazis for hiding works of art, Rammelsberg has a Nazi history. A metal ore mine, the Nazis saw its value to the war effort and so it was expanded as part of the Nazis’ Four Year Plan.

For filming it was perfect, as its cultural heritage status means that much of it has been made safe for visitors, although the spaces deep down inside the mine tunnels were recreated at Studio Babelsberg in Potsdam, 40 minutes outside Berlin.

“We used the entrances — for interior and exterior shots — so when people entered and exited, you are always seeing original mines. We also shot a couple of hundred metres inside the mine tunnels, but then all the cave structures were built on stage. After all it is a mine, so a bit difficult to work in,” Bensch says. “Plus you have to wear a helmet in there.”

“That’s a lot of stuff to shift around — paintings, crates, sculptures — and in order to get the scale you have to have large rooms that are accessible by one or two tunnels, fifteen hundred feet underground,” Bissell says. “That’s not where you want to send a shooting company. So, we made the decision very early on to make a large mine set that

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BILL MURRAY IN A WINTER SCENE FROM THE MONUMENTS MEN – WITH REAL SNOW – IN MOORLAKE FOREST, OUTSIDE BERLIN

was modular in a way where we could shoot it from different angles and it could be different art caches. We built those sets at Babelsberg. They were large, but they had to be large.”

The production faced other problems on location. “The film was set over a period of around three years so it kept changing seasons and for a large part of it we were filming through one of the longest winters in German history,” Bensch says. “It was still snowing in April, so on the one hand it was tough, but on the other hand it was a stroke of luck because we could shoot some scenes with original snow — deep snow in Berlin and nobody thought that would happen. So those scenes looked particularly real, because no matter how good your artificial snow is, the real thing gives you such a depth of a picture, with no CGI.” Bensch says that attitudes have changed in recent years towards international productions shooting in Germany. “I remember when I first did a big-budget film here, which was Enemy At The Gates in 99,” he says. “When the producer John D Schofield arrived from a tour in eastern Europe, the first thing he asked was if we had any proper coffee here, which was really funny. At that time people thought of this

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THE SEARCH CONTINUES THE STORY of The Monuments Men was brought right up to date in February 2012 when authorities found more than 1,400 works of art worth around $1.5bn at the apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt in Munich, while investigating a tax case. It is understood that around 600 of the works might have been seized by the Nazis, with the majority belonging to Gurlitt. “I think what that goes to show is that this is not a story that ended in 1945 — the search for missing art goes on today,” Heslov says. “There are still thousands of works that are still lost. There are paintings that are hanging in people’s homes or hidden in plain sight on the walls of museums. Can you imagine if all of that had just been destroyed? It would have been a catastrophe.” The haul includes works by Edvard Munch, Max Liebermann and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Gurlitt is the son of Hildebrand Gurlitt, an art dealer commissioned by the Nazis to sell confiscated, looted and extorted works in exchange for hard currency.

country as somewhere with no coffee, with people who don’t speak English, with a communist history… but I think that perception has changed a lot and people

know now that you can shoot award-winning films here.”

Meanwhile Bensch has high praise for George Clooney as director. “He was amazingly organised,” Bensch says. “Apart from the fact that he is George Clooney, he was an amazing director. There was no arguing, he knew exactly what he wanted and what he needed, so the shooting days were comparatively short. I’ve never seen anything like it, and most of the crew had never seen anything like it. He was a really nice guy to work with. Most of the main actors had shot here before so they knew us or knew how Germany would work, so everyone was really relaxed.”

One of the film’s cast, Matt Damon was also happy to be working with his friend and colleague alongside an extraordinary ensemble cast of A-list names. “This ensemble is just off the charts,” Damon says. “Every day, I came to work with different, fun people who I really admire and whose work I follow carefully. I said to George early on, ‘I’m just going to smell the roses, because this is as good as it gets.’ When you’re doing something with a director that you have complete faith in, with a great script and a top-notch cast, it just doesn’t feel like working.”

•

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F E AT U R E FEATURE - MADE IN GERMANY

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MADE IN GERMANY WITH AN IMPRESSIVE ARRAY OF CONTEMPORARY AND HISTORIC SETTINGS, WORLD-CLASS STUDIOS, AND A HOST OF FUNDING OPTIONS AVAILABLE, GERMANY IS PROVING IRRESISTIBLE TO A GROWING NUMBER OF INTERNATIONAL FILMMAKERS. CLIVE BULL FINDS OUT WHY

T

HE COMBINATION of state-of-the-art expertise, stunning locations, and a groundbreaking approach to film funding has taken an already vibrant German film industry into a new era, attracting large-scale productions that would previously only have been made in Hollywood.

Operating at both national and regional level, Germany’s film funding schemes have attracted a wide range of international projects.

From its launch in 2007 to the end of 2011 the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF) has supported more than 520 film productions with grants totalling €296m, and the DFFF continues to fund over 100 films a year. The success of the scheme has prompted the Federal German government to extend the DFFF to the end of 2015 with funding this year increased by €10m to €70m. “There was a huge discussion at the beginning about whether that amount of €60m was really necessary and what the effect might be,” says Hendrik Bockelmann at insurers DFG-Deutsche FilmversicherungsGemeinschaft.

“During the past few years the government has realised that there is a huge impact and the view of the German production market has changed so there’s a strong political backing now. It’s seen as a really good investment.”

As a result there has been a massive boost to the number of international productions coming to Germany, and Bockelmann says this trend will continue: “International co-productions are booming at the moment. I still believe the numbers are going to grow. The legal side is easier, banks are more prepared to do international productions here, they know how things work, they know the partners.”

The DFFF is aimed at two international sectors; productions that are independently financed and big-budget studio films that are looking for the right location to base their production, where the studio can take advantage of local subsidies. “The boost has happened for both sectors,” says Dr Andreas Pense, a partner at Unverzagt Von Have and specialist in film funding. “For the studio system it was rather rare for big-budget productions to come to Germany but ///

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FEATURE - MADE IN GERMANY

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SOPHIE NELISSE AS LIESEL MEMINGER IN FOX 2000 PICTURES’ THE BOOK THIEF

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www.dietzundconsorten.de

Hendrik Bockelmann, Management

As cheerful as Charlie Chaplin Faster on the draw than John Wayne As brilliant as Sherlock Holmes For all your `unscene` needs.

www.d-f-g.de Deutsche FilmversicherungsGemeinschaft managed by Burmester, Duncker & Joly GmbH & Co. KG · Trostbrücke 1 · 20457 Hamburg · Germany · Fon: +49 (40)37603-0 · E-Mail: dfg@d-f-g.de

22.11.13 15:05

Foto: Razor Film Produktion GmbH

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Wadjda – financed by ILB We provide customized financing for your film and promote productions in the Berlin-Brandenburg region.

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FEATURE - MADE IN GERMANY

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RON HOWARD DIRECTS DANIEL BRUHL AS RACING DRIVER NIKI LAUDA IN RUSH

certainly with the introduction of the DFFF that changed tremendously. The first studio entering the scheme was Warner Bros. with films like Speed Racer (2008) and Ninja Assassin (2009) but then really all the studios followed.”

Pense says what can also be read from the evaluations of the fund is that there was a considerable transfer of know-how, moving from largely foreign crews, to a situation now where productions will seek to hire a completely German crew. “People have learned so much in the past few years that you can now recruit very talented crew members out of Germany direct. No need now to bring along your own crew,” he says.

Compared with other incentive schemes, the DFFF has also proven attractive because of its flexibility and openness. For example it includes costs on a used and consumed basis. Any money spent on any film elements in Germany count as an expenditure that will get the rebate. “Even if a UK actor or a US director works here, the payments he receives for it when he works in Germany — that is a qualifying expense,” Pense says. In addition the DFFF allows that you can shoot abroad. If the script requires that there are scenes that need to be shot out of Germany, up to 40% of the shooting days can be included in the costs, with German crew companies performing the shooting abroad. Another aspect that makes the DFFF attractive is that it is being cash-flowed by the state while the production is ongoing. The fund can be applied for at anytime, so when projects have all the elements in place producers can file the application and receive the grant analysis within four weeks. This helps during the closing procedure, and during production the national authority can cash-flow up to two thirds of the grant. It is only the last third that is reserved until the final audit.

If the last few years are anything to go by, Germany is certainly attracting some major productions. “The Book Thief (Brian Percival, 2013), The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Anderson, 2014) and The Monuments Men (George Clooney, 2014) — you cannot get better than showing the world that George Clooney and the studio [Fox] decided to come to Germany and shoot this film,” Pense says. “What is so nice is that the package out of Germany is always a mixture of the DFFF and regional subsidy. So if you’re producing in Germany at the same time you’re producing in a region, that means that on top of the DFFF you can add one, or sometimes even two, regional subsidies. That combination is very powerful.” There is also Filmförderungsanstalt, the German Federal Film Board (FFA), which gives grants to projects, based on more of a cultural assessment of the film. The Book Thief, for example, is a combination of the DFFF — the biggest portion —

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but then two very substantial regional subsidies, and there was a grant coming in from the FFA. In addition to an attractive finance package, The Book Thief, starring Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson, was also a natural fit from a location perspective. The film, a co-production with Fox 2000 Pictures and Studio Babelsberg, is based on the Markus Zusak novel which follows the struggles of a young girl during World War 2, and is set in the fictitious Bavarian town of Molching.

The whole town is described in great detail in the novel; the streets, the backstreets, the town square, and especially Himmelstrasse (Heaven Street) where the main character Liesel lives. “Initially our main task was to find Heaven Street somewhere in Germany,” Markus Bensch, location executive on The Book Thief, says. “I had a pretty good idea where to find the square and the rest of the exteriors. However I knew that it would be very tough to impossible to find Heaven Street.” Together with production designer Simon Elliot, director Brian Percival and producer Redmond Morris, Bensch looked at more than 50 streets all over Germany. “Because of the very specific description — small houses, a street on a slope, wide enough to play football — and all that in various seasons to show how much time had passed, and the very unique look Simon Elliot had it mind, it was finally decided to build the whole street on the Studio Babelsberg backlot.”

That decision proved to be a blessing for various rea- ///

HENDRIK BOCKELMANN “ INTERNATIONAL CO-PRODUCTIONS ARE BOOMING AT THE MOMENT. I STILL BELIEVE THE NUMBERS ARE GOING TO GROW ”

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Film Film and and Media Media NRW NRW

North Rhine Westphalia

Film- und Mediens ung NRW GmbH Kaistraße 14, 40221 Düsseldorf info@films ung.de www.films ung.de FICHIER PUB LOC GERMANY 2014.indd 18

Germany’s leading media region 20/01/14 15:12

ACTOR JEREMY RENNER, WHO PLAYS HANSEL, AT STUDIO BABELSBERG ON THE SET OF HANSEL & GRETEL: WITCH HUNTERS WITH WRITER-DIRECTOR TOMMY WIRKOLA

sons, not least the special requirements of shooting with children, and the need to not jeopardise your shooting schedule because of bad weather. The book-burning scene was a challenge because the amount of extras and the set dressing involved. “Thankfully, nowadays it takes a lot of convincing to make German children sing Deutschland, Deutschland Uber Alles, the national anthem sung during the Nazi era,” Bensch says. “Apart from that we had to find a picturesque Bavarian-looking town with a square shootable during the Easter holidays, and a town which was willing to dress its main square with dozens of Nazi flags.” All went smoothly thanks to a very good and longstanding relationship with the city of Görlitz in Saxony where scenes from The Reader (2008), Around The World In 80 Days (2004), Inglourious Basterds (2009) and The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) had already been shot. “The authorities and the general public knew us, they knew that they could trust us and proved once again amazingly helpful.”

Bensch also worked on Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013), a Paramount Pictures, MGM, MTV Films and Gary Sanchez production, with Studio Babelsberg and the DFFF. Co-writer and director Tommy Wirkola was determined to shoot the movie in natural outdoor sets, and with a European feel.

Appropriately Wirkola chose Germany, the setting for the original story, and Bensch says a lot of work went into finding an old-world forest, free from human interference. “Hansel & Gretel has a very German feel to it; the timber frame architecture, tall, ancient forests, generally a medieval look,” he says. “We had somebody scouting for locations who used to work as a lum-

19 FEATURE - MADE IN GERMANY

berjack and he knows forests very well — and he knows how to talk to the forest authorities. He led us to the right forest, which has been there for hundreds of years, but never been in a film. Funnily enough we’d always been looking for that kind of forest close to Berlin, and there it was, right in front of our noses.”

Internationally renowned Studio Babelsberg is a prime location for major international productions. It has access to a wide variety of locations around Potsdam and the Berlin-Brandenburg region, as well as experienced crews that have worked on a large number of commercially successful and award-winning films, including The Pianist (2002), The Bourne Supremacy (2004), V For Vendetta (2005), The Reader (2008), Valkyrie (2008), Inglourious Basterds (2009), The International (2009), Unknown (2011), Cloud Atlas (2012), and many more.

“Babelsberg not only has good stages and a great art department but also locations right on its doorstep which can double for Bavaria, London, Paris or wherever else is needed. Producers like to avoid risks and they are in very safe hands with us,” Bensch says.

Critically acclaimed Georgian director and writer Dito Tsintsadze’s new comedy Wettbewerb (Competition), released this year, tells the story of an unsuccessful director and actor, Guram, and his life in Stuttgart. Berlinbased 27Films linked up with Stuttgart-based East End Films and Paris-based Manny Films for the production and put the city centre stage, filming in and around the city in 2012. East End CEO Tommy Niessner says Stuttgart appealed to the filmmakers for numerous reasons, not least the contours of the landscape. From a director’s point of view Tsintsadze has praised Stuttgart’s variety of hills and valleys which can be used to generate interesting and unusual perspectives. The Birkenkopf, for example, is the highest point of the city centre, at an ///

MARKUS BENSCH “BABELSBERG NOT ONLY HAS GOOD STAGES AND A GREAT ART DEPARTMENT BUT ALSO LOCATIONS RIGHT ON ITS DOORSTEP”

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Location Southwest

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BIG GAME STARRING SAMUEL L JACKSON AND ONNI TOMMILA, SHOOTING IN THE MOUNTAINS CLOSE TO GARMISCHPARTENKIRCHEN, BAVARIA. PHOTO: STEPHANIE KULBACH

elevation of more than 500 metres. And it is the range of undiscovered and rarely filmed spots that appealed to Oliver Damian, lead producer on the movie, who notes that some of the bigger cities are instantly recognisable and every street corner has been covered by a camera, which is not always what a production needs. “In Stuttgart you can have a wide diversity of locations very close to each other,” Niessner says. “Industrial sites, rich neighbourhoods, classic working-class neighbourhoods, and only few kilometres outside you have beautiful wide-open rural regions and picturesque vineyards.” Wettbewerb made full use of the diversity, shooting in a large villa in the suburb of Botnang, a run-down bungalow in the middle of an industrial site, and featured some of the well-known nightspots including Kings Club and the famous Oblomow bar. “The biggest challenge of all I would say, was our main location, the rundown bungalow at the industrial site,” Niessner says. “It took several weeks to find out even who the owner was and who could give us permission to shoot there. Finally we found out it belongs to [German railway company] Deutsche Bahn and they were really nice and gave us permission to shoot on their entire site.”

Funding for the film came from the FFA, Filmförderung Baden-Württemberg (MFG), and Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (MDM).

Samuel L Jackson stars as the president of the United States in FinnishGerman-UK co-production Big Game, a spectacular action-adventure movie shot in the mountains close to Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria and at Bavaria Film Studios in Munich. The film, co-produced by Finland’s Subzero Film Entertainment, London-based Altitude Film Entertainment, and Egoli Tossell Film, a German subsidiary company of Film House Germany, tells the story of Oskari (Onni Tommila), a 13-year-old boy who, alone in a vast forest, comes across the president in an escape pod, having survived Air Force One being shot down by terrorists. Probably the greatest challenge was shooting in the Alps: “We had all the kinds of weather you can imagine — sun, snow, rain, storm,” Egoli Tossell Film’s Jens Meurer says. The director chose outstanding locations in the Bavarian Alps around Garmisch offering snowcovered mountains in the background, and lonely little valleys that doubled for Finland. “The whole production team was afraid of the estimated weather situation in the alps,” Bavaria Film Group’s managing director Markus Vogelbacher says. “At an altitude of almost 90,000 ft it seems to be very risky to film up there. In the end everyone enjoyed shooting there and we had really good luck with the whole situation.” Back in the studio, parts of the Pentagon and several sections of Air Force One were built by the construction department. “Air Force One included a very cool and fancy secret service section. This set will stay at the Bavaria Film Tour as a tourist attraction,” Vogelbacher says. In the Studio’s Stage 7, a water tank was used for some of the underwater and in-water scenes and additional water tanks in down-

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21 FEATURE - MADE IN GERMANY

town Munich were used for diving scenes as well. Big Game is the first international project to have received backing from FFF Bayern’s special programme for international co-productions. Finland’s Petri Jokiranta produces under the Subzero banner, alongside Will Clarke and Andy Mayson for Altitude Film Entertainment, with Jens Meurer of Egoli Tossell Film as the German producer. Alex Garland (28 Days Later, Dredd) is executive producer.

