Ekotopfilm Festival - Roadside Radiation. Strahlen der Heimat
With stories from the Chernobyl zone of alienation, ROADSIDE RADIATION portrays the fates of its past and present residents and researches the complex human consequences of the catastrophe: a place of collective loss but also of individual survival.
Interview with Director Moritz Schulz and Producer Michael Sladek
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
We made our film because for us and many others in Germany the Chernobyl catastrophe has deeply shaped our environmental conscience and our opinion about nuclear energy. Now 30 years have past since the catastrophe has happened and we were eager to explore how this event has changed the lives of people still living in and around the Chernobyl zone of alienation. How would people be able to cope with the magnitude of the catastrophe and its ongoing impact on their everyday lives. In a sense we wanted to revisit the zone 30 years after and take a fresh look at the human struggle and the resilience of the inhabitants in and around the zone.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
First of all it is important to not forget about the immense impact this catastrophe had on the whole of Europe. Even today the consequences of this single event are very real, especially when you look at it not just from an environmental or medical point of view but rather look at the psychological burden this catastrophe has put on the many thousand (former) inhabitants of today's zone. Secondly our film has a much more universal message many people in the audience can relate to. How do we, as humans, cope with our struggles, how do we rationalize them and go on with our lives? How do (some of us) survive even the greatest catastrophes and still find the strength to fight on, in search for a little bit of hope and happiness.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The universal theme of your movie is the fight for happiness, hope and a home, which we are all fighting one way or the other. And oddly enough our movie makes a very uplifting point. We all can manage. We all can overcome. Each of us can find happiness, hope and a home even in the most desolate places. But even so, this will never be without costs.
This theme is also very personal for me, as the director of the movie. Even though my struggles were much more individual, I can very much relate to the characters in our movie, as I had to fight very hard as well to find a (personal) place in this world and feel at home within this place.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?
Before we started filming we had researched the topic of our film extensively, so we knew very well what to look for once we started filming. But as with any documentary project the individual storylines and scenes developed and changed in the course of our filming. Still the general idea and themes of the movie have not changed fundamentally once we realized which way our movie needed to go.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback towards our movie is overwhelmingly positive. We had some closed screenings as well as a world premiere just recently at the Big Sky festival in Missoula/MO. At each of these events the audience seemed mesmerized by the film and even days later many people contacted us to tell us how much the film affected them personally.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
We were positively surprised by the magnitude of the feedback and so it has reinforced our point of view, that it was valuable and necessary to make a film like ours.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
As any filmmaker we would love to see more people interested in our film and getting a chance to see it. Therefore we need to find ways to show and distribute the film all around the world. And of course your platform is a very good way to connect to film professionals, which means we can possibly interest a greater audience in the long run.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
The actual production of the film is finished and so we are in the distribution stage of our film. Still any of the before mentioned groups could help us very much to amplify our film's message.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
We would like our film to have two very distinct impacts. For one we want our audience to remember the Chernobyl catastrophe and the enormous consequences it has up to today. Secondly we would like our audience to reflect on their own struggles, what is important to them and how they will or have overcome great challenges in their own life. So in even more broad terms one of the central questions of our film is: what is important to me in this life and what is important to us as humans in general?
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
One of the key questions of our movie is: How would I personally react to a catastrophe like this, and its ongoing consequences? What would I do to (try to) overcome its destructive legacy?
Would you like to add anything else?
Come see our movie! Its very much worth the time. On our website roadside-radiation.com we will keep you updated, where it is playing next and you can contact us if you want to help us distribute the film or just simply want the movie shown in a theater near you.
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
The director of the film, Moritz Schulz, is currently working on two separate projects. One is about the (very new) struggle an aging migrant population faces in Germany. And the second is about the enormous impact further digitisation and the development of artificial intelligence will have on our future lives.
Interview: March 2017
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
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Roadside Radiation. Strahlen der Heimat
With stories from the Chernobyl zone of alienation, ROADSIDE RADIATION portrays the fates of its past and present residents and researches the complex human consequences of the catastrophe: a place of collective loss but also of individual survival.
Length: 55min
Director: Moritz Schulz
Producer: Michael Sladek
Writer: Moritz Schulz, Elisabeth Fast
About the writer, director and producer:
Elisabeth was born in the Soviet Union and has ever since had a deep affection for the struggles of the people in the post-soviet countries.
Through personal experience Moritz has developed great empathy and understanding for the complex mechanisms through which people react to and thereby rationalize personal suffering.
Michael was deeply affected by the Chernobyl catastrophe, especially since he and his parents embarked on a life changing journey to reform Germanys energy production.
Key cast: Markiyan Kamysh, Alexandr Sirota, Nikolaj Solovjev, Hanna Zavorotnya
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):
We are looking for sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors and journalists. But since we know that we could still use help, especially in foreign markets we are also looking for producers outside of Germany
Funders: The cultural fund of the city of Freiburg i.Br. (Kulturamt Freiburg), Elektrizitätswerke Schönau, Dr. Axel Münch Stiftung, FUSS e.V., Startnext, Stiftung Zukunftserbe.
Made in association with: earlybirdpictures GbR
Where can I see it in the next month?
The next opportunity will be at the Ekotopfilm Festival in May 2017