The best of European cinema…without the jet lag.
Now in its 34th year, the AFI European Union Film Showcase continued its tradition of bringing the best in European cinema to Washington, DC-area audiences. This year's selection included 53 films from all 27 EU Member States, 11 of them are top contenders for this year's Academy Award® for Best International Feature Film and 13 U.S. and North American premieres.
The contribution GREAT FREEDOM of the Austrian filmmaker Sebastian Meise tells the story of Hans who in post-war Germany is imprisoned again and again for being homosexual. Due to the legal provisions of the time, his desire for freedom is systematically destroyed. The one steady relationship in his life becomes his long time cell mate, Viktor, a convicted murderer. What starts as revulsion grows into something called love. The film will be screened on December 2nd, 4th and 8th, 2021.
When: Wednesday, December 1 – Sunday, December 19, 2021
Where: AFI SILVER THEATRE AND CULTURAL CENTER
8633 Colesville Road | Silver Spring, MD 20910
Ticket: $15
GREAT FREEDOM
Directed by Sebastian Meise
Austria, 2021
116 min, in German with English subtitles
In postwar Germany, Hans is imprisoned again and again for being homosexual. Due to the paragraph 175, his desire for freedom is systematically destroyed. The one steady relationship in his life becomes his long time cell mate, Viktor, a convicted murderer. What starts in revulsion grows to something called love.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Photo © Elsa-Okazaki
Sebastian Meise is an Austrian director and screenwriter. His acclaimed debut feature film STILLIFE premiered at San Sebastian IFF and won several awards such as Best Feature Film at Diagonale Film Festival. His documentary film OUTING was presented at the Hot Docs Festival in Toronto. His second feature film GREAT FREEDOM with German shooting star Franz Rogowski and Berlinale Silver bear awardee Georg Friedrich in the leading roles had its world premiere in the Official Selection Un Certain Regard of the Cannes Film Festival 2021. He co-founded the Vienna based production company FreibeuterFilm.