The international co-production Only Lovers Left Alive (Jim Jarmusch, 2013) stars Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton as two vampires, Adam and Eve. Produced by Cologne-based Pandora Film and the UK’s Recorded Picture Company with a number of German co-producers and funding from Greece’s Faliro House Productions, Only Lovers Left Alive was largely filmed in North Rhine-Westphalia. The Film- und Medienstiftung NRW provided €1.2m, and further backing came from the FFA, DFFF, and the Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein. Most of the shooting in Germany took place on set at MMC Studios in Cologne where the art department built the entire interior of Adam’s house.

The production also went to Hamburg to shoot the club where Adam and Eve watch a live gig. “The scouting for this location took me some time,” location manager Marten Riese says. “I think I visited 23-24 different clubs and bars or empty warehouses before we decided on the final location. Production designer Marco Bittner-

MARKUS VOGELBACHER “THIS SET WILL STAY AT THE BAVARIA FILM TOUR AS A TOURIST ATTRACTION” Rosser tried to find a place which matched the exterior location he found in Detroit as closely as possible and had the right atmosphere of decay, but at the same time, size and layout was important too. It was a struggle, but in the end it worked out very well for all departments.”

Riese is mainly based in northern Germany and says the region has a particular appeal to filmmakers: “You’ll find the beautiful coasts of the North Sea and Baltic Sea, where Polanski shot parts of The Ghost Writer (2010), then you have the huge Hamburg harbour, where you can find very busy futuristic locations and also hiddenaway historic places.”

Germany’s other major production hubs are also able to support their location offer with world-class studios. A good case in point is the dynamic filmmaking region of North Rhine-Westphalia, which is centred on the city of Cologne. In the case of Ron Howard’s 1970s Formula One movie Rush (2013), for example, various scenes were shot on location in Cologne, Mönchengladbach, Bergisch Gladbach, Hürth and Königswinter — everywhere mentioned is within an hour of Cologne.

Rush brought together Hollywood production companies Exclusive Media Group, Cross Creek Pictures and Imagine Entertainment; London-based Revolution Films and Working Title; and Germany’s Egoli Tossell Film and Action Concept Film- und Stuntproduktion.

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THE GRAND Budapest Hotel received funding from the Medienboard BerlinBrandenburg (MBB), €450.000; the Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (MDM), €900.000; Medien- und Filmgesellschaft Baden Württemberg (MFG), €450,000; the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF), €3,239,564; and the Filmförderungsanstalt (FFA) of €750,000.

MAKING A SCENE - THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

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PAUL SCHLASE, TONY REVOLORI, TILDA SWINTON AND RALPH FIENNES IN WES ANDERSON’S THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL IS A PERIOD COMEDYDRAMA SET BETWEEN THE WARS, ITS A-LIST CAST PLAYING OUT A BIZARRE STORY OF THEFT AND DECEIT IN THE CONTEXT OF A RADICALLY CHANGING EUROPE. THE FILM WAS SHOT ENTIRELY IN GERMANY AND OPENED THE 2014 BERLINALE. DEBBIE LINCOLN REPORTS MAKING A SCENE

W

ES ANDERSON’s whimsical comedy-mystery The Grand Budapest Hotel, features an impressive ensemble cast, including Ralph Fiennes, Saoirse Ronan, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Harvey Keitel, Owen Wilson, Edward Norton, Tilda Swinton and Jude Law. The film follows the adventures of Gustave H (Fiennes), the concierge at a famous European hotel, and Zero Moustafa (Tony Revolori), the hotel’s lobby boy and Gustave’s most trusted friend.

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When a former guest of the hotel (Swinton) is found dead and a valuable painting that belonged to her is left to Gustave, questions are raised and the police, led by Edward Norton’s character Henckels, get involved.

A melodramatic tone and lavish costumes and backdrops give the film a stylised feel. It is set in 20th-century Budapest, and shot entirely in Germany — but not before the crew looked closely at a number of possible European locations. “We explored Hungary,

the Czech Republic as well as other regions of Germany,” producer Jeremy Dawson says. “It was the Görlitz location that became our hotel that was the final factor in deciding where we would base the film. We settled on Germany largely because of the locations we found. Of course funding was a bonus, but not the deciding factor. We were also confident that the crew and workmanship in Germany would be excellent.”

The most eastern town in Germany, Görlitz is located in Saxony on the Lusatian Neisse river. “The hotel was created mainly in a bankrupt department store in the town,” Dawson says. “It’s a Jugendstil space [Germany’s equivalent of art nouveau] that had lots of historic detail. We added to it and created a hotel lobby in there. We had to be careful as the building is under historic protection so we added without touching the best details.”

Other buildings used to make up the hotel included the Stadthalle Görlitz, an indoor arena that was shot mainly for the dining room scenes.

Dawson and his team first met representatives of Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg (MBB) and Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (MDM) — the film office of the Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt region which includes Görlitz — at the Cannes Film Festival. “They were very helpful in the region,” Dawson says. “They helped us secure important locations like the department store

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what they really needed. It’s a period production and we have many costumes from many different eras. She would take our old originals to re-make new versions for the film,” says Theaterkunst costume department head Nikola Fölster. “Our job is to help the designer with research, ideas and of course provision of actual costumes.” The many last-minute changes to the costume requirements on the film represented something of a challenge for Canonero. “New decisions were made quite regularly — decisions about outfits and colours,” Fölster says. “We regularly had to send new costumes overnight ready for filming the next day.”

DRESSING FOR THE GRAND HOTEL THE COSTUMES for Wes Andersen’s The Grand Budapest Hotel needed to match both the film’s melodramatic plot and lavish settings.

Key to their creation was Theaterkunst, the Berlin-based company that holds over 10 million theatrical costumes and accessories that is a leading provider to film and television productions around the world. Founded in 1907 it began as a provider of costumes for the theatre but quickly moved into film and famously provided the costumes for Fritz Lang’s 1927 classic Metropolis. Typically a costume designer on a medium-to-big-budget film will use Theaterkunst for ideas as much as for the hire of actual costumes, with visits to its Berlin Wilmersdorf 9,000-sq m warehouse for expertise and inspiration, and often a visit to its library of over 4,000 books on the subject.

Oscar-winning Italian costume designer Milena Canonero did just that for The Grand Budapest Hotel. “Milena used our costumes to figure out

23 MAKING A SCENE - THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

in Görlitz and the Zwinger museum in Dresden. They were very supportive and enthusiastic and in the end we shot all of our main photography in the region.”

And local officials were enthusiastic for the film, “especially the mayor, who let us shoot in his office. And the traffic authorities, too. They also helped with the department store location, it would not have been possible without them. We shot in many city-owned spaces and streets and even had to control the street lights and traffic. None of this would have been possible without their co-operation.”

But not everything went smoothly. “The main problem we faced was snow,” Dawson says. ”It was a very cold, dark winter last year. On one of our first days it snowed and Wes decided we should embrace the snow and not try and hide it. It was a lucky or smart decision as it ended up snowing almost every day, so it worked for the continuity and added a beauty and magic to our world. Of course it was also freezing cold and harder to work in snow, but we all got warm coats and boots and in the end it was a great decision.”

DIRECTOR WES ANDERSON WITH SAOIRSE RONAN (AGATHA) AND TONY REVOLORI (ZERO) ON LOCATION IN GÖRLITZ

•

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CLOUD ATLAS THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL ANONYMOUS INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS UNKNOWN TOM TYKWER · ANDY WACHOWSKI · TOM HANKS · HALLE BERRY

SAOIRSE RONAN · EDWARD NORTON

3D · ROLAND EMMERICH · RHYS IFANS · VANESSA REDGRAVE

QUENTIN TARANTINO · BRAD PITT · CHRISTOPH WALTZ

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THE MONUMENTS MEN GEORGE CLOONEY · MATT DAMON

THE READER THE GHOST WRITER VALKYRIE THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM THE PIANIST STEPHEN DALDRY · KATE WINSLET · RALPH FIENNES

ROMAN POLANSKI · EWAN MCGREGOR · PIERCE BROSNAN

BRYAN SINGER · TOM CRUISE · STEPHEN FRY

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Funding: www.medienboard.de Locations: www.bbfc.de

FICHIER PUB LOC GERMANY 2014.indd 24

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FEATURE - ONE FOR ALL

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MUCH OF CONSTANTIN FILM’S 2010 MOVIE VERSION OF THE THREE MUSKETEERS WAS SET IN FRANCE, BUT SHOT IN BAVARIA

F E AT U R E

ONE FOR ALL MANY PRODUCTIONS HAVE COME TO GERMANY TO SHOOT ONE LOCATION AND STAYED THERE TO SHOOT ALL OF THEM. OR ALMOST. ANDY FRY EXPLAINS WHY

M

OST producers agree that the main reason they use location doubles is to control costs or secure tax breaks. But this pursuit of production efficiency only makes sense if it can be achieved without compromising the creativity or quality of their projects. This is where Germany can help. Blessed with great locations, excellent infrastructure and motivated crews, it can double up for dozens of urban and rural locations around the world. When you also consider that Germany has one of the most generous film-funding systems in the world it’s no surprise that so many producers now base their projects in the country.

One film that neatly illustrates this point is Constantin Film’s 2010 movie version of The Three Musketeers. “The production team searched all over Europe for the right mix of locations,” Bavaria film commissioner Anja Metzger says. “In the end they were able to shoot a lot of scenes in Bavaria.”

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The Louvre, for example, was recreated at the Würzburg Residenz, near the Bavarian city of Bamberg.

Bamberg itself hosted a scene in which the musketeers fight against Cardinal Richelieu’s guards. It also provided a beautiful 14th century town hall that doubled as the musketeers’ Parisian lodging house.

One of the most ambitious pieces of doubling was the decision to use the Royal Palace of Herrenchiemsee to double for Versailles. This was possible because King Ludwig II was a great admirer of King Louis XIV. So he modelled a lot of the rooms at Herrenchiemsee on the Palace of Versailles. One room that features in the film is The Great Hall of Mirrors.

Bavaria wasn’t just used to recreate Paris and Versailles. It also doubled for the French countryside, ///

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the Italian city of Venice and Britain. “In one scene, the German town of Burghausen doubles for the French town of Meung-sur-Loire,” Metzger says. “In another sequence based around the Tower Of London, the producers used digitally-altered images of the real Tower, a studio set and exterior stone walls in the town of Würzburg.”

Bavaria’s authorities worked hard to ensure the production’s success, allowing national treasures including the Munich Residenz, the former royal palace of Bavarian monarchs and the Great Hall of Schloss Schleissheim, to be used as locations.

Another project that underlines Germany’s versatility as a double is time-travel movie Rubinrot (Ruby Red), the 2013 movie from director Felix Fuchssteiner, and its 2014 sequel Saphirblau (Sapphire Blue). In this case, various parts of Germany were used to double for the UK during the course of 2012 and 2013. “A lot of the action takes place in London, but we wanted to film in Germany for various reasons,” producer Philipp Budweg says.

“For a start, the story is based on a German book, so we were keen to keep as much of the project in Germany as possible. Secondly, filming in London is expensive so we wanted to do what we could in Germany. Finally, we wanted to film across a number of Germany’s regions to take advantage of various film funds.”

Working with location scout Christian Meinecke, from Berlin-based agency Motivbuero, Budweg put together a filming schedule that involved Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and Thuringia. “Castle Ehrenburg in the Bavarian town of Coburg was used as St Lennox College, one of the key locations in the story, while Bayreuth [in Bavaria] was used for the home of the Montrose family,” Meinecke says. “In the case of Bayreuth, we had to dress a street for 1912 and 2012, because Ruby Red is a timetravel story. In NRW, we shot in front of Aachen’s cathedral and used Stadtwald in Cologne as our Hyde Park. Finally, we went to Thuringia to use Wartburg Castle, Weimar and Mühlhausen, where we shot inside the

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SHOOTING IN THE HISTORIC SPEICHERSTADT WAREHOUSE DISTRICT IN HAMBURG, DOUBLING FOR NEW YORK IN THE FILM JERRY COTTON

City Hall. Overall, we managed to recreate England in Germany without too many problems, using a mix of locations and some digital production effects.”

Other productions have re-imagined locations as diverse as Moscow — for example 2004’s The Bourne Supremacy — and New York on German soil.

An example of the latter is Rat Pack Filmproduktion’s action comedy Jerry Cotton (2010), which is set in the Sixties. That film used Hamburg’s dockland warehouse area, the Speicherstadt, as New York’s waterfront. “Speicherstadt is a very special place that has the feel of New York or London in the 19th century,” says Alexandra Luetkens, who works in the Hamburg Office of the Schleswig-Holstein Film Commission. “The brick warehouses, trading houses, canals and streets are also similar to how Rotterdam in the Netherlands would have looked before it was destroyed during World War 2.”

Not all production doubling in Germany involves period productions. “We have shot a lot of large-scale Hollywood films and international commercials for producers and clients that are looking for contemporary urban landscapes,” says Tom Ehrhardt, owner of Berlinbased production firm Shotz. “Often, these are for unnamed European or North American cities, but sometimes they have specific requirements. For example, we worked on a Canadian feature film called You Got Served (Robert Adetuyi, 2011) that was set in five countries. After filming the Berlin part in Berlin, the production company decided to shoot a Detroit scene in Berlin as we could offer the required location and have very efficient crews.”

Ehrhardt, who has line-produced more than 400 commercials for brands ranging from Apple and Motorola to Chevrolet and Toyota, says Germany’s appeal is “a combination of great locations, world-class talent and affordable prices. We might not be as cheap as Eastern Europe but that is made up for by the reliability and quality of people working here. We’ve been shooting so many large-scale projects over the last 10-15 years that our level of expertise is comparable to LA or London.”

It is also important to note that Germany can offer a compelling combination of studio and locations. MMC Studios in Cologne created 11th century England for last year’s The Physician while Studio Babelsberg built Shakespearean London for Anonymous (Roland Emmerich, 2011), even going so far as to construct its own Globe Theatre.

Another interesting project involving Babelsberg was Roman Polanski’s 2010 movie The Ghost Writer.

In that case, the action was supposed to be set in Martha’s Vineyard, an island south of Cape Cod in Massachusetts, US. But because of Polanski’s muchpublicised travel problems, the film was shot mainly in Germany.

Aside from the studio scenes in Potsdam, Polanski used the island of Sylt in northern Germany to double for Martha’s Vineyard. To create a sense of authenticity he used images from the Nantucket Historical Association to help build sets. Props used to convey a sense of America included Massachusetts license plates, Cape Cod logos on the ferry operators, US road signs, business signs in English and CNN.

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LONDON OF THE PAST, AND LONDON TODAY. CHRISTIAN MEINECKE: “WE MANAGED TO RECREATE ENGLAND IN GERMANY WITHOUT TOO MANY PROBLEMS”

Polanski’s use of Sylt is a reminder that Germany has a lot to offer by way of natural beauty. Shotz’ Ehrhardt says: “We don’t have huge wheatfields like the US or Ukraine but there is a lot of variety in the geography of the country. We have shot commercials which double for Norway while Quentin Tarantino used Germany as rural France. There are beautiful meadows in Bavaria and I’ve also seen country roads in places like Lower Saxony that could double for Russia. There’s also the Baltic Sea. It’s not the Caribbean but it does have some nice beaches.”

Other interesting looks can be found in the coastal cities of Bremen and Bremerhaven, The Black Forest, which is perfect for fairytale-style stories, and Lake Constance, which has echoes of Italy and the Riviera. Bavaria’s

ALEXANDRA LUETKENS “ SPEICHERSTADT IS A VERY SPECIAL PLACE THAT HAS THE FEEL OF NEW YORK OR LONDON IN THE 19TH CENTURY ” Metzger adds that Germany’s Alps can double for any European Alpine backdrop; some of Phil Traill’s 2011 movie Chalet Girl was set in Bavaria.

Metzger also cites Big Game, Jalmari Helander’s movie starring Samuel L Jackson, released this year. “Big Game is set in mountainous terrain which is supposed to resemble a country like Finland. But the film was entirely shot using Bavaria locations and Bavaria Film Studios in Munich. Bavaria Studios was also used to create parts of the US Department of Defense’s Pentagon building.”

Another international production that has been to Germany recently is Zentropa thriller The Absent One, directed by Mikkel Nørgaard and released this year. Based on the book by Jussi Adler-Olsen, it follows Copen-

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hagen detective Carl Morck and his partner Assad as they investigate the brutal murder of two young twins.

Funded in part by Filmförderung Hamburg SchleswigHolstein, The Absent One spent several shooting days in Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg doubling for Copenhagen and other Danish locations.

Other projects to have used Germany as a double include 2012’s Iron Sky, directed by Timo Vueronsola.

Frankfurt-based location manager Regina Kaczmarek says: “Iron Sky received some funding from the Hessen Film Fund and as a result needed to shoot in this region. We were able to find locations that could double for the US. For example, the film’s New York street scenes and the White House were shot in Frankfurt.”

In Kaczmarek’s opinion, “Frankfurt is the kind of modern city which can double for a lot of places. For Korean, Japanese and Chinese clients it has the kind of skyline and architecture that can easily represent a European or North American city. It also has an excellent broadband and filming infrastructure.”

While Germany is able to provide a good level of production support, one of the less obvious advantages of shooting in a place like Frankfurt is that the locals are happy to host film crews. “A lot of people on the production commented on the fact that the locals were so kind and welcoming, because they’re not so use to seeing film production. This sometimes has another advantage, which is that filming fees are not usually as high as they would be in places like Los Angeles or New York.” Kaczmarek adds: “Germany is a very multicultural country. So when you are trying to double for somewhere cosmopolitan like New York you can get the range and diversity you need in your cast.”

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MAKING A SCENE - NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON

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JEREMY IRONS AS RAIMUND GREGORIUS IN NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON

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MAKING A SCENE - NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON

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THE MOVIE ADAPTATION OF NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON IS A COMPLEX CO-PRODUCTION INVOLVING A NUMBER OF EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, BUT WHICH MADE FULL USE OF GERMAN TALENT. SARAH COOPER REPORTS MAKING A SCENE

SOLVING THE PUZZLE M

UCH like the plot of Night Train To Lisbon – which centres around one man’s journey across Europe to solve a mysterious puzzle – the story behind the film’s production also features its own long and intricate journey across that continent.

Based on the best-selling novel by Swiss born, Berlin-based author Pascal Mercier, directed by Danish auteur Bille August, featuring an all-star cast headed up by Jeremy Irons, and produced out of Germany, Switzerland and Portugal, the project tapped in to some of the very best elements of European film production both in front of and behind the camera.

Its own journey began with Swiss producer Peter Reichenbach, co-owner of Zurich-based production company C-Films, who bought the rights to Mercier’s international bestselling mystery novel in 2006 after seeing the potential for a big-screen adaptation.

Published in 30 countries, with over two million copies sold in the German-speaking world alone, the novel tells the story of a

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divorced Latin teacher living in Bern, Switzerland, who finds himself embarking on a journey to Portugal following an encounter with a mysterious young woman who leaves behind a book containing a train ticket to Lisbon. Set in both the present day and during the last years of the Salazar dictatorship of the 1970s, the story features philosophical questions, political intrigue and a tragic love triangle.

“I had heard about the book and read it and thought it would be a really interesting idea for a movie,” says Reichenbach, who after developing the project for two years decided to approach Studio Hamburg FilmProduktion as a potential co-production partner.

“C-Films would not have been able to shoulder a project of this size on its own, and I had known [Studio Hamburg FilmProduktion’s managing director] Günther Russ since 1990 and trusted him, so it was logical for us to work with them,” Reichenbach says, adding: Günther is from the production side and I am more from the creative side, so it seemed like a wonderful match.” /// Russ, together with fellow Studio

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MARTINA GEDECK AS MARIANA AND JEREMY IRONS AS RAIMUND GREGORIUS IN NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON

Hamburg producers Kerstin Ramcke and Michael Lehmann (CEO), jumped at the idea, immediately spotting the potential for the literary adaptation which they viewed in the same vein as previous novel-to-screen success stories such as The Reader (2008) and The English Patient (1996).

Securing the backing of the German powerhouse was the key to unlocking the project. Having brought Ulrich Hermann and Greg Latter, (who wrote the script for August’s 2007 film Goodbye Bafana), on to write the screenplay, Studio Hamburg then began the process of raising the film’s €7.8m budget, which came via a colourful collection of backers from across Europe.

Crucially, despite not actually shooting in Germany, Studio Hamburg was able to tap into state funding from the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF), thanks to the various German elements of the production including its German co-writer (Hermann), German cast members and the fact that the novel on which it was based was German.

Several key members of the film’s international crew were also German including its

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editor Hansjorg Weißbrich, who received a German Film Award for his work on Storm in 2009, composer Annette Focks and costume designer Monika Jacobs.

The other crucial factor was the fact that 100% of the post production was done on German soil, using Studio Hamburg post facilities and Berlin-based post production company Post Perfect as well as German companies Studio Funk, Optical Art and Arri, Berlin.

“To get the German DFFF, it must be a German production, money must be spent in Germany and it must make sense for them to put money into the film,” says Russ, whose credits for Studio Hamburg includes German family drama Die Rote Zora (2008).

The financing ended up being split between Germany (70%), Switzerland (20%) and Portugal (10%). As well as the German DFFF, the film was also able to access state funding through the German Federal Film Board, the film subsidy Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein and Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg. Funding from Switzerland came through the Swiss Federal Office of Culture, broadcaster SRF and

Swiss pay-TV channel Teleclub as well as European funding through the MEDIA programme and Eurimages.

Meanwhile C-Films newly created German subsidiary company C-Films Germany and Portugal’s Cinemate also came on board as co-producers.

When it came to finding the right director for the project, Russ had Danish auteur Bille August in mind from the outset. “My vision was to work with Bille August, I liked him very much, and I thought he was the right director for this kind of movie and story, which is a very philosophical one,” says Russ of the director who won the Cannes Palme d’Or and foreign language Oscar in 1987 for Pelle The Conquerer and the Palme d’Or a second time in 1992 for The Best Intentions, a drama about Ingmar Bergman’s parents.

Luckily August, who had read the novel when it was first published, thought so too. “It depicts such a special atmosphere, and I knew I would really enjoy transforming the atmosphere described in the book into a movie. So when Studio Hamburg offered me the job to direct I agreed immediately,” says the director for whom the biggest challenge was finding the right actor to play the film’s complex lead character, Raimund Gregorius.

“We didn’t only need an excellent actor, but also someone who can convincingly play the role of a university lecturer, who radiates intelligence and someone who is versatile,” says August, whose first choice was Jeremy Irons, having previously directed him in the screen adaptation of Isabel Allende’s The House Of The Spirits in 1993.

Irons agreed to take on the challenge, without even reading the original novel. “I liked the script and it is a very unusual film, without

GUNTHER RUSS “ IT IS NOT LIKE SOME COPRODUCTIONS WHERE PEOPLE TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN ” explosions, one of those kinds of films not much money is spent on nowadays. I just could not resist,” says the British actor, who has most recently been seen playing the corrupt Pope Alexander VI in Neil Jordan’s TV series The Borgias.

For the supporting cast, August recruited some of the hottest actors currently working in Europe. German actors Martina Gedeck (The Lives Of Others, 2006 and Inglourious Basterds

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Spirits together in Lisbon 20 years ago. “It was wonderful [to return to Lisbon]. We show the most interesting parts of the city, and we made great discoveries beyond the major tourist attractions,” says August, explaining that the city is “not as cinematically grazed as other large cities are”.

Night Train To Lisbon world premiered at the Berlinale in 2013, going on to take over a million admissions in German-speaking territories, where distributor is Concorde. With K5 handling international sales, it has also sold around the world, and most recently opened in the US through distributor Wrekin Hill.

The film also gained the stamp of approval from the novel’s author Pascal Mercier. “The screen mirrored the images I had imagined. You don’t want it to end. When it was over and the lights went back on, the first thing I said was, ‘When can I see it again?’,” says the writer.

Meanwhile for Reichenbach, seeing the fruits of his labour on the screen for the first time was a “wonderful moment”.

“When I saw the first rough cut, I thought wow, that is what I was dreaming of when I started this project,” says the producer, whose journey on Night Train To Lisbon may be at an end, but whose partnership with Studio

Hamburg looks set to continue.

C-Films and Studio Hamburg have a number of projects in development including Simple, a comedy adapted from Marie-Aude Murail’s 2007 novel about a boy and his brother who has learning difficulties, which has German director Markus Goller attached and looks set to shoot in Germany in the second half of 2014.

“It was such a great partnership and we were able to help each other out with our experiences,” says Reichenbach. “Switzerland is a small market, and it is crucial for us to find co-production partners. We are very much attached to the German culture, so it makes sense for us to work with them,” he adds.

Meanwhile, Russ describes the pan-European production and funding model on Night Train To Lisbon as being a “great example for shooting films in Europe”.

“It is not like some co-productions where people take the money and run. We built this project as a real European co-production with four different production companies. At the moment when there is less money out there it makes real sense for a project to bring different financing tools from different countries together. It means you can bring all the best parts together and make the project possible.”

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2009) and August Diehl, Swiss actor Bruno Ganz, most famous for playing Hitler in 2004’s Downfall, were joined by French actress Melanie Laurent, rising British star Jack Huston, and Swedish actress Lena Olin, as well as British screen veterans Christopher Lee and Charlotte Rampling, all of whom speak in English in the film, but with Portugese accents.

“It was never just about having big names up there on the posters, it was about high-level and precise casting,” says Reichenbach, who credits August with not only managing to secure such an impressive cast, but also with keeping them happy during filming.

“It was the most important moment of the project when Bille came in to direct. He is such a wonderful person, a great director, the actors love him, he is a very sensitive, intelligent person and it was an enormous pleasure to work with him.”

Despite Germany having a plethora of locations on offer — from the Baltic Sea to the Alps, to beautifully preserved cities — the team shot on location in Bern in Switzerland and Lisbon in Portugal, both of which are integral to the film’s story.

For August and Irons, it was something of a homecoming, as they shot The House Of The

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SHOWCASE

LOCATION

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IN PICTURES LOCATION GERMANY HAS TEAMED UP WITH FILM COMMISSIONS, LOCATION SCOUTS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS TO BRING YOU IMAGES OF STUNNING LOCATIONS AROUND GERMANY. SOME ARE WELL-TRODDEN BY FILM CREWS, OTHERS ARE STILL TO BE MADE FAMOUS ON THE BIG OR SMALL SCREEN...

SYLT ISLAND, NORDFRIESLAND SYLT is the the fourth-largest island in Germany and the largest of the North Frisian islands, situated in Nordfriesland, in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. It is well known for its 40 km-long sandy beach and is a popular destination for water sports. Much of the island’s natural beauty is safeguarded by law, with one seventh of its total area covered by conservation zones and one third by nature reserves. This location doubled for Martha’s Vineyard in Roman Polanski’s 2010 film The Ghost Writer.

(Photo, courtesy Carlos Arias Enciso / Nordseetourismus Zentrale)

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THE SAARSCHLEIFE, METTLACH, SAARLAND THE SAARSCHLEIFE is where the Saar river has carved itself into the rock and created a beautiful and impressive natural feature. On top of the densely wooded ridge, set amid the horseshoe-shaped river loop, towers Montclair Castle, whose ruins are nestled between oak and hornbeam trees. Much of the forest alongside the Saar form part of a nature reserve. Scenes for the movie Schatzritter (2012) were shot near here.

(Photo, courtesy Saarland Film GmbH )

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KELLENHUSEN BRIDGE, BALTIC SEA KELLENHUSEN is a small town on Germany’s Baltic coast in the northern state of SchleswigHolstein. It is located in a small protected bay with a forest behind, and offers some of the best weather in Germany. Kellenhusen Bridge, pictured here, extends over 300 metres out into the Baltic sea.

(Photo, courtesy FFHSH / M.O.Schulz )

ALLIANZ ARENA, MUNCHEN-FROTTMANING THE ALLIANZ Arena is a 70,000-seat football stadium in Munich, Bavaria. Inflated ETFE plastic panels allow the stadium’s exterior to change colour. Located at the northern edge of Munich’s Schwabing-Freimann borough on the Fröttmaning Heide, the stadium has been nicknamed Schlauchboot, which means inflatable boat.

(Photo, courtesy Allianz Arena München Stadion GmbH )

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AUTOSTADT, WOLFSBURG AUTOSTADT (Car City) is a visitor attraction adjacent to the Volkswagen factory in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. The complex includes 28 hectares of rolling hills and lakes together with extraordinary examples of architecture and design, including the largest glass doors in the world. Wolfsburg is famous as one of the few German cities built during the first half of the 20th century. Feature films shot here include The International (2009) and Wolfsburg (2003) .

(Photo, courtesy TourismusMarketing Niedersachsen GmbH (TMN) / Klaus Klett )

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THE PILSUM LIGHTHOUSE, KRUMMHORN, LOWER SAXONY THE PILSUM Lighthouse (Pilsumer Leuchtturm) was built in 1891 to provide a beacon for the Emshörn channel on Germany’s North Sea coast. It is located on a dyke near the village of Pilsum in the municipality of Krummhörn. Water is the area’s characteristic element: canals stretching in straight lines, bascule bridges, dykes, high and low tides, long sandy beaches along the North Sea, and the seven East Frisian islands. In between the local towns of Leer, Aurich and Emden are castles, lighthouses, and mills. The town grew in popularity as a result of the feature film Otto – The Outer-Frisian (1989) and also the episode Sonne und Sturm (2003) of the long-running TV thriller series Tatort was shot in the beacon.

(Photo, courtesy Detmar Schmoll )

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SPEICHERSTADT UND HAFENCITY, HAMBURG THIS view is from the top floor of the new Spiegel office building overlooking Hamburg’s historic warehouse district to the right and the modern buildings of the new HafenCity district to the left, including the construction site of the new Elbphilharmonie concert hall. Further in the distance are the container terminals of the industrial port, and the many small canals and bridges. The new buildings and public spaces in HafenCity feature modern city life in contrast to the industrial sites of the port. Movies shot here include: Character (1997); A Most Wanted Man (2014); up-coming release Petit; and many German feature films and TV movies, series and commercials.

(Photo, courtesy FFHSH / Marion v.d. Mehden )

KLEIN SALITZ,

MECKLENBURG-VORPOMMERN KLEIN Salitz is in an area of outstanding natural beauty with unique buildings and cinematic backdrops. MecklenburgVorpormmern, or Western Pomerania, is an exciting landscape with unspoiled scenery yet to be showcased on film.

(Photo, courtesy filmlocationMV (Arndt)

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RHEINGAU, HESSE THE RHEINGAU — the Rhine district — is on the northern side of the Rhine between the towns of Wiesbaden and Lorch near Frankfurt, reaching from the Western Taunus to the Rhine. It is situated in the German state of Hesse and is part of the Rheingau-Tanus-Kreis administrative district. It is famous for Rheingau wines — especially the Rheingauer Riesling — and its many taverns.

(Photo, courtesy Film Commission Hessen )

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FORBACH BRIDGE, BADEN-WURTTEMBERG THIS historic wooden bridge is over the Murg River in Forbach, a small village in the southwest of Baden-Württemberg state. For more than 200 years the covered wooden bridge has been a landmark of the village as well as of the Black Forest. The Forbach bridge is a good replica of the original and can support trucks up to three tons in weight. Its architecture — with no middle support pillar — makes it one-of-a-kind in Europe, and is well suited for historical films. The famous spa town Baden-Baden with its good infrastructure is only a few kilometres away and the region also offers a variety of locations including mountain landscapes, green hills, small villages and towns, clear rivers and lakes. For photographers the historic bridge is a popular subject — as a film location it has yet be discovered.

(Photo, courtesy opm Fotografie Christina Stihler & Olivier Michel)

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BERLIN CATHEDRAL, BERLIN THE CATHEDRAL of Berlin (Berliner Dom) is the largest church in the city, and it serves as a centre for the Protestant church of Germany. The surrounding state of Brandenburg is also home to historical parks and palaces, a wide array of landscapes, forests, fields, lakes and river settings, picturesque villages and small towns, all in proximity to Berlin. The region’s many old industrial buildings and former militarily complexes also serve as unique and ideal film backdrops. Movies shot in the region include The Voices (2014), Anonymous (2011), Don 2 (2011), Unknown (2011), Hanna (2011), The Ghost Writer (2010), Inglourious Basterds (2009), The White Ribbon (2009) and The Reader (2008).

(Photo, courtesy BBFC / photo: David Marschalsky )

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IN THE CITY of Cologne on the Rhine, art, culture, creativity and commerce shape a dynamic local media industry. A recent shoot featuring Cologne Cathedral was for Jan Schomburg’s Lose Myself (2014). Other movies filmed in Cologne include: Rush (2013), Only Lovers Left Alive (2013), The Physician (2013), The Congress (2013), Nymphomaniac (2013), Nicht mein Tag (2014), Petterson und Findus (1999), Die schwarzen Brüder (2013), Mr. Morgan’s Last Love (2013), A Dangerous Method (2011), Hannah Arendt (2012) and The Reader (2008).

(Photo, courtesy Foto Oliver Franke/Tourismus NRW e.V.)

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COLOGNE CATHEDRAL AND HOHENZOLLERN BRIDGE, COLOGNE

BMW WORLD, OLYMPIAPARK, MUNICH THE WORLD famous car company BMW, was founded in Munich in the early 20th century where it is still headquartered. The home offices are located in a massive building with towers designed to mimic engine cylinders. Next to the BMW tower is the equally impressive BMW museum and the massive Olympiapark, home of the 1972 Olympic Games.

(Photo, courtesy BMW World )

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BASTEI BRIDGE, SAXON SWITZERLAND THE BASTEI bridge — Basteibrücke — is a well-known tourist spot in the Saxon Switzerland National Park, southeast of Dresden. The stone bridge, constructed in 1851, leads to the Bastei rock which towers 194 metres over the Elbe river near the spa town of Rathen, under the shadow of the Elbsandsteingebirge mountains. Productions shot here include: TV series Lasko – The Fist Of God; The Passion Of Darkly Noon (1995); Inglourious Basterds (2009); The Reader (2008); Cloud Atlas (2012); and The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014). ( Photo, courtesy PIXMatex - Fotalia.com )

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GLUCKSBURG CASTLE, GLUCKSBURG GLUCKSBURG Castle is in the town of Glücksburg, in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. It is one of the most important Renaissance castles in northern Europe. It is the ancestral home of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-SonderburgGlücksburg and was also used by Danish royalty.

(Photo, courtesy FFHSH / M.O.Schulz )

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MARIENBURG CASTLE, LOWER SAXONY SCHLOSS Marienburg is a Gothic revival castle in Lower Saxony located around 20 kilometres south of Hanover. The castle offers a perfect backdrop to fairytale, romantic, horror or mystical films. All areas can be used for filming, and parts of the castle are open to the public. Schloss Marienburg was a summer residence of the House of Guelph, given as a birthday present by King George V of Hanover to his wife Marie in the 19th century. It is presently owned by His Royal Highness Prince Ernst August of Hanover. Productions shot here include: kids TV series In Your Dreams (2012 onwards); a new version of the Brothers Grimm fairy tale Allerleirauh (2012); and a portrayal of the real Baron von Münchausen, Münchausen - The Truth Behind The Lies (2012). ( Photo, courtesy Schloss Marienburg © EAC GmbH )

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THOUSAND HILLS, SAUERLAND THIS is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the southeastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited.

The Sauerland is the largest tourist region in North RhineWestphalia, popular in particular for mountain biking, road cycling, water sports and scenic tourism. Among the films shot in the Sauerland are Stromberg – The Movie (2014) and Antichrist (2009) (Photo, courtesy Veronika Pinke/Tourismus NRW e.V.)

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SENSAPOLIS THEME PARK, SINDELFINGEN, NEAR STUTTGART

THE INDOOR theme park Sensapolis at the airfield of Bรถblingen/Sindelfingen contains 16 slides leading to different attractions, including a fairytale castle and climbing landscape, and this picture shows the interior of the spaceship, which looks like the film set of a sci-fi classic. So far it has only been used for local film productions, commercials and photo shoots, and so awaits its discovery for the big screen.

(Photo, courtesy Robert Westrich, www.robertwestrich.com )

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ST. PAULI LANDUNGSBRUCKEN, HAMBURG THIS picture was taken on a terrace overlooking the St. Pauli LandungsbrĂźcken pier on the banks of the river Elbe in Hamburg harbour. This location combines the looks of an inner-city promenade by the waterfront with the industrial port on the other side of the river. The historic pier buildings along the bridges were built in 1907. Productions to have shot here include: Target (1985); The American Friend (1977); Soul Kitchen (2009); many TV movies and series including Tatort (1970), GroĂ&#x;stadtrevier and Notruf Hafenkante; and commercials for Vattenfall among many others.

(Photo, courtesy FFHSH/ Marc-Oliver Schulz )

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LAKE EIBSEE, GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN LAKE Eibsee is approximately 100 km southwest of Munich, near the town of Grainau, and nine kilometres away from the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen at the foot of the Zugspitze, Germany’s highest mountain. The lake has a surface elevation of 973 metres and its surface area is 195 hectares. The panorama around Lake Eibsee is breathtakingly beautiful and the crystal-clear water in the lake varies from deep blue to turquoise.

(Photo, courtesy Stefan Auth )

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THE WORLD Cultural Heritage Site Völklinger Hütte is the only preserved iron smelting plant from the heyday of the iron and steel industry to be found around the world. The Ironworks is also renowned as a fascinating interactive theme park which offers its visitors the opportunity to retrace all the different phases of pig iron production. The plant has been a shooting location for several films and TV series, including: Der Bau (2014); The Wild Soccer Bunch 5 (2008); Pfarrer Braun: Glück auf! Der Mörder kommt (2008); and Tatort (2012).

(Photo, courtesy Weltkulturerbe Völklinger Hütte / Gerhard Kassner )

BERLIN-KREUZBERG , BERLIN KREUZBERG is one of the best-known areas of Berlin — often colloquially known as X-Berg. It was one of the poorest quarters in Berlin in the late 1970s but is now one of the fashionable districts of the capital city with many bars, pubs and nightclubs.

(Photo, courtesy BBFC / photo: David Marschalsky )

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ROCOCO SUMMER PALACE, DORNBURG, THURINGIA THE ROCOCO Summer Palace is one of the three Dornburg palaces, situated above the Saale valley and its vineyards.

Thuringia offers the most dense collection of royal residences in whole of Central Europe. The castle management is very open to filming. In recent years the ancient locations belonging to the foundation have been used for several fairy-tale and historic movies, including Beloved Sisters (2014).

(Photo, courtesy Th端ringer Tourismus GmbH/Dipl.-Des. Jens Hauspurg )

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F E AT U R E

WHERE DREAMS COME TRUE

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MERCEDES SPOT FEATURING WORK

BY MACKEVISION MEDIEN DESIGN

THE STANDARDS ACHIEVED BY VFX COMPANIES IN THE DIGITAL AGE MEAN THAT THE REAL WORLD AND THE VIRTUAL WORLD IN FILMED ENTERTAINMENT ARE TODAY PRETTY MUCH INDISTINGUISHABLE. AND GERMANY IS PLAYING AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN THIS SIDE OF THE BUSINESS. JULIANA KORANTENG REPORTS

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ERMANY-based Pixomondo placed its reputational head on the block when it agreed to re-enact the birth of the dark, slippery being known as the ‘shadow creature’ for the fantasy-TV epic Game Of Thrones. The Frankfurt-originated international visual effects (VFX) group knew HBO’s award-winning series had a cult following. Several had read the original story in George R R Martin’s novel A Clash Of Kings and would be uncompromising about its on-screen portrayal.

“It’s described as a shadow in the book and everyone had an opinion about what it looked like. So we had to come up with something that everyone would agree on and that HBO would like,” says Jan Fiedler, Pixomondo’s VFX producer.

By combining simulated smoke, mist and liquid that looked like ink floating in the air, Pixomondo took command over what could have been a tricky shot. Based on fans’ reaction online, that scene was a hit. “I read their reactions and that was very rewarding,” Fiedler says.

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In addition to winning several awards for its work on Game Of Thrones, Pixomondo has been lauded with an Oscar for the VFX in the 2012 film Hugo, Martin Scorsese’s 3D cinematic treat.

Pixomondo contributed 62 minutes of VFX artistry to the 126-minute movie. It confirmed the international movie and audio-visual community that Germany is home to an admirable cache of VFX expertise and animation talent.

Traditionally, London and Los Angeles-based preand post-production houses have cornered key VFX contracts for international feature films; the US, Japan and France are considered by many to be the leading markets for animation production.

Because of its size, Germany is Europe’s biggest consumer of animation entertainment. Yet, a ///

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ARRI VFX CONTRIBUTED TO RUBINROT (RUBY RED), THE 2013 MOVIE FROM DIRECTOR FELIX FUCHSSTEINER

HENRIK FETT “ THESE DAYS, THERE IS VERY LITTLE THAT CAN’T BE DONE WITH VFX ” combination of internationally acclaimed film schools, the heritage of major production studios in Munich and Berlin (some of the young Alfred Hitchcock’s early successes were made at Studio Babelsberg), and the growing support of state funds has made Germany a force to be reckoned with.

Among other VFX and animation facilities receiving international attention are ARRI VFX, ScanlineVFX, Trixter, Look Effects (LookFX), Caligari Film, Ambient Entertainment, AFX, TrickStudio Lutterbeck and Mackevision Medien Design.

The global value of the VFX sector is difficult to estimate. The business depends on being part of a movie’s overall production budget. But when the total budget for one season of Game Of Thrones alone is between $60m and $70m, one presumes the VFX percentage cannot have been small. Experts guess that the VFX budget came to about $40m for the Sam Raimi-directed Spider-Man movie trilogy (2002-2007); each film cost between $140m and $260m. In Thor (2011), Paramount Pictures’ $150m super-hero blockbuster, VFX accounted for more than $30m.

According to market-research firm Research and Markets, the global animation market in 2012 was worth $207bn, led by the US, Canada, Japan, China, France, Britain, South Korea and Germany.

It is part of these multi-billion dollar businesses that Germany’s VFX and animation experts not only compete with each other for, but with their overseas counterparts as well. And given that VFX is increasingly becoming part of both live-action and animation feature films, the growth of Germany’s market is still on an upward curve.

Most VFX and animation studios bring specific skills to movie productions. But the work involved is intricate, time-consuming and expensive because one movie alone requires several experts.

For example, Marvel Studios’ super-hero actioner Iron Man 3 (2013) had 17 VFX houses working on it. Trixter and ScanlineVFX were responsible for enabling protagonist Tony Stark’s Iron Man suit to fly to him and connect

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with different parts of his body when needed.

Having established their credentials among the TVadvertising sector, Germany’s domestic VFX houses are extending their technical dexterity into feature films.

“The German movie industry has increased its use of VFX. The producers here are not afraid of VFX [technology] anymore,” Pixomondo’s Fiedler says. “The big TV movies have always used VFX but more feature films are using it.”

Heiko Burkardsmaier, head of business & legal affairs at Mackevision Medien Design, concurs: “Germany wasn’t on the international movies [map] until a few years ago, when Pixomondo won an Oscar and Trixter was [nominated] for Iron Man.” The resulting accolades have triggered more VFX commissions for German facilities, including Mackevision. “We’re not normally there as the main vendor but we provide a high-end boutique service,” Burkhardsmaier adds.

Esther Reinecke, RISE FX’ business development manager, says: “The market has become stable with the amazing talent around. The operation costs are in general much lower than in other strong VFX regions of the world, in particular London, Los Angeles and San Francisco. These lower costs make us very competitive.”

The film studios, especially the big Hollywood operations, however, do everything to slash the fees paid for special effects.

“We bring to fruition someone else’s creative vision.

Our job is to listen and get the essence of what is wanted and, these days, there is very little that can’t be done with VFX,” says Henrik Fett, founder/partner at LOOK Effects (LOOKfx). “But it is a cut-throat business. If the movie studios can get what they need cheaper elsewhere, they will. So the margins are small. One solution is to find a great working relationship with a movie director. More often than not, they will stay loyal to you and use their /// own creative muscle to get you the contract.”

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local subsidies. Even international projects benefit from the local subsidies, if they have a German co-producer and fulfill certain requirements,” says ARRI Film & TV’s head of VFX Dominik Trimborn. “That’s why (sister company) ARRI Rental and ARRI Film & TV services have been involved in so many international projects of late, including Inglourious Basterds, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), The Monuments Men (2014), Rush, and The Reader.”

The award-winning hit-maker Caligari Film, which makes animated feature films with €5m-€10m budgets, expresses gratitude for state assistance. “In animation, which is very expensive to produce, no production company in any one country in Europe can finance a feature film 100% on their own. So we also look for pre-sale deals or co-production partners,” says Gabriele Walther, Caligari Film’s managing director.

“We produce everything in English and then dub into German because it is easier to sell the shows internationally when they are in the English language. Also, there is usually a famous actor that the audience will recognise in a live-action film. Animation characters do not walk the red carpet. There is no such association in animation.”

Stuttgart’s Medien- und Filmgesellschaft BadenWürttemberg (MFG) fund is gaining a reputation for being among the most VFX-friendly initiatives, turning the city into one of Germany’s new ///

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Additionally, the national and state governments are ramping up financial support. Once attached to a qualifying domestic film or international co-productions shooting in Germany, local VFX and animation houses can benefit from a variety of subsidy schemes.

They are led by Medienboard Berlin-Brandenberg, Hanover’s Nordmedia Fonds, Düsseldorf-based Film- und Mediastiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Hostein, Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung in Leipzig, Offenbach-based Hesseninvestfilm, Filmfernsehfonds Bayern in Munich, and Medien- Und Filmgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg in Stuttgart.

The state funds’ annual budget ranges from €5m in loans from Hesseninvestfilm to the generous €40m from Düsseldorf’s Film- und Medienstiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen.

Local authorities, banks and TV networks are among contributors to each fund, which creates local film, TV and commercials-production jobs. The subsidies can range from 30% to 80% of the production costs spent in Germany.

The federal DFFF (Deutscher Filmförderfonds) subsidises up to 20% of movies costing more than €20m, and has allocated €315m in soft money to myriad projects between 2007 and the end of 2012. The scheme has been extended to 2015. And the Federal Film Board, with a €76m yearly budget, supported 51 films with grants of between €80,000 and €500,000 each in 2012.

This state financial assistance has been enough to lure movies like The Pianist (2002), The Reader (2008), Inglourious Basterds (2009), Melancholia (2011), A Dangerous Method (2011), Cloud Atlas (2012), and the recent Golden Globe-nominated Rush (2013) to be shot on domestic locations.

“Basically, you can’t make a film in Germany without support from the w

ACTUAL

FOR OUR FEAT LONG

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ULI WEGENAST “ THE AUDIO-VISUAL SECTOR IS CHANGING RAPIDLY. SEVERAL ANIMATION PRODUCERS ARE EXTENDING THEIR SKILLS INTO VIDEOGAMES AND MOBILE APPS ”

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digital-media and post-production centres.

Baden-Württemberg state, which includes Stuttgart, is currently restructuring its funding to compete with international tax incentives in order to strengthen the region and attract more international shows to Germany’s southwest.

“The new scheme will not make Germany the new Canada, but for the companies here, it represents a huge improvement,” says Burkardsmaier at Mackevision.

Some of the world’s most respected film schools are in Germany. According to the Goethe Institute, they include the German Film and Television Academy in Berlin, the Hamburg Media School, the Konrad Wolf Academy of Film and Television (Potsdam-Babelsberg) and the Academy of Media Arts in Cologne.

The Film Academy of Baden-Württemberg, which is in Ludwigsburg, near Stuttgart, is renowned for its prestigious Institute of Animation, Visual Effects and Digital Postproduction. It is attributed for bringing 20% of Germany’s VFX business to Stuttgart.

“We have to keep our eyes and ears open at the various universities and attend graduate-recruitment events. When we come across talent, we invite them to spend some time with us [as interns],” LOOKfx’ Fett says.

If aspiring animation and VFX/animation artists and technicians are not studying, they are checking out the latest industry developments at Germany’s growing number of related trade fairs.

Among the annual must-attend events and festivals are the Animation Jam in Hamburg, the Animago Award and Conference in Potsdam-Babelsberg, Filmfest Munich, the International Festival of Animated Film Stuttgart (ITFS), FMX, as well as Animation Production Day (APD), an ITFS and FMX joint venture.

Filmfest Munich is an open festival that pulls in more than 70,000 film fans every year, including 2,000 professional delegates.

The annual Stuttgart-based FMX is hailed as the world’s second biggest of its kind after US-based Siggraph. Hosting a business-to-business marketplace, panels and conferences, while devising a series of seminars, workshops and masterclasses, FMX is where art, technology and business convene for practitioners of animation, special effects, videogames and transmedia production.

It receives more than 7,000 professionals from over 40 countries annually and takes place at the same time as Stuttgart-based ITFS, a major international festival devoted to animated entertainment. In 2013 ITFS received more than 80,000 visitors, including 6,000 professionals and screened 1,000-plus movies.

Celebrity attendees have included Hollywood animation creators Pierre Coffin, director of the Despicable Me movies of 2010 and 2013, and Simpsons director David Silverman. Popular German voice actors including Benno Fürmann, and Oliver Kalkofe have also attended the event.

Instead of competing, FMX and ITFS have joined resources to host the industry-focused APD to promote German animation to the rest of the world.

In addition to displaying German VFX and animation flair, these events offer opportunities for debates about the industry’s future.

As Uli Wegenast, managing director (programme) at ITFS/APD’s organiser Film- Und Medienfestival, says: “The audio-visual sector is changing rapidly. Several animation producers are extending their skills into videogames and mobile apps. Games developers are working with TV brand owners to create non-linear versions of TV shows.”

Wegenast adds: “Our events bring together the industry, international investors and regulators. So we need to figure out how to make new-media players like Google and YouTube part of the established audio-visual landscape. And we want to raise awareness for animation and VFX as cultural assets within the film industry.”

Such debates are necessary if the German VFX and animation industries are to avoid the setbacks recently suffered by competitors. US-based Rhythm & Hues Studios, for example, had to declare bankruptcy despite winning VFX Oscars for animation epics including 2007’s The Golden Compass and 2012’s Life Of Pi. “We consider it important always to apply the basic principles of good business to our operations,” says Stefanie Stalf, co-founder at ScanlineVFX. “That includes maintaining a high standard of product, working with the best available resources, and making it our utmost priority to satisfy the customer. In such a dynamic industry as the entertainment business, we consider it to be crucial never to lose sight of these basic principles.”

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GERMANY’S STATE-OF-THE-ART (the new name of Animationsfabrik GmbH’s VFX unit) Speciality: VFX; animation German headquarters: Hamburg Other offices: Cologne Achievements: Has provided VFX and animation for all Warner Bros.

Germany’s animated movies and TV since 2000. These include Rothkirch/ Cartoon Film’s Laura’s Star 1, 2 and 3 (Laura’s Star won the German Film Award 2005 and Adult’s Jury Prize at the 2005 Chicago International Children’s Film Festival); The Little Polar Bear 1 and 2 (International Emmy Awards nomination); and Little Dodo. AFX’ most recent completed project was the 3D modelling, animation, compositing and editing of Koh & Zok, an animated short featuring and directed by German actor/ producer Til Schweiger.

Future/current projects: The 3D modelling and animation for The 7th Dwarf, the family feature film coproduced by German actor/director Douglas Welbat and scheduled for release in 2014.

AMBIENT ENTERTAINMENT

Speciality: Animation, including 3D, CGI, VFX for feature films; a 4D movie for theme park attractions; digital effects in TV commercials for major brands like Volkswagen German headquarters: Hanover Achievements: Back To Gaya, a 2004 English-language CGI film, has been described as the first German-originated full-feature CGI movie; it sold in more than 70 territories and picked up the first prize at the Stockholm Animation Festival and Bilbao Animation Festival, plus other accolades at Italy’s Giffoni International Film Festival and the Seville Animation Festival. Other highlights in the company’s track record include its animation for Impy’s Island, based on the Max Kruse’ kids’ novel Urmel From The Ice Age, and Impy’s Wonderland, as well as Europe’s first 3D animation feature Animals United, the 2010 movie produced by Germany’s Constantin Film.

Future/current projects: Tarzan 3D, the Constantin Film 3D animation movie, has been released in Russia and is scheduled for international release in February 2014. Ambient is also contributing to the animation for The 7th Dwarf, with AFX, above and Trixter, featured below.

ARRI VFX.

A subsidiary of ARRI Film & TV Speciality: VFX and animation for feature film, TV, commercials, videos, public events, trade shows, large-scale media installations, digital postproduction German headquarters: Munich Other offices: Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt, Halle, Ludwigsburg and Bolzano in Italy Achievements: In 2012 alone, the ARRI group completed 250 TV commercials and the content for 20 different live events at trade shows, conventions, and public events. ARRI Film & TV and ARRI VFX contributed to 50 feature films, including the highly-acclaimed Cloud Atlas (2012), the drama/sci-fi epic jointly produced and directed by The Matrix’ directors Lana and Andy Wachowski. Other ARRI VFX movie credits include the 2011 German comedy Almanya – Welcome To Germany; Dror Zahavi’s 2012 TV movie Munich 72; Night Train To Lisbon,

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Bille August’s 2013 film starring Jeremy Irons; The Countess, the acclaimed 16thcentury Hungarian drama directed by French-US actress Julie Delpy; Uli Edel’s 2008 film The Baader Meinhof Complex; and Tom Tykwer’s 2006 film Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer.

CALIGARI FILM/TRAFFIX ENTERTAINMENT

Speciality: Animation, including 2D and CGI, which complement the company’s live-action work German headquarters: Stuttgart Other offices: Munich; Cologne Achievements: Caligari Film’s Knight Rusty – Yesterday’s Hero Recycled picked up the 2013 Children’s Jury Prize for an Animated Feature Film at the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival; it was also nominated for the Goldener Spatz (Golden Sparrow) award at the German Children’s Film and Media Festival, and won a Children Media Prize’s White Elephant award at Filmfest München in 2013. Knight Rusty, the feature film, has been sold to 20 countries. Other Caligari Film theatrical releases and co-productions include Felix – A Little Rabbit Travels Around The World (2005), Felix – The Toy Rabbit and The Time Machine (2006), Princess Lillifee (2009) and Princess Lillifee and The Little Unicorn in 2011.

Future/current projects: Caligari Film is working on the second season of the TV series Knight Rusty, and developing, with subsidiary Traffix Entertainment, Coconut The Little Dragon, as a TV series plus a 3D-animation movie scheduled for 2015.

LOOK EFFECTS (LOOKFX)

Speciality: VFX, including high-end 2D and 3D effects for feature film, TV, and live-venue projects German headquarters: Stuttgart Other offices: Los Angeles (group headquarters), Brooklyn (New York), Vancouver Achievements: VES Awards and BAFTA nominations for LOOKfx’s work on the Oscar-nominated Black Swan, plus its past works for Hollywood hits like the Oscar winner The King’s Speech, The Muppets, The Wrestler, The Darjeeling Limited, Man Of Steel, Life Of Pi, Captain America, Fast Five and Avatar.

Future/current projects: LOOKfx has been working on recent feature-film releases such as the 2013 Hollywood comedies The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty and Grudge Match. Work in production includes Darren Aronofsky’s Biblical epic Noah; Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel; and Ivan Reitman’s Draft Day.

MACKEVISION MEDIEN DESIGN GMBH

Speciality: VFX for film, print and interactive media; post-production, 2D and CGI animation, plus 3D visualisation for film producers, brand owners and architecture houses German headquarters: Stuttgart Other offices: Munich, Hamburg, London, Detroit, Los Angeles, Shanghai Achievements: Most of Mackevision’s awards are for its work for brand owners, especially major auto marketers including Mercedes-Benz. In 2013 alone, it picked up prizes at the ADC Awards, Berlin’s Annual Multimedia Festival, the AutoVision festival, and The WorldMediaFestival. But the group’s VFX supervisors, producers, executive producers, compositing,

environment and 3D leads bring skills from working on major Hollywood and German movies and TV shows. German productions worked on by Mackevision’s artists include two RTL Television TV movies: the two-part event drama Hindenburg in 2011 and the volcanodisaster actioner Vulkan in 2009.

Future/current projects: To boost Mackevision’s share of the VFX business in international filmmaking.

PIXOMONDO

Speciality: VFX for feature film, event movies, TV series, commercials, corporate films, live media, interactive media, including apps; and 3D animation German headquarters: Frankfurt Other offices: Stuttgart, Munich, Cologne, Hamburg, Toronto, Baton Rouge, Beijing, Los Angeles Achievements: With an estimated annual turnover of approaching $60m, Pixomondo’s artistic handiwork can be seen numerous Hollywood and international box-office hits. Among the company’s many awards are Best Visual Effects Oscar for Martin Scorsese’s Hugo in 2012; Best Visual Effects Emmy Award for HBO’s Game Of Thrones seasons two and three; and also for Hugo a VES Award for Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Feature Motion Picture.

Recent highlights: Oscar nominations for Best Visual Effects for Tom Cruise’s sci-fi hit Oblivion and JJ Abrams’ Star Trek Into Darkness.

RISE FX GMBH

Speciality: VFX pre-production planning and advice; VFX production; script breakdown and analysis; pre-visualisation animation; postvisualisation animation; (LiDAR) 3D scanning; data management German headquarters: Berlin Other offices: Cologne; Vienna Achievements: RISE’s work includes VFX in The Book Thief, Brian Percival’s 2013 acclaimed movie shot in Berlin; digital effects in Cloud Atlas; destruction effects in Iron Man 3 and Captain America: The First Avenger; plus digital environments and backdrop for Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows (2010/11) and X-Men: First Class (2011).

Future/current projects: Contributing VFX to Guy Ritchie’s feature-film version of iconic spy-fi TV series The Man From U.N.C.L.E.; and Walt Disney Studios’ Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014); and almost all the VFX in Borgia, Tom Fontana’s multi-territory historical TV epic.

SCANLINEVFX GMBH

Speciality: VFX for feature film and TV movies, including 3D environments, simulation of water, smoke and fire; computer generated animation German offices: Munich; Cologne Other offices: Los Angeles; Vancouver Achievements: The company has contributed VFX to several major Hollywood movies. It picked up an Oscar nomination for Best Achievement in Visual Effects for the 2010 Clint Eastwood film Hereafter; it also won the Best Supporting Visual Effects in a Feature Film at the VES Awards for the same film. Its skills can also be seen in Captain America: The First Avenger; White House Down; Iron Man 3; Looper; 300; Super 8; and Cloud Atlas. It has added several domestic hit movies,

including Michael Herbig’s Traumschiff Surprise (2004) and his Wickie Und Die Starken Manner (2009).

STUDIO RAKETE GMBH

Speciality: 2D and 3D animation for feature film, TV and commercials German headquarters: Hamburg Achievements: Made significant contributions to several films, including director Ari Folman’s The Congress, which won Best Animated Movie 2013 at Berlin’s European Film Award. Studio Rakete also worked on Legends Of Valhalla: Thor, a 2011 3D CGI feature and German/Irish/Icelandic coproduction.

Recent projects: Contributed to the Kari Juusonen and Jørgen Lerdam film Niko 2: Little Brother, Big Trouble, the 2012 computer-animated comedy adventure — a sequel to Niko & The Way To The Stars (aka The Flight Before Christmas), the 2008 animation feature

by Michael Hegner and Kari Juusonen, and both have been sold to more than 120 countries.

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AFX

TRICKSTUDIO LUTTERBECK GMBH

Speciality: Animation German headquarters: Cologne Other offices: Los Angeles, Vancouver Achievements: The company has been snapping up awards since 1993.

Most recently, Molly Monster picked up the top Adult Jury Prize for Animated Television Production at the 2012 Chicago International Children’s Film Festival. Kritze Kratze nabbed the Magnolia Prize for Best Animation (Short) at the 2012 Shanghai Television Festival. The years 2010 and 2011 were particularly fruitful for the animation short Ente, Tod Und Tulpe. It picked up awards in Russia, Sweden, Bulgaria, Romania plus several in Germany (including the Deutsche Film- Und Medienbewertung and the International Festival for Children and Young Audiences).

Future/current projects: Molly Monster – The Movie, TrickStudio’s first feature film, is currently in development.

TRIXTER

Speciality: VFX plus digital, 3D animation for feature film, TV and commercials German headquarters: Munich Other offices: Berlin, Culver City (Los Angeles) Achievements: Trixter contributed VFX artistry to Iron Man 3, nominated for the Best Visual Effects Oscar for 2014.

Trixter took the high-tech wizardry behind the iron suit worn by Iron Man protagonist Tony Stark to new levels.

Trixter was also nominated for Best Post Production at the 2013 Animago Award & Conference in Germany for UK-based BBC series Wolfblood, a Royal Television Society award winner. The company was a Premium Partner at Moviecom518, a new Munich film festival dedicated to filmmakers, actors, producers and distributors that launched in November 2012.

Future/current projects: In early 2013, Trixter formed an alliance with ARRI Film & TV (see above) to coproduce and distribute internationally targeted animation feature films. The first jointly produced title Ploe – You’ll Never Fly Alone is scheduled to start production in 2014.

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THE PHYSICIAN MAKING A SCENE THE PHYSICIAN, THE FIRST OF A TRILOGY OF NOVELS BY AMERICAN WRITER NOAH GORDON ABOUT THE YOUNG ENGLISH HEALER ROBERT COLE, HAS BEEN ADAPTED FOR CINEMA BY A TEAM OF GERMAN FILMMAKERS. STUART BRAUN REPORTS

TOM PAYNE AS THE HEALER, ROBERT COLE, IN THE PHYSICIAN

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THE PHYSICIAN: MADE IN ENGLISH BY A GERMAN TEAM USING GERMAN LOCATIONS

C

OMPLETE with a starry international cast, script adapted from a best-selling novel and exotic multinational locations, The Physician — in German, Der Medicus — is a sweeping historical epic that has been produced and filmed almost wholly in Germany. Though it comes in at under €30m, the film feels like a bigger and more expensive Hollywood production complete with cutting-edge special effects. It goes to show what can be done in a country filled with flexible and affordable film professionals that are the envy of other territories; and where a broad range of location and studio options allow producers and directors to develop film projects that move freely in time and space.

“You could definitely say that the novel The Physician would also be suitable for a 20-hour HBO series, but we decided to make a feature film,” says the film’s producer, CEO of UFA Cinema, Wolf Bauer. But with a definite international feel to it “from the very beginning. The book is ideal for this. The Physician is a bestseller all over Europe, and for that reason we worked from the beginning to make an international film production. In English and with an appropriately high budget, in order to be able to guarantee attractive production values.”

The Physician is a co-production of Potsdam-based UFA Cinema, ARD Degeto and Beta Cinema, distributed by Universal Pictures international. Producers are

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Wolf Bauer and Nico Hofmann, executive producer is Sebastian Werninger.

Filmed both in Germany and Morocco, the film tells the story of a young English healer, Robert Cole, who embarks on an epic search for knowledge amid war and plague in 11th-century Persia. The stellar cast includes up-comer Tom Payne (HBO’s Luck, Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day) as the young physician, Ben Kingsley (Gandhi, Schindler’s List) as his eastern mentor, and Stellan Skarsgård (Good Will Hunting, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) as the crude English barber-surgeon.

The Physician joins Tom Tykwer’s Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer (2006), Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds (2009) and George Clooney’s The Monuments Men (2014) as one of a growing number of international movies with true global appeal to have been made in English, but using German locations, facilities, talent and finance. “It’s pretty unique,” says The Physician’s co-producer Dirk Schürhoff, who brought the world rights and organised the global distribution on behalf of Beta Cinema. “A production shot in English on that scale, the budget was around €26m, wholly financed in Germany. This is really outstanding, it doesn’t happen that often.”

The Physician’s German director, Philipp Stoelzl (North Face, Young Goethe In Love), was confident that Germany had the facilities to handle a production that travels between early medieval England and distant Isfahan in Persia.

He refers to very flexible crews that ensure films come in under budget — a very different

scenario from the US, he says — and to the numerous regional film bodies that provide important film finance in addition to diverse location facilities.

Utilising funding (€900,000) and support from Leipzig-based MDM (Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung), Stoelzl shot most of The Physician’s early medieval England exteriors in the former East German state of Saxony-Anhalt.

Stoelzl jokingly refers to Saxony-Anhalt as Sexy Anhalt, a moniker conceived during the filming of The Last Station (2009), a biopic about Tolstoy starring Helen Mirren that was also shot in the German state. Such smaller overseas productions have been tempted in to shoot on location in Germany, and to enter co-production deals with local film bodies, says Stoelzl. He adds that a growing staple of low-to-mid-budget arthouse films are utilising quality locations via Germany’s subsidy system.

While some of The Physician’s more distant panoramas needed to be shot in Scotland for authenticity, it was mostly possible to recreate 11th-century England in the fields and forests of Saxony-Anhalt, an area that has remained relatively untouched because of its decades-long position on the border of East and West Germany.

The area is also blessed with some ancient historical monuments, including remnants of centuries-old castles and a Roman-built road.

“You have good pieces of Romanic architecture, which is obviously useful for a movie that is set in the 11th century,” Stoelzl tells Location Germany. “And you have a really nice landscape

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soldiers and we are ready to go to fight the fanatics army under the sky of Morocco... I had a special moment that was beyond the movie because I felt connected with him [his father], I felt him around. That was a very special moment in my life.”

The Physician wasn’t the first German production that has been partly shot in Morocco. The Anglo-German co-production Hanna (2011) starring Cate Blanchett also shot in Morocco and Germany; German locations included Bad Tölz, Studio Babelsberg in Potsdam and Saxony-Anhalt for another mid-budget film that easily recouped the investment.

“The scenes set in England and the interior shots involving the Jewish sequences were filmed in Thuringia in Saxony-Anhalt, for example, in the ruins of Hanstein Castle, and in and around Querfurt, where we built the sets for the Stratford Market in London, the synagogue, the Jewish camp in England, the tavern, the bathhouse, and the village where you meet little Robert Cole at the beginning of the story,” says the film’s production designer Udo Kramer.

AS WELL as the €900,000 received from MDM and the €2m from NRW, The Physician also received a subsidy of €500,00 from Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg (MBB), the central institution for film funding and media-related issues in Berlin and Brandenburg; €2,295,000 from the state-run German Federal Film Fund (DFFF); and €600,000 from German Federal Film Board the Filmförderungsanstalt (FFA), which awards funding for new films or for films made by people or companies with a track record of success.

In the end, the sets had to be exceptionally detailed for the high-definition format in which the film was shot. “We thought it was very important to use as many historical components as possible and combine them perfectly with simulated surfaces,” Kramer says. “High-definition images in this quality don’t forgive any of your mistakes, which was one of the biggest challenges of this project. We wanted basically to create an authentic fantasy world, fairy-tale like and at the same time historically exact — with an epic flair, but without an obvious studio look.”

According to Stoelzl, its often easier to film in Germany than other parts of Europe, as there is a willingness to work overtime, and at reasonable rates. “I was really happy to work with a German crew,” Stoelzl says. “One of the advantages of filming in Germany is that you get really good-quality and highly-skilled people who are really flexible and are just not so expensive. I always love shooting here.” He recalls a Belgium-US-Canadian action-thriller he recently filmed in Canada, where the shoot was

drawn out and went over budget because the crew were a lot more union-controlled. Stoelzl estimates that the budget might have been double for The Physician had it been filmed in the US. German visual-effects pioneers Pixomondo, which won an Academy Award for Hugo (2013) and an Emmy for work on Game Of Thrones, importantly complemented the epic location shoots with topline CGI effects that lent authenticity to the exotic historical locations.

Pixomondo’s work was also largely paid for with German subsidies.

“They have a lot of know-how. It’s very useful when you have a company like that, that has so much experience with international productions,” Stoelzl says of the German-based SFX studio that has also provided effects for The Ghost Writer (2010), the German-French-British political thriller directed by Roman Polanski.

The Physician’s producers, Wolf Bauer and Nico Hofmann of UFA Cinema, are already contemplating adaptations of Shaman, and Matters Of Choice, the other two books from Noah Gordon’s trilogy that follow on from The Physician and continue the story of Robert Cole.

Gordon attended The Physician’s Berlin premiere in December, and says that after negotiating with many suitors for the book rights since the 1980s, he only felt comfortable when the German producers came to the table.

The writer was also happy that the German film industry had the requisite locations and know-how to do the story justice. With the book selling six million copies in Germany alone — more than in the US, for example — a strong potential audience for the film was already established. “If the trademark is that popular, it was worth investing,” says Schürhoff.

Munich-based Beta Cinema, of which Schürhoff is managing director, has organised global distribution with a focus on territories where the book has sold well. Deals have also been concluded with Dea Planeta for Spain, Monolith for Poland, and Brazil-based Imagem Filmes for the whole of Latin America.

Releasing such an international English-language film first in Europe (it travels from Berlin to Spain and then Russia), is increasingly common says Schürhoff, referring to the strong German focus for Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer. “These big-budget films made in Europe are mostly made for Europe,” he says.

“The US and the UK are mostly an upside.” Talks on English-language distribution for the film started at the 2014 Berlinale.

The world premiere of The Physician was held in Berlin’s newly renovated Zoo-Palast in December 2013, with lead actor Tom Payne joined by fellow cast members Emma Rigby, Stellan Skarsgård, Olivier Martinez, Elyas M’Barek, author Noah Gordon, and a large supporting cast and crew who, like Stoelzl, are based in Germany.

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without too many highways, and many film-friendly people. It’s one of these areas where people are still excited about movie-making. You can easily find extras that take part for little money.”

It was obviously difficult to find many monuments that could be dated back nearly 1,000 years. “The castles are a patchwork of different architectural styles, so the further you go back in time the less you can use,” says Stoelzl, adding that he best-utilised any appropriate castle remains for walls, bridges and courtyard scenes, for example. The director also got the most out of authentic architecture from the time by shooting different scenes on western and eastern sides of a castle. “We would group the scenes in the one location,” he says.

Meanwhile, all the film’s interior shoots, including the Shah’s palace and the medical university in the Persian city of Isfahan, were shot at the commodious MMC studios in Cologne after the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) provided some €2m of funding — Jim Jarmusch was also shooting Only Lovers Left Alive (2013) in the studios at the time, which like The Physician, had its German premiere in December 2013.

French actor Olivier Martinez (Taking Lives, Unfaithful, S.W.A.T), who plays the Persian Shah and patron of the university in which the great physician (Ben Kingsley) works, told Location Germany that the facilities in Cologne were world-class, and that he was impressed by the professionalism of the crews there. “It was great, a beautiful studio. Very efficient. I loved it,” he says. It was the first time the French actor had filmed in Germany.

Martinez also liked the international feel of the German shoot: “I love an international cast. I love to be on board with a German, an English guy, an Italian guy. Maybe it’s a bit of a utopia, but I believe we can all live together.”

The husband of Academy Award-winner Halle Berry, Martinez has French, Spanish and Moroccan parentage and says he loves to be lost in translation when working on a film. “And Germany’s a great country to be lost in translation, because obviously my culture is so different,” he says . “And I love to be with people who are not like me because I can learn from our differences.”

Meanwhile, filming for the exteriors in the walled city of Isfahan, and some desert scenes, took place in Morocco, mostly at the storied Ouarzazate lots where the TV series Game Of Thrones was partly shot, as well as a host of big-budget films including Ridley Scott’s Gladiator (2000). The corresponding interiors were shot in the studio in Cologne.

Martinez, whose father is Moroccan, experienced his own personal epiphany during the shoot in Morocco as his father passed away a few months before filming. “When I am on the top of the castle and I raise my sword with my

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QUENTIN TARANTINO SHOOTING INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS AT STUDIO BABELSBERG

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MAKING HISTORY THERE ARE FEW COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD THAT CAN COMPETE WITH THE RANGE AND DIVERSITY OF GERMANY’S HISTORICAL LOCATIONS. ANDY FRY REPORTS

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THE FILM OF THOMAS MANN’S CLASSIC NOVEL BUDDENBROOKS, DIRECTED BY HEINRICH BRELOER, SHOOTING IN LÜBECK, ONE HOUR NORTHEAST OF HAMBURG

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HETHER you’re looking for ancient ruins, awe-inspiring castles and palaces, spiritually-uplifting churches and monasteries, perfectly-preserved medieval towns, industrial revolution landscapes, World War 2 backdrops or modernist architecture, one of Germany’s 16 federal states is sure to have it covered.

Germany’s castles and palaces are arguably the biggest attraction for international producers and can be found right across the country. In the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, for example, locations like Gut Altenhof, Schloss Grabau and Schloss Glücksburg have played host to productions including recent shoots for Danish movie The Absent One (2013). Further south, in Lower Saxony, the exquisite Schloss Marienburg opened its doors to an Australian/German children’s series In Your Dreams in 2012. And way down in Bavaria, castles that have hosted productions include Herrenchiemsee and Neuschwanstein — which is reputed to be the inspiration for Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty Castle.

CHRISTIAN DOSCH “THEY ARE OPEN TO FILMING BECAUSE IT SERVES AS MARKETING FOR THEIR LOCATIONS ” At first sight, finding the right castle can seem like a daunting prospect.

But Germany’s regional film commissions are generally able to kick-start the process, says Antje Bremer, head of the Schleswig-Holstein Film Commission: “Usually the production team contacts the film commission first to discuss locations and scouting and arrange the first contact between owner and production. After that, they talk with the castle owner about permission and contract conditions for shooting.”

Many castles and places are looked after by regionally-based monument protection offices, which have a good understanding of the touristic value of hosting production. But privately-owned castles and manor houses are also film-friendly, says Bremer: “Some parts of the adaptation of Jussi Adler-Olsen thriller Mercy (2012, directed by Mikkel Nørgaard) were shot in Schleswig-Holstein in the privately owned castle Bredeneek,” she says.

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A SCENE FROM RIVA FILM’S AN ENEMY TO DIE FOR FILMED AT HAMBURG’S HANSEATISCHES OBERLANDESGERICHT

“While German TV series Der Fürst und das Mädchen (The Prince & The Girl) was filmed in Schloss Glücksburg – among others.”

This way of working is echoed by Christian Dosch, in the Stuttgart office of the Baden-Württemberg Film Commission in southwest Germany. Ask him about castles and he will point you towards Staatliche Schlösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg (SSGBW), a body that manages and maintains 60 cultural heritage sites, covering the baroque, rococo and medieval periods: “They are open to filming because it serves as marketing for their locations.”

“Our monuments are used in many different ways,” says Claudia Hitzelberger, who oversees SSGBW’s relationship with the production sector. “On the one hand, they are backgrounds for historical movies like Andreas Linke’s 2012 TV movie Baron Münchhausen which was filmed in Ludwigsburg Residential Palace. The story takes place in that era and the castle offers perfect exterior and interior locations for it. On the other hand, the castles are also locations for fairy-tale movies like Der Froschkönig (2008), filmed in Schloss Favorite Rastatt. And they are also good locations for documentaries.”

In terms of how to access properties, Hitzelberger says: “If the film crew already has a particular property, such as Bebenhausen Monastery and Palace, in mind, they can contact the location’s administration office directly. The administrators will confirm the availability of the required date, co-ordinate any actions necessary for the protection of the property with the relevant conservator, and clarify any other details that need to be agreed. But if the film crew would like more information on filming at SSG locations, or require help finding for a suitable property, SSG’s central office is available to offer advice.”

While the state monument offices are a good port of call, there’s nothing to stop producers approaching privately-owned properties direct, adds Andrea Giesel, a location manager based in Lower Saxony’s

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largest city Hanover. “There are 400 castles in Lower Saxony, many of which are state-owned. But if necessary I’m happy to ring on the doorbell of a private property if it looks like it will fit the location requirements of a production.”

One of Giesel’s high-profile projects saw the Australian TV series from Southern Star Entertainment and TV Plus Productions Hanover, In Your Dreams, spend 47 days shooting in Schloss Marienburg, a Gothic revival castle owned by Prince Ernst August. “Before that production, Marienburg wasn’t used by producers,” Giesel says, adding “the production went very well and has led to more projects being based there.

Baron Münchhausen shot there and so did a new version of the Brothers Grimm fairy tale Allerleirauh. There are also plans for a second series of In Your Dreams in 2014.”

Schloss Marienburg’s opening up as a film location is part of a broader trend across Germany. Some buildings used to be reluctant to allow filmmaking but more and more of them have had good experiences and are willing to work with responsible production companies. In the area where the Bavaria Film Commission operates, Herrenchiemsee was used as a double for Versailles in Constantin Film’s production of The Three Musketeers (2011). There’s much more that could be said about Germany’s castles. But it’s important to stress that many other aspects

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LARS MIKKELSEN AS HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN IN DIE WUNDERSAME REISE DES HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN — FROM DM-FILM HAMBURG IN CO-PRODUCTION WITH ARTE AND DENMARK RADIO. THE LOCATION IS A CAVE IN THE HARZ MOUNTAIN RANGE, THE HIGHEST IN NORTHERN GERMANY. PHOTO: ANDREA GIESEL

of the country’s cultural heritage look good on film or TV. There are, for example, scores of beautiful historic towns and cities.

In Baden-Württemberg, production companies are regular visitors to Heidelberg, Tübingen, Freiburg and the university town of Schwäbisch Hall, which has featured in numerous productions including 2005 TV movie The Young Schiller, about poet and playwright Friedrich Schiller. Also popular is Lübeck, one hour northeast of Hamburg which, in the summer of 2007, hosted a lavish production of Thomas Mann’s classic novel Buddenbrooks, directed by Heinrich Breloer.. “They had around 45 days of shooting,” says Schleswig-Holstein’s Bremer.

For Bremer, Buddenbrooks was a classic example of the can-do attitude that exists within Germany. “It was a big challenge to make it happen,” she says.

“The historic part of Lübeck is only about two square miles and is surrounded by the Trave river. It has a lot of one-way streets, only very few parking spaces and many citizens living there. After the director ///

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A PARISIAN CINEMA BUILT ON THE BACKLOT OF STUDIO BABELSBERG FOR QUENTIN TARANTINO’S INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS

LUDWIGSBURG RESIDENTIAL PALACE, THE SCENE OF MUCH OF ANDREAS LINKE’S 2012 TV MOVIE BARON MÜNCHHAUSEN

Heinrich Breloer and his producer decided to shoot there I arranged a roundtable talk with the city authorities to discuss the needs of the production and make clear what it means to have such a huge production team in town for six weeks. Fortunately, the local press got involved, writing about the filming. So the citizens were kept informed and had the chance to visit the sets or even become part of the movie as extras.”

According to Giesel George Clooney’s The Monuments Men (2014) was a perfect illustration of the variety of historic locations on offer in Germany.

“Central Germany doesn’t just offer castles and beautiful towns like Goslar, which hosted The Monuments Men. This production also spent some time in the Harz mountains, a historic mining area that used to be very important for extracting silver, copper and iron,” she says. One location that featured heavily in the film was the town of Osterwieck, in the neighbouring state of Saxony-Anhalt.

Alexandra Luetkens, who works in the Hamburg office of the SchleswigHolstein Film Commission, is equally enthusiastic about Germany’s industrial heritage. “Hamburg has a wonderful history as a trading port,” Luetkens says. “The legacy of this is some beautiful traders’ houses and our dockland warehouse district Speicherstadt which has been used for Anton Corbijn’s 2014 thriller A Most Wanted Man, Jerry Cotton [a 2010 comedy-crime film] and several other productions. Speicherstadt is a really well-preserved part of the city that combines old brick warehouses, narrow streets and canals.”

Given the pivotal role Germany played in 20th century geopolitics, it’s no surprise it is also able to provide backdrops for more recent historical projects.

“One advantage we have is that a lot of parts of the old East Germany have not yet been fully developed,” Giesel says. “So you can find parts of the country where the buildings have not been updated and there are no wind turbines on the horizon.” High-profile productions that have used Germany for locations for WW2 drama include Riva Film’s An Enemy To Die For (2012), which used Hamburg’s Hanseatisches Oberlandesgericht, or high-court building; and Beta Film’s Generation War (Unsere Mütter, unsere Väter), a ZDF miniseries that scored huge ratings in 2013.

The North Rhine-Westphalia region has provided a wide range of period backdrops to movies over the years — not all of the classic period drama variety — including “historical facades for Stephen Daldry’s The Reader, industrial chic for Ari Folman’s The Congress, an authentic coal-miners’ housing estate for Sönke Wortmann’s The Miracle Of Berne and 1970s buildings and racing tracks for Ron Howard’s Rush”,

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according to Christina Bentlage, head of film funding at the Film- und Medienstiftung North Rhine-Westphalia.

A real treasure when it comes to historical locations is capital city Berlin, where it is possible to find beautiful art deco buildings, baroque palaces and post-war East German tower blocks within close proximity to each other. Especially interesting is the area around Karl-Marx-Allee, which is home to a unique array of 1950s/1960s socialist-style architecture. Nearby Alexanderplatz, for example, featured prominently in Matt Damon movie The Bourne Supremacy (2004). Berlin also provided the backdrop for the 2013 TV miniseries Hotel Adlon, which followed the life of a famous hotel from its construction in 1907 through its partial destruction in WW2 up until its rebuilding in 1997.

For producers, a further appeal of Berlin is that there are still many parts of the city that have not yet been seen much on film, ranging from train stations to government buildings to residential areas. In 2006, Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s highly-acclaimed film The Lives Of Others provided a fascinating insight into Berlin during the Sovietcontrolled Cold War era.

Germany is not the only country in Europe to have castles, churches and pretty town centres. So why come here? Ask any of the regional film commissioners and they will cite funding incentives, hard-working crews, state-of-the-art equipment and the infrastructure. But The Monu-

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FILMING JORGO PAPAVASSILIOU’S 2006 TWO-PART TV MOVIE DIE STURMFLUT (STORM FLOOD), ABOUT THE 1962 FLOOD CATASTROPHE IN HAMBURG, AT HAMBURG’S HISTORIC HARBOUR MUSEUM AREA. THE FILM WAS PRODUCED BY GERMANY’S TEAMWORX. PHOTO: STEFAN ERHARD

ments Men provides a further clue to Germany’s appeal.

In that case, the production was able to combine great locations with state-of-the-art facilities at Studio Babelsberg in Potsdam.

Another recent production that demonstrated the potential for collaboration between regions is Potsdambased UFA Filmproduktion’s Night Over Berlin - The Reichstag Fire, a love story set in 1932 against the backdrop of the rise of Nazism and burning of the Reichstag.

In this case, filming took place in 2012 in Berlin, Leipzig and Cologne. The interiors of Berlin’s Reichstag, for example, were filmed at MMC Studios in Cologne — as was Berlin’s Parliament Hall.

The ability to put together the perfect historical production in Germany is further enhanced by the quality of behind-the-scenes expertise that also exists in the country, ranging from art department and set design to make-up and costume. Berlin, for example, is home to Theaterkunst, one of the world’s leading costume firms. Founded in 1907, Theaterkunst has built up a collection of over 10 million pieces ranging from stoneage loincloths and rococo ball dresses to 1920s suits and post-war items. On the rare occasions Theaterkunst doesn’t have the right outfit in stock, its workshop is able to make items to order. Among its many credits are Der Wagner Clan, a ZDF drama that looks at composer Richard Wagner’s complex family life, The Monuments Men, The Grand Budapest Hotel and Night Over Berlin – The Reichstag Fire.

Pretty much any part of Germany can support a historical production. The locations mentioned above are spread across the country, as are the four major studio complexes in Cologne, Munich, Hamburg and Potsdam, close to Berlin. Even cities that are not immediately associated with filming have started to enjoy some success in recent times. Dresden, for example, has hosted a number of productions in the last few years including historical films Young Goethe In Love (2010) and Denmark’s A Royal Affair (2012).

The latter of these productions also shot in the Czech Republic, which is a reminder that Germany sits at the heart of Europe. With no less than nine country borders, there’s plenty of scope to use Germany’s rich cultural and historical heritage as part of an international co-production. But that’s another story…

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ROMAN POLANSKI’S THE PIANIST, WHICH RECREATED THE WARSAW GHETTO ON THE BACKLOT AT STUDIO BABELSBERG

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STUDIO BABELSBERG IN POTSDAM HAS BEEN PRODUCING FEATURE FILMS SINCE 1912, AND FAMOUSLY STILL OPERATES THE SOUND STAGE WHERE FRITZ LANG’S 1927 FILM METROPOLIS WAS SHOT. TODAY IT IS PLAYING AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE INTERNATIONAL FILM INDUSTRY…

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AVING celebrated its 100th anniversary just two years ago, Studio Babelsberg has in recent years re-established itself as an important international filming venue, enabling Germany to compete with the US, UK, Canada and Australia for the world’s biggest movie productions. Among the many titles to have shot there in recent years are V For Vendetta (2005), Valkyrie (2008), Inglourious Basterds (2009), Cloud Atlas (2012) and The Book Thief (2013).

According to Studio Babelsberg spokesman Eike Wolf: “We have state-of-the-art stages, great talent and superb locations, but the thing that really put us back on the map was the introduction of competitive filming incentives. That has encouraged leading filmmakers to partner with Babelsberg.”

Partner is the correct word, because Babelsberg doesn’t just act as a studio services provider. “We are set up to be a one-stop coproduction partner for filmmakers in Germany. We can build anything on our backlot but we can also organise production finances and manage location shooting,” Wolf says. “As part of our service we can access regional and national film funds.”

Historical feature films have been a big part of Babelsberg’s recent success. “We really caught the attention of the international community with films like The Pianist (Roman Polanski, 2002), which saw us build the Warsaw Ghetto on our backlot, and Enemy At The Gates (2001), where we recreated Stalingrad during World War 2. More recently, we have rebuilt Shakespearean London for Anonymous (2011) and a Parisian cinema for Inglourious Basterds.”

Wolf adds: “Some filmmakers come to Germany because they are determined to get authentic Berlin locations. But if they can’t find everything they want in the city itself then we can make it on our backlot, Valkyrie being a recent example.”

As for projects which are studio-led, a recent case is The Book Thief. Here, production designer Simon Elliott created the fictional town of Molching on the lot of Studio Babelsberg as well as Haus Huberman, where much of the action takes place. But for a major book-burning scene the production team went to the well-preserved town of Görlitz near the Polish border.

While historical productions have played a major part in getting Babelsberg back on the map, they are only one part of the studio’s offer, says Wolf. “We can also do a good job of doubling.

For The Ghost Writer (2010) we recreated London and for The Bourne Supremacy we recreated Moscow.”

2014 is shaping up as an exciting year for the studio: “We’ve also just knocked down our old backlot and are planning to rebuild an improved version in the coming year. We haven’t revealed everything that will be on the new lot but there will be a new version of our famous Berlin Street.”

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THE ISSUES DEALT WITH IN SO MANY INTERNATIONAL CINEMA SUCCESSES OVER THE YEARS, AND THE CAMPAIGNING NATURE OF SO MANY OF ITS LEADERS, HAS GIVEN THE FILM INDUSTRY A LIBERAL SHEEN THAT DOES NO HARM TO ITS MARKETING EFFORTS. YET IT HAS BEEN AS GUILTY AS ANY WHEN IT COMES TO THE ENVIRONMENT. BUT AS CLIVE BULL DISCOVERS, THINGS ARE CHANGING

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HILE the environmental issues facing the planet have been regularly reflected in films and television programmes over the past few years, it is only more recently that the industry has taken a good look at itself and how eco-friendly its production methods are. In Germany the drive towards sustainability and social responsibility is picking up pace with a host of green initiatives now emerging.

One of the key players in this movement is Bavaria Film which two years ago set the goal of developing a carbon-neutral production facility, and it seems they may well be the first in the world to achieve that.

Appropriately Bavaria Film’s Munich studios are located in the middle of Perlach Forest to the south of the city, and the German name of the location is Grünwald, which means ‘green forest’. “Our location’s name is part of our agenda,” Bavaria Film Group CEO Achim Rohnke says.

“Our goal is to entrench a philosophy and actions throughout the company and behind the camera that preserve resources and are ecologically-minded.”

After investing around €30m in modernisation, carbon emissions have been reduced by 97%, with the remaining emissions offset by a geothermal energy project in Indonesia. Electrical power supplies have been switched to regenerative hydropower and the heating system has been converted to use an environmentally friendly geothermal source.

New buildings feature photovoltaic cells which feed energy into the

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national grid. Regular lightbulbs have been replaced with energy-saving versions and LED equipment, and the company is investing in inverter technology for air-conditioning units.

The ARD weather forecast was the first zero-carbon production on the lot, and the soap Storm Of Love has become the first climate-neutral daily drama in the world. ClimatePartner acts as a climate protection adviser, and managing director Tristan Foerster believes the achievement is genuinely groundbreaking and is a model for others to follow: “In terms of reduction, prevention and compensation of the greenhouse-gas emissions, Bavaria Film is a paradigmatic pioneer.”

Establishing industry guidelines is one of the aims of the Green Shooting Card. Developed by film commission and funding body Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein (FFHSH), it is one of the first projects to introduce a set of recognisable standards and recommendations for sustainable film and television production in Germany. The idea originated in 2011 while Hamburg was European Green Capital, and the concept has been met with enthusiasm. “Any production that can verify shooting in a green manner can obtain the card,” Christiane Scholz of FFHSH says. “We provide consultation about best practices and after shooting we conduct an interview. Besides information on the production company and the shooting schedule, a list must be submitted of how the producer intends to reduce the use of energy.”

One of the big productions following the Green Shooting Card guidelines is actor and producer Michael B Herbig’s feature film Buddy. With shooting taking place in Munich and Hamburg, sustainability consultant Nicola Knoch was taken on at the pre-production stage and, as a result, waste was reduced by more than half, a carbon balance was generated and carbon compensation organised. “I am present during the entire preproduction phase,” Knoch says. “We need this time to get the whole team involved in the process. Everyone should know the relevant issues for their department in order to make their own decisions during filming.”

According to Scholz, green filmmaking and sustainability is a process that needs to be urgently addressed. “A producer cannot work with complete sustainability from one day to the next and cut emissions by 100% — improvement is achieved from production to production,” she says. “The time is now and we cannot wait any longer. Here in Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein we are on the right path and we would like to convince our colleagues elsewhere that in future green film production should be considered a necessity.”

FFHSH executive director Eva Hubert says the organisation has identified a wide variety of ways to make production more environmentally friendly.

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JAN FEDDER AS POLICE OFFICER DIRK MATTHIES, AND THE CAST OF SEASON 27 OF GROSSSTADTREVIER, GERMANY’S LONGEST-RUNNING TV SERIES, THE PRODUCTION OF WHICH HAS CLEAR SUSTAINABILITY GOALS

“Paying attention to waste separation, conserving energy and eating seasonal, regional foods are part of this, just as they are in our private lives,” she says. “Our Film Commission tries to organise support from municipal institutions such as assistance for waste separation or free water tanks.” Hubert says they are considering following the example of the film fund in Belgium by demanding that a carbon footprint for a specific production is submitted along with any application for subsidies.

Dieter Kosslick, director of the Berlin Film Festival, agrees that film subsidy systems could be adapted to encourage greater sustainability.

“Whoever uses public funding should also take on public responsibilities. Hardly anything ever happens voluntarily,” he says. In terms of theatrical presentations, Kosslick points to the digitisation of cinema as a technological advance that has considerable environmental advantages. “There are not only huge savings in film stock and production but also in the costs for the reproduction of traditional prints,” he says.

“Thanks to digitisation, films can be distributed globally very fast and with significantly lower CO2 emissions.” As well as promoting ecological goals, the festival has also adopted a number of green initiatives itself, tackling its own carbon footprint, cutting down on waste, encouraging train travel with a carbon offset, and increasing awareness.

But how does sustainability affect production costs and financing?

“In regards to a green economy, we are convinced ecology and economics are not contradictory,” Bavaria Film’s Rohnke says. “In fact, ecological actions give us a competitive advantage over other film companies.”

Berlin-based consulting company peacefulfish, which specialises in financing creative industries, sees sustainability as a tool to support public and private financiers in developing more efficient investments.

A survey conducted across Europe by the company in 2013 found that 70% of financiers see sustainable and environmental strategy as a way to select and attract better investments. Peacefulfish founder and CEO Thierry Baujard believes the drive towards carbon-neutral productions in German film and television production is gaining momentum: “It is true that France and the UK have been very fast in spreading the word about green filming but that is changing very quickly now in Germany with some key initiatives in Hamburg, Berlin and Stuttgart in particular.” And while environmental issues are not the most significant factor when it comes to financing, he says there is increasing interest in sustainability as an investment criteria, from both public institutions and in the private sector.

A sustainable approach can actually reduce production costs, but “that needs to be done right from the development and financing phases. You need strong planning to bring the maximum effect,” Baujard says. And it is new technologies that are key to saving on production

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costs and reducing emissions at the same time.

“Younger generations of filmmakers especially are looking for the latest technology equipment. Film producers and crews are definitely interested in using eco-friendly equipment if it is available where the shoot is happening and at a competitive price compared to other equipment.”

As for measuring how sustainable a production is, and what progress is being made, that is where the carbon calculator generally comes in. There is a variety of tools available in different markets, with some calculators developed specifically for the TV sector, for example. One monitoring issue that is emerging is that with different tools being used for local situations, it is hard to establish larger-scale trends. Accessing data for comparisons is difficult because databases use more than one calculator.

Many observers foresee film and television productions facing some kind of requirement to be sustainable, or at the very least have sustainability linked to the provision of subsidies. “Some EU directives on use of public money already include some eco conditions,” Baujard says. “I see that being more and more in the selection criteria, and also from the private side as well — even though it is today done more on a voluntary basis. But in the future, sustainability finance could become a strong competitive advantage for regions and countries wishing to attract new productions.”

Another factor in Germany’s move towards a fully sustainable film industry is the Green Film Initiative,

MICHAEL GEIDEL “SINCE A FLEET OF VEHICLES WILL BE RENTED FOR A PRODUCTION ANYWAY, THERE IS NO EXTRA COST INVOLVED WITH THE USE OF FUELEFFICIENT OR HYBRID CARS” a joint project between the Climate Media Factory, the Konrad Wolf Academy of Film and Television, and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. With the aim of creating detailed guidelines for the industry, the Initiative collaborated on the Best Practice Guide for the Green Shooting Card.

Michael Geidel, from the Green Film Initiative, says that productions can go green and save money by the use of eco-friendly technology. “Digital cameras can be used as well as energy-efficient lamps,” he says.

“TV movies are shot almost exclusively with digital equipment today which cuts costs and reduces CO2 emissions as well.”

Geidel says many of the recommendations are already being adopted and are becoming part of everyday life, for example choosing green energy suppliers, traveling by train rather than plane, sourcing products from local providers and recycling to reduce waste. Choosing the greener transporta- ///

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tion option can also make a big difference to a production’s carbon footprint. “These services are usually supplied by third-party providers,” Geidel says. “Since a fleet of vehicles will be rented for a production anyway, there is no extra cost involved with the use of fuel-efficient or hybrid cars. Such measures can bring about two-digit savings in CO2 emissions.”

As the industry focuses more clearly on environmental issues, many are turning to climate-change specialists. Based in Hamburg, Dr Marten von Velsen-Zerweck is co-founder and managing director of nserve Environmental Services, a company that partners corporate clients to develop strategies for climate-friendly projects and financing. The aim is to not just ensure climate protection, but deliver economically-viable systems which are therefore genuinely sustainable. “Ecological sustainability pays off for film productions because sustainable management also directs attention to costs,” von Velsen-Zerweck says. “The emission hotspots — areas where a lot of energy is used — correspond with high expenditure hotspots.”

There will of course be occasions when it is not possible to achieve desired carbon emissions directly within a production, and that is where carefully selected investment in sustainable projects can be used to offset the balance. Nserve emphasises that such partnerships, usually between developing nations and industrialised countries, can also lead to viewer involvement. With TV audiences particularly, something like the funding of a reforestation project could lead to media coverage as part of an on-going story. “Producers or broadcasters can support a project on a long-term basis by buying certificates and communicating their commitment across all media platforms,” von Velsen-Zerweck says. “The audience can participate directly and periodically receive blog posts and images

via social networks and websites.”

The green message is certainly getting through to Germany’s longest-running TV series, Großstadtrevier, which was first aired in 1986. Studio Hamburg Produktion regards the series, starring Jan Fedder as Police Chief Inspector Dirk Matthies of the 14th district, as a perfect testing ground for the studio’s plans to reduce emissions and waste during film and television production. The idea started when production manager Joerg Pawlik and director Lars Jessen were inspired by the Green Shooting Card launch.

Pawlik felt television series needed to address sustainability issues and as Großstadtrevier went into its 27th season it seemed like a suitable starting point.

The Großstadtrevier production team has developed clear sustainability goals and their strategy includes the use of eco-friendly service providers and fuel-efficient or hybrid vehicles. Low emission generators with particle filters will be chosen whenever possible, the series uses LED lamps and has moved to Arri Alexa cameras which require less extra lighting when shooting at night.

Michael Lehmann, head of production at Studio Hamburg, immediately embraced the idea of conserving energy and resources in filmmaking. “I really like the initiative and I am convinced that it will bring about a new attitude with producers.”

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A MOVIE WONDERL AND CO NS TA N T I N O PL E

Baltic Coast Swabia GHENT EULENSTEIN

Vi s tu

Bourgogne

VIENNA

BRUSSEL S

Hungary B E LG R A D E

Ireland

Alpes

PA RIS

ip pi

Missouri

BERLIN AIRPORT

si s s

WO R M S

LO N D O N

A S TA P OVO

la

Mis

BU DA PEST

North Sea Coast

Balaton

HELSINKI

FÜ RT H JA S N A JA P O L JA N A

ROME

LUTZ

BOSTO N Hawaii MOSCOW

R hin

e

The states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia offer a baffling variety of film locations that stand in perfectly for cities, regions, and landscapes across the world.

Recent productions shot in the region Mitteldeutschland include: The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Monuments Men, Cloud Atlas, The Physician, and The Notebook.  Map of the Mitteldeutschland region displaying settings for movies shot in Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia

www.mdm-online.de

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24/01/14 11:12

A MOST WANTED MAN IS THE LATEST FILM FROM DIRECTOR ANTON CORBIJN. A SPY THRILLER BASED ON THE JOHN LE CARRE NOVEL, IT STARS PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN AND RACHEL MCADAMS. THE STORY IS SET IN HAMBURG, AND THE MOVIE WAS SHOT IN HAMBURG AND BERLIN. DEBBIE LINCOLN REPORTS MAKING A SCENE

MAKING A SCENE - A MOST WANTED MAN

A MOST WANTED MAN

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A

MOST Wanted Man is set in present-day Hamburg. A mysterious half-Chechen, half-Russian muslim man (Issa Karpov, played by Grigoriy Dobrygin) starving and badly beaten through torture, is smuggled into the city in the dead of night. He is seeking to recover his late Russian father’s fortune and in the process connects with British banker Tommy Brue (Willem Dafoe) and young lawyer Annabel Richter (Rachel McAdams) whose mission is to protect the rights of persecuted émigrés. They are being watched by the chief of a German spy unit Günther Bachmann (Philip Seymour Hoffman) as well as interested parties in the US in an attempt to discover the true motivations of the wanted man.

With the story set mainly in Hamburg, and occasionally in Berlin, the decision to shoot in those two German cities was “pretty straightforward”, according to Malte Grunert, whose Amusement Park Films was the principal production company on the film. Not only did it contribute to the authenticity of the film, it also meant the production could take advantage of the funding available to a film that uses German locations, facilities and crew.

And Grunert says that right now, Germany is high on the list of places where international actors are happy to work. “Berlin certainly has all the facilities and crew and subsidies that a production like this requires,” he says. “And I think once you get to persuade people to spend time somewhere away from [Hollywood] that isn’t New York, today it’s as easy to persuade them to spend time in Berlin as it is London or Paris.”

For Grunert one of the biggest challenges with A Most Wanted Man was the need to be true to Le Carré’s writing. “John le Carré knows Hamburg very well as he lived there while he was working for the British government. His official post was in the consulate in Hamburg,”

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ON LOCATION FOR A MOST WANTED MAN: RACHEL MCADAMS AND WILLEM DAFOE IN ACTION ON SET AT THE BRAHMS KONTOR BUILDING IN HAMBURG,, WATCHED BY THE FILM’S DIRECTOR ANTON CORBIJN, FAR LEFT. COPYRIGHT: MARCO ZITZOW / BILD-ZEITUNG

Grunert says. “He had researched the city very well too and so his descriptions were extremely accurate. Obviously it was just impossible to use every location he mentions, and when something is described so well it is hard to find a replacement.”

The sheer number of locations described in the book meant a great deal of work for the production team. “We had a location change every day, and for a film of our size that really was the biggest technical challenge,” Grunert says. But there was help from the city: “The film commission in Hamburg (Film Commisson der Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein, the FFHSH) established contacts for us and there was interest in the city from the political arena as well as the cultural side, so we won support from everyone, right up to the mayor’s office,” Grunert says. “Any time it became complicated the city was on our side and helped us.”

Notably the FFHSH provided €900,000 in funding for the film. Further funding for the film came from The Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg (€200,000) and the German Federal Film Fund (€1,550,000).

The FFHSH’s Alexandra Luetkens also contacted all the relevant police and civil engineering authorities of the different districts to ask for their general support of the production. “We knew that with 40 shooting days all at different locations in Hamburg, there would be a lot of blocking-off of streets and a huge

demand for parking by the crew,” she says. “For example, when the production was first denied permission to shoot on the roof of a historic warehouse building in Hamburg’s Speicherstadt, we got the state chancellery to flank my efforts and together we convinced the location’s owner, a municipal society, to grant permission to use the roof. We also helped the production in dealings with privately owned locations.”

The people of the city also proved an asset to the production. “In general, one doesn’t need to fight huge crowds or the paparazzi in a place like Hamburg,” Grunert says. “It’s something of a stereotype but stereotypes are usually based on truth; German people pride themselves on leaving people alone to get on with their business. And Hamburg is especially discreet. I mean we shot on the Reeperbahn on a Thursday night without much trouble. So yes, it is quite easy to move around in Germany.”

Adapted for the screen by Australian writer Andrew Bovell, A Most Wanted Man is produced by Gail Egan and Andrea Calderwood for Potboiler; Stephen Cornwell and Simon Cornwell for The Ink Factory; and Malte Grunert for Amusement Park Films. Helge Sasse for Senator Film Produktion is co-producer. Lionsgate is handling the US release, and Senator Film Verleih the German release.

Executive producers are John le Carré, Tessa Ross of Film4 and Sam Englebardt and William D Johnson of Demarest Film.

•

24/01/14 15:48

SAARLAND FILM COMMISSION & FILMFÖRDERUNG SAARLAND FILM GMBH Susanne Jacob Nell-Breuning-Allee 6 66115 Saarbrücken Fon: +49 (0)681-389 88 58 jacob@saarland-film.de www.saarland-film.de www.location-guide.eu

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FILMFÖRDERUNG HAMBURG SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN GMBH FILM COMMISSION Antje Bremer (Kiel Office) Alexandra Luetkens (Hamburg Office) Friedensallee 14-16 22765 Hamburg Fon: +49 (0)431-220 09 30 (Kiel Office) Fon: +49 (0)40-39 83 72 30 (Hamburg Office) bremer@ffhsh.de luetkens@ffhsh.de www.ffhsh.de

MECKLENBURG- VORPOMMERN filmlocationMV Antje Naß Puschkinstrasse 44 (Rathaus) 19055 Schwerin Fon: +49 (0)385-59 36 08 62 info@filmlocation-mv.de www.filmlocation-mv.de www.filmland-mv.de

nordmedia – FILM- UND MEDIENGESELLSCHAFT NIEDERSACHSEN/BREMEN MBH FILM COMMISSION Susanne Lange Expo Plaza 1 30539 Hannover Fon: +49 (0)511-12 34 56 53 location@nordmedia.de www.nordmedia.de

FILM COMMISSION REGION STUTTGART Christian Dosch Breitscheidstrasse 4 70174 Stuttgart Fon: +49 (0)711–259 44 30 film@region-stuttgart.de www.film.region-stuttgart.de

COORDINATION OFFICE BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERG MFG MEDIEN- UND FILMGESELLSCHAFT BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERG MBH Oliver Zeller Breitscheidstrasse 4 (Bosch-Areal) 70174 Stuttgart Fon: +49 (0)711-90 71 54 02 filmfoerderung@mfg.de www.mfg-filmfoerderung.de

FFF FILM COMMISSION BAYERN FILMFERNSEHFONDS BAYERN GMBH Anja Metzger Sonnenstrasse 21 80331 München Fon: +49 (0)89–54 46 02 16 anja.metzger@fff-bayern.de www.film-commission-bayern.de www.filmkulisse-bayern.de

BERLIN BRANDENBURG FILM COMMISSION MEDIENBOARD BERLIN-BRANDENBURG GMBH Christiane Raab August-Bebel-Strasse 26-53 14482 Potsdam-Babelsberg Fon: +49 (0)331-743 87 31 location@medienboard.de www.bbfc.de www.medienboard.de

FILM COMMISSION NORDRHEIN-WESTFALEN FILM- UND MEDIENSTIFTUNG NRW GMBH Lena Kraan Kaistrasse 14 40221 Düsseldorf Fon: +49 (0)211-93 05 00 lenakraan@filmstiftung.de www.locationnrw.de www.filmstiftung.de

FILM COMMISSION HESSEN HESSISCHE FILMFÖRDERUNG Katrin Huvart Am Steinernen Stock 1 60320 Frankfurt / Main Fon: +49 (0)69-13 88 66 50 mail@film-commission-hessen.de www.film-commission-hessen.de www.filmland-hessen.de

info@locationgermany.de

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| www.locationgermany.de

Image: © Film Commission Bayern

MDM FILM COMMISSION (Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia) MITTELDEUTSCHE MEDIENFÖRDERUNG GMBH Bea Wölfling Hainstrasse 17-19 04109 Leipzig Fon: +49 (0)341-269 87 16 bea.woelfling@mdm-online.de www.mdm-online.de

22/01/14 12:18

FUNDING INSTITUTIONS REGIONAL FUNDING INSTITUTIONS FILMFERNSEHFONDS BAYERN GMBH Sonnenstrasse 21 80331 München Fon: +49 (0)89 – 554 60 20 Fax: +49 (0)89 – 554 60 221 www.fff-bayern.de filmfoerderung@fff-bayern.de Prof. Dr. Klaus Schaefer / MD FILMFÖRDERUNG HAMBURG SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN GMBH Friedensallee 14-16 22765 Hamburg Fon: + 49 (0)40 – 398 37 0 Fax: + 49 (0)40 – 398 37 10 www.ff hsh.de info@ff hsh.de Eva Hubert / MD FILMLAND M-V GGMBH Puschkinstraße 44 (Rathaus) 19055 Schwerin Fon. +49 (385) 551 57 70 Fax. +49 (385) 551 57 72 www.filmland-mv.de info@filmland-mv.de Volker Kufahl / MD FILM-UND MEDIENSTIFTUNG NRW GMBH Kaistrasse 14 40221 Düsseldorf Fon: + 49 (0)211 – 930 500 Fax: + 49 (0)211 – 930 505 www.filmstiftung.de info@filmstiftung.de Petra Müller / MD GESELLSCHAFT ZUR MEDIENFÖRDERUNG SAARLAND-SAARLAND MEDIEN MBH Nell-Breuning-Allee 6 66115 Saarbrücken Fon: +49 (681) 389 88 0 Fax: +49 (681) 389 88 20 www.saarlandmedien.de info@saarlandmedien.de Dr. Gerd Bauer / MD HESSISCHE FILMFÖRDERUNG Am Steinernen Stock 1 60320 Frankfurt/Main Fon: +49 (69) – 155 45 16 Fax: +49 (69) – 155 45 14 www.hessische-filmfoerderung.de hessische-filmfoerderung@hr.de Maria Wismeth / MD MDM MITTELDEUTSCHE MEDIENFÖRDERUNG GMBH Hainstrasse 17-19 04109 Leipzig Fon: + 49 (0)341 – 269 87 – 0 Fax: + 49 (0)341 – 269 87 – 65 www.mdm-online.de info@mdm-online.de Manfred Schmidt / MD MEDIENBOARD BERLIN BRANDENBURG GMBH August-Bebel-Strasse-26-53 14482 Potsdam-Babelsberg Fon: +49 (0)331 – 743 87 0 Fax: +49 (0)331 – 743 87 99 www.medienboard.de info@medienboard.de Kirsten Niehuus / MD Film Funding Elmar Giglinger / MD Media Business Development

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NORDMEDIA FILM UND MEDIENGESELLSCHAFT NIEDERSACHSEN/BREMEN MBH Expo Plaza 1 30539 Hannover Fon: + 49 (0)511 – 12 34 56 0 Fax: + 49 (0)511 – 12 34 56 29

FUNDING INSTITUTIONS

79 MEDIEN-UND FILMGESELLSCHAFT BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERG MBH Breitscheidstrasse 4 (Bosch-Areal) 70174 Stuttgart Fon: + 49 (0)711 – 907 15 400 Fax: + 49 (0)711 – 907 15 450 www.mfg-filmfoerderung.de filmfoerderung@mfg.de Prof. Carl Bergengruen / MD

Büro Bremen Hinter der Mauer 5 (Weserhaus) 28195 Bremen Fon: + 49 (0)421 – 178 31 51 Fax: + 49 (0)421 – 168 91 79 www.nordmedia.de info@nordmedia.de Thomas Schäffer / MD

FEDERAL FUNDING INSTITUTIONS DER BEAUFTRAGTE DER BUNDESREGIERUNG FÜR KULTUR UND MEDIEN (BKM) REFERAT K 35 Köthener Straße 2 10963 Berlin Fon: +49 (0)30 – 18 681 – 44301 Fax: +49 (0) 30 – 18 681 – 53608 www.kulturstaatsminister.de K35@bkm.bund.de Sandra Wemmel / Head of division FFA FILMFÖRDERUNGSANSTALT GERMAN FEDERAL FILM BOARD Große Präsidentenstrasse 9 10178 Berlin Fon: +49 (0)30 – 275 77 – 0 Fax: +49 (0)30 – 275 77 – 111 www.ffa.de presse@ffa.de Peter Dinges / Executive Committee DEUTSCHER FILMFÖRDERFONDS (DFFF) GERMAN FEDERAL FILM FUND c/o FFA Filmförderungsanstalt Große Präsidentenstrasse 9 10178 Berlin Fon: +49 (0)30 – 275 77 – 527 Fax: +49 (0)30 – 275 77 – 111 www.ffa.de hammelmann@ffa.de Cornelia Hammelmann / Project Director

ADDITIONAL ADDRESS GERMAN FILMS SERVICE + MARKETING GMBH Herzog-Wilhelm-Strasse 16 80331 München Fon: +49 (0)89 – 59 97 87 – 0 Fax: +49 (0)89 – 59 97 87 – 30 www.german-films.de info@german-films.de Mariette Rissenbeek / MD

24/01/14 10:32

SKW Schwarz Rechtsanwälte

We are one of the leading firms in the area of media and entertainment law in Germany.

Numerous German film and TV production companies, a large number of „independent“ production companies and well-known film and TV talent are among our clients.

We have been rendering legal support for movie and TV productions for a long time now and can look back on a large number of national and international productions to which we have provided comprehensive advice.

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Our work centers on providing steady legal support for a production, above all preparing contracts for production firms, TV stations and artists.

Another key task is to ensure financing for cinema and TV production by or on behalf of banks, film-funding institutions and private investors. For example, we structure and support private-equity investments for the financing of international feature films.

SKW Schwarz Legal Support for Film- and TV-Productions

SKW Schwarz Rechtsanwälte Wittelsbacherplatz 1 80333 Munich T +49 (0)89.286 40-0 F +49 (0)89.280 94-32 E muenchen@skwschwarz.de

www.skwschwarz.de Berlin Düsseldorf Frankfurt/Main Hamburg München

A DV E RT IS E RS ARRI BAVARIA FILM STUDIOS BERLIN BRANDENBURG FILM COMMISSION DEUTSCHE FILMVERSICHERUNGS GEMEINSCHAFT FILM-UND MEDIENSTIFTUNG NRW GMBH, NORTH RHINE WESTPHALIA FILMFERNSEHFONDS BAYERN FILMFEST MUENCHEN FILMFOERDERUNG HAMBURG SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN FILM COMMISSION GERMAN FILM COMMISSIONS HOTEL BAYERISCHER HOF INVESTITIONSBANK DES LANDES BRANDENBURG JOLA RENT GMBH LOFT STUDIOS MACKEVISION MDM FILM COMMISSION, MITTELDEUTSCHE MEDIENFORDERUNG MEDIA CITY ATELIER (MCA) GMBH MFG FILMFORDERUNG BADEN-WURTTEMBURG ANIMATION MEDIA CLUSTER MFG FILMFORDERUNG BADEN-WURTTEMBURG LOCATION SOUTHWEST MMC STUDIOS COLOGNE NORDMEDIA RISE FX SHOTZ PRODUCTION SERVICE SKW SCHWARZ RECHTSANWÄLTE STUDIO BABELSBERG STUDIO HAMBURG THEATERKUNST KOSTUMAUSSTATTUNG TRIXTER UNVERZAGT VON HAVE WUNDERFILM ZEIGERMANN_AUDIO

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22/01/14 13:54

L O V E LY I F T H E B R E A K F A S T I S T H E F I R S T H I G H L I G H T O F T H E DAY.

O R E N J O Y A N O V E RW H E L M I N G V I E W AT YO U R F U N C T I O N .

Led by the French design studio Jouin Manku the breakfast and function room, Roofgarden features a comprehensive re-design and was transformed into a new meeting hot spot: the breakfast buffet will offer an even wider range of products as well as an à-la-carte breakfast area. The addition of a modern lounge and bar area with an open fireplace offers also a large new event space merging with the Blue Spa designed by André Putman to form a new unit.

Promenadeplatz 2 - 6 80333 Munich, Germany

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Phone + 49 89.21 20 - 0 Fax + 49 89.21 20 - 906

www.bayerischerhof.de info@bayerischerhof.de

20/01/14 15:17

Image credits from top to bottom, left to right: © Düsseldorf Marketing GmbH; © filmlocationMV; © opm Fotografie Christina Stihler & Oliver Michel; © Sylt Marketing GmbH / Dominik Träuber; © BBFC / Foto: David Marschalsky; © MDM/Sven Claus; © Film Commission Hessen; © opm Fotografie Christina Stihler & Oliver Michel; © Weltkulturerbe Völklinger Hütte / Gerhard Kassner; © Film Commission Bayern; © Klimahaus Bremerhaven 8° Ost/BTZ; © Jan Meier; © MDM/Bertram Bölkow; © BBFC / Foto: David Marschalsky; © MDM/Sven Claus; FFHSH / M.O. Schulz.

